General Adjustments
Initiative and Surprise
If a Natural 20 is rolled for Initiative, that character gains Advantage to a D20 Test they make during their first turn (of their choice). If a Surprised creature rolls a Natural 20, they instead are not Surprised.
Surprise functions similarly to base 5e, with the following clarifications and adjustments:
- Surprised creatures are declared by the GM before the first turn of combat begins.
- If neither side tries to be stealthy, they automatically notice each other and combat begins as normal. Otherwise, the GM compares the Stealth checks of anyone hiding against the Passive Perception of each creature on the opposing side. Any creature that doesn’t notice a threat becomes Surprised.
- If a Hiding creature performs an action that would alert nearby enemies (such as attacking or casting an audible and/or visual spell), combat begins and Surprise (if any) is declared by the GM, as normal. All creatures who performed such an action, loses that action during this first turn of combat (e.g. if attacked as an Action, no Action for this turn).
- A Surprised creature has Disadvantage on their Initiative roll.
- A member of a group can be Surprised even if the other members aren’t.
Free Object Interactions
In addition to having an Action and Bonus Action on their turn during combat, all creatures are also allotted a single
Free Object Interaction on each of their turns. Though every option for this Free Object Interaction is available via the
Use an Object action, the same is not true vice versa. Though what you can explicitly do with this interaction is ultimately determined by your GM, the following are some examples of what you can do:
- Draw and/or stow a weapon in the same turn.
- Open a door or simple container.
- Pick up a weapon or object from the ground or an open container.
- Grabbing an item out from an equipped bandolier.
- Hand an object to another creature.
Retrieving Items out of Storage
- Taking an item out of your bag takes an Action to do so, with the exception of an item in one of your Bandoliers, which can be your Free Object Interaction for the turn (unless otherwise stated by your GM).
- Taking a potion out of your bag and drinking or administering it takes an Action to do so.
- Drinking a potion already in your hand takes an Action or Bonus Action to do so (your choice), though administering it is still an Action.
Combat Adjustments
Tactical Combat
Flanking
- Every creature can Flank.
- While you and an ally are Flanking an enemy, both you and your ally have a +2 bonus on Attack Rolls against that enemy.
- To Flank an enemy, you and your ally must be on opposite sides or corners of the creature. A line drawn between the center of your space and the center of your ally’s space must pass through opposite sides or opposite corners of the enemy’s space.
- A creature cannot provide Flanking if it cannot see the enemy, it is Incapacitated, it is wielding a Ranged Weapon, or if it is under an effect that would prevent it from attacking that enemy (e.g. Charmed condition).
Mounting an Unwilling Creature / Climbing onto a Bigger Creature
If a creature wants to jump onto another, unwilling creature, it can do so by Grappling. A Small or Medium creature has little chance of making a successful Grapple against a Huge or Gargantuan creature, however, unless magic has granted the grappler supernatural might.
As an alternative, a suitably large opponent can be treated as terrain for the purpose of jumping onto its back or clinging to a limb. After making the necessary steps to get into position and onto the larger creature (usually through an Ability Check or two), the smaller creature uses the Grapple Action to make a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check contested by the target’s Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. If the smaller creature wins the contest, it successfully moves into the target creature’s space and clings to its body. While in the target’s space, the smaller creature moves with the target and has Advantage on Attack Rolls against it. If the smaller creature fails, it drops to a nearby unoccupied space and depending on the height, might take some fall damage (subject to GMs discretion).
The smaller creature can move around within the larger creature’s space, treating the space as Difficult Terrain. The larger creature’s ability to attack the smaller creature depends on the smaller creature’s location, and is left to the GMs discretion. The larger creature can dislodge the smaller creature as an Action—knocking it off, scraping it against a wall, or grabbing and throwing it—by making a Strength (Athletics) check contested by the smaller creature’s Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. The smaller creature chooses which ability to use.
Opportunity Attacks
- A creature can make an Opportunity Attack when a Hostile creature they can see moves out of their reach, or when a Hostile creature stands up from Prone while within their reach. To make the Opportunity Attack, you use your Reaction to make one Melee Attack against the provoking creature. The attack occurs right before the creature leaves your reach.
- A creature can avoid provoking an Opportunity Attack by taking the Disengage action. You also don’t provoke an Opportunity Attack when you teleport or when someone or something moves you without using your movement, Action, or Reaction. For example, you don’t provoke an Opportunity Attack if an explosion hurls you out of a foe’s reach or if gravity causes you to fall past an enemy.
- A creature that stands up from Prone that provokes an Opportunity Attack, cannot be knocked Prone again from that Opportunity Attack, even if their Speed is reduced to 0 from it.
Additional Actions in Combat
Bypass
A creature can try to move through a Hostile creature's space, whether that is by forcing its way through or by ducking and weaving past the opponent. As an Action or Bonus Action, the bypasser makes a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check contested by the Hostile creature's Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check (their choice). If the bypasser wins the contest, it can move through the Hostile creature's space once this turn. The Hostile creature can choose to just let the bypasser pass them instead of rolling. If the bypasser takes this as a Bonus Action, their roll has Disadvantage.
Dip
As a Bonus Action, a creature can dip their weapon in a surface (that the GM deems acceptable), or coat a weapon with a poison or flask of oil in their hand or bandolier (Action otherwise).
- Surface. Until the start of the creature's next turn, their weapon deals an additional 1d4 damage of a damage type determined by the surface (GMs discretion).
- Coating. Until a specified time or until 3 attacks are made with the dipped weapon, the creature deals an additional amount of damage with the weapon—the Damage and Damage Type determined by the item or the GM.
If dual-wielding, the creature can dip both weapons. If dipping arrows or bolts, they can dip up to five at a time; each ammunition deals the 1d4 damage seperately. Depending on the surface, the GM may also decide the damage is higher than 1d4.
Disarm
A creature can use a weapon attack to knock a weapon or other item from a target’s grasp. As an Action, the attacker makes an Attack Roll with their weapon, a Strength (Athletics) check, or Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check, contested by the target’s Strength (Athletics) check or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. If the attacker wins the contest, the attack causes no damage or other ill effect, but the defender drops the item.
The defender has Advantage on their roll if it’s holding the item with two or more hands. You have Advantage on your roll if your Size is larger than the target, or Disadvantage if your Size is smaller.
Shove Aside
A creature can use the Shove attack (from base 5e rules) to force a target to the side, rather than away. The attacker has Disadvantage on its Strength (Athletics) check when it does so. If that check is successful, the attacker moves the target 5 feet to a different space within its reach.
Additional Free Actions in Combat
Jump
Once per Round, you can jump a number of feet determined by your Strength (no action required). The amount of feet you cover is calculated in the ways below (based on the type of jump you're doing). A running jump requires you to move at least 10 feet on foot before the jump.
- Running Long Jump: Strength
- Standing Long Jump: Strength / 2
- Running High Jump: 3 + Strength
- Standing High Jump: (3 + Strength) / 2
Regardless of how you jump, each foot you clear on the jump costs a foot of movement. You cannot jump unless you have enough movement to do so. If you land in Difficult Terrain, you must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check to land on your feet; otherwise, you land Prone. Furthermore, the amount of feet you can jump is always rounded down, to the nearest 5 feet. Alternatively, while making a running jump, you can make a DC 10 Strength (Athletics) check; on a success, the amount of feet you can jump is instead rounded up, to the nearest 5 feet.
Examples of Jump Distance
| Strength Score |
Running Long Jump |
Standing Long Jump |
Running High Jump |
Standing High Jump |
| 10 |
10 ft. |
5 ft. |
10 ft. |
5 ft. |
| 12 |
10 ft. |
5 ft. |
15 ft. |
5 ft. |
| 15 |
15 ft. |
5 ft. |
15 ft. |
5 ft. |
| 20 |
20 ft. |
10 ft. |
20 ft. |
10 ft. |
Damage Types
Normally in base 5e, there are a total of 13 damage types as seen below:
- Bludgeoning
- Piercing
- Slashing
- Fire
- Cold
- Poison (toxin)
- Acid (corrosion)
- Psychic (mental)
- Necrotic (decay)
- Radiant (holy/blinding)
- Lightning (electricity)
- Thunder (sound/shockwave)
- Force (pure magic/void)
In addition to these, there is also the following:
True Damage
- This is unmodifiable, true damage that represents the sacrificing of one's own vigor and soul stability.
- A creature that takes True Damage cannot have that damage be increased or decreased by any effect (except for specific circumstances as per your GMs discretion).
- Resistance, Immunity, and Vulnerability to True Damage does not exist.
- This damage is specific to certain ancestry traits, class features, and boss encounters.
- A creature that falls to 0 Hit Points from taking True Damage rolls all Death Saving Throws with Disadvantage, and all checks other creatures make to stabilize or revive the fallen creature have Disadvantage.
Bleed Damage
- This is persistent damage that represents loss of blood.
