I am trying to determine what conditions will create Advantage on a Death Saving Throw for a player character who drops to 0 hit points during combat.
Thanks to the "Lucky" racial feature, a Halfling can negate a natural roll of a 1 on a d20(two failed saves). This is similar to but different from having Advantage on a Death Saving Throw.
Spells, skills and features that add bonuses to saving throws don't apply: the death saving throw feature of 1 or 20 comes from the raw die roll of 1 or 20. There are two reasons to need advantage on this saving throw:
To avoid character death (when you've missed one already and don't want a double miss to kill the character)
To have a higher chance to "quick revive" to 1 HP without further expenditure of resources from the party.
When you make a death saving throw and roll a 1 on the d20, it counts as two failures. If you roll a 20 on the d20, you regain 1 hit point. (PHB, pg. 197)
The significant difference between 0 HP and 1 HP is the difference between being unconscious, and being able to take actions, reactions, cast spells, flee, hide, etcetera. While another character can cast a healing spell as soon as you drop to 0 HP ("quick revive" to greater than 0 HP), in certain combat situations they may be too busy with the fight to do that.
The responses to the use of Portent were mixed. As I understand that approach, portent could not be used by the wizard on himself, but perhaps on another character. If the latter, it's even less desirable than a use of in-combat healing.
I have found two spells, two items, and one feat that will provide advantage on a generic saving throw, and thus on a death saving throw (death saves are not tied to any of the six abilities, as so many other saves are):
- 9th level spell Foresight (while under its influence, duration 8 hours)
- 8th level spell Holy Aura (if within 30' of the cleric maintaining that aura)
- Candle of Invocation (very rare wondrous item, if it is burning and you are within 30' of it)
- Luck Blade(Legendary). (Once per day advantage on any save/attack or ability check) property can’t be used again until the next dawn.
The Lucky feat: the character can choose to apply advantage on a saving throw roll.
The spell levels and the rarity of the magic items I have found suggests that this benefit, advantage on death saving throws, won't be available until at least 12th level (items) or beyond (spells and items).
Question restated:
Are there other ways (beyond the Lucky feat) to gain Advantage on a Death Saving Throw that work at lower level than those mid-to-late game choices that I found and listed above?