There is now a general list of abilities by level, regardless of class:

• Feats are similar to 5e core. See Feats.
• Your class no longer determines which skills you may take; you simply gain proficiency in the listed number of skills of your choice.
  • Alternatively, you may spend a skill proficiency to increase your expertise in a skill you already have. See Skills for details.
  • Some classes grant "skill alternatives", which allow you to spend a skill proficiency to gain class-specific abilities. See your class description for details.
• Ability Score Increases are unchanged: gain two +1s to any chosen ability score.
• Path Rank means you advance an existing path by 1 rank, or gain a new path at rank 1.
• Proficiency bonus is 2 points higher across the board, but otherwise unchanged.

Dice are no longer used to generate ability scores at character creation. Instead, use the "unweighted 20-point buy" method.

• All six scores start at 10.
• Before adding any modifiers for race, class, magic items, etc, spend 20 points.
• There is no "weight" to a point. A score of 15 costs 5 points, 17 costs 7, 9 costs -1, etc.
• You cannot increase a score past 18 using points.
• You cannot lower a score below 8 using points.

Example of a valid way to determine ability scores, using a 1st-level Dragonborn Sorcerer:

Notes:

• An "immediate action" takes place as soon as you declare it, even if outside of your turn.
• If someone else is acting, you can "interrupt" their action with an immediate action, completing your action before they complete theirs.
• You cannot interrupt an interruption; if multiple immediate actions happen at the same time, use Initiative rolls to determine the order of action.
  • Reactions are considered immediate actions.
• Once committed, immediate actions must occur, assuming they are not nullified by other actions.

Example of use

• An orc attacks a halfling rogue. He rolls a successful attack, but while rolling damage, the halfling declares that he is spending an Action Point to interrupt.
• Spending 1 AP, the halfling uses Cunning Action to Disengage, immediately running 20-ft away without provoking attacks.
• The orc's ally, a goblin rogue, joins the fray, spending 3 AP to throw a net on the halfling to foil his escape. Since there are now two immediate actions in play, Initiative is rolled. The goblin wins, and tosses the net accurately, dooming the halfling's escape to failure.
• The halfling's ally, a human fighter, sees this occur, and spends 1 AP to move to his ally's side, intercepting the attack and suffering it in his place. However, he is not a rogue, and normal movement provokes attacks of opportunity. The orc attacks; since this is an immediate action, he rolls Initiative, as does the human fighter. The orc beats the human.
• The halfling and human have another ally in an elven mage. The elf spends 3 AP to cast Magic Missile on the goblin. He rolls Initiative, beating the goblin.
• In the final reckoning, the elf has the highest initiative, followed by the goblin, followed by the halfling, followed by the orc, then the human fighter. Thus, the actions occur in the following order:
  • The halfling attempts to flee, but the goblin plans to throw a net to foil his escape.
  • Seeing this, the elf wizard blasts the goblin with a Magic Missile, which fells the goblin. The net is never thrown, and the halfling flees.
  • The human fighter, already en route to save his ally, arrives in position to block the now-foiled net attack. In so doing, he provokes an attack from the orc, who swings hard, but the fighter manages to block the attack with his high AC.

Action Points and Enemies

Only PCs (and party NPCs) have Action Points; normal enemies do not. However, some enemies may have the "elite" or "villain" status which grants them Action Points.

Spell slots no longer exist. Instead, you gain Mana based on your class:

Casting a spell costs 1 Mana per level of the spell. Cantrips, accordingly, cost 0 Mana.

Metamagic and heightening are based on Mana, but have no maximum. For example:

• Enlarge Spell adds +100% range per Mana spent.
• Empower Spell adds +100% damage per Mana spent.
• Spell heightening (where casting with a higher-ranked spell slot increased effect) is achieved by spending more Mana. In cases where a higher-ranked effect is not appropriate for lower-level casters, the effect with either note a level requirement, or will simply be a new spell at higher level.

All classes have the same starting hit points as 5e, but on each subsequent level, they gain a flat bonus based on their hit die:

Hit Dice

Hit Dice have been removed as a concept.

When taking a short rest, PCs regain 25% of missing HP.

When you gain bonus skill proficiencies by leveling up, you need not always select a new skill. Instead, you may have the option, depending on your classes and paths, to gain a class- or path-specific benefit.

For example, wizards have the option of cashing in a skill proficiency to gain an Arcana: a powerful modification to the way they cast spells. Sorcerers, on the other hand, can cash in a Skill Proficiency to gain a new spell known.

This new skill describes how well you can cast spells. When you cast a spell, you roll Spellcraft to determine if it hits (if aimed) and to set any save DCs.

All spells now inflict bonus damage based on your casting ability score. Furthermore, if you are wielding a spell focus with which you are proficient, you gain your proficiency bonus as bonus spell damage as well.

Spells which hit multiple times (such as Magic Missile or Scorching Ray) do not add this bonus to each strike; either choose one strike to gain all the bonus damage, or distribute it between each strike as you wish.

For example:

• A 7th-level sorcerer has a 20 Charisma. Thus, he gains +5 spell damage, or +10 with a spell focus.
• Shocking Grasp now inflicts 1d8+10 (up from 1d8+0).
• Fireball inflicts 8d6+10 damage (up from 8d6+0).
• Magic Missile inflicts 1d4+1 three times, plus 10. Thus, either 1d4+11 and two hits at 1d4+1, or a combination such as 1d4+5, 1d4+5, 1d4+3.

Spells are no longer class-specific, but rather organized into a universal list of "schools". Access to schools is granted by class and path choice, and largely mirrors basic 5e, but it is possible to gain access to schools through other means, such as by trading in a Skill Proficiency.

Partial list of schools:

Given that base damage for weapon attacks increases by one die per 5 levels for proficient wielders (see Skills), critical hits are handled slightly differently.

• In 5e, a critical hit grants one bonus damage die of the same type as the weapon.
• In 5.2, a critical hit grants bonus damage dice equal to the normal damage dice.

Thus, a 6th-level fighter inflicting 2d8+8 damage normally would inflict 4d8+8 on a critical hit.

Wielding two weapons has always had a bunch of messy rules based on "realism". Well, the history of melee combat since forever shows us that "dual wielding" exists solely in the realm of fantasy. Therefore, I don't think we need complicated "realistic" rules anymore.

Dual wielding is now simple. Weapons are either two-hand, one-hand, or offhand. You may wield any one weapon regardless of handedness (assuming you have the right number of hands). You may wield an offhand weapon in your other hand.

There are penalties to hit or damage with offhand weapons. They work exactly like "on-hand" weapons. If you wield two offhand weapons of the same type, they would have exactly the same hit and damage rolls.