- Creatures that do not have blood or that do not need blood to function, such as nonliving creatures, are immune to Bleed Damage.
- A creature that takes Bleed Damage from a source other than the Bleeding condition gains a number of Bleed Stacks equal to the damage taken. If a creature already has Bleed Stacks, the new Bleed Stacks are added to the existing ones.
- If a creature without the Bleeding condition loses Hit Point from Bleed Damage, it gains the Bleeding Condition. Bleeding does not occur if the Bleed Damage is dealt to Temporary Hit Points, unless stated otherwise.
- If a creature has Resistance and/or Damage Reduction to Physical Damage, nonmagical or otherwise, that reduction also applies to Bleed Damage.
(See below for Bleeding condition)
New and Updated Conditions
In addition to the normal conditions in base 5e and Bleeding (as described above), the following conditions exist. Certain spells, features, and monsters use these new conditions.
Anchored
- An Anchored creature cannot be magically transported through any means of teleportation (this includes but is not limited to spells and class features).
Bleeding
- A Bleeding creature takes Bleed Damage at the start of each of its turns, equal to the number of Bleed Stacks it has.
- The Bleeding condition can be removed from a creature with a successful Medicine Check (as if stabilizing a creature), a use of a Healer’s Kit, or any amount of magical healing. If a DC is not defined by the effect or ability that caused at least part of the Bleeding, then it is equal to 5 + the total amount of Bleed Stacks the creature has.
- A creature that does not have blood or that does not need blood to function, is Immune to the Bleeding condition.
Cowering
- A Cowering creature is frozen in fear and is Incapacitated (see the condition), they cannot move, but they can speak, often times in barely coherent pleas for mercy.
- Attack Rolls against the creature have Advantage.
- If a Cowering creature stops being Frightened, they stop Cowering.
Dazed
- Has Disadvantage on Wisdom Saving Throws.
- Can't take Reactions.
- Loses the Dexterity bonus to their AC.
Encumbered
- A creature becomes Encumbered when carrying weight in excess of their Carrying Capacity.
- While Encumbered, a creature’s Speed (for all types) is reduced by 10 feet, and they suffer Disadvantage on all D20 Tests they make that rely on Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution.
Exhaustion
While you have the Exhaustion condition, you experience the following effects.
- Exhaustion Levels. This condition is cumulative. Each time you receive it, you gain 1 Exhaustion level. You die if your Exhaustion level is 6.
- D20 Tests Affected. When you make a D20 Test, the roll is reduced by 2 times your Exhaustion level.
- Speed Reduced. Your Speed is reduced by a number of feet equal to 5 times your Exhaustion level.
- Spell Save DC Affected. The Spell Save DC of any spell you cast is reduced by your Exhaustion level.
- Removing Exhaustion Levels. Finishing a Long Rest removes 1 of your Exhaustion levels. When your Exhaustion level reaches 0, the condition ends.
Frightened
- A Frightened creature has Disadvantage on Ability Checks and Attack Rolls while the source of its fear is within Line of Sight.
- The creature can’t willingly move closer to the source of its fear.
- A Frightened creature that suffers from another effect that causes the Frightened condition and fails the effect by 5 or more, starts Cowering.
Intoxicated
There are two levels of Intoxication: Drunk and Blackout. When a creature gains the Intoxicated condition, they are are considered Drunk. If they gain the condition again while Drunk, they are considered Blackout. They have the following effects:
- Has Disadvantage on Attack Rolls and Dexterity Saving Throws.
- Has Advantage on Saving Throws against being Frightened.
- If the creature is Blackout, they have Disadvantage on Intelligence Saving Throws, and on Dexterity and Intelligence Ability Checks. Furthermore, their Speed is halved and if they ever move an amount of feet greater than their Constitution score, they immediately fall Prone.
- If a creature is Blackout, they must make a DC 10 + per hour Constitution Saving Throw made after every hour. On a failed save, they fall Unconscious.
Muted
- A Muted creature is unable to speak or cast spells that require Verbal components.
Shocked
- Can't take Reactions.
- Has Disadvantage on Ability Checks and Saving Throws that use Strength or Dexterity.
- Had Disadvantage on Attack Rolls.
Silenced
- Cannot speak, cast spells that include a verbal component, or use Spell Scrolls.
Slowed
- A Slowed creature spends 1 extra foot of movement for every foot they move using their Speed.
- Attack Rolls against the creature have Advantage.
- The creature has Disadvantage on Dexterity Saving Throws.
