Questions tagged [ability-scores]
For questions primarily about ability scores (and their associated abilities), mechanical components of a character in all editions of D&D that represent the character's innate attributes: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma.
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Intelligence vs Wisdom in D&D
I'm working on a new character for a campaign I'm rejoining. He's being asked to steal something from the party. He has no loyalty to the ruler who asked him to do this, so I thought perhaps his ...
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Druid Wild Shape + Increased Ability Score from Feats [duplicate]
If a Feat grants an ability score increase as part of its benefits, does that ability score increase get applied to the new ability scores when a druid wild shapes?
Wild shape says:
Your game ...
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Do the "set ability score to 19" magic items function while using Wild Shape?
If you, a druid who is attuned to an Amulet of Health, Gauntlets of Ogre Power, or Headband of Intellect, uses Wild Shape, choosing to wear the piece of equipment, do you gain the benefit of the ...
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Do rangers have any features that would encourage them to fight with Dexterity instead of Strength?
Does the ranger have any class features that would be less powerful if they used Strength (instead of Dexterity) as their primary offensive ability? Obviously, this hypothetical ranger would be bad at ...
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What beasts have the lowest Con, Wis, and Cha saves?
Suppose you have a target you absolutely need to fail a particular saving throw, and you've gotten a wand of polymorph to help improve your odds. Examples:
a single dose of an expensive poison or a ...
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Can a catatonic creature (0 charisma) be controlled via domination magic?
If a creature’s ability score is reduced to 0, say charisma, and the creature becomes helpless (in this case catatonic), does domination (mind affecting) magic even function?
My intuition would be ...
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AnyDice - Complicated Stat Distribution
I'm trying to model average stat distributions for characters based on what a friend sent me:
Balanced Stat Roll
Roll 4d6 drop lowest five times. Count them together and deduct the total from 72. The ...
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What does it mean for plague to "continue until the victim reaches Constitution 0"?
I could use some help understanding the following line as it pertains to the Plague disease carried by a Plague Spewer (Monster Manuel III, pg. 125):
Unlike normal diseases, plague continues until ...
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Why would I put an ASI into Con instead of taking the Tough feat?
I know that raising your Constitution modifier increases your maximum health. However, the Tough feat also does this, but gives twice as much health. What other benefits does a +2 to Con give, and ...
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Can you select a feat that increases an attribute by 1 for an attribute that is already at 20?
This is a bit of a convoluted question with several parts that didn't fit in the title.
The Telepathic feat gives +1 in either Int, Wis or Cha to a maximum of 20. There is no question here, one ...
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How exactly do ability score adjusting magic items and ability score improvements interact? [duplicate]
Obviously the tomes and manuals are clear-cut in how they function, but when it comes to magic items that "overwrite" or "replace" an ability score with a value, such as gauntlets ...
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What stat would I use for a crossbow if I throw it rather than shooting it? (Specifically using Elemental Cleaver)
I've got a silly build I'm working on revolving around Path of the Giant Elemental Cleaver which grants a weapon the Thrown property. Can I use my STR for the roll? The rules seem ambiguous:
What I've ...
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What NPC skill or ability should be used to oppose a PC's Intelligence check made when using the Disguise Kit?
The Player's Handbook states that "The DM might call for an Intelligence check when you try to accomplish tasks like [...] Pull together a disguise to pass as a city guard." However, it's ...
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Is there any way to use Dexterity for spellcasting or as a named spellcasting ability?
I've always wondered about creating a character who trains to use every spellcasting ability.
The publication of Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants introduces the possibility of using Strength in a ...
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Can I put all points in one ability with customized origins?
I was making a mountain dwarf monk in dnd beyond and was able to get my dex up to 19 at level one, using point buy and customized origins (it allowed me to put both initial ASIs on dex). This seems ...
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If a monk increases their dexterity or wisdom modifier, does their AC increase as well?
I'm DM-ing an adventure, and my players are about to hit level 4, where the first ability score increase happens. If my monk chooses to increase their dexterity or wisdom, will their AC increase as ...
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What is the significance of Headband of Intellect et al setting the stat to 19?
