Abilities of characters that describe their capabilities in a range of areas.
3
votes
1answer
91 views
How to calculate a revised ranger's animal companion's skill bonuses?
The Beast Conclave revised ranger (from Unearthed Arcana: Revised Ranger) gains an animal companion. The Companion's Bond feature description states:
Your companion uses your proficiency bonus ...
16
votes
4answers
2k views
What happens if a cleric chooses a duplicate skill for their class and domain?
I have a player who has chosen to be a Knowledge Cleric.
For class skills, she chose proficiency in History and Insight.
For additional domain skills, she chose proficiency plus expertise in ...
7
votes
3answers
354 views
When is Passive Investigation used?
In the Sunless Citadel module, from Tales from the Yawning Portal, Passive Perception is mentioned about half a dozen times, but Passive Investigation isn't mentioned once.
However, both passives are ...
6
votes
4answers
279 views
How do I handle baby creature followers/pets in Out of the Abyss?
I am new to DMing, and I am running the official Out of the Abyss adventure.
My players found some eggs. When the eggs hatched, baby hook horrors popped out. The players saw them and decided to try ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Are ability bonuses added to skills you don't have?
In 5e I know you add your ability modifier and proficiency bonus to your skills that you chose when creating your character, but what if you don't have that skill, do you still add the corresponding ...
1
vote
2answers
165 views
Influencing a PC's attitude with Intimidate
Intimidate states
You can use Intimidate to force an opponent to act friendly toward you for 1d6 × 10 minutes with a successful check. The DC of this check is equal to 10 + the target’s Hit Dice + ...
7
votes
5answers
154 views
What are the expected consequences of allowing characters to exceed the skill cap?
As I prepare to run my first game of Fate Core, a player and I are designing a new race of intelligent dinosaurs. The dinosaurs have advanced skill in genetic engineering, and they strongly believe in ...
0
votes
1answer
127 views
Is it beneficial to trade a skill for better saving throws for a spell-less Ranger? [closed]
I'm working on a new character, which will be a spell-less ranger. In this case, I'm multiclassing a Rogue / Ranger, with a preference for melee (over ranged).
For the sake of this question, assume ...
12
votes
3answers
2k views
If I'm proficient in Investigation, and take the Investigator feat and the Prodigy feat, do I have triple proficiency?
I have a Half Orc who is proficient in Investigation so I was wondering, can I take the Investigator feat and also the Prodigy feat to gain triple proficiency on Investigation checks?
If I become ...
16
votes
8answers
3k views
How should a GM properly handle the Bluff skill when it's used to Deceive or Lie?
Bluff states
You know how to tell a lie.
Check
Bluff is an opposed skill check against your opponent’s Sense Motive skill.
Deceive or Lie
If you use Bluff to fool someone, with a ...
12
votes
7answers
730 views
Can a Stealth check ever be made passively?
The PHB, at p. 175, presents passive skill checks as a means to represent two different kinds of in-game scenarios:
Such a check can represent the average result for a task done repeatedly, such as ...
4
votes
2answers
97 views
Where are the rules for crafting Skill Enchantment bonus items?
I have been looking at guides for dramatically boosting a character's potential with a single skill. In addition to toolkits, I have found mention of Competence bonuses and Enchantment bonuses (or “...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Does a character need to be intentionally searching for a trap to be able to find it?
I've been trying to figure out whether a character needs to actively be looking for traps (i.e. spending a move action) in order to be able to find them or she simply gets a reactive check when she ...
7
votes
1answer
479 views
Is it possible to be expert in a skill at level 1?
Related to: Is it possible to be an expert in a skill at level 2?
In hero labs online when you get skills through feats or backgrounds (lore as an example) you can add another skill level as usual. ...
0
votes
1answer
198 views
Do you get a penalty to Intimidation checks if you're a smaller size?
By the rules, would a gnome get a penalty on intimidating a human because they are small?
6
votes
2answers
378 views
Is a new Tumble check made for each threatened square?
Do you have to attempt a Tumble skill check for every threatened square you leave to avoid an attack of opportunity?
Was this ever clarified in any official capacity, directly or indirectly?
I know ...
2
votes
1answer
73 views
What are the base percentiles for skills that the PCs don't have?
