Use this skill to get a bully to back down, to frighten an opponent, or to make a prisoner give you the information you want. Intimidation includes verbal threats and body language.
Check
You can change another's behavior with a successful check. The DC of your Intimidate check is equal to 10 + target's level or Hit Dice + target's
Wisdom bonus [if any] + target's
Modifiers on saves against
Fear). If you beat your target's check result, you may treat the target as friendly, but only for the purpose of actions taken while it remains intimidated. (That is, the target retains its normal attitude, but will chat, advise, offer limited help, or advocate on your behalf while intimidated. See the
Diplomacy skill for additional details.) The effect lasts as long as the target remains in your presence, and for 1d6×10 minutes afterward. After this time, the target's default attitude toward you shifts to unfriendly (or, if normally unfriendly, to hostile).
If you fail the check by 5 or more, the target provides you with incorrect or useless information, or otherwise frustrates your efforts.
Demoralize Opponent: You can also use Intimidate to weaken an opponent's resolve in combat. To do so, make an Intimidate check against the target's DC (see above). If you win, the target becomes
Shaken for 1 round. A
Shaken character takes a -2 penalty on attack rolls, ability checks, and
Saving Throws. You can only intimidate an opponent within 30 feet that can clearly see and hear you.
Duel of Wills:
You can confront a potential enemy in the moments before a fight breaks out and attempt to crush his will, while he does the same to you.
Immediately before
Initiative is rolled for either side, you can instigate a duel of wills by selecting a single enemy you are aware of within 30 feet. Only characters with
Intelligence scores of 3 or higher can engage in a duel of wills, and the participants must be able to see one another. You can't attempt to instigate more than one duel of wills per encounter.
When you instigate the duel (usually by fixing a cold, steely stare on your opponent), your adversary can respond in one of three ways.
- Submit: The opponent takes a -2 penalty on its Initiative check and a -1 penalty on attack rolls against you on the first round of combat.
- Ignore the Challenge: If your opponent ignores your challenge to engage in a contest of wills, make a DC 15 Intimidate check. If you succeed, you gain a +1 Morale Bonus on attack rolls against that opponent for 1 round.
- Participate: Both you and your chosen foe must make an Intimidate check. The character with the higher result gains a +1 Morale Bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls against the loser, and the loser takes a -1 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls against the winner. If the result is a tie, neither character gains any benefit. These bonuses and penalties last for the duration of the encounter.
Directing Crowds: See the
Diplomacy skill for detail.
Action
Varies. Changing another's behavior requires 1 minute of interaction. Intimidating an opponent in combat is a
Standard Action. Instigating a duel of wills requires no action and occurs before
Initiative is rolled.
Try Again
Optional, but not recommended because retries usually do not work. Even if the initial check succeeds, the other character can be intimidated only so far, and a retry doesn't help. If the initial check fails, the other character has probably become more firmly resolved to resist the intimidator, and a retry is futile. You can only instigate a second duel of wills with the same target after 24 hours have passed.
Special
You gain a +4 bonus on your Intimidate check for every size category that you are larger than your target. Conversely, you take a -4 penalty on your Intimidate check for every size category that you are smaller than your target.
A character immune to
Fear can't be intimidated, nor can nonintelligent creatures.
When using Intimidate against a lower-ranking character (that is, against a character whose commander rating is lower than yours), you can add the difference in commander ratings to your Intimidate check.
Skill Unlock
A character who selects this skill for the Signature Skill feat or a
Rogue who selects it for their Rogue's Edge class ability gains the following abilities when they reach the designated number of ranks in this skill:
- 5 Ranks: If you exceed the DC to demoralize a target by at least 10, it is Frightened for 1 round and Shaken thereafter.* A Will Save (DC = 10 + your number of ranks in Intimidate) negates the Frightened condition, but the target is still Shaken, even if it has the stalwart ability.
- 10 Ranks: If you exceed the DC to demoralize a target by at least 10, it is Panicked for 1 round or Frightened for 1d4 rounds (your choice) and Shaken thereafter.* A Will Save (DC = 10 + your number of ranks in Intimidate) negates the Frightened or Panicked condition, but the target is still Shaken, even if it has the stalwart ability.
- 15 Ranks: If you exceed the DC to demoralize a target by at least 20, it is Cowering for 1 round or Panicked for 1d4 rounds (your choice) and Frightened thereafter.* A Will Save (DC = 10 + your number of ranks in Intimidate) negates the Cowering, Panicked, and Frightened Conditions, but the target is still Shaken, even if it has the stalwart ability.
- 20 Ranks: If you exceed the DC to demoralize a target by at least 20, it is Cowering for 1d4 rounds and Panicked thereafter.* A Will Save (DC = 10 + your number of ranks in Intimidate) negates the Cowering and Panicked Conditions, but the target is still Shaken, even if it has the stalwart ability.
An asterisk (*) indicates the total duration cannot exceed 1 round plus 1 round for every 5 by which you exceed the DC.
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