Richard Baker

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-26-2022

When you’re creating a character for your Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition game, you want to choose the best powers, feats, skills, and gear for your character’s race and class. This Cheat Sheet provides tips for making wise power, feat, skill, and gear choices when you’re creating a new Dungeons & Dragons character. Once you get started, use the printable battle grids for roleplaying encounters.

Article / Updated 02-28-2020

Take your Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition character on an adventure using these battle grids. One battle grid is blank, so you can customize it to your particular adventure, or just use it as a large, open area to practice combat against monsters. The other battle grid is divided into several rooms, which you can use as the basis for a small dungeon. Ideally, each square on a battle grid should be one inch square. By that standard, the following battle grids are 14 inches wide and 9 inches tall — including the nonplayer character (NPC) squares that you can cut out and place on the map. To use these battle grids, you must either shrink them down to fit the size of your paper, or print them on larger paper (11 x 17, for example). Click here to download and print the blank battle grid. Click here to download and print a battle grid with some walls already added.

Article / Updated 02-28-2020

D&D is a cooperative game, not a competitive one. In other words, you don't compete against the other players and you don't win by beating them. Instead, there are a lot of different ways to "win" the game. The common denominator in every victory condition is "fun." If you and the other players have fun, everyone wins a game of D&D. Storytelling One way to "win" a D&D game is to help the group tell a fun and exciting story. Whether you successfully complete your adventure or fail miserably, if everyone has a good time and you contribute to creating a story that everyone is going to remember, the group wins. Adventure goals Every adventure contains its own set of victory conditions. Sometimes it's as simple as surviving the dungeon and escaping, or defeating the boss villain at the heart of the fortress of evil. Other times, you might have a specific goal to accomplish (take the evil ring and toss it in the volcano) or a specific monster to beat (stop the werewolf before it rampages through the town again). If you achieve the objective of the adventure, the group wins. Character victories When you begin playing D&D, your character starts out at 1st level — the lowest experience level. Your character wins each time he or she defeats monsters and gains experience points and treasure. With each new level your character gains, he or she increases in power and reputation. Each increase in wealth, power, and equipment is a win for your character. One game rule to rule them all The Dungeons & Dragons game is built around a core mechanic. This core mechanic is used to resolve all actions in the game, keeping play fast and intuitive. The Core Game Mechanic: Whenever your character attempts an action that has a chance of failure associated with it, roll a twenty-sided die (d20). The higher the roll, the better the character's chances of succeeding in that action. Character actions boil down to three basic types: Attack rolls: A roll to determine if your character succeeds at attacking a monster or other opponent. Using a longsword against a monster, for example, requires an attack roll. Skill checks: A roll to determine if your character uses a skill successfully. Using the Climb skill to scale a wall, for example, requires a skill check. Ability checks: A roll to determine if your character succeeds at attempting to do something to which no specific skill really applies. Attempting to bash open a dungeon door, for example, requires a Strength ability check. To determine if any of these actions are successful, follow these steps: 1. Roll a d20. 2. Add any relevant modifiers. 3. Compare the result to a target number. If the result equals or exceeds the target number, the action succeeds. A result less than the target number indicates that the action fails. Target numbers, also called the Difficulty Class (or DC) for a particular task or action, come from a variety of places. Some are set by the action itself and are defined in the rules, while other times, the target numbers are determined by the Dungeon Master.

