112
votes
Accepted
Why do Warlocks only have spells up to 5th level? What's the correct progression for their slots?
The book is correct. For the reason why level 6-9 spells exist for the warlock when their Pact Magic slots cap at 5, check the Mystic Arcanum class feature on PHB p.108.
Mystic Arcanum
At 11th level, ...
- 18.8k
89
votes
Why would I ever choose rolling hit points?
Because it's "more fun".
To many roleplayers the fun is on the dice. They enjoy every roll, and they like to take risks.
If another game's example is allowed, in MERP hitpoints were also rolled (for ...
- 17k
88
votes
Accepted
Mechanically speaking, why does level 1 seem so different from level 2?
Welcome to Rusty Dagger Shanktown!
What you have noticed is very widely commented upon—1st level is often called “rusty dagger shanktown.” It’s hyper-lethal, rather than the kind of heroic fantasy ...
- 318k
68
votes
Can I defer levelling up after reaching the XP threshold?
This is a bit of an XY Problem.
The title of the question is 'can I defer leveling up?' but the actual problem is expressed in the second sentence:
I'm not yet ready to pick what archetype would fit ...
- 23.3k
59
votes
My players want to grind XP but we're using milestone advancement
Let me summarize: You have a group that prefers Milestone XP, but isn't interested in creating any new stories. And you don't seem interested in making a story of your own unrelated to the characters. ...
- 3,314
58
votes
Why would I ever choose rolling hit points?
History
It's a Gamble
It's presented as the default.
The first of these points might be the strongest of them all. Older editions had you always roll your hit points which means that people who are ...
- 102k
57
votes
Accepted
Can a character gain two levels with the same encounter?
As Ceribia referenced, RAW does not allow this. However, in this case I would consider it for four reasons.
First, the Deck of Many Things is an artifact. Artifacts generally give the big flaming ...
- 3,549
57
votes
Accepted
Is leveling up mandatory?
You can't refuse to level up...
From the Players Handbook, "Experience and levels" p 58:
Advancing a Level: When your character’s XP total reaches at
least the minimum XP needed for a new ...
- 4,741
52
votes
Accepted
What is the reason behind "one level at a time" level advancement in D&D?
I am not particularly fond of playing one game session and going up a level. That hardly qualifies as "earned," to my way of thinking. (E. Gary Gygax as Col_Pladoh on Dragonsfoot forum)
The ...
- 139k
52
votes
Are there any rules on how characters go from 0th to 1st level in a class?
There is no 0th level
D&D 5e expects players to start at level 1. NPCs don't have player class levels, so there's never such a thing as a 0th level character. A NPC fighter doesn't actually have ...
- 35.4k
49
votes
Accepted
How does a character know when she's leveled up?
Character levels are an abstraction of continuous growth
The characters themselves know that they are getting stronger, but they don't experience discrete jumps in power within the game. Instead, ...
- 62.4k
46
votes
Accepted
Can you take the same feat multiple times?
The general rule is that you can only take each feat once
From page 165 of the Player's Handbook (under "Feats"), or here in the basic rules:
You can take each feat only once, unless the feat's ...
- 38.8k
46
votes
Accepted
How do you quickly build a player character during a session without interrupting the game or leaving out important information?
1. Carry pre-generated characters.
2. Allow character changes after-the-fact.
Pregenerated
characters
can save you a lot of time. It's not the ideal solution for
immersive role-playing, but it'll ...
- 98.7k
46
votes
Accepted
Are racial stat bonuses every level or just once at creation?
Racial ability score adjustments are only added once at character creation.
The Player's Handbook is explicit about how ability scores improve. The ability score improvement class feature says:
...
- 18k
45
votes
Accepted
What are the consequences of giving an ASI or feat every 4 character levels instead of every 4 class levels?
It tips balance towards multiclassing
Delaying the ASI or feat bonus is one of the detriments of multiclassing. It balances out the benefits of multiclassing.
Giving ASI or feat for every 4 total ...
- 32.2k
45
votes
Accepted
Does a Wizard copying a spell count as one of their two new spells for a level?
Copied spells and the two free spells are separate
Note the full wording1 of the Learning Spells of 1st Level and Higher section (emphasis mine):
Each time you gain a wizard level, you can add two ...
- 35.8k
42
votes
Accepted
Can you roll for HP at levelup in Adventurers League?
I found it, page 5 of version 7.0 of the AL players guide.
When you gain a level, use the fixed hit point
value in your class entry. You can’t roll your hit points.
Missed that but easily fixed.
- 1,339
41
votes
Are Constitution changes retroactive when calculating max HP?
CON changes apply retroactively, so it doesn't matter when you increase it.
PHB 177:
If your Constitution modifier changes, your hit point maximum changes as well, as though you had the new ...
- 62.4k
40
votes
Accepted
Multiclassing: How do Ability Score Improvements work?
Ability score improvements are a class feature, and are only gained when the class level grants it. Different classes gain these advances at different levels (the Fighter is the clearest example of ...
- 239k
38
votes
Can a character gain two levels with the same encounter?
No
PHB p.58:
A character can advance only one level at a time. If, for some extraordinary reason, a character's XP reward from a single adventure would be enough to advance two or more levels at ...
- 13k
36
votes
Can College of Lore magical secrets be traded at level up?
Well, there's good news, and there's bad news. The good news is that you can trade away the spells from Magical Secrets. The bad news is that you can only trade them for bard spells.
The rules on ...
- 141k
36
votes
My players want to grind XP but we're using milestone advancement
Why do they think they need to be stronger to complete a plot point?
This is based on your comment:
... their goal is specifically to get stronger to go back and complete a plot point. They don't ...
- 77k
33
votes
What are the most important things magic items do for the players into higher levels of the campaign?
5th edition was designed to not require magical items. A party of level 20 characters can win a fight against a CR 20 dragon with no magical items whatsoever.
That said, one very important aspect of ...
- 27.1k
31
votes
When do a wizard's new spells appear after leveling?
By RAW, they are free
The rules for leveling up a wizard state that you can add two wizard spells of your choice to your spellbook for free. The rules for gaining a level (PHB p. 15) state that a ...
- 13k
31
votes
Accepted
How can a GM subtly guide characters into making campaign-specific character choices?
Don’t be subtle
My preferred approach: “This is me, the DM. I see you have an empty language and favoured enemy slot. Word to the wise: giants.”
The advantage of this is that it has about a 55% of ...
- 188k
30
votes
Why would I ever choose rolling hit points?
Rolling dice is part of the game, but rolling dice only once is also very unbalancing. When you miss an attack roll, you can try again next round. When you roll low for attributes, your character will ...
- 21.6k
30
votes
Accepted
Do you improve your ability score at every level?
No: you do not gain an Ability Score Improvement at each level.
I know there's something called Ability Score Improvement, and I think
that means you get to improve 2 ability scores by 1 (or you ...
- 4,118
29
votes
Accepted
Can a wizard delay learning new spells from leveling up, and instead learn different spells later?
Spells are learned upon level up
From the wizard class features:
Learning Spells of 1st Level and Higher
Each time you gain a wizard level, you can add two wizard spells of your choice to your ...
- 35.8k
28
votes
Accepted
Is a character obligated to advance in level?
The Adventurer's League FAQ states that characters with sufficient experience must advance at the next opportunity.
When do characters advance in level? [...]
Characters with sufficient experience ...
- 141k
28
votes
Accepted
What character growth happens beyond level 20?
The 20th level is the highest you can achieve.
Characters who reach 20th level have attained
the pinnacle of mortal achievement. Their deeds are
recorded in the annals of history and recounted by
...
- 9,691
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