86
votes
Accepted
Assassin using Arcane Trickster's Mage Hand: Is it Unbalanced?
Although many tables allow some degree of tweaking in order to make a build match a concept, they usually involve some degree of horse trading, i.e. giving up something to get something else. ...
- 31.9k
75
votes
Accepted
Does advantage negate disadvantage (for things such as the rogue's Sneak Attack)?
Yes, advantage would negate disadvantage for purposes of Sneak Attack.
According to the rules on advantage and disadvantage (PHB 173, emphasis mine):
If circumstances cause a roll to have both ...
- 30k
75
votes
How do I allow the Rogue opportunities to be stealthy with a Druid in the party?
You have a few options.
Don't change your stealth missions at all.
Instead provide a scenario in which the Druid is the only one that can do something with any reasonable chance of success, while at ...
- 22.2k
62
votes
Accepted
Can a rogue/Kensei monk use Sneak Attack with a Kensei weapon?
No, this is a converse error
Your logic is something like this:
Sneak Attack […] The attack must use a finesse […] weapon.
(Player’s Handbook, pg. 96)
Finesse. When making an attack with a finesse ...
- 345k
57
votes
Accepted
Are there any published alternatives to sneak attack?
Keep the mechanic, change the name
There is actually nothing “sneaky” about “Sneak Attack” - the name is a holdover from earlier editions when it was sneaky. Indeed, in really early editions it was ...
- 206k
56
votes
Accepted
Would a Rogue's Uncanny Dodge feature halve the damage of a Magic Missile spell?
No, Magic missile is not an attack.
The general rule is:
If there's ever any question whether something you're doing counts as
an attack, the rule is simple: if you're making an attack roll, you're
...
- 93.9k
55
votes
Accepted
Evolution of the Rogue in D&D
The Rogue, a bowdlerized Thief, was always an Adventurer / Treasure Hunter
For a swords and sorcery genre fictional or legendary root, you could look at the Grey Mouser (from Fritz Lieber's fiction), ...
- 142k
55
votes
Accepted
Benefit of Dual Daggers?
In terms of dealing lethal damage, a dagger is strictly inferior to a short sword--to a user proficient in both.
Daggers, however, have all the benefits in-game that they enjoy in real life: they are ...
- 101k
53
votes
Accepted
If I have both advantage and disadvantage, and my target has the Elusive rogue class feature, do I have disadvantage on the attack?
The attacking enemy has disadvantage on the roll.
The relevant quote from the PHB is here:
If circumstances cause a roll to have both advantage
and disadvantage, you are considered to have ...
- 48.5k
53
votes
Accepted
Bards acting as rogues?
Class names and in-universe terms don't need to be the same
What, really, is a 'bard'? It's somebody who earns their living by entertaining people with music and song. This doesn't require any form of ...
- 36.3k
53
votes
Accepted
How can a DM make a low-level melee rogue feel useful in combat when the party has no tank who triggers sneak attack for her?
For Druid + Rogue at level 1; combat is not necessarily required.
Focusing on the rogue's DPR is, IMO, you as DM viewing this party through a very narrow lens. I suggest that, since (1) you only ...
- 142k
52
votes
Accepted
Can unarmed strike work with a rogue's sneak attack?
Strictly by Rules as Written and Intended, no.
By RAW, no. What you ruled doesn't work. Let's look at the important passages from the skills involved.
Martial Arts:
You can use Dexterity instead of ...
- 3,151
50
votes
Potent Cantrip with Toll the Dead vs Evasion
The Rogue and Monk would take half damage
Your argument seems sound. Since the Evasion feature specifies Dexterity saving throws, but Toll the Dead requires a Wisdom saving throw, Evasion simply doesn'...
- 78.5k
49
votes
Accepted
What happens if you roll a Nat1 on a proficient skill with Reliable Talent?
Ability checks don't critically succeed or fail.
In 5th edition, ability checks don't typically automatically succeed on a 20, or automatically fail on a 1. It's only attack rolls that have ...
- 48.5k
49
votes
Does limiting Sneak Attack to the Dexterity choice on Finesse Weapons imbalance anything?
Removing balanced player options is unfair (and unfun).
The reason that sneak attack requires finesse (or ranged) weapons is less to do with the Ability (Strength or Dexterity) and more to do with the ...
