Sense Motive
Full rules text, use cases, and edge-case handling for this skill.
Description
Sense Motive allows your character to read people — detecting deception, assessing mood, resisting magical compulsion, and picking up on subtle social cues. Where Bluff is the art of lying, Sense Motive is the art of not being lied to.
It is primarily a reactive and investigative skill. Most uses are called for by the GM when something seems off, rather than declared proactively by the player.
Check
| Task | DC |
|---|---|
| Detect a lie or get a hunch that something is wrong | Opposed Bluff |
| Get a vague feeling that something is off (no specific Bluff in progress) | 20 |
| Detect that a target is under magical compulsion or enchantment | 25 or opposed Bluff (whichever is higher) |
| Intercept and decode a secret message (opposed) | Opposed Bluff |
Sense Motive does not reveal the truth. A successful check tells you that something is wrong, that a character is lying, or that they seem magically influenced — it does not tell you what they are hiding or what the enchantment compels them to do. Follow-up roleplay or other skills are needed to dig deeper.
Action
Opposed Bluff (detect lie / secret message): No action — resolved immediately as part of the interaction.
Hunch or sense enchantment: At least 1 minute of interaction with the target.
Try Again
Opposed checks: No separate retry — the result stands for that interaction. If the same character attempts another Bluff in a new context, a new opposed check occurs naturally.
Hunch / sense enchantment: No. Once you have formed an impression from sufficient interaction, rolling again does not change it unless the situation materially changes.
Special
- Alertness (feat): +2 to Perception and Sense Motive; increases to +4 in each with 10 or more ranks.
- Inquisitor — Stern Gaze: Adds half the inquisitor's class level to all Sense Motive (and Intimidate) checks. Makes inquisitors exceptionally difficult to deceive.
- Inquisitor — Detect Alignment (spell-like): Pairs naturally with Sense Motive — the inquisitor can confirm a hunch mechanically.
- Oracle — Misfortune Curse: Some oracle curses interact with social perception in ways that overlap with Sense Motive at GM discretion.
- Familiar bonus: A character whose familiar has a Sense Motive bonus may share it if the familiar is within reach, per standard familiar rules.
- Enchantment immunity: Creatures immune to mind-affecting effects cannot be sensed as "enchanted" via this skill — there is nothing to detect.
Untrained
Yes. Sense Motive is available untrained — gut instinct is something any character can have. Without ranks, however, beating an experienced liar's Bluff result is unlikely.