Vital Statistics & Encumbrance

Rules Index

This page covers two reference areas that come up frequently at the table: the physical characteristics of the core races (age, height, weight) and the encumbrance system that determines how much a character can carry before their movement and combat effectiveness suffer. The encumbrance calculator below handles the arithmetic automatically.

Vital Statistics

Starting Age

Roll the die listed for your class category and add it to the race's adulthood age. Starting age has no mechanical effect — it is purely for character description.

Race Adulthood Intuitive (+die) Self-Taught (+die) Trained (+die)
Dwarf 40 +3d6 +5d6 +7d6
Elf 110 +4d6 +6d6 +10d6
Gnome 40 +4d6 +6d6 +9d6
Half-Elf20 +1d6 +2d6 +3d6
Half-Orc14 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Halfling20 +2d6 +3d6 +4d6
Human 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Intuitive
Barbarian, Oracle, Rogue, Sorcerer
Self-Taught
Bard, Cavalier, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Summoner, Witch
Trained
Alchemist, Cleric, Druid, Inquisitor, Magus, Monk, Wizard

Aging Effects

As characters age their physical stats decline while mental stats improve. These are permanent changes — they apply regardless of magical aging. A character magically aged to Venerable receives all the incremental penalties/bonuses for each prior tier as well.

Race Middle Age Old Venerable Maximum Age
Dwarf 125188250250 + 2d%
Elf 175263350350 + 4d%
Gnome 100150200200 + 3d%
Half-Elf62 93 125125 + 3d20
Half-Orc30 45 60 60 + 2d10
Halfling50 75 100100 + 5d20
Human 35 53 70 70 + 2d20
Age Tier STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
Middle Age−1−1−1+1+1+1
Old −2−2−2+2+2+2
Venerable −3−3−3+3+3+3

Bonuses and penalties are cumulative — an Old character has the Middle Age penalty/bonus plus the Old penalty/bonus (total: −2/+2). A Venerable character has all three tiers applied (total: −3/+3). Death from old age occurs at the maximum age roll; the GM may keep the result secret.

Height & Weight

Roll the height modifier die and add it to the base height (in inches). Multiply that same die result by the weight multiplier and add it to the base weight.

Race Male Female
Base Ht Ht Mod Base Wt / Mod Base Ht Ht Mod Base Wt / Mod
Dwarf 3′ 9″+2d4 in150 lb / ×7 3′ 7″+2d4 in120 lb / ×7
Elf 5′ 4″+2d8 in100 lb / ×3 5′ 4″+2d6 in90 lb / ×3
Gnome 3′ 0″+2d4 in35 lb / ×1 2′ 10″+2d4 in30 lb / ×1
Half-Elf 5′ 2″+2d8 in110 lb / ×5 5′ 0″+2d8 in90 lb / ×5
Half-Orc 4′ 10″+2d12 in150 lb / ×7 4′ 5″+2d12 in110 lb / ×7
Halfling 2′ 8″+2d4 in30 lb / ×1 2′ 6″+2d4 in25 lb / ×1
Human 4′ 10″+2d10 in120 lb / ×5 4′ 5″+2d10 in85 lb / ×5

Additional Races (Advanced Race Guide)

Starting age, aging effects, and height/weight for 16 featured and 14 uncommon races. For racial traits, ability modifiers, and special abilities, see Browse Races.

Starting Age

Race Adulthood Intuitive (+die) Self-Taught (+die) Trained (+die)
Changeling 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Duergar 40 +3d6 +5d6 +7d6
Gillman 20 +1d6 +2d6 +3d6
Grippli 12 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Kitsune 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Merfolk 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Nagaji 20 +1d6 +2d6 +3d6
Samsaran 60 +4d6 +6d6 +8d6
Strix 12 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Suli 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Svirfneblin 40 +4d6 +6d6 +9d6
Vanara 14 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Vishkanya 15 +1d4 +1d6 +2d6
Wayang 40 +4d6 +5d6 +6d6

Aging Effects

Race Middle Age Old Venerable Maximum Age
Changeling 35 53 70 70 + 2d20
Duergar 125 188 250 250 + 2d%
Gillman 62 93 125 125 + 3d20
Grippli 20 30 40 40 + 1d20
Kitsune 32 50 65 65 + 3d12
Merfolk 35 53 70 70 + 2d20
Nagaji 60 90 120 120 + 3d20
Samsaran 150 200 250 250 + 6d%
Strix 20 30 40 40 + 1d20
Suli 35 53 70 70 + 2d20
Svirfneblin 100 150 200 200 + 3d%
Vanara 30 45 60 60 + 2d10
Vishkanya 35 53 70 70 + 2d20
Wayang 100 150 200 200 + 1d%