- 20.9k
49
votes
Accepted
Can a ranged rogue effectively stand back and sneak attack opponents every turn with a ranged weapon while their allies fight on the front line?
Yes, rogues can sneak attack at range pretty effectively.
You're reading the rules right, and all a ranged rogue needs for sneak attack is an ally's adjacency. (Actually, an enemy-of-my-enemy's ...
- 101k
48
votes
Accepted
Do I need advantage to sneak attack someone who is incapacitated?
You don’t need advantage on the attack roll if another enemy of the target is within 5 feet of it, that enemy isn’t incapacitated, and you don’t have disadvantage on the attack roll (emphasis mine)
...
- 36.3k
48
votes
How do I allow the Rogue opportunities to be stealthy with a Druid in the party?
Create scenarios that require resource management
Your players are right that a wild-shaped druid is a lot better at infiltration than a rogue. However, don't forget that a druid at your party's ...
- 63.4k
46
votes
Accepted
Does the Bracer of Flying Daggers really let a thief make 4 attacks per round?
You cannot activate magic items with Fast Hands
The section on activating magic items specifically calls out this case:
If an item requires an action to activate, that action isn't a
function ...
- 61.3k
45
votes
Can an Assassin stack critical hits?
If you hit, it is already considered a critical hit
This is the case regardless of whether you then roll a natural 20 or not.
When the Rogue is assassinating a surprised target, it will be a ...
- 8,442
44
votes
Accepted
Can the rogue repeatedly hide in combat to sneak attack the same enemy?
No, this doesn't work in melee.
At least not the important second half.
Yes, they can duck behind the corner and hide. All they need to do to be allowed to hide is break line of sight.
No, they can'...
- 243k
44
votes
Accepted
How do hit dice affect my attacks?
Hit dice have no impact on attacks
Your Hit-Dice have nothing to do with your attacks, and are related to your HP max and HP recovery while resting. They're "hit dice" as in "hit points", not as in "...
- 6,456
43
votes
Accepted
Does Elusive trump Reckless Attack?
Enemies don't get advantage against you in this scenario.
Yes, Reckless Attack grants them advantage. However, no-one ever has advantage unless something grants it to them. If Elusive doesn't work ...
- 144k
43
votes
Can a rogue use sneak attack with weapons that have the thrown property even if they are not thrown?
Sneak Attack does not work with melee weapons that have the thrown property, but lack the finesse property
The Rogue's Sneak Attack feature states:
The attack must use a finesse or a ranged weapon.
...
- 18k
43
votes
Accepted
What is a Centaur Thief's climbing speed?
From logic, one would arrive at:
"Climbing for a thief no longer costs the thief extra movement,"
"Climbing for a centaur costs 4 extra feet,"
"4 extra feet is extra movement," (implied from "instead ...
- 502
42
votes
Accepted
Would allowing a Thief (with Fast Hands) to use the Healer feat's tending action as a bonus action be balanced?
I don't believe allowing this would even be a house rule, the rules support it as-is.
The action enabled by the Healer feat is just a new use for an object and, therefore, is still technically the Use ...
- 19.3k
42
votes
Accepted
How does a Swashbuckler rogue "fight with two weapons while safely darting away"?
The next paragraph reads
When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you learn
how to land a strike and then slip away without reprisal.
During your turn, if you make a melee attack against a
...
- 1,239
40
votes
Half Orc Rogue sneak attack calculation
No, that's not correct. Half-Orcs get the following ability:
Savage
Attacks.
When
you
score
a
critical
hit
with
a
melee
weapon
attack,
you
can
roll
one
of
the
...
- 144k
39
votes
Can a Rogue effectively triple their speed by combining Dash and Ready, spreading it over several turns?
Yes, and they don't need to ready an action to do it
Say their movement is 30ft. They expend their movement for 30ft, use their action to Dash for an extra 30ft, then Bonus action to Dash again with ...
- 1,181
38
votes
How does Jack of All Trades interact with Reliable Talent?
As of 2019, the new Sage Advice Compendium clearly states that they don't interact.
These aren't allowed to work together on a single check.
Can the rogue’s Reliable Talent feature be used in ...
- 5,955
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible