Quick reference
Counteract Checks
How to do those god damn counteract checks. Four steps, one table, and a calculator so nobody has to do the arithmetic at the table again.
The four steps
Work out your counteract rank
If you're using a spell, it's the spell's rank — the rank you actually cast it at, heightening included.
Anything that isn't a spell: halve its level and round up, minimum 0.
Work out the target's counteract rank
Same rule. A spell uses its rank; anything else is ceil(level ÷ 2).
If the effect's level isn't clear and a creature produced it, halve the creature's level and round up.
Find the DC
Affliction — the DC is printed in its stat block. Spell — use the caster's spell DC. Anything else — the GM sets one from the effect's level.
Roll, then compare ranks
For a spell, the modifier is your spellcasting attribute modifier + spellcasting proficiency bonus, plus anything that specifically applies to counteract checks. Otherwise use the relevant skill modifier.
The roll decides your degree of success — the ranks decide whether that degree is good enough.
Is it counteracted?
The whole table
The highest counteract rank you can end, by your rank and how the roll went. Bracketed numbers are the levels that rank usually corresponds to.
| Your rank | Failure | Success | Critical success |
|---|