This is a detailed example of brute creature Monster AI creation for Pathfinder 2e system.
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Table of Contents
Brute
This is the most straight forward combat style creature classification category. The core tactics is melee attack as much as possible every turn.
Until this reaches to 🎯: 👣 (stride) While action is available: ⚔️ fist
Two codes exactly achieves this. Whenever there is a distance to target, the creature uses strides towards it. This could be 0 to 3 actions each turn depending on how far the target is from this creature.
Second line use up any remaining action. So this can be all three actions if the monster starts its turn next to the target or 0 if it took all three strides to reach to the target.
Examples
Zombie Brute
For Zombie Brute stat block, please refer to Archives of Nethys.
This is a prototypical creature for brute category.
Zombie brute -5 intelligence means adaptation category of “none”. Wisdom +0 means it will not preferentially target wounded character.
Using stat block conversion tables, other part of stat block parameters tells the zombie brute to have extreme strength and hit points and high constitution. These stat contour makes zombie brute, (not surprisingly)creature. Since it has only one kind of encounter action entry, the AI just need to include “fist” attack.
Bestiary book states “Unthinking and ever-shambling harbingers of death, zombies stop only when they’re destroyed.” Perhaps, there may be a bit of my bias from playing 5E game, but I have interpreted “unthinking” and “mindless” as “they move in linear path even if there were difficult or hazardous terrains.”
So putting all together, zombie brute has the simplest tactics. It moves in direct (linear) path to the target. When it reaches target, it uses all available actions to strike with a fist.
It is worth noting, the default loop coding for movement and attack comes in handy here. Since zombies have only 2 actions per turn, it can only do move-move, move-attack or attack-attack. However, the default code still works without any change.
Zombie Shambler
For Zombie Shambler’s stat block, please see Archives of Nethys.
In contrast to the Zombie brute, shambler has two levels of melee attack. In order to be able to use jaws, this needs to succeed on the first melee strike (fist).
This can be coded with if statement checking “grabbed or restrained” status.
If 🎯 is not grabbed and not restrained:
Until 🎯 is grabbed: ⚔️ fist
Shambler itself will not create restrained condition, but it is important to include this as part of if statement because other creature may put that condition to target.
Xulgath Warrior
For the full stat block, please see Archives of Nethys.
Compared to previous two examples, Xulgath Warrior involves a bit more design decisions.
Despite only moderate HP, its high strength with the significantly higher amount of damage per round (DPR) in melee combat put this monster indisputably brute combat style creature. The moderate HP is compensated by high AC. Its automatic ability, Stench has a range of 30ft so this does not seem to play a specific role for combat style determination.
Damage per round (DPS) analysis
The key design decision Xulgath comes from analyzing its optimal attack combinations.
Xulgath Warrior possesses three javelins. So this put max 3 limit for this mode of attack but it is important to note that it only gives only average 5.95 damage per action. Since throwing javelin require wield it first, it takes 2 actions to throw a javelin. Therefore, one round its can do throw-wield-throw, and another turn wield-throw-wield. So on average, 5.95 x 3/2=8.925 is average damage per round for this option.
In contrast, 3 melee attack combo using club, jaws and claw provides DPS of 19, which is over 2x higher than the javelin’s ranged attack. With this much significant difference in DPS, I interpret it as ranged attack tactics is only utilized when it cannot perform melee combat i.e. target is unreachable.
Now the remaining piece is to determine the use case scenario for club (ranged) attack. Since Xulgath Warrior has only one club, if it throws the club, it will affect all the subsequent melee attack turns.
Despite such a substantial tradeoff, the actual gain for the absolute best DPS round is merely 0.25 higher than club, jaws and claw melee combo. This is felt not worthy trade-off. However, if this was the route I were to take, I’d use it for the situation I call “the last word action”. This is the moment where monster believes it has no chance to survive until next turn. This could be coded like below.
If club is available: ⚔️ club ➡️ ⚔️ jaws If HP≤2: Throw 🏹 club else: ⚔️ claw
Instead I felt thematically more fitting approach is to use it as the last resort for ranged attack tactics. Even after using up all three javelins, the target remains unreachable e.g. blocked by ally creatures.
Wight
For the full stat block, please see Archives of Nethys.
I have encountered Wight for the first time during my Troubles in Otari adventure. This is fairly straight forward brute creature with one exception. This could be a scenario specific tactics, but the Wight in the scenario I encountered command skeletons to use “flanking tactics and target weakest.” Otherwise, skeleton guards do not have such organized strategy.
This is depicted under special tactics, “command tactics” subsection as below. Alternatively, one can delete the whole section and keep Wight as plain brute. Then use command tactics as quest specific rule add-on.
