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Adventuring Tips
The information presented here is a hodgepodge of generally useful information for the players. It includes general adventuring tips and useful to remember D&D rules. It contains tips for characters of a general nature. For more specific character information, see The Characters section.
Contents:
Campaign Style
Light Sources
Skill Checks, Take 10, Take 20
Aid Another
Campaign Style
The primary style of my campaign is what is referred to in the Dungeon Master’s Guide as Status Quo. What this means is the world is not tailored to the players but exists in its own right. If I decide there are Giants in the mountains, and the players go to the mountains, they can expect to find Giants whether they are strong enough to deal with them or not. It also means that just because a player encounters something, it doesn’t mean they can handle it.
Because of this, information is important. If players want to avoid being surprised by something they can’t handle, then they need to attempt to gather information first before getting themselves into a situation. It also means they shouldn’t be belligerent with everything they meet because they might meet something that can wipe the floor with them and have no compunction about doing so.
Character death is rare in my campaign but it does happen. The most notable was when the party got into an encounter well over its head but several of the players didn’t realize that and tried to stick it out (mostly I think because they used meta-game thinking and thought they were “supposed” to fight). The only reason the entire party wasn’t wiped out was because several party members very quickly realized they were over matched (even before players started dying) and did something about it.
A related issue to character death is friendly Non Player Character (NPC) death. NPCs that accompany players tend to die a lot. This is not because I pick on them or because their only purpose is to be cannon fodder. It comes about because the NPCs are usually not as tough as the players and the players forget that when they get into situations. It’s something players might want to keep in mind if they don’t want to get a bad reputation.
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Light Sources
(written by Wizards of the Coast and edited by me)
As characters, your first priority is making sure you can see where you’re going and what you’re doing. Unless you have darkvision, you’ll be effectively blind and all too vulnerable in a dungeon setting unless you have an artificial light source. Even if you have darkvision, you’ll often need light. For example, you might need to see farther than your darkvision allows, or you might need to discern colors (darkvision is black and white only), or you might want to read a scroll or map. If you have low-light vision, you’ll need light to see, but you can see twice as far with that light than others can. If you have a really good light source, your lowlight vision will let you see as far as many creatures with darkvision, and in color as well. At some time during your adventuring career, you’re going to find yourself separated from your comrades, so you should probably always carry your own light source.
There are some down sides to carrying artificial light, and it pays to be aware of them: First, most nonmagical illumination uses fire, and that means you have to light it. Lighting a torch or candle with flint and steel takes a full-round action, which probably isn’t your first choice when you walk into an ambush. Flame doesn’t work underwater, and if you get caught in a tight space your torch or lantern just might burn up all your air and suffocate you. Also, flames can be blown out. Of course, carrying around a flame isn’t all bad, because fire can be a useful tool or weapon. You can use a flame to test for air currents, keep warm, melt soft materials (such as wax), and set things alight. Even more importantly, flames cannot be extinguished by dispel magic or similar effects.
A second, and more important disadvantage to carrying artificial light is that light makes you visible. When you’re hiding or skulking about under an invisibility effect, carrying a light source broadcasts your position. Further, enemies can see your light long before that light reveals the foe. How long? It is said that the human eye can detect the light from a match up to 2 miles away over an open plain on a dark, clear night. Of course, the viewer at that distance sees only a pinpoint of light, but in a place where there ought to be no light all—such as a dungeon—a mere pinpoint is all that’s necessary to alert the residents to an intrusion. Fortunately, most dungeons don’t offer your foes a clear line of sight 2 miles long. To add insult in injury, others can see what your light reveals and they can see it from a considerable distance away. As a rule of thumb, anything within the radius of your light is clearly visible to anyone within a distance equal to 10 times the light’s radius. For example, a candle illuminates a radius of 5 feet. If you find a door by candlelight, anyone within 50 feet of that door also sees the door. This phenomenon can work in your favor. If you’re carrying a light, your friends probably can also see what you see.
A third disadvantage to carrying artificial light is that you usually have to hold it in your hand, which means that you don’t have that hand available to wield a weapon, hold a shield, or cast a spell. Fortunately, dropping an item is a free action and most (but not all) light sources will stay lit after you do so.
Below are various sources of light to consider.