Article / Updated 02-28-2020

A Dungeons & Dragons player character lives in an ancient time, in a world much like ours was in medieval times, when knights and castles filled the land. Imagine this place, where magic really works and dragons roam in the dark beyond the firelight. Your character might be a strong fighter or a nimble rogue, a wise cleric or a charismatic sorcerer. Every day, with the help of the dungeon master, your character explores the unknown places of the world, seeking monsters to slay and treasure to win. Every adventure that your character survives makes him or her a little more powerful, a little more famous, and a little richer. D&D is a game, and so you need some way to express and describe your character in the context of the game world. Your fighter, for example, might be "extremely strong but not too bright," and those characteristics need to be translated into game terms. The following sections provide an overview of the things you'll find on your character sheet, a record of your character's game statistics. Name Every great character has a great name. You may have a name all picked out from the moment you conceive your character, or you may figure it out after you've determined all of your character's game statistics. Great names are evocative. They fit the mood of the story and world in which the character adventures. John Savage is a great name for a character in a spy thriller set in the modern world, but it doesn't work so well for a character in a D&D fantasy world. Race In the fantasy world of D&D, humans aren't the only intelligent race walking around. Other intelligent races share their adventures, and your character can belong to any of these. Here are a few of the possible races you could choose from. The D&D Player's Handbook has additional races that make great player characters. These races are drawn from myth and legend, and they are similar to the imaginary races that populate many popular fantasy worlds. For D&D, the races we begin with are humans, dwarves, elves, and halflings. Here's a quick rundown on the benefits of each: Humans: These are people just like you and us. They are adaptable, flexible, and extremely ambitious. Compared to the other races, humans are relatively short-lived. In game terms, humans get an extra feat and four extra skill points to reflect their natural tendencies. Dwarves: The members of this race are hearty and steadfast, standing about 4-1/2 feet tall but powerfully built and extremely broad. They have a strong connection to mountains and rocky places. They can live to be more than 400 years old. In game terms, dwarves receive a +2 to Constitution and a –2 to Charisma. They also receive bonuses against poison, spells, and magical effects. Dwarves also have darkvision, the ability to see up to 60 feet in the dark. Elves: Elves have a strong connection to the natural world, especially woodlands. They can live to be more than 700 years old. Known for being artists of both song and magic, elves have an affinity for spellcasting and lore. They stand about 5-1/2 feet tall, appearing graceful and frail. Elves receive a +2 to Dexterity and a –2 to Constitution. They are immune to sleep effects and receive a bonus against enchantment spells. Elves have low-light vision and a racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks. Halflings: The members of this race are clever and capable — much more so than their small size might indicate. Standing about 3 feet tall, with slim, muscular builds, halflings are athletic and outgoing. Curious to a fault and usually with a daring to match, halflings love to explore. They tend to live well past 100. Halflings receive a +2 Dexterity and a –2 Strength to reflect their small statures. They also receive bonuses to Climb, Jump, Listen, and Move Silently checks, as well as a bonus to all saving throws due to their fearlessness and ability to avoid damage. Class In addition to your character's name and race, your character is most easily identified by his or her class. A class is kind of like a profession or vocation. It determines what role the character plays in the adventuring party. Here are four of the most popular D&D classes for your use. More can be found in the D&D Player's Handbook: Fighters: These characters are warriors with exceptional combat capabilities and weapon skills. Nobody kills monsters and stands at the front of an adventuring party as well as the fighter. Rogues: Members of this class rely on tricks, cunning, and stealth to get through a dungeon and save the day. Rogues are great at getting past locked doors, scouting, spying, and attacking from the shadows. Sorcerers: These are spellcasters, calling on powerful magic spells to fight monsters and protect their teammates. Sorcerers need to stay out of direct combat, but the power they bring to the adventure makes them worthy members of any party. Clerics: These characters focus the might of divine magic to cast healing and protective spells. A good second-line warrior as well, a cleric might be one of the most versatile members of an adventuring party. So, your character might be Regdar the human fighter, for example. Level and XP Level is a description of your character's relative degree of power. A 10th-level character is more powerful and able to take on tougher challenges than a 5th-level character. With each new level your character attains, he or she becomes more powerful and capable. Your character begins play at 1st level. Experience points (XP) are the numerical measure of your character's personal achievements. Your character earns experience points by defeating opponents and overcoming challenges. When your character's XP total reaches various milestones, he or she gains new levels. At 0 XP, for example, your character is 1st level. At 1,000 XP, your character attains 2nd level. Ability scores The primary expression of your character in game terms starts with his or her ability scores. Every D&D character is defined by six abilities — Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. Each ability gets a score, a number that determines how good your character will be at different tasks in the game. The average score for everyday people in a D&D world is 10 or 11. Player characters are heroes, and so they are better than everyday folk. The average ability score for a player character is 12 or 13. During character creation, you can generate numbers between 3 (a terrible score) and 18 (an excellent score). Special abilities If it hasn't been made clear yet, your player character is special. He or she stands above the normal people and becomes a hero in the world. As such, your character has special abilities. These might be based on your character's class or race, or tied to certain feats you have selected. For example, Regdar the fighter has taken the Power Attack feat. This provides him with the special ability to reduce the effectiveness of his attack roll in order to increase the damage he deals on a successful hit. Another example of a special ability is Wellyn the sorcerer's ability to cast arcane spells. Key statistics Your character has a number of key statistics that you'll refer to over and over through the course of play. Here's a quick rundown on these statistics: Initiative modifier: This modifier is used to determine who goes first in a combat round. Speed: This value shows how far your character can move (measured in feet) in a round. Attack and damage modifiers: These numbers are associated with your character's weapons of choice, show what you must roll to attack opponents, and how much damage your character does if the attack succeeds. Armor Class (or AC): This value is what opponents need to roll to hit your character during combat. Hit points (or hp): This number defines how much damage your character can withstand before being defeated in combat. When your character runs out of hit points, he or she is defeated. Feats Feats provide special bonuses or capabilities for your character. Sometimes a feat provides a totally new power for your character. Other feats improve powers your character already has. Skills Skills represent the training and education your character has beyond the combat and spellcasting inherent to his or her class. Depending on your character's class, your character will have a greater or lesser amount of skills to call upon. Rogues, for example, receive a large number of points with which to buy and improve skills. Fighters, on the other hand, just don't go in much for studying, and therefore receive a much smaller number of skill points to use. Gear Every D&D player character must be well prepared for adventuring life. This is reflected not only in the class, skills, and feats the character has, but in the gear the character carries. From weapons and armor to rations, sleeping rolls and rope, torches, flint and steel, and the backpack to carry it all in, no adventurer goes naked into a dungeon. Spells Characters with a spellcasting class possess spells, such as the sorcerer and the cleric. The D&D Player's Handbook presents other spellcasting class options. A spell is a one-time magical effect. Some spells deal damage to either a single opponent or a group of opponents. Other spells heal adventuring companions who have been injured in combat. There are all kinds of spells with all kinds of different magical effects. The sorcerer casts arcane spells. Arcane spells tend to be offensive in nature. The cleric casts divine spells. Divine spells tend to be helpful and defensive in nature, providing healing or effects that improve or otherwise benefit the party.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

You need three distinct components to play a Dungeons & Dragons game: Players: You need players, usually two to six of them, to take on the roles of adventurers in the fantasy world. The adventurers controlled by the players are also called heroes or player characters (PCs, for short). A Dungeon Master: The Dungeon Master (DM) controls all of the nonplayer characters (NPCs) — the monsters, villains, and other incidental characters that inhabit the fantasy world. The DM sets the pace of the story and referees the action as the adventure unfolds. An adventure: An adventure is the activity that the player characters participate in. An adventure usually consists of a basic plot and a number of encounters. As the players (through their characters) interact with the plot and resolve the encounters, they help the DM tell a story. The cool thing is that every action the player characters perform affects the twists and turns of the plot, so that the outcome of the adventure winds up surprising everyone. The following sections give more details about all the various parts of the D&D experience. Players and characters Like the protagonists of a novel or the heroes of a movie, the action revolves around the characters in a D&D game. Each player creates a character (or selects a ready-to-play character), a heroic adventurer who is part of a team that regularly delves into dungeons and battles monsters. These characters include mighty fighters, brave clerics, cunning rogues, and powerful sorcerers. You, as a player, play the game while your character takes all the risks. Playing a D&D character is kind of like acting, except everything happens around the gaming table. You don't have to deliver lines or perform stunts. Just find a comfortable seat, explain what your character is doing, and roll some dice. The scene plays out in your imagination and in the imaginations of the other players. The Dungeon Master One player has a special role in a D&D game. This player, the Dungeon Master (or DM), controls the pace of the story and referees the action along the way. Every D&D game needs a Dungeon Master — you can't play the game without one. The cool thing about Dungeon Masters is that they allow the game to be totally interactive and open-ended. Players can have their characters attempt anything they can imagine because there's a real, live person sitting in the DM's chair, coordinating the action and determining how every event adds to the story. The game rules and the dice help, but the DM must use his or her imagination to make the world unfold. The player who decides to take on the role of the Dungeon Master becomes a member of a select group. Not everyone has the dedication and creativity to be a DM, but those that do have a great outlet in the D&D game. The DM defines the game his or her group is going to play, and a good DM results in a great game of D&D. Some groups use multiple DMs, so that everyone gets to run a player character at some point, and everyone who wants to try their hands at DMing gets the opportunity. Other groups go for years with the same player serving as DM for every game session. It all depends on the desires of the group and the personalities involved. The adventure The player characters are the stars of your D&D game, just like the heroes in books or movies. They are adventurers, and adventurers need adventures. A D&D adventure features action, combat, mystery, challenges, and lots and lots of monsters. Adventures come in three forms: full-length adventures published specifically for D&D, adventure hooks in published products that DMs can turn into full-length adventures, and adventures that DMs create for themselves. Adventures can be as simple as a basic dungeon crawl or as complex as a murder mystery. An adventure can last for a single game session or stretch out over a number of sessions of play. One adventure might take place in a haunted castle, another in a crime-ridden village, a third in the catacombs beneath an ancient graveyard. What makes D&D different from your typical board game is that each adventure is just a single tale in the continuing saga of your player characters. Adventures provide the stage upon which your player characters perform heroic deeds and resolve legendary quests. Anything is possible in a D&D game, and it is through adventures that the possibilities come alive. Supplies you need Players and characters, a Dungeon Master, and an adventure — these are the basic components of any Dungeons & Dragons game. However, you need a few supplies to get the most out of the experience. These things include: The D&D game itself Special dice Character sheets Miniatures and battle grids Pencils and paper — lots of it The D&D game Beginners should pick up the D&D Basic Game, which includes the basic rules, dice, and many of the other components discussed in this section, all in one convenient box. If you want to progress beyond the basics, you'll need the three core books, all published by Wizards of the Coast, that comprise the full D&D game: Player's Handbook: Presents the rules of the game from the player's point of view and provides details on creating characters, outfitting adventurers, and playing the game. Dungeon Master's Guide: Presents the rules of the game from the Dungeon Master's point of view and provides detailed advice on running games, creating adventures, sustaining campaigns, and awarding experience to player characters. It also contains a selection of magic items and a fold-out battle grid to enhance play. Monster Manual:Presents hundreds of creatures to use in any D&D game. From low-level to high-level, friendly to hostile, each creature has an illustration, game tactics, and statistics for ease of use. The DM needs all three books, but players can usually get by with just a copy of the Player's Handbook. Dice Dice are used to determine the outcome of actions in the game. If you want your character to try something — such as attack the ogre, disarm the trap, or search for clues — the dice are used whenever the result isn't a sure thing. The D&D game uses dice of different shapes. Each player should have his or her own set of dice with which to play the game. Players get possessive and protective of their dice, and having your own set means you can customize it (dice come in all kinds of styles and colors). Game play also proceeds more smoothly when you don't have to pass the dice around when sharing among players. A set of dice for the D&D game includes at least the following: One four-sided die (referred to as a d4) Four six-sided dice (d6) One eight-sided die (d8) Two ten-sided dice (d10) When these two dice are rolled together, they can produce any digit between 01 and 100. For this reason, these two dice are often called percentile dice (d%). Some dice sets include a d90 (a die that has sides expressed in tens — 10, 20, 30, and so on) to make rolling percentile dice easier. One twelve-sided die (d12) One twenty-sided die (d20) The d20 determines character success at any given action, while the other dice determine what happens if an action succeeds. Character sheets Your D&D character is defined by a series of key statistics, as well as by the background story you create for the character. These statistics and other key information are contained on a character sheet. As your character participates in adventures, these statistics change. Miniatures and a battle grid While most of the action of D&D occurs in the imaginations of the participants, it is often very helpful to display certain information where everyone can see it. Combat situations, for example, work better when the players and DM know where all the participants are (characters and monsters) in relation to one another. D&D uses a one-inch grid, called the battle grid, to represent where the action takes place. To represent the characters and monsters, the players and DM place miniatures or other markers on the battle grid. Other play surfaces can be found in the Dungeon Master's Guide and the D&D Basic Game. Official prepainted plastic D&D miniatures can be found in the D&D Basic Game, as well as in D&D Miniatures booster packs, available wherever fine hobby games are sold. Pencils, paper, and graph paper You'll want a means for keeping notes and recording important information during game play, so have a lot of pencils, scrap paper, and graph paper available. Use the scrap paper for notes about the adventure (write down the names of NPCs and places, any treasure your character acquires, and any other details that you might forget or think may be important later). One player might take the role of note keeper, or each player may want to take his or her own notes. Use the graph paper to sketch a map of the area the PCs are exploring — players want to map the dungeon as they explore it, while the DM uses graph paper to design the whole dungeon before the adventurers enter it.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Part of the fun of roleplaying games, such as Dungeons & Dragons, is customizing a character. But sometimes you just want to get down to the game. Want an easy way out of shopping for your 1st-level Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition character? Just choose one of the equipment packages here and add it straight to your character sheet: Fighter, Great Weapon: Scale mail (40 gp), greataxe (30 gp), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), 2 javelins (total 10 gp), sling and 20 bullets (2 gp), 3 gp left over. Fighter, Guardian: Scale mail (40 gp), heavy shield (15 gp), longsword (15 gp), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), 2 javelins (total 10 gp), sling and 20 bullets (2 gp), 3 gp left over. Rogue (any): Leather armor (25 gp), short sword (10 gp), 3 daggers (3 gp), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), sling and 20 bullets (2 gp), thieves’ tools (20 gp), 25 gp left over. Cleric (any): Chainmail (40 gp), mace (5 gp), crossbow and 10 bolts (26 gp total), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), holy symbol (10 gp), 4 gp left over. Wizard, Control: Cloth armor (1 gp), quarterstaff (5 gp), orb (15 gp), spellbook (50 gp), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), 14 gp left over. Wizard, War: Cloth armor (1 gp), dagger (1 gp), wand (7 gp), spellbook (50 gp), standard adventurer’s kit (15 gp), 26 gp left over. The standard adventurer’s kit includes a backpack, bedroll, flint and steel, belt pouch, 2 sunrods (4 hours of illumination each), 10 days of trail rations, 50 feet of rope, and a waterskin. If you’re really worried about getting caught in the dark, buy some extra sunrods (2 gp apiece) or torches (10 for 1 gp).

