Traits
Character traits are abilities that are not tied to your race or class. They can enhance your skills, racial abilities, class abilities, or other statistics, allowing you further customization.
Basic Traits
Basic traits are broken down into four categories. Combat traits focus on martial and physical aspects of your background. Faith traits focus on your religious and philosophical leanings. Magic traits focus on any magical events or training you have had. Social traits focus on your social class or upbringing.
Combat Traits
These traits are associated with combat, battle, and physical prowess. They give minor bonuses in battle and represent conflicts and physical struggles in your backstory.
You have studied the workings of anatomy, either as a student at university or as an apprentice mortician or necromancer. You know where to aim your blows to strike vital organs. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all rolls made to confirm critical hits.
You have worn armor as long as you can remember, either as part of your training to become a knight's squire or simply because you were seeking to emulate a hero. Your childhood armor wasn't the real thing as far as protection, but it did encumber you as much as real armor would have, and you've grown used to moving in such suits with relative grace. When you wear armor of any sort, reduce that suit's armor check penalty by 1, to a minimum check penalty of 0.
Axe to Grind
There is a fire in your heart that can't be quenched. You gain a +1 trait bonus on damage against foes who are threatened by only you.
You are skilled at supporting your allies in the heat of battle. You gain a +2 trait bonus on Heal checks made to stabilize a dying creature. In addition, when you successfully use the aid another action in combat to grant an ally a bonus on her next attack roll, the bonus you grant increases by 1.
You are particularly successful when using deeds. Once per day, when you perform a deed that requires an attack roll and you miss with that roll, you can reroll it. You must take the second result even if it is worse.
You have little to fear when there's a gun in your hand. As long as you are wielding a firearm, you gain a +2 trait bonus on all saving throws against curse, fear, and emotion effects.
Your confidence rises when you foil spellcasting. Once per day, when you interrupt the casting of a spell with a firearm attack, you may regain 1 grit point.
You have a vicious streak, and nothing satisfies you more than warm blood on your hands and blade. Whenever you make an attack that reduces a foe to 0 hit points or fewer or you confirm a critical hit, your attack deals 1 additional point of damage. The additional damage is a trait bonus, and is multiplied by your weapon's critical hit multiplier.
You were bullied often as a child, and you are now constantly ready to defend yourself with your fists when an enemy comes near. You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack of opportunity attack rolls made with unarmed strikes. Note that this trait does not grant the ability to make attacks of opportunity with your unarmed strikes—you must have a level in monk, the Improved Unarmed Strike feat, or some other similar power to gain the use of this character trait. However, that doesn't prevent you from selecting this trait. You simply cannot make use of it until a later point if you do.
Cold and Calculating
You are adept at tricking favored enemies of your race or those related to your race. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all Bluff checks against favored enemies that share one of your subtypes. You also gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls made against such favored enemies during the surprise round.
Your childhood was brutal, but you persevered through force of will and faith. No matter how hard things got, you knew you'd make it through as long as you kept a level head. You gain a +2 trait bonus on saving throws against fear effects.
When a companion is down, you fight harder. You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls and on checks made to overcome spell resistance while you are adjacent to a dying or disabled ally, animal companion, eidolon, familiar, or mount.
Deft Dodger
Growing up in a rough neighborhood or a dangerous environment has honed your senses. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Reflex saves.
You wouldn't have lived to make it out of childhood without the aid of a sibling, friend, or companion you could always count on to distract your enemies long enough for you to do a little bit more damage than normal. That companion may be another PC or an NPC (who may even be recently departed from your side). When you hit a foe you are flanking, you deal 1 additional point of damage (this damage is added to your base damage, and is multiplied on a critical hit). This additional damage is a trait bonus.
When deprived of magic, you fight harder. You gain a +1 trait bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls while within an area of antimagic such as that created by an antimagic field. You also gain this bonus for 1 round after you are subject to an area or targeted dispel magic spell, regardless of the effect's success or failure in dispelling your spells and magical effects.
Easy Way or the Hard Way
You are skilled at subduing your enemies. Whenever you attack one of your favored enemies with a weapon that deals lethal damage and choose to deal nonlethal damage, you take only a —2 penalty on the attack roll instead of the normal —4.
Larger enemies have a hard time striking you. You gain a +1 dodge bonus to AC against enemies that are both your favored enemy and at least two size categories larger than you.
Divine powers smile upon you each time you grievously wound a favored enemy. When you confirm a critical hit against a favored enemy, you may extend the duration of any divine spell affecting you by 1 round. The benefits from multiple critical hits stack. Divine spells with an instantaneous duration can't be extended in this manner.
You trained with blades for long hours as a youth, either taking lessons in the genteel art of fencing from tutors paid for by your parents or being taken under the wing of a disenfranchised fencer who may have turned to a life of crime. You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack of opportunity attack rolls made with daggers, swords, and similar bladed weapons.
Your concealed weapons strike fast and true. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sleight of Hand checks made to conceal light weapons and a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls when making an attack with a light weapon during a surprise round.
When you watch and wait before attacking, your strike is true. You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls against your favored enemies when you make such attacks as part of a readied action.
When you are gravely wounded, you're stirred to greater combat focus. Each time a critical hit is confirmed against you, you gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls for 1 round.
Just Like New
Broken firearms are not problems—they are challenges. Your first attempt to remove the broken condition from your starting firearm and to upgrade it to a masterwork weapon costs 150 gp instead of 300 gp. In addition, when wielding a firearm that has the broken condition or is treated as if it had the broken condition, you take a —1 penalty on attack rolls made with it instead of the normal —2.
