PF2e Hit Points, Healing & Dying

Death & Recovery Reference — Player Core

Dying Flow Chart

State transitions for player characters — W = Wounded value added to every dying increase

Alive
Dying X
Unconscious
Dead
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Key Rules

  • Recovery Check is a flat check (no modifiers) with DC = 10 + current dying value, made at the start of each turn while dying.
  • Wounded is added to every dying value increase — being Wounded 2 and failing a recovery check means dying increases by 3 (1+2).
  • Doomed X reduces your death threshold from 4 to (4−X). Doomed 1 means dying 3 kills you. Decreases by 1 per full night’s rest.
  • Heroic Recovery: Spend all Hero Points at the start of your turn or when dying would increase. You lose the dying condition and stabilize at 0 HP. Wounded does not increase from this.
  • Nonlethal KO: Reduced to 0 HP by a nonlethal attack causes Unconscious with no dying condition. You wake naturally after 10+ minutes.
  • Massive Damage: Instant death if you take damage equal to or greater than double your maximum HP in one blow.
  • Losing dying: Each time you lose the dying condition (except via Heroic Recovery) you gain Wounded 1 or increase Wounded by 1.
  • Clearing Wounded: A successful Treat Wounds action, or restored to full HP and resting 10 minutes.

Situation Simulator

Step through dying state transitions interactively — set conditions first, then choose what happens

Start as:
Conditions:
Dying 0
Wounded 0
Doomed 0
Current State
Alive
What happens?
History