Besides the psychological effect of the stat raising item being almost but not quite perfect, is there a situation where 19 in an attribute is different from it being set to 18?
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Can I create a creature with a high Charisma score even if it can't speak?
I am planning to create a monster which should charm the players, but this creature doesn't talk (I am planning to create a gold golem, which should incentivize greed and lust). I wonder if high ...
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Which officially published monsters have the highest/lowest total ability scores?
In 5th edition Dungeons and Dragons, every monster in the Monster Manual (as well as other source books) has a predefined Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma score in ...
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Which ability is most related to insanity: Wisdom, Charisma, Constitution, or Intelligence?
I was thinking about making a PC warlock with the Great Old One as a patron. I noticed that under the Great Old One's Book of Shadows, some warlocks could be described as having growing insanity. I ...
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What happens to a PC lycanthrope's ability scores if it becomes cured? [duplicate]
I have a Fighter character who is a lycanthrope and had a very low Strength score originally, but thanks to her lycanthropic affliction, her Strength is now the highest score.
Will her Strength score ...
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How does Constitution drain/damage interact with minimum hit points?
Related to, but not the same as this: Polymorph, HP, and Constitution damage/drain
In his answer to the question Loss of bear form and hp of a bear warrior, @KRyan mentions a rule about constitution ...
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How to deal with an overpowered player whose level 1 stats are 18's and 19's, with a 25 in strength
I've recently started a new D&D 5e campaign that is mainly roleplaying focused. One of my players is playing a barbarian gnome, and rolled all of their stats... and got a 25 for strength (and 18's ...
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What kind of disadvantages can I expect while building a supporting Player Character with low Dexterity?
I am building a Duegar Alchemist with a Folk Hero background who's inspired by the support/utility role builds I have been hearing and reading about. In other words, a character who focuses more on ...
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What effect does a potion of giant strength have upon a monster?
An adventure module I own indicates that as soon as a fight breaks out, the villian's quasit minion will drink a potion of hill giant strength.
Looking at the quasit stat block, I am assuming its claw(...
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What are all the ways to change my attack roll's ability modifier? [duplicate]
Hexblade Warlock has this line in it:
When you attack with that weapon, you can use your Charisma modifier, instead of Strength or Dexterity, for the attack and damage rolls.
Battle Smith Artificer ...
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What are the ways one can avoid using STR or DEX as an attack modifier?
For context, I am aiming to create a melee fighter, but would like to avoid using Strength and Dexterity as my attack modifier. I know that there are a few ways each with their limitations, but when I ...
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Is there a way to use Strength for the Perform Skill?
How (if possible) would one utilize their Strength ability score with the Perform Skill? Be that in lieu of Charisma or in addition to it.
There are so many ways to shuffle the ability score that ...
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Does an Antimagic Field suppress the ability score increases granted by the Manual or Tome magic items?
There are several "manual"/"tome" magic items that permanently increase a character's ability score and the maximum value for that score by 2: the Manual of Bodily Health, the ...
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Gold Dragonborn Sorcerer level 3. ASI or Elemental Adept at level 4?
My Gold Dragonborn Sorcerer is level 3, 18 CHA, +4 modifier.
I'm trying to build Pyro from Team Fortress 2 in D&D 5e, and I'm optimizing for high fire damage.
Should I take the ASI to get a +7 ...
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What is the rarity of a magic item which permanently increases an ability score up to at most 13?
In the DMG there are items like the Tome of Leadership and Influence that gives a permanent +2 to charisma and charisma maximum (and other similar Tomes and Manuals for other abilities), but they all ...
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When does Polearm Master deal more damage than an ASI?
Would a fighter deal more expected damage by picking the Polearm Master feat at any point before they maxed their Strength, or is it better to first always increase your Strength in terms of damage? ...
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Does Great Weapon Master deal more expected damage than an ASI?
Some people claim that an ASI normally contributes more than any given feat. It is nearly always better than the Dual Wielder feat. However, the Crossbow Expert feat is better damage than an ASI (at ...
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In D&D 3.5, what happens when you plop a headband of intellect on an animal?
