Ability Scores
Pathfinder Core Rulebook, page 15
Each character has six ability scores that represent his character’s most basic attributes. They are his raw talent and prowess. While a character rarely rolls an ability check (using just an ability score), these scores, and the modifiers they create, affect nearly every aspect of a character’s skills and abilities. Each ability score generally ranges from 3 to 18, although racial bonuses and penalties can alter this; an average ability score is 10.
Abilities and Spellcasters
The ability that governs bonus spells depends on what type of spellcaster your character is: Intelligence for wizards; Wisdom for clerics, druids, and rangers; and Charisma for bards, paladins, and sorcerers. In addition to having a high ability score, a spellcaster must be of a high enough class level to be able to cast spells or use spell slots of a given spell level. See the class descriptions in Chapter 3 for details.
In this section
- Generating Ability Scores There are a number of different methods used to generate ability scores. Each of these methods gives a different level of flexibility and randomness to character generation.
- The Abilities Each ability partially describes your character and affects some of his actions.