Palladium books (Palladium, Robotech, TMNT, Rifts, &c.) have umpteen hundreds of skills spread across their Megaverse, including such minutiæ as "flower arrangement" and "RPG design". Players ...
25
votes
3answers
2k views
Do you get to choose your skill proficiencies or are they decided based on your race/class?
A friend of mine had told us that you don't really get to choose your skills when you see "choose from" x number of skills (e.g. Stealth, Acrobatics, Intimidation), she said that "each class and race ...
10
votes
3answers
2k views
Is there a way to get a benefit from feats that offer redundant spells?
Is there a general rule about getting a benefit from feats that offer redundant abilities (from RAW, Sage Advice, UA, etc.)?
My specific scenario is considering the Arcanist feat from Unearthed ...
9
votes
2answers
419 views
How can I make intelligence less of a dump stat? [closed]
Most PCs don't care much about intelligence, often leaving it at the single digits. And this makes sense, because it's frankly useless for anyone that's not an intelligence caster. So I want to know ...
2
votes
1answer
289 views
Is “Dragons” an appropriate category for the background skill Lore?
Is "Dragons" an appropriately narrow category for the background skill Lore?
19
votes
4answers
2k views
Do ability checks in combat require an action?
I was under the impression that using skills, and therefore making an ability check in combat required an action. Note: I'm obviously not talking about passive perception, it's definitely passive, it'...
7
votes
1answer
81 views
Streetwise substituting Arcana, History and Religion?
I have recently run into a conundrum. Recently we have started playing DnD4e. While researching and building our PCs I stumbled upon a modifier that allowed me to substitute a Streetwise check for a ...
3
votes
1answer
105 views
Versatile Performance Question
I have a Bard with the Street Performer archetype. The Quick Change ability allows him to take a 20 on a Bluff or Disguise check once per day. Can he use Versatile Performance to make a bluff check ...
2
votes
1answer
172 views
For a magically shorter tabaxi, which stats do I adjust? [closed]
I know that an average tabaxi race is medium about 6ft tall. But I want a shorter more stubby cat for my character (a lvl. 1 magician tabaxi with a background of guild merchant. in short, the ...
3
votes
2answers
202 views
Is it explained anywhere why do Sorcerers get Bluff as a class skill? [closed]
I've never quite understood why Sorcerers get Bluff as a class skill but no other social skill. Why do they get Bluff and not Diplomacy, for instance?
Is there any official fluff or other published ...
0
votes
1answer
133 views
Does indifference make the subject immune to mundane fear?
The 2nd-level Sor/Wiz spell indifference [ench] (Tome and Blood 92 and—so far as I'm aware—never reprinted), in part, says
This spell drains emotion from the creature touched. The subject becomes ...
12
votes
4answers
2k views
Is there a serious balance problem allowing all casters to use Arcana with their casting stat?
I'm considering a house rule in a campaign I'm about to DM for that allows those with the spellcasting, pact magic or similar abilities to use their casting stat as the associated stat for the arcana ...
5
votes
1answer
2k views
Can you get Armor proficiency with the Skilled feat?
I have a PC that wants to play a variant human warlock, but uses heavy armor and has the feat Skilled which states you gain proficiency in any combination of 3 skills or tools. Is heavy or any armor ...
1
vote
1answer
138 views
Fall as a free action and then use fly skill to end falling as free movement
I had a character flying at 100 feet. I knocked an enemy to the ground. Their now farther away than a charge action could get me.
Is it possible to start falling as a free action, and then resume ...
3
votes
2answers
153 views
How can an NPC be built to track a fleeing target? [closed]
I have seen the tracking rules based on the survival skill and something bothers me: you take a -20 penalty to track a target at twice your speed (a.k.a hustle speed a.k.a a fleeing runaway speed on a ...
0
votes
0answers
50 views
What modifiers apply to skill checks, and when? [duplicate]
A Player Character is 1st level and has the skill Athletics.
Do they get Strength ability mod (if any) and Proficiency mod?
If they do not have the skill do they get neither?
2
votes
3answers
175 views
Does fighting qualify for the “distracted” penalty to listen checks?
The D&D 3.5 rules for the Listen skill indicate that checks while the listener is distracted raises the DC by +5.
If the listener is participating in an encounter while trying to pinoint an ...
4
votes
2answers
102 views
How can a creature ride an ill-suited mount and not suffer the penalty?
