RPStats - Mechanics
Keywords:
RP-MECHANICS, RP_MECHANICS
Category:
newbie
Inspiration: The Dungeon Master can choose to give you inspiration for a variety of reasons. Typically, it's awarded when you play out your personality traits, give in to the drawbacks presented by a flaw or bond, or otherwise portray your character in a compelling way. You either have inspiration or you don't-you can't stockpile multiple "inspirations" for later use. If you have inspiration, you can expend it when you make an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check. Spending your inspiration gives you advantage on that roll.
Advantage / Disadvantage: Sometimes a special ability or spell tells you that you have advantage or disadvantage on an ability check, a saving throw, or an attack roll. When that happens, you roll a second 1d20 when you make the roll. Using the higher of the two rolls if you have advantage, and use the lower roll if you have disadvantage. For example, if you have disadvantage and roll a 17 and a 5, you use the 5. If you instead have advantage and roll those numbers, you use the 17. You usually gain advantage or disadvantage through the use of special abilities, actions, or spells.
Passive Checks: A passive check is a special kind of check that doesn't involve any die rolls. Such a check can represent the average result for a task done repeatedly, such as searching for secret doors over and over again, or can be used when the Dungeon Master wants to secretly determine whether the characters succeed at something without rolling dice, such as noticing a hidden monster. Here's how to determine a character's total for a passive check:
10 + <All modifiers that normally apply if rolled>
If the character has advantage on the check, add 5. For disadvantage, subtract 5.
Vision & Light: The most fundamental tasks of adventuring-noticing danger, finding hidden objects, hitting an enemy in combat, and targeting a spell, to name just a few- rely heavily on a character's ability to see. Darkness and other effects that obscure vision can prove a significant hindrance. A given area might be lightly or heavily obscured.
Lightly Obscured Area: Such as dim light, patchy fog, or moderate foliage, creatures have disadvantage on Wisdom checks that rely on sight.
Heavily Obscured Area: Such as darkness, opaque fog, or dense foliage-blocks vision entirely. A creature in a heavily obscured area effectively suffers from the blinded condition (see RP-Condition).
The presence or absence of light in an environment creates three categories of illumination:
Bright light lets most creatures see normally. Even gloomy days provide bright light, as do torches, lanterns, fires, and other sources of illumination within a specific radius.
Dim light, also called shadows, creates a lightly obscured area. An area of dim light is usually a boundary between a source of bright light, such as a torch, and surrounding darkness. The soft light of twilight and dawn also counts as dim light. A particularly brilliant full moon might bathe the land in dim light.
Darkness creates a heavily obscured area. Characters face darkness outdoors at night (even most moonlit nights), within the confines of an unlit dungeon or a subterranean vault, or in an area of magical darkness.
Cover: There are three degrees of cover. If a target is behind multiple sources of cover, only the most protective degree of cover applies; the degrees aren't added together.
- A target with half cover has a +2 bonus to AC and <Reflex> saving throws. A target has half cover if an obstacle blocks at least half of its body. The obstacle might be a low wall, a large piece of furniture, a narrow tree trunk, or a creature, whether that creature is an enemy or a friend.
- A target with three-quarters cover has a +5 bonus to AC and <Reflex> saving throws. A target has threequarters cover if about three-quarter cover if about three-quarters of it is covered by an obstacle. The obstacle might be a portcullis, an arrow slit, or a thick tree trunk.
- A target with total cover can't be targeted directly by an attack or a spell, although some spells can reach such a target by including it in an area of effect. A target has total cover if it is completely concealed by an obstacle.
Advantage / Disadvantage: Sometimes a special ability or spell tells you that you have advantage or disadvantage on an ability check, a saving throw, or an attack roll. When that happens, you roll a second 1d20 when you make the roll. Using the higher of the two rolls if you have advantage, and use the lower roll if you have disadvantage. For example, if you have disadvantage and roll a 17 and a 5, you use the 5. If you instead have advantage and roll those numbers, you use the 17. You usually gain advantage or disadvantage through the use of special abilities, actions, or spells.
Passive Checks: A passive check is a special kind of check that doesn't involve any die rolls. Such a check can represent the average result for a task done repeatedly, such as searching for secret doors over and over again, or can be used when the Dungeon Master wants to secretly determine whether the characters succeed at something without rolling dice, such as noticing a hidden monster. Here's how to determine a character's total for a passive check:
10 + <All modifiers that normally apply if rolled>
If the character has advantage on the check, add 5. For disadvantage, subtract 5.
Vision & Light: The most fundamental tasks of adventuring-noticing danger, finding hidden objects, hitting an enemy in combat, and targeting a spell, to name just a few- rely heavily on a character's ability to see. Darkness and other effects that obscure vision can prove a significant hindrance. A given area might be lightly or heavily obscured.
Lightly Obscured Area: Such as dim light, patchy fog, or moderate foliage, creatures have disadvantage on Wisdom checks that rely on sight.
Heavily Obscured Area: Such as darkness, opaque fog, or dense foliage-blocks vision entirely. A creature in a heavily obscured area effectively suffers from the blinded condition (see RP-Condition).
The presence or absence of light in an environment creates three categories of illumination:
Bright light lets most creatures see normally. Even gloomy days provide bright light, as do torches, lanterns, fires, and other sources of illumination within a specific radius.
Dim light, also called shadows, creates a lightly obscured area. An area of dim light is usually a boundary between a source of bright light, such as a torch, and surrounding darkness. The soft light of twilight and dawn also counts as dim light. A particularly brilliant full moon might bathe the land in dim light.
Darkness creates a heavily obscured area. Characters face darkness outdoors at night (even most moonlit nights), within the confines of an unlit dungeon or a subterranean vault, or in an area of magical darkness.
Cover: There are three degrees of cover. If a target is behind multiple sources of cover, only the most protective degree of cover applies; the degrees aren't added together.
- A target with half cover has a +2 bonus to AC and <Reflex> saving throws. A target has half cover if an obstacle blocks at least half of its body. The obstacle might be a low wall, a large piece of furniture, a narrow tree trunk, or a creature, whether that creature is an enemy or a friend.
- A target with three-quarters cover has a +5 bonus to AC and <Reflex> saving throws. A target has threequarters cover if about three-quarter cover if about three-quarters of it is covered by an obstacle. The obstacle might be a portcullis, an arrow slit, or a thick tree trunk.
- A target with total cover can't be targeted directly by an attack or a spell, although some spells can reach such a target by including it in an area of effect. A target has total cover if it is completely concealed by an obstacle.
See Also
Rp Campaigns
Rpstats
Rp Combat
Rp Combat Extended
Rp Checks
Rp Irv
Rp Spreadsheet
Rp Strength
Rp Dexterity
Rp Constitution
Rp Intelligence
Rp Wisdom
Rp Charisma
Rp Conditions
Rp Rounds
Rp Irv
Rp Weapon Damage
Rp Mage Spells
Rp Skills
Rp Cleric Prayers
Rp Druid Prayers
Rp Ranger Prayers
Rp Subclass
Rp Mechanics