Questions tagged [dnd-4e]
For questions about the 4th edition of Dungeons & Dragons, published in 2008. This tag also covers the D&D Essentials line that debuted in September 2010.
2,725
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What physical obstacles could I include for the PCs to face? [closed]
So we're playing D&D 4e.
The PCs are currently travelling through wilderness, and there are wood sections, as well as swamp sections.
I don't know if my question is going to be specific enough for ...
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Do weapon proficiencies affect ONLY basic attacks, or also martial attack powers? [duplicate]
So in D&D 4e, let's say I want to play as a paladin. The paladin's weapon proficiencies are: "Simple melee, military melee, simple ranged".
So if I use, say, a longsword in order to ...
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1
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How are monster’s skills calculated?
For example, I’m looking at the Goblin Hex Hurler found in the Monster Vault. Its skills are Stealth +10, Thievery +10. The Monster Vault states:
The skills section of a monster’s statistics block ...
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2
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Which is the “poison pill” provision in the D&D 4e GSL?
History of the GSL
In 2008, Wizards of the Coast published D&D 4th edition using the Game System Licence, aka "4e GSL" or short "GSL", though there was a d20 GSL too, not tied ...
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Can you use a Sustain action on the same turn you cast it?
Many spells in DnD 4e take a Standard action to cast, and then have a Sustain Minor for additional effects (e.g. Crown of Madness, Bigby's Icy Grasp). Is it possible to cast the spell as a Standard ...
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Do magic users always have lower attack bonuses than martial characters?
I'm new to DnD 4e, and my party is creating characters right now. We've noticed that weapon users seem to have attack bonuses in the range of 5-7 (3-4 from ability, and 2-3 from weapon proficiency). ...
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6
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What is my "fell might"?
I'm looking at the Scornful Denial feat and it tells me that "when you regain your fell might, you can make a saving throw against an effect that a save can end."
What is my fell might? The ...
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Does a Dragonborn Dragon Magic Sorcerer pierce their own damage resistance when taking damage from Nusemnee's Atonement?
An oft discussed optimization trick in the 4th edition era was the use of Nusemnee's Atonement on a Dragonborn Dragon Magic Sorcerer in order to recharge your breath weapon with the use of the Ancient ...
- 1,841
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1
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154
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What could attract the attention of hostile creatures? [closed]
So in my game of D&D 4e, the PCs are going to travel through the woods and the swamps, and an idea I have for this section, is that there's a type of creature in there that is more agressive than ...
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Will this Ritual Caster house rule break the game?
The House Rule
The prerequisite for the Ritual Caster feat changes to “Trained in
Arcana, Heal, Nature, or Religion”.
In order to master a ritual, a player must be trained in the relevant skill (e.g. ...
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What kind of bonuses add up?
I'm trying to plan my character ahead of time.
I've read that some bonuses add up and some do not (so you chose the highest). I'm not clear on what it depends on.
Is it origin (racial/class/feat/power ...
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Do follow-up attacks granted by daily powers count as daily powers for feats?
Some feats affect daily powers, and some daily powers grant extra attacks. For example, Dazing Fist (Psionic Power) is a feat that says:
When you hit an enemy with a daily attack power, you also daze ...
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1
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Does Hordemaster epic destiny perk trigger once per ally or once overall?
I want to understand exactly how Dark Sun's "Hordemaster" Level 30 feature works (Dark Sun Campaign Setting, page 100).
Horde Attack (30th level): Once per encounter, when you or an ally ...
- 155
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2
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157
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How to properly boost monster damage?
So here's the situation:
In D&D 4e, I have began to reduce monster's HP by a lot (at least by half or even more than that).
The reason for this, is that I realized the combat encounters can take ...
- 307
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When did Wizards of the Coast purge the 4th Edition content from its website?
It is a fact that Wizards of the Coast did at some point remove all content for 4th edition D&D from its site when 5th Edition had come around. Since then, there is no mention of 4th edition on ...
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How can I design fun combat encounters for a party traveling down a river on a raft?
So in my adventure, it is possible that my players will travel down a river, on a raft. The river itself is haunted and they will come across enemies.
I already have ideas for some specific enemies ...
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1
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Can this Pact Hag power make the target move?
So in D&D 4e, Monster Manual 3, there's the Pact Hag (p.108).
One of their attacks is the Compelling staff.
The description says this:
"Hit: 1d6 + 5 damage, and the target makes a melee basic ...
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2
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How to implement the "show, don't tell" rule if it involves a "gotcha moment"?
First, sorry for the paranoia, but I want to make sure my players don't read this, so if you play with Gavarin and Lhasang, please don't read further, heavy spoilers involved.
TL;DR: Is it OK to have ...
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93
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What happens when a character with the Immanence Destiny takes Dual-Type damage?
A character with the Immanence Epic Destiny has the following ability:
Immanence Variable Resistance (21st level): After the first time you take damage of a particular type during an encounter, you ...
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Does Draji Palatial Practice require a hit?
Does Draji Palatial Practice (4e) apply regardless of whether the attack hits or misses? The phrasing is "when you use", not "when you hit".
From Dark Sun Campaign Setting, page ...
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2
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How does Pathfinder 2e compare with D&D 4e?
I am one of those rare players that strongly prefers 4th edition D&D to all other editions. I love the lack of ambiguity in combat rules, I love playing on a grid, I love the balance between ...
- 1,442
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Superior Will vs Auras that daze/stun, or: Order of Operations for Start of Turn effects
Monsters that have auras often have text that says "If a creature starts their turn within the aura, then {something happens}." In this case, the monster's aura dazes or stuns anyone who ...
- 1,442
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8
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How can I introduce twists to a heist when the dice always succeed?
I think it's pretty well known that the best heists are those where the party gathers information, makes plans, gets their gear together, and then in the middle of executing the plan something happens ...
- 1,442
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224
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Which D&D board game is best for beginners and can I create custom hero? [closed]
as the question says, I am considering buying the D&D board game. I can't decide which game to buy, but I've narrowed it down to The Legend of Drizzt, Wrath of Ashardalon, Temple of Elemental Evil,...
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2
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When did the Dungeons and Dragons Insider service exist?
Back in 2010, 4th Edition D&D was the main deal in D&D-land, and Wizards of the Coast did offer the Dungeons and Dragons Insider service, which was (on the stack) described as:
[...] the ...
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15
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What magic items would best make a (corrupt) city guard competitive with Paragon tier heroes?
The Problem
Assuming that the guards in and of themselves are not worthy of being Paragon-tier, what magic items would best justify giving them Paragon-tier stats, narratively? I want to convey the ...
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Ways to count as bloodied earlier [duplicate]
Are there any feats, items, even powers that will make it so that you count as bloodied being over 1/2 HP?
I ask because I have a couple of characters who have abilities that would be useful to have ...
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4
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Does the feat Unnatural Mantle keep this servitor in the fight?
The cleric prayer Servitude in Death has as its effect
The first time the target dies before the end of the encounter, it rises at the start of its next turn as an undead creature allied with you and ...
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What's the order of operations when multiple game elements check that a monster's dropped to 0 hp?
I'm considering for my PC the epic destiny Keeper of the Everflow, in part, because of the level 30 epic destiny feature turning the wheel that, among others, grants the following ability:
When you ...
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Does multi-classing provides weapon proficiency of the guest class?
As a Wizard, multi-classing into Fighter (through Multi-class Feat), would the Fighter multi-class provide the weapon proficiencies that the Fighter otherwise gains from its class?
I found no evidence ...
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What happens when a race skill and a class skill is the same?
In D&D 4th edition, the PC of
class Assassin gets training in Stealth,
race Shade gets training in Stealth (Heroes of Shadow, page 121, "Practiced Sneak: You have training in Stealth.")....
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4
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How to handle when a player wants to frequently rebuild her existing character?
I'm a DM. One of my players like to frequently reimagine/develop her character in D&D 4th edition as follows:
Change the ability scores (swap them) between levels to better optimize the character ...
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1
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130
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Does the Duergar race have racial feats available in D&D 4th edition?
Duergar has been introduced as a PC race in Monster's Manual 3 if I'm correct. I have found no sight of additional Duergar rules if any other book for D&D 4th edition. I was wondering if Duergar ...
