Common Game Calculations

[Vincent07]

Spell Resistance:
To calculate your chances of beating a given SR:
1d20 + Caster Level + Feats/Modifiers
Example: A level 15 wizard with Spell Penetration would be the following:
1d20 + 15 +2

Spell DC:
To calculate the given DC for a spell:
DC is 10 + spell level + caster ability modifier + feats
Example: For a level 15 cleric with WIS=18 and spell focus in a given school for hold person would be:
10 +2 + 4 + 2 = 18

Dispel Checks:
Caster rolls a d20 + caster level (Capped by the spell) vs.
DC 11 + Target's Caster Level

NPCs use their Hit-Die in most cases.

Shadow Weave and other Shadow Magic Feats can alter dispel checks. Read those feat descriptions for details.

Dispel Level Caps:
Lesser Dispel: 5
Dispel: 10
Greater Dispel: 15
Mord's Disjunction: None

[Vincent07]

Practiced Spellcaster:
There seems to be some confusion as to how this feat works:

Practiced Spellcaster (Bard/Cleric/Druid/Sorcerer/Wizard) - Prerequisite: Spellcraft 4
Type of Feat: General.
Specifics: Your caster level for the chosen class increase by +4. This can't increased your caster level beyond your HD. (Ex: a Fighter 2 / Wizard 5 increase his caster level from 5 to 7).
Use: Automatic.

In other words, this has no effect for pure spellcasters. It is a feat for multi-class characters, or classes with half-spell progression. Let's analyze this with level 20 characters:

L20 Wizard: No effect
L16 Wizard/4Fighter: Has the spell slots of a level 16 wizard, but spell damage or duration based on level is as if the caster was a level 20 caster.
L8 Paladin: Has the spell slots of a level 8 Paladin, which is normally a level 4 caster, but spell damage or duration is as if the caster was a level 8 caster.
L6Wizard/4fighter/10Spellsword: Has the spell slots of a level 16 caster, but spell damage or duration based on level is as if the caster was a level 20 caster.

I hope this clears things up.

[Vincent07]

Grapple Checks

When making a grapple check, it is either done by two chars both attempting to grapple the other, or by one attempting to grapple the other.

When one char wishes to grapple another char whom wishes to aviod it, the attacker must make a touch attack on his/her target. Touch attacks are added up in this manner: Attacker rolls a d20+ full unarmed attack bonus(Not including any attack bonus given from gloves or bracers) Thsi is pitted against the targets TOUCH AC. Touch AC is figured up like so: You look at the full AC of the char, then subtract any shield bonus(keep in mind the shield spell counts as this) Natrual Armor bonus and Armor Bonus. Only Dodge, deflection and dex mod's are counted to this AC. Also of note, this is the only time a Dex based Char. with the feat Weapon Finess may use their dex mod in the grapple rolls.
(In the case both chars are attempting to grapple, no touch attack is needed, have at each other)

If the attacker does manage to make a touch attack on the target, the grapple roll is then rolled. Grapple is a d20+Base attack bonus+str mod.(dex isn't used even with the Finess feat) Whomever wins this roll, then has control of the grapple, in other words pinning or gaining control for the round the other char's movement.

Grapples are used when two char's are wrestling or ground fighting. Some times the Touch attack is used, say to grap ahold of another char, not folloed by a grapple, but perhaps by a str roll to pull them back? Or grab ahold of the cloak and jerk them back.

In the case of a rp punch? It's just a pvp typ action, just roll your d20+ab against their ac, if the other char is just standing, then they are flat footed, in which case dodge and dex bonus are removed from thier ac(If the target has uncanny dodge they keep thier Dex mod to their ac at this point, also if the attacker is invisible and the target has blindfight the target isn't treated as flatfooted and retains it's full ac. Invisible does not include hidden however), if they actively fighting, or avoiding the punch, they are not flat footed.

Now that I've fully confused you, get into the tavarns and lets have us some properly rolled out bar brawls people!