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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Artoomis" data-source="post: 4913493" data-attributes="member: 111">Okay, so what is a critical hit?Page 276:  "If you roll a natural 20, you attack might be a critical hit (page278).  A critical hit deals maximum damage...So here we learn that if you get a critical hit, you deal maximum damage, and we learn it takes a 20 to possibly get a critical hit.Page 278:  Natural 20: If you roll a 20 on the die when making an attack roll, you score a critical hit if your total attack roll is high enough to hit your target’s defense. If your attack roll is too low to score a critical hit, you still hit automatically.Precision: Some class features and powers allow you to score a critical hit when you roll numbers other than 20 (only a natural 20 is an automatic hit).Damage section left out as not applicable to our conversation.So here we learn that when you roll a natural 20, you "score a critical hit" if the attack roll is high enough to hit otherwise.  Precision notes that you might be able to score a critical hit with a number other than a 20, but the rule about having to hit the defense score still applies.So, what changes with Holy Ardor?First, Holy Ardor doe NOT change the number needed for a critical, that's still a 20 (or 19-02, or 18-20)Second, Holy Ardor creates AN ENTIRELY NEW mechanic of rolling doubles to "score a critical hit."Wow - so what does THAT mean?The first two paragraphs on page 278 (Critical Hit) do not apply because Holy Ardor REDEFINES what it takes to "score a critical hit" when using Holy Ardor.  The rules from page 276  "A critical hit deals maximum damage..." still appliesHoly Ardor simply creates a new exception to the Critical Hit rules because it both creates a new mechanic (roll doubles) and gives a rule for the result of that new mechanic (score a critical hit).Note that by the rules for Critical Hits it is not possible to ever score a critical hit and have that not be a hit.  It is possible to score high enough to possibly be a critical hit and not get one, but that's not the Holy Ardor situation - Holy Ardor give a new way to "score a critical hit."There is a LOT of misreading of "Precision."Read in context, Precision simply tells you (re-phrased):If you might score a Critical Hit due to some rule giving you that possibility on an 18 or 19, and you fail conifrm that is is indeed  critical hit by failing to beat the defense score, that same 18 or 19 will not give you an automatic hit like a 20.</blockquote>

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