Prompted by a discussion in comments here
The animal type states:
Intelligence score of 1 or 2 (no creature with an Intelligence score of 3 or higher can be an animal).
A headband of intellect adds ...
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Are ability scores ever rolled for checks?
Are there checks against the ability scores? I do not mean skills.
Eg. In a tavern, a player is challenged to an arm wrestle. Is this resolved via a D20+STR or is this invalid because this is what ...
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When rolling initiative for DM-controlled creatures, does their Dexterity modifier apply?
When the DM is rolling initiative for its monsters, does their Dexterity modifier apply, or does the DM just roll a d20 on its own?
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How to calculate HP if an item increases constitution
I am sorry if this question seems obvious, I just cannot find the answer anywhere.
HP increase every level with the hit dice roll and the constitution bonus is added every level. What happens when the ...
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What is the average total ability score bonus for the best of 4 DCC Characters?
I need some math help to determine what an average character that survived a DCC funnel is like.
When playing a funnel in Dungeon Crawl Classics, players get 4 characters each. Should they survive, ...
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Can you spellburn multiple ability scores in the same casting?
Let's say a wizard is casting a spell, and they spellburn 5 points of Strength, and 5 points of Stamina, for a total bonus of +10 to their spell check.
Is this scenario possible given RAW? The ...
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Does the Feral Tiefling still use Charisma as its spellcasting ability for the Infernal Legacy trait?
I'm new in this world of D&D. I was reading through the Player's Handbook and decided to create a character following the process in Chapter 1 (Step-by-Step Characters).
The Tiefling caught my ...
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Can a shield guardian be commanded to obey commands from the whole party?
This doesn't necessarily apply just to shield guardians, because it could go the same way with other minions.
If you have the ability to command something, a shield guardian in my particular case, can ...
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Does Swordsage's Insightful Strike Apply to Rolls for Ability Score Damage?
Insightful Strike, from the Tome of Battle's Swordsage class, says:
At 4th level, you can add your Wisdom modifier as a bonus on damage rolls whenever you execute a strike from the chosen discipline.
...
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Is there a way to add my Strength modifier to my Armor Class?
It's an age old question -- how can I make it as hard as possible for enemies to hit me, so I can slaughter them without even the slightest jostling of my coif? Typically, for those wanting to proceed ...
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If a sentient item such as Blackrazor maintains concentration on a spell but does not have a Constitution score, can its concentration be broken?
Some sentient items in D&D have spellcasting capabilities. For example, the description of the sentient magic greatsword Blackrazor says (DMG, p. 217):
Blackrazor can cast the haste spell on you ...
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Do Constitution Changes affect Current hit points in D&D 5e?
I know that changes to Constitution retroactively affect Maximum Hit Points, but I'm not sure what to do about current hit points.
Say a level 3 character has 12/20 hit points and their Con modifier ...
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Does "ability score damage" to your spellcasting ability cause you to "forget" prepared spells? [duplicate]
There are very few monsters or effects in D&D 5e that deal ability score damage or ability drain, but they are various enough for this to come up.
Say you are a 5th-level wizard with an ...
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What stat would involve willpower (for a Jekyll and Hyde type of character to resist a personality switch)? [duplicate]
So for my upcoming D&D campaign I was planning to play a Jekyll and Hyde type of character. I want the DM to just look at me whenever and tell me to roll for whatever stat involves willpower to ...
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Is it possible to exchange ability scores (i.e. reducing one ability score and increasing another) during character creation?
Looking into some builds online I perceived that some people have two or three ability scores at 8, even if this cannot be explained by the Ancestry Flaw.
Is there any way to exchange Ability Scores (...
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If a paladin has a negative Charisma modifier, how many times can they use the Divine Sense feature (per long rest)?
The description of the paladin's Divine Sense feature says, in part:
You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier. When you finish a long rest, you regain all ...
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Is an additional saving throw required if the corresponding ability score changes?
Examples:
A fighter is fighting a dragon. The dragon uses its Frightful Presence action. The fighter, who has a Wisdom score of 15, succeeds on the DC 16 Wisdom saving throw. It is then the party ...
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