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Taunt is used to provoke an enemy into dropping his guard for a short time.

Modifying ability: Charisma

Classes: Barbarian, Bard, Fighter, Rogue, Warlock; Arcane trickster, Duelist, Harper agent, Shadow Thief of Amn, Swashbuckler, Warpriest, Weapon master

Requires training: No

Check: The enemy must make a Will save against a difficulty class equal to 5 + the attacker's taunt skill or suffer -2 to AC and -2 to concentration for five rounds.

Special: At five ranks, the Taunt effects all enemies within 5 feet of the initial target. This radius increases by 5 feet for every additional five ranks the character has. Using Taunt provokes an attack of opportunity; however, at higher levels, you can taunt mobs while they are too far away to perform a melee attack (e.g., 15-20 feet). Taunt penalties are not cumulative.

Use: Selected (combat)


Notes[]

  1. Reducing an opponent's AC in this manner provides similar benefits to increasing the character's attack bonus, but without counting towards the +20 attack bonus cap.
  2. Taunt cannot be used by someone trying to remain unseen (as its use involves being seen). That is, it cannot be used while invisible or in stealth mode, even if it becomes clear that the target has seen through the attempt to remain unseen. If the character is in puppet mode (they are normally in "A.I." mode, unless the player changes these settings), attempting a Taunt under these circumstances may instead only result in an in-game message that states: "The target must be aware of you to use this ability." Characters in A.I. mode will simply leave stealth or invisibility upon commencing a taunt.
  3. Although Taunt's range expands every 5 ranks from the initial target to effect additional enemies, the distance required to use it on the initial target does not. Specifically:
    • In order to attempt a Taunt the user must be within 10 feet of the initial target.
    • If a character attempts to Taunt an opponent more than 10 feet away, those with puppet mode enabled may receive the in-game message noted above and will need to be moved within range to execute their attempt. Otherwise (if "A.I." is on) the character will automatically move within range and attempt a taunt.
    • If the PC needs to move within range to attempt a taunt, failing tumble checks while passing nearby opponents may provoke attacks of opportunity.
    • Aside from the initial target, use of taunt where other opponents are within range may provoke additional attacks of opportunity.
  4. Taunt counts as an offensive action but is not an attack per se.
  5. A Taunt attempt takes approximately two seconds (one flurry) and has a cool down cycle of six seconds. Because the NWN2 game engine executes combat in real time for all combatants this has several implications:
    • Attacks that might otherwise occur during the flurry in which a Taunt is attempted will be delayed. For example:
    • If your PC has two attacks per round and the taunt is attempted during the first flurry of your round, your two attacks may occur in the second and third flurry of your round. This may have minimal impact (if any) on combat.
    • However, if your PC has 6 attacks per round, 2 of them may be delayed (while your opponent's will not be) until the following round - these delays may allow opponents the opportunity for additional actions.
    • If you have a spell queued after a taunt it will be delayed by about 2 seconds.
    • Three taunt attempts in a combat sequence could mean the difference in an opponent getting an extra spell cast.
  6. Regardless of success, Taunt may provoke the initial target (and others, if in range) to attack the user instead of his allies.
  7. Since they are free actions, Combat Expertise or Improved Combat Expertise may be toggled to help defend the user during a Taunt attempt.

DnD 3.5 comparison[]

This skill does not exist in DnD 3.5, although it is very similar to the demoralise opponent aspect of intimidate.

NWN comparison[]

In NWN1, if the taunt was successful, the opponent suffered an armor class penalty equal to the difference between the Taunt roll and the defender’s roll (to a max of a -6 penalty) for 5 rounds. The target also suffered a 30% chance of spell failure, if they didn’t resist the taunt.

External resources[]

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