My D&D 5E Assumptions, Rulings, etc

Here are a bunch of assumptions and rulings and thoughts I have about D&D 5E, so that you won't be surprised or upset when something I say at the table contradicts the way you've read the rules and/or played in the past.

 

D&D 5E Conditions

A poster on the dndbeyond.com forums pointed out that some conditions are not absolute, that they exist only with repect to another creature or object. For example, you can be charmed by one foe but not charmed by another.

I like this idea. I think it helps explain away some of the confusion around rules (in particular the idea that if someone using truesight can see you, the invisible condition is cancelled for everyone).

Absolute Conditions

A creature either has this condition, or they don't. The condition applies to all interaction between the creature and its environment.

Anything that ends the condition ends it entirely.

• Blinded (but see below)
• Deafened
• Exhausted
• Grappled (who or what is grappling you is only important for determining when the condition ends)
• Incapacitated
• Paralyzed
• Petrified
• Poisoned
• Prone
• Restrained
• Stunned
• Unconscious

Relative Conditions

Unseen (related to Blinded and to Invisible)

Some game features, for example obscurement, refer to the blinded condition. I think a better phrasing for this is "unseen". 

A creature is unseen by another creature if the second creature has no line of sight to the first. 

This could be because of concealment between the two (darkness, foliage, fog), because the second creature is blinded, because the first creature is invisible and the second creature has no way to see through this, or because of some other reason.

Having an "unseen" condition removes the need for an "invisible" condition, which I think is a good thing.

It also allows for a condition of camouflage (AKA hidden in plain sight) which 5E has no way of modelling.

Note that if one creature cannot see a second, there are not necessarily any effects on attacks to or from a third creature.

Unheard

An "unheard" condition could interact with a few game features (for example Bardic Inspiration).

Charmed

The effects only apply to interactions with the charmer.

Frightened

The effects only apply to interactions with the source of fear.

Turned

5E does not list "Turned" as a condition, but I think it should. It works much the same way as Frightened.

Hidden

5E does not list "Hidden" as a condition, but I think it should. It works much the same way as Invisible.

If creature A is Hidden from creature B then B does not know A's location or even whether or not A is present.

As with unseen and unheard, the fact that A is hidden from B does not mean that A is hidden from another creature C. 

If C knows A's location and communicates this to B then A will no longer have the Hidden condition with repect to B.

Darkness in D&D 5E

Setup

Adventurers L and R are each in an area of bright light.
Adventurer M is between the two, out of range of both light sources.
R has darkvision with enough range to reach M.
No-one has blindsight.

Normal Darkness

This does not block vision.

L and R can see each other clearly and attack each other normally.

M can see L and attacks at advantage (target can't see attacker).
L cannot see M (M is effectively invisible to them) and attacks at disadvantage (attacker can't see target), after guessing a square to attack.

M can see R and attacks normally.
R can see M (because of darkvision) and attacks normally.

Note: M might be silhouetted by a light source. In this case, L has a clue to which square M occupies.

Obscurement

For example, the gray area is a fog cloud spell, or a sand storm, or heavy foliage.

This blocks vision but does not block the existance of light ("You can see the shifting light of a bonfire on the other side of the trees.").

None of L, M, and R can see each other. All attacks are made at normal (disadvantage from "attacker can't see target" is countered by advantage from "target can't see attacker"), after guessing a square to attack.

Magical Darkness

For example, the grey area is a darkness spell.

This completely blocks vision (the "inky blot" concept). 

None of L, M, and R can see each other. All attacks are made at normal (disadvantage from "attacker can't see target" is countered by advantage from "target can't see attacker"), after guessing a square to attack.

No trace of light penetrates the magical darkness. R could have a bonfire the size of a house but L and M won't see it.

Bonus Action Spells

"(Non-spell)" means doing something other than Cast a Spell.

Allowed during your Turn (no Action Surge)

Action	Bonus Action	Reaction
Cantrip	Any level	(Non-spell)
Cantrip	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
Cantrip	(Non-spell)	Level 1+
Cantrip	(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)
Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Level 1+
Level 1+	(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)
(Non-spell)	Any level	(Non-spell)
(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)	Level 1+

Allowed during your Turn (Action Surge)

2 Actions	Bonus Action	Reaction
Two Cantrips	Any level	(Non-spell)
Two Cantrips	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
Two Cantrips	(Non-spell)	Level 1+
Two Cantrips	(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)
Cantrip and Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
Cantrip and Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Level 1+
Cantrip and Level 1+	(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)
Two Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Cantrip
Two Level 1+	(Non-spell)	Level 1+
Two Level 1+	(Non-spell)	(Non-spell)

Disallowed

Anything not in the lists above.

Table Rules

After reading an ENWorld thread on table rules, I thought I would codify mine.

Do Participate

Take part in the game. Get involved in conversations.

Have a character

…not just a set of numbers. Give them likes and dislikes. Most importantly, give them a motivation (the reason they left a safe life and became an adventurer).

Don't Be A Dick (Wheaten's Law)

Every one of us at the table is responsible for the gaming experience of everyone else at the table.

"But that's what my character would do!" is not a justification. If playing your character requires you to be a dick (to players or characters) then retire the character and generate a new one.

This is a Safe Space

While the game world is definitely not a safe space (see the trigger warning below), the table we are sitting at is. My games are harassment-free zones.

Trigger Warning

The game situations may include addition, drug-taking, slavery, abuse, and other unpleasant topics. There will be gore and graphic violence. The really nasty activities will happen off-screen but they will still be happening in the game world.

You are the Heroes

The world may be violent and unfair and your character may be nasty, brutish and short but they are not rapists or murderers or bandits or drug dealers.

In short, evil alignment is prohibited. If your character acts in a evil fashion they will become an NPC. I don't want to GM for evil characters and I'm not sure I'd be any good at it anyway.

Let people play their character

Don't tell people how to play their character. Suggestions of tactics are fine (especially if the player is new to the game) but let them decide their own motivations and beliefs and alignment.

The words "but your character wouldn't do that" should not be uttered at the table. If you think someone's character is acting inconsistently then address it in-character, in-game.

Know your own character

Memorise or write down your character's abilities. When I ask for your Armour Class or Hit Points or the range of your spell, you should be able to answer in a couple of seconds.

Of course, the newer you are to the game, the more slack you will be given on this.

Rulings

If you disagree with something I have ruled then say so. You have 60 seconds (roughly) to argue your case. I’ll then make a ruling and we’ll continue.

After the session has finished we will have a more in-depth look at the books and the forums. If I was wrong then we’ll play it correctly in the future, but that evening’s ruling still stands. We only have two-to-three hours – we can’t afford to spend 20 minutes discussing rules.

Dice

No rolling of dice until the GM asks for a roll please. There is one exception – roll attack and damage dice at the same time in D&D 5E.

Reroll off-table dice.

Reroll cocked dice.

All dice rolling in public please.

Table-Talk

Anything you say, your character says. Very little retraction is allowed.

Assumed Actions & Knowledge

Your characters are professionals.

I’m assuming that they are paying attention to what is around them and staying alert. I’m assuming they are gathering arrows and bolts after fights and cleaning their gear during rests. You only need to tell me the exceptional stuff.

I'm assuming that adventurers talk to other adventurers and swap stories of tactics and monster abilities. The answer to, “Does my character know that trolls are vulnerable to fire and acid?” is generally, “You tell me, it’s your damn character.”

Attacking or betraying another character requires the prior permission of every person at the table

PVP can cause emotion and tension. If you want to do it, you have to get everyone's buy-in and you have to get it beforehand.

A Fast Game is a Good Game

We need to get through multiple combats in the evening. We can't do that if every turn takes 10 minutes.

When it is your turn in initiative, I will ask "What are you doing?" If you can’t answer reasonably quickly then you lose your turn due to indecision and your character will stand still and take the Dodge action.

You should be spending the other player's turns thinking about your actions and looking up the appropriate stats on your character sheet.

During your turn you can discuss tactics with other players - but only briefly.

Of course, the newer you are to the game rules then the more slack you will be given.

One of the consequences of long turns is that people are more likely to start Facegraming and Instabooking on their smartphones. Which leads to the next rule.

Technology

Please pay attention to the game, not your smartphone.

The only reason you should be looking at a smartphone or computer is if your character sheet or rule books are stored there.

Missing Players

If a player is not present then their character takes no action during the session. It is assumed that they are present but in the background or off-screen.

None of their abilities or gear are available for the session.

On the other hand, they suffer no consequences from the session, unless the consequences apply to the entire party. For example, if the entire group gets captured then missing characters also get captured. For example, if the party is fighting rust monsters then none of the missing character’s gear is destroyed.