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

When you create a 1st-level character in Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition, you begin roleplaying with training in a certain number of skills. The number of skills your character gains training in depends on your character’s class and race (humans begin with one extra skill as a racial benefit). The list of skills you can choose for your character is limited by his or her class. Here’s are five skills with key game effects that you shouldn’t ignore: Bluff: Rogues can use the Bluff skill to manufacture sneak attack opportunities with the Gain Combat Advantage skill application. Diplomacy: This is a great catch-all skill for convincing nonplayer characters (NPCs) to help out your character, leave him or her alone, or give your character something he or she needs. Stealth: This skill covers hiding and stealing up on the bad guys without making a sound. Perception: If you don’t like monsters surprising your character, look for a way to gain training in Perception so your character will know they’re coming. Acrobatics: Your character uses this skill for balancing on things like narrow ledges above pits of molten lava. It also gives you the opportunity to escape from enemy, and you can even use it to try to reduce falling damage. Make sure you use your character sheet to keep track of your character's skill points.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Choosing feats in the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition roleplaying game can be pretty daunting because there are so many to choose from. It’s a good idea to have a plan for which feats your character will select over the next few levels so that you can make sure you get the feats you want as quickly as possible. Try the following process when evaluating your feat choices: Choose your character’s class (if you haven’t already), and then decide which build you want your character to follow within that class. A skillful Guardian Fighter, for example, needs to learn different feats from a muscle-bound, axe-wielding Great Weapon Fighter, even though they’re both fighters. Consult the feat recommendations for your character’s class and chosen build, or design your own feat plan. After you’ve played the game for a while and you’ve made up a few characters, experiment with building feat plans that exploit feat choices not outlined in the rulebook. Make any extra feat selections you have coming to you, such as the bonus feat that human characters get at 1st level. Record your feat selections on your character sheet.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

One of the great things about roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons is that you get to completely customize your character, starting from scratch. When you’re creating a new 1st-level character for your Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition game, you get to select the following types of class powers: Two 1st-level at-will powers (for a human character, pick three) One 1st-level encounter power One 1st-level daily power As your character gains experience levels, he or she gains additional powers. For example, at 2nd level, your character gains one 2nd-level utility power; at 3rd level, one 3rd-level encounter power; and at 5th level, one 5th-level daily power. Your character is gaining other benefits, too, but the opportunity to choose new powers is one of the most interesting and useful parts of gaining levels. Start your character creation with a character sheet from the official Dungeons & Dragons Web site.