The Player's Handbook on the skill Ride says, "If you attempt to ride a creature that is ill suited as a mount (such as most bipedal creatures), you take a –5 penalty on your Ride checks" (80).
Is ...
6
votes
1answer
180 views
How does one use Diplomacy to influence a crowd?
The party just killed an assassin heading our way. The general townsfolk saw the end of the encounter, and it might have made us look bad. My guy wants to do a bit of public speaking to reshape the ...
4
votes
2answers
199 views
Houseruling Intelligence and Wisdom checks as reactions?
My high level players often face problems in combat. Enemy resists damage, something causes an effect, enemy's abilities are unknown. They often desire information about what has happened, i.e., "Why ...
7
votes
2answers
159 views
Must all participants in an opposed check take actions to participate?
When making an opposed skill check, must the passive participants take actions to oppose the active participant's skill check?
For example: A creature makes a Bluff skill check to lie to the PCs. ...
10
votes
2answers
208 views
Does failing to tumble through an occupied space end your action?
One Tumble skill use requires a check (DC 25) to do this:
Tumble at one-half speed through an area occupied by an enemy (over, under, or around the opponent) as part of normal movement, provoking ...
14
votes
2answers
2k views
Using 3d6 versus d20 for skill checks vis-à-vis advantage and Lucky
As a follow on to this question, now that people have gotten into the weeds and into the math on D&D's 5th edition, I am interested in seeing the impact on skill checks (only) of using 3d6 rather ...
3
votes
1answer
51 views
Penetrating Vision, TK, and sabotage
I'd like to use PV and TK to cause havoc, disabling guns and power armor, killing power or control to building features (security systems, elevators, etc), and so on. But looking through the books and ...
6
votes
2answers
96 views
How can the dismantling of monsters be run under GURPS 4e?
I'm planning a gurps-4e game in a scenario that uses monster parts as material for weapons and armors. After searching my books, however, I couldn't find a proper way to dismantle monsters (or even ...
4
votes
1answer
97 views
Does spending a skill point give you a d4 or d6?
When a new character is made in Savage Worlds, they have 15 points to spend on skills. According to the rulebook:
Each die type costs 1 point (starting at d4)
The point of confusion for me here is ...
9
votes
3answers
2k views
Guidelines for speeding up looting process for player characters?
Introduction
As a relatively new DM I've adopted players rolling Investigation when attempting to loot corpses and chests, because I see other Dungeon Masters doing that as well. But since I roll for ...
3
votes
1answer
100 views
How do Armor check penalties and the Pilfering Hand spell interact?
Armor check penalties reduce your strength and dex skills by X amount depending on your penalty amount, yes?
But what happens when you use a spell like Pilfering Hand which doesn't use your own hand?
...
7
votes
3answers
193 views
Bluff vs truth and an NPC's sense motive
What happens when one PC tells the truth to an NPC about something and another PC bluffs to that same NPC and the NPC has failed their sense motive?
Specifically I reported to an NPC guard that one ...
8
votes
1answer
137 views
Can NPCs have fight-or-flight reactions to intimidation instead of just submitting?
I was DMing the second session of my first game a few weeks ago and I started thinking about how I should have handled a particular situation. We had 3 PCs being assisted by a cleric NPC; this same ...
5
votes
1answer
116 views
Are invisible creatures harder to pinpoint via hearing?
Invisibility spell states that its subject gains +20 to stealth. This makes it really hard to pinpoint a creature by something other than sight (i.e. hearing).
But what if invisible creature says ...
0
votes
1answer
257 views
Extra Attack Questions [duplicate]
Can A level 11 Fighter multiclass into a ranger and level up to level 6 to get the most extra attacks before level 20? I’m pretty sure when multiclassing doesn’t stack the extra attacks, but I just ...
7
votes
4answers
873 views
How do I know when to have a PC use perception versus investigation?
So I have been trying to figure out the problem of when to call for a Perception check vs. an Investigation check. I have read over this question extensively, but there is no accepted answer, and the ...
18
votes
5answers
3k views
How to optimize a character for the greatest number of skill proficiencies with the fewest number of levels?
I want to build a character with the maximum number of skill proficiencies, 18. 20 levels to work with, multi-classing, feats, all official published books, starting with standard point array.
The ...
