Tag Archives: to-hit rolls

D&D’s Inconspicuous Phrases That You Notice Once You Master the Rules

Posted on March 17, 2020 by David Hartlage

Despite using common language, the Dungeons & Dragons rules feature such precise wording that a close reading answers most questions and foils many schemes to break the game. You can tell that the designers dreamed up plenty of min-maxing exploits, … Continue reading →

Posted in Rules | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

The Tangled Origins of D&D’s Armor Class, Hit Points, and Twenty-Sided Die Rolls To-Hit

Posted on November 13, 2018 by David Hartlage

In 1977, when I first read the Dungeon & Dragons basic rules, the way armor class improved as it shrunk from 9 to 2 puzzled me. Shouldn’t higher numbers be better? Players just used AC to find a row on … Continue reading →

Posted in Role-playing game history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Fourth Edition Proved D&D Works Without Saving Throws, So Why Did They Come Back?

Posted on December 19, 2017 by David Hartlage

Fourth edition dropped saving throws in favor of to-hit rolls and showed that D&D works without saves. Mathematically, to-hit rolls and saving throws just flip the numbers so that a high roll benefits the person casting the die. Rather than … Continue reading →

Posted in Role-playing game design, Role-playing game history | Tagged , , , , , , | 23 Comments

Proficiency and bounded accuracy in D&D Next

Posted on January 23, 2014 by David Hartlage

In my last post, I wrote about how the Dungeons & Dragons Next proficiency bonus jams all the tables and rules for attack bonuses and saving throw bonuses and check bonuses into a single rising bonus. This consolidation yields a … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D fifth edition, Role-playing game design | Tagged , , , , , | 61 Comments

Changing the balance of power

Posted on February 18, 2013 by David Hartlage

(This post continues a discussion I started in “What does D&D have to do with ironclad ships?”) Skip Williams‘s second edition adventure Axe of Dwarvish Lords staged a type of battle no Dungeons & Dragons adventure has tried before or … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D fifth edition | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

D&D Next trades to-hit bonuses for enhanced damage

Posted on February 11, 2013 by David Hartlage

(This post continues a discussion I started in “What does D&D have to do with ironclad ships?”) As I discussed in “Riding the power curve,” the next iteration of Dungeons & Dragons attempts to straighten out fourth edition’s logarithmic power … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D fifth edition, D&D fourth edition | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Riding the power curve through D&D’s editions

Posted on February 4, 2013 by David Hartlage

(This post continues a discussion I started in “What does D&D have to do with ironclad ships?”) In the very first set of Dungeons & Dragons (1974) rules, every weapon dealt 1d6 damage. Short of magic, characters could only improve … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D fifth edition, D&D fourth edition, Role-playing game design | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hitting the to-hit sweet spot

Posted on January 31, 2013 by David Hartlage

(This post continues a discussion I started in “What does D&D have to do with ironclad ships?”) Through the evolution of Dungeons & Dragons, the game uses two mechanics to determine an attack’s damage output: to-hit rolls and damage rolls. … Continue reading →

Posted in Role-playing game design, Role-playing game history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment