Escape Artist
Full rules text, use cases, and edge-case handling for this skill.
Description
Escape Artist covers squeezing through tight spaces, slipping free of bindings, and wriggling out of grapples and restraints. It is the skill of contortionists, escape artists, and anyone who has found themselves in a very small or very binding situation.
Check
The DC depends on what you are escaping.
| Restraint | DC |
|---|---|
| Ropes (DC = binder's Combat Maneuver Bonus + 20) | Varies |
| Net, animate rope, command plants, control plants, or entangle | 20 |
| Snare spell | 23 |
| Manacles (common) | 30 |
| Masterwork manacles | 35 |
| Grapple (escape) | Grappler's CMD |
Squeezing Through Tight Spaces
| Space | DC |
|---|---|
| Space 1 size category smaller than you | 30 |
| Space 2 size categories smaller than you | 35 |
Squeezing through a tight space costs 4 ft of movement per 1 ft moved. You are considered flat-footed while squeezing.
Action
Escaping from ropes, manacles, or similar restraints requires 1 minute of effort. Escaping a net or similar entanglement is a full-round action. Escaping a grapple is a standard action. Squeezing through a tight space is part of a move action.
Try Again
Yes. You can reattempt escaping from ropes or restraints (spending another minute each attempt). Escaping a grapple may be attempted each round. There is no increasing penalty for repeated failure unless the GM rules that repeated struggles tighten the bonds.
Special
- Armor Check Penalty: Applies to all Escape Artist checks.
- Acrobatics synergy: If you have 5 or more ranks in Acrobatics, you gain +2 on Escape Artist checks.
- Slippery Mind (rogue talent): Some rogues can re-attempt Will saves vs. enchantments using mental escape; tangentially related to the flavor of this skill.
- Escape Route (feat, Combat): Doesn't require a check for certain movement — distinct from this skill but thematically linked.
- Grease (spell): +10 bonus on Escape Artist checks to escape ropes and grapples while the grease lasts.
- Freedom of Movement (spell): Automatically succeeds on Escape Artist checks vs. grapples and most magical restraints for the duration.
Untrained
Yes. Any character may attempt Escape Artist. Without ranks, however, escaping manacles (DC 30–35) or a skilled binder (high CMB) is extremely unlikely.