- 597
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1
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Does the Ninth Legion Style contradict itself?
The Ninth Legion Style provides benefits to a setup, wherein
one hand there is a pick or spear,
the other hand, there is a shield.
The Lesser Style is sound with this approach.
However, the Greater ...
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4
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How to handle when a player wants the DM to hard-bend the story for his/her epic idea of outcome?
I'm a DM. My level 11 player, at the first stepping stone of a Paragon Tier, started to fantasize, moreover, insist on a particular outcome for him for level 21 (Epic Tier). In short: he wants to die ...
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1
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Does "Dying" mean being "Bloodied" at the same time, technically? [duplicate]
In D&D 4th Edition, one can only get to a state of Dying after getting Bloodied first.
If - for example - I have a Feat which gives me the ability A to do something as a Minor/Move/Standard action ...
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1
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Does a horse come with the wagon or need to be purchased separately?
In the Player's Handbook, you're given the option to buy a cart/wagon. Do you need to buy a horse as well or does it come with a horse?
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Was Summon Succubus errataed at some point?
The Summon Succubus spell for Wizard, printed in Dragon 385, seems to have some issues that my group is trying to figure out. Specifically, we've found two versions of the Intrinsic Nature, and they ...
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Where can I find info on World Axis (4e) Sorrowsworn and Nightwalkers?
To the best of my knowledge, in 4th edition, Sorrowsworn were defined as powerful psychopomps who maintain the preservation of the cycle of death and rebirth, and/or as Exarches of the Raven Queen, ...
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1
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D&D 4e Wayfarer's Step
Been playing a wizard in 4e. We are approaching lvl 11, so I have been looking into different PPs (Paragon Paths) and found the Arcane Wayfarer. My question is, does the Teleport 2 from Wayfarer's ...
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2
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Slaying the Target Outright
In Dungeons and Dragons 4th edition's Player's Handbook I. on page 288 states:
Under "Coup De Grace," there is the rule "Slaying the Target Outright": "If you deal damage ...
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Are the Kobold Dragonshields ability scores typos?
The Kobold Dragonshield from the 4e Monster Manual has a bunch of ability scores that do not match the ability modifiers. For example, their Strength, is 14 (+3). Should it be 16(+3), or 14(+2)? Every ...
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978
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How to make monsters stat blocks?
Is there a way that I can turn a character sheet into a monster stat block? I am trying to make some monsters, but there are sections for class and paragon path that are obviously meant for a PC. I ...
- 6,153
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1
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Warlord Bravura Presence and multi-target attacks
What are the rules for when the ally of a warlord with Bravura Presence uses their action point for a multi-roll or multi-target attack, e.g. Twin Strike or Winged Horde?
When an ally who can see you ...
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Are terrain tiles for immurement magic items available?
Regarding immurements, a class of consumable magic item which transforms a 4×4 square area into a specified sort of terrain, the Adventurer's Vault 2 says (p. 89):
Players can find printable maps for ...
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2
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212
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For areas of effect, what is the difference between "each creature in blast" and "each creature in area"?
What is the difference between "each creature in blast" and "each creature in area"?
I noticed that the dragon breath power said "all creatures in area", and was curious ...
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Where can I find the other Channel Divinity options for Clerics that are hinted at in the PHB?
For a Cleric, the PHB shows two Channel Divinity powers: Turn Undead and Divine Fortune.
However, it says there are other Channel Divinity powers, but I can't find out what these are.
What are those ...
- 141
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1
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General questions on channeling magic through daggers in 4e
When a sorcerer uses an a dagger to channel a power with the implement key word, what bonus does the dagger give them? The phb 2 says you don't add the proficiency, but it also says you are proficient ...
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4
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What is the in-universe explanation for why succubi, who were demons, became devils?
The Forgotten Realms wiki page on succubi tell us (specifically in footnote 1) that in 1e, 2e and 3.Xe1, succubi were chaotic evil demons, but then were retconned to be lawful evil2 devils in 4e and ...
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Can a Dragonborn Sorcerer have their Dragonbreath spell in addition to another encounter spell?
At first level, you would usually have only one encounter spell. Can you, as a sorcerer, have your "Dragonbreath" spell in addition to another encounter spell?
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