You made your first kill at a very young age and found the task of war or murder to your liking. You either take particular pride in a well-placed blow, or find vile pleasure in twisting the blade to maximize your target's pain. You deal an amount of additional damage equal to your weapon's critical hit modifier when you score a successful critical hit with a weapon; this additional damage is added to the final total, and is not multiplied by the critical hit multiple itself. This extra damage is a trait bonus.
Kin Guardian
You are dedicated to defending members of your family. When you use the aid another action to give a member of your family a bonus to AC, increase the bonus by 2. This increase is a trait bonus (and therefore doesn't stack with increases granted by other family members using this trait). This trait has no effect when using the aid another action to increase a family member's next attack roll.
You wield firearms with truly terrifying menace. When you use the Intimidate skill on a creature while wielding a firearm, you are considered one size category larger than your actual size.
Your training has made you a martial performer. When you gain a monk bonus feat, you may instead take a performance feat for which you meet the prerequisites.
Your knowledge of nature informs your fighting style, and that style gives you insight into related aspects of the natural world. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all Knowledge (nature) checks, and Knowledge (nature) is always a class skill for you. You can make Knowledge (nature) checks pertaining to animals that correspond to your style feats untrained.
Even when the chips are down, you keep on shooting. If your hit point total drops to 0 or lower but you are not dead, you may act as if disabled rather than dying (as if you possessed the Diehard feat). However, you can use your actions only to draw a firearm, reload a firearm, or attack with a firearm. If you have the Diehard feat, this trait also allows you to substitute your Wisdom score for your Constitution score for the purpose of determining the negative hit point total at which you die.
You were bullied often as a child, but never quite developed an offensive response. Instead, you became adept at anticipating sudden attacks and reacting to danger quickly. You gain a +2 trait bonus on initiative checks.
You have a tendency for rash behavior, often disregarding your own safety as you move across the battlefield. You gain a +1 bonus on Acrobatics checks, and Acrobatics is always a class skill for you.
You do not fear the threat of lesser weapons. Whenever you provoke an attack of opportunity by firing a firearm, you gain a +1 trait bonus on the attack roll that provoked the attack of opportunity.
Growing up in a poor neighborhood or in the unforgiving wilds often forced you to subsist on food and water from doubtful sources. You've built up your constitution as a result, and gain a +1 trait bonus on Fortitude saves.
Some disagree with your choice to wield a firearm, and their scorn has only hardened your resolve in battle. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all saving throws against charm and compulsion effects. Also, once per day when you succeed at a saving throw against such an effect, you regain 1 grit point.
Your own people are your favored enemy. You gain a +1 trait bonus on rolls to confirm critical hits against favored enemies of your own subtype and on Survival checks made to track such creatures.
Through either perfect timing or the determination of your action, the sound of your firearm going off sets your enemies on edge. When you shoot a firearm, you gain a +2 trait bonus on Intimidate checks for 1 round against those who heard the shot.
You are skilled at fighting with objects not traditionally considered weapons. You gain a +2 trait bonus on attack rolls with improvised weapons.
You know how to take advantage of enemies who are unprepared for your assault. You gain a +1 trait bonus on initiative checks. In addition, once per day when you make an attack of opportunity, you gain a +2 trait bonus on the attack roll.
Your skill with firearms speeds your repair of such weapons. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Craft (alchemy) and Craft (weapons) checks, and it takes you only 30 minutes to remove the broken condition from a firearm.
You are hard to fool and harder to trick with a feint. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all Sense Motive checks. This trait bonus increases to +2 when used to counter a feint in combat.
Faith Traits
These traits rely upon conviction of spirit, perception, and religion, but are not directly tied to the worship of a specific deity. You do not need a patron deity to gain a faith trait, as these traits can represent conviction in yourself or your philosophy just as easily as they can represent dedication to a deity.
You wield the might of your faith with power and clarity. Once per day as a free action, you may treat your caster level as if it were 2 levels higher when using one of the granted powers of your domain or inquisition, or when casting one of your domain spells.
You were born with a strange birthmark that looks very similar to the holy symbol of the god you chose to worship later in life. This birthmark can serve you as a divine focus for casting spells, and as a physical manifestation of your faith, and it increases your devotion to your god. You gain a +2 trait bonus on all saving throws against charm and compulsion effects.
Some divine agent watches over you and heeds your call. Once per day as a swift action, you gain a +1 trait bonus on all saving throws for 1 round.
As the child of an herbalist or an assistant in a temple infirmary, you often had to assist in tending to the sick and wounded. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Heal checks, and Heal is always a class skill for you.
You have long served at a temple in a city, where you picked up on many of the nobility's customs in addition to spending much time in the temple libraries studying your faith. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (nobility) and Knowledge (religion) checks, and one of these skills (your choice) is always a class skill for you.
Your faith in the natural world or one of the gods of nature makes it easy for you to pick up on related concepts. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (geography) and Knowledge (nature) checks, and one of these skills (your choice) is always a class skill for you.
You are resistant to the magic of other faiths. You gain a +2 trait bonus on all Will saves you attempt against divine spells. This bonus does not apply against divine spells cast by a caster who worships the same deity you do.
Magic Traits
These traits are associated with magic and focus on spellcasting and manipulating magic. You don't have to be a spellcaster to take a magic trait (although several of these traits aren't useful to non-spellcasters). Magic traits can represent a character's early exposure to magical effects or childhood studies of magic.
Race Traits
Race traits are tied to specific races. Your character must be of the specified race to select a race trait. However, the background generator draws from all lists, letting you ignore these restrictions. If using the background generator, you can take any trait you gain access to through it.