'DEXTERITY' Dexterity represents a character's agility, reflexes, and hand-eye coordination. It is the primary defensive stat and governs a wide range of combat and skill abilities. Here is a list of some of the things that dexterity governs: * inventory size: Each point increases the number of items you can carry. * armor class : improves your armor class while you are awake. This bonus scales aggressively at higher values of dexterity. * Save vs Aff : improved by dexterity * Combat initiative: higher dex means you may act before lower-initiative opponents each round (i.e. chance to strike first) * Hitroll: bonus scaling with level, 1.5x for fencing characters * Dodge: chance is partially determined by the difference between your Dexterity and your opponent's. * Skills: Dexterity contributes to an exceptionally wide range of skills, typically shifting hit chance via comparing difference in dexterity. Some examples of skills that require finesse to succeed are dirt kicking, trip, blackjack, charge. Racial caps vary significantly. Pixies can reach the maximum of DEX 25. Halflings reach 24; Drow 24; Elves and Avians 23. Giants and Treants have the lowest caps (15-16), reflecting their mass over agility tradeoff. See also: STATS, STRENGTH, INTELLIGENCE, WISDOM, CONSTITUTION, SAVE VS SPELL
4.10.4. SUMMARY > YOUR CHARACTER > ATTRIBUTES > DEXTERITY