You are skilled in a type of artistic expression, which may encompass a variety of specific methods, and you know how to put on a show.
Like
Craft,
Knowledge, and
Profession, Perform is actually a number of separate skills. You could have several Perform skills, each with its own ranks, each purchased as a separate skill.
Each of the ten categories of the Perform skill includes a variety of methods, instruments, or techniques, a small list of which is provided for each category below.
- Act (comedy, drama, mime)
- Comedy (buffoonery, limericks, joke-telling)
- Dance (ballet, waltz, jig)
- Keyboard instruments (harpsichord, piano, pipe organ)
- Oratory (epic, ode, storytelling)
- Percussion instruments (bells, chimes, drums, gong)
- String instruments (fiddle, harp, lute, mandolin)
- Weapon drill (quick, flashy movements of a weapon)
- Wind instruments (flute, pan pipes, recorder, shawm, trumpet)
- Sing (ballad, chant, melody)
Check
You can impress audiences with your talent and skill. In some situations, you can sway an audience's attitude with your performance, using the same DCs and results as a
Diplomacy check (see Influencing NPC Attitudes).
Perform (Weapon Drill): This category of the Perform skill covers any sort of weapon display, such as twirling a sword or flipping a dagger from hand to hand. Despite the skill's name, you can use it when unarmed by demonstrating difficult martial arts techniques or shadow boxing against an imaginary opponent.
Unlike other categories of the Perform skill, your prowess with the weapon is an important factor in how good your Perform (weapon drill) skill is. Apply half of your attack bonus with that weapon (rounded down) as a
Circumstance Bonus on Perform (weapon drill) checks. Your
Charisma modifier also applies, as with any Perform check. If you aren't proficient with the weapon you're using, you take the -4 nonproficiency penalty on Perform (weapon drill) checks.
Action
Varies. Trying to earn money by playing in public requires anywhere from an evening's work to a full day's performance. The
Bard's special Perform-based abilities are described in that class's description. In the case of Perform (weapon drill), if you're performing to earn money in public, a weapon drill requires at least 4 hours of 20-minute performances, with breaks in between. If you're demonstrating your skill or trying to impress the crowd at a gladiator match, the performance is a
Standard Action.
Try Again
Yes. Retries are allowed, but they don't negate previous failures, and an audience that has been unimpressed in the past is likely to be prejudiced against future performances. (Increase the DC by 2 for each previous failure.)
Special
A masterwork musical instrument gives you a +2
Circumstance Bonus on all Perform checks that involve its use.
The following feats each grant a +2 bonus on relevant Perform (weapon drill) checks:
Greater Weapon Focus,
Quick Draw,
Two-Weapon Fighting,
Weapon Focus, and
Whirlwind Attack.
A
Bard must have ranks in specific Perform categories to use some of their Bardic Performance abilities.
A
Bard cannot use Perform (weapon drill) checks to perform their bardic music abilities (inspire courage, fascinate, and so on).
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: Whenever you attempt a Bluff, Diplomacy, Handle Animal, or Intimidate check, you can attempt a DC 20 Perform check to gain a +2 Circumstance Bonus on the check.
- 10 Ranks: Whenever you cast a spell with the emotion or language-dependent descriptor, you can attempt a DC 25 Perform check to increase the save DC by 1.
- 15 Ranks: Whenever you cast a spell with the emotion or language-dependent descriptor, you can attempt a DC 30 Perform check to increase your Caster Level by 1. You must choose whether to use this ability or the ability unlocked at 10 ranks when casting the spell.
- 20 Ranks: Choose one of the following skills: Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate. When you attempt a skill check with that skill, you can also attempt a Perform check and use the better result to determine the success of that skill check.
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