Identifying Monsters

Introduction

Identifying monsters is an important part of battling them, especially once you get higher level and they start actually having abilities that matter. Unfortunately, this is the one area where the Pathfinder rules are vague and not very helpful, so I’m providing codified monster identification rules.

Identifying a monster is a single action. Covered by that action are you taking a split second to recognize the monster, plus shout just enough info to your companions that they can act on the knowledge. You ask me what you know about the monster, and I will roll your check in secret. You can ask what skill is used to identify the monster before deciding if you want to use the action or not.

The skill required to identify a monster is determined by what type of creature it is (listed below). You can try to identify a monster whether you are you trained or not, but the DC is harder if you are untrained.

Aberration – Occultism Animal – Nature Astral – Occultism Beast – Arcana, Nature Celestial – Religion Construct – Arcana, Crafting Dragon – Arcana Elemental – Arcana, Nature Ethereal – Occultism Fey – Nature Fiend – Religion Fungus – Nature Humanoid – Society Monitor – Religion Ooze – Occultism Plant – Nature Spirit – Occultism Undead – Religion

You learn something about the monster based on the result of your check.

Critical Failure: You know only the most basic and obvious information about the creature. Depending on the creature and situation, you may mistakenly provide misinformation about the creature to your allies. Failure: You know only the most basic and obvious information about the creature. You are not at risk of providing misinformation. Success: You learn basic information about the creature, as well as its name and level. You also learn one additional piece of useful information, as determined by the GM. Critical Success: As “Success”, plus you also gain insight into the creature’s strengths and weaknesses, as determined by the GM.