Perception

Perception measures your ability to be aware of your environment. Every creature has Perception, which works with and is limited by a creature’s senses. Whenever you need to attempt a check based on your awareness, you’ll attempt a Perception check. Your Perception uses your Wisdom modifier.

If you are trained in Perception, then you add +1d to your Perception dice pool. You might add a circumstantial +1d for advantageous situations or environments, spells, or other magical effects. Items can also grant you +1d to Perception, typically in a certain situation. For example, a fine spyglass grants a +1d item bonus to Perception when attempting to see something a long distance away. Circumstantial penalties to Perception occur when an environment or situation (such as fog) hampers your senses, while status penalties typically come from conditions, spells and magic effects that foil the senses. You’ll rarely encounter item penalties or untyped penalties for Perception.

Many abilities are compared to your passive Perception to determine whether they succeed. Your passive Perception is 10 + your Wisdom modifier. This score is modified by +1d for proficiency as usual.

Perception for Initiative

Often, you’ll roll a Perception check to determine your order in initiative. When you do this, instead of comparing the result against a DC, everyone in the encounter will compare their results. The creature with the highest result acts first, the creature with the second-highest result goes second, and so on. Sometimes you may be called on to roll a skill check for initiative instead, but you’ll compare results just as if you had rolled Perception. The full rules for initiative are found in the rules for combat.