(5E) Melee weapons and melee weapon attacks AKA why can't i throw my warhammer when raging

D&D 5E uses the terms "melee weapon", "melee weapon attack", "ranged weapon", and "ranged weapon attack" reasonably consistently but fails, in my opinion, to explain them all that well. So, here's my attempt.

Weapons
A melee weapon is something found on the simple melee weapons table or the martial melee weapons table. You hold it and hit your foe with it. You can also throw it at them, though it might not be very effective when thrown.

A ranged weapon is something found on the simple ranged weapons table or the martial ranged weapons table. You either throw it at a foe (if it has the thrown property) or use it to launch some sort of missile at the foe (if it has the ammunition property). You can hold it and hit a foe with it but it will not be very effective.

Attacks
From the Combat chapter of the rules:

Hitting a target within your reach with an item that you are holding is a melee weapon attack. The ability modifier used is Strength.

Throwing an item at a foe or launching some sort of missile at them is a ranged weapon attack. The ability modifier used is Dexterity.

Thrown property
If a melee weapon has the thrown property then throwing it at a foe is making a ranged weapon attack but using Strength, not Dexterity. The weapon is still a melee weapon (not a ranged weapon), which is important for some features.

If a melee weapon doesn't have the thrown property, you can still throw it but you won't be as effective. It is considered an improvised weapon and will do 1d4 + DEX Mod damage. Your ranged weapon attack is with an item that is not on any of the weapon tables (improvised weapons are not actual weapons), so it uses Dexterity.

If a ranged weapon has the thrown property then throwing it at a foe is making a ranged weapon attack using Dexterity.

Finesse property
If a weapon (melee or ranged) has the finesse property then you can choose to use Strength or Dexterity for melee weapon attacks and ranged weapon attacks made with it, though you must use the same modifier for both the attack roll and the damage roll.

Other
There are also a few things that aren't weapons but are still used to make a melee weapon attack (using Strength) or a ranged weapon attack (using Dexterity): unarmed attacks, claw/bite/etc attacks and improvised weapons.

Summary
• "Melee weapon" and "ranged weapon" is based on which table the weapon appear in. Melee weapons use Strength; ranged weapons use Dexterity.
• "Melee weapon attack" and "ranged weapon attack" are based on what you are doing.

What are you doing?	Melee Weapon	Melee Weapon (thrown)	Ranged Weapon (thrown)	Ranged Weapon (ammunition)
Hitting someone while holding it	Melee weapon attack Strength	Melee weapon attack Strength	Improvised melee weapon attack Strength	Improvised melee weapon attack Strength
Throwing it	Improvised ranged weapon attack Dexterity	Ranged weapon attack Strength	Ranged weapon attack Dexterity	Improvised ranged weapon attack Dexterity
Launching ammunition from it	N/A	N/A	N/A	Ranged weapon attack Dexterity

• If the weapon has the finesse tag then you can choose to use either Strength or Dexterity, regardless of the type of attack.

The game is pretty consistent about the difference between "attack with a melee weapon" and "melee weapon attack". For example, Barbarian Rage damage bonus requires a "melee weapon attack using Strength" and therefore doesn't apply to thrown melee weapons or thrown ranged weapons.

Concentration

A few weeks ago I gave my players a pop quiz about concentration. Researching the quiz taught me a lot about the rule, especially about how many things require it.

Q1. What specific things require concentration?

• Casting a spell that has duration "Concentration".
• Casting a spell with a casting time longer than a single Action or Reaction. This includes all ritual casting.
• Readying a spell.
• Using a feature. For example, Draconic Presence (Draconic Sorcerer lvl 18), Visions of the Past (Knowledge Cleric lvl 17), Invoke Duplicity (Trickery Cleric lvl 2), Dark Delerium (Archfey Warlock lvl 14), Minor Alchemy (Transmutation Wizard lvl 2). This might include the Paladin and Cleric Holy Water ritual and the Warlock pact Weapon ritual (the rules don't specify).
• Using a magic item. For example, marvellous pigments, ring of djinni summoning, ring of shooting stars.

Q2. What can break concentration? What is the roll and DC, if applicable?

• Doing something else that requires concentration (automatic).
• Entering Barbarian Rage (automatic).
• Taking damage (CON saving throw, DC is half the damage, minimum 10).
• Being incapacitated (automatic).
• Being killed (automatic).
• The environment around you (CON saving throw, DC varies).