Height & Weight

Race Male Female
Base Ht Ht Mod Base Wt / Mod Base Ht Ht Mod Base Wt / Mod
Changeling * — female only 4′ 2″+2d4 in85 lb / ×5
Duergar 3′ 9″+2d4 in150 lb / ×7 3′ 7″+2d4 in120 lb / ×7
Gillman 4′ 10″+2d10 in120 lb / ×5 4′ 5″+2d10 in85 lb / ×5
Grippli 1′ 7″+2d4 in25 lb / ×1 1′ 5″+2d4 in20 lb / ×1
Kitsune 4′ 10″+2d8 in100 lb / ×5 4′ 5″+2d8 in85 lb / ×5
Merfolk 5′ 10″+2d10 in145 lb / ×5 5′ 8″+2d10 in135 lb / ×5
Nagaji 5′ 9″+2d10 in180 lb / ×7 5′ 6″+2d10 in160 lb / ×7
Samsaran 5′ 4″+2d8 in110 lb / ×5 5′ 6″+2d8 in110 lb / ×5
Strix 5′ 4″+2d8 in125 lb / ×5 5′ 2″+2d8 in115 lb / ×5
Suli 4′ 10″+2d10 in120 lb / ×5 4′ 5″+2d10 in85 lb / ×5
Svirfneblin 3′ 0″+2d4 in35 lb / ×1 2′ 10″+2d4 in30 lb / ×1
Vanara 4′ 8″+2d8 in105 lb / ×5 4′ 2″+2d8 in90 lb / ×5
Vishkanya 5′ 3″+2d8 in85 lb / ×5 5′ 1″+2d8 in75 lb / ×5
Wayang 3′ 0″+2d4 in35 lb / ×1 2′ 10″+2d4 in30 lb / ×1

* Changelings are exclusively female.

Encumbrance

A character's Strength score determines how much they can carry. Total the weight of all carried gear — armor, weapons, backpack contents, and worn items. Compare to the thresholds below to find your light, medium, or heavy load category.

Load Effects

Load Max DEX Bonus Armor Check Penalty Speed (30 ft base) Speed (20 ft base) Run
Light No limit 0 30 ft 20 ft ×4
Medium +3 −3 20 ft 15 ft ×3
Heavy +1 −6 20 ft 15 ft ×3

The Armor Check Penalty from encumbrance stacks with the ACP from worn armor. A creature in heavy armor with a heavy load applies both penalties to Strength- and Dexterity-based skill checks. The speed reduction from encumbrance does not stack with armor speed reduction — use whichever is lower. See Armor & Shields (coming soon) for armor ACP and speed reduction values.

Carrying Capacity by Strength

Values are the maximum weight in pounds for each load category. Carrying exactly the heavy-load limit counts as a heavy load.

STR Light (max) Medium (max) Heavy (max) STR Light (max) Medium (max) Heavy (max)
13610 1676153230
261320 1786173260
3102030 18100200300
4132640 19116233350
5163350 20133266400
6204060 21153306460
7234670 22173346520
8265380 23200400600
9306090 24233466700
103366100 25266533800
113876115 26306613920
124386130 273466931,040
1350100150 284008001,200
1458116175 294669331,400
1566133200 305331,0661,600
Size Multipliers
Fine × ⅛
Diminutive × ¼
Tiny × ½
Small × ¾
Medium × 1
Large × 2
Huge × 4
Gargantuan × 8
Colossal × 16
Lifting & Dragging
Lift over head = heavy load max
Lift off ground × 2 heavy load max
Push or drag × 5 heavy load max

Quadrupeds (horses, animal companions, etc.) multiply their carrying capacity by 1.5. Pushing or dragging across difficult terrain halves movement. A push or drag counts as a heavy load for all purposes.

Encumbrance Calculator

Light max
lbs
Medium max
lbs
Heavy max
lbs

See Also

STR modifiers, carrying capacity detail
Speed penalties from terrain and conditions
Armor ACP, max DEX, and speed reduction
Racial traits, ability modifiers, and special abilities