Candle (1 cp): A candle lasts an hour but illuminates a paltry 5-foot radius, allowing you just enough light to keep from stubbing your toes while giving nearby enemies a good look at you. A candle flame is small enough to blow out in even a moderate breeze. A dropped candle usually will go out (75% chance). On the other hand, a candle is dirt cheap and very light (it has no weight worth noting), so you can carry a bundle of them. You might also want to carry a few candles as a backup light source in case you lose your primary source. Candles prove useful for things other than light. You can use the melted wax or tallow from a candle to mark a trail or to seal small openings. It also can serve as a moderately effective adhesive (in some cases) or even a lubricant (in other cases). You can even use melted candle wax or tallow to stick a candle to some surface so you don’t have to hold it in your hand.
Torch (1 cp): A torch burns for an hour and casts light in a respectable 20-foot radius, which is far enough to suffice for melee combat but useless for most ranged combat. It takes a strong wind to blow out a torch, and strong winds are rare underground. A torch usually will keep burning if you drop it. At 1 lb. each, you probably don’t want to carry more than a dozen torches or so, but that’s sufficient for most dungeon expeditions. Torches have a variety of alternative uses. You can use them as probes (they’re about 2 feet long) to test or investigate areas where you’d rather not stick your hands. If your probing finds a trap or patch of green slime, you’re only out a copper piece. Because torches are soaked in pitch or tallow, an unlit torch is a trifle sticky, and you can actually pick up small things with it. You can use a lit torch as a weapon. Treat it as a small club, except that a hit deals 1d3 points of fire damage. You also can make a campfire out of a few torches, or use them to light a pile of damp wood you’ve collected.
Common Lamp (1sp + 1sp per pint of oil): This device illuminates a 15-foot radius, so it’s slightly inferior to a torch. It burns six hours on a pint of oil. The lamp’s small, open flame will blow out in even a moderate breeze. If you drop the lamp the oil spills out in a burning puddle. You can splash the oil on another creature to deal some fire damage, but you also can spill the burning oil on yourself if you fall down while holding the lamp.
Hooded Lantern (7 gp + 1sp per pint of oil): The standard for dungeon adventuring, these lanterns light a 30-foot radius and burn for six hours on a pint of oil. Their protected flames will blow out only in severe winds, and they come equipped with shutters so you can douse the light without putting out the flame. In a pinch, you can throw the lantern or dump it out to create a pool of burning oil.
Steel Mirror (10 gp): This item proves most useful for peeking around corners or into openings without exposing yourself to attack. Just stick the mirror into a weapon or unlit torch with a blob of wax (from a candle, perhaps) and then hold the mirror at an angle. Be aware that the mirror reverses things (left for right, and vice versa).
Bullseye Lantern (12 gp + 1 sp per pint of oil): This device throws light in a cone 60 feet long and 20 feet wide at the far end; to a creature with low-light vision, the cone measures 120 feet long and 40 feet wide. You have to decide where the cone is pointing. On your turn, you can re-aim the cone as a free action. The bullseye lantern’s directional light might allow foes to sneak up on you, but the lantern’s great range makes it an excellent supplement to other forms of illumination that shed light in a radius. use immediately.
Everburning Torch (90 gp): This handy item can burn forever, shedding light in a 20-foot radius. You can douse the light in a container or under your clothes, and the torch burns anyplace where magic works. Because they are simply iron rods with continual flame spells on them, however, a dispel magic effect dispels them permanently.
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Skill Checks, Take 10, Take 20
When making a skill check, you roll a d20 and add your skill bonus (ranks plus any other bonuses). If you roll higher than the Difficulty Class (DC) of whatever it is you’re attempting, then you succeed. Otherwise, you fail. Most DCs are between 15 and 25 with really hard stuff having DCs of 30 or more. What this means is you should have at least a +4 bonus if you want at least a 50% chance of succeeding at the easiest skill checks (lowest DC). While most skill checks allow you to retry, some don’t, and many have consequences if you fail the roll.
Taking 10: If your character is not pressured, then you can choose to take 10 when making a skill check. This is identical to rolling a 10 on a skill check roll with all the consequences of success or failure, including whether you’re allowed to try again. It’s a good choice for a character to use if you have good bonuses in the skill, or the task is relatively easy, or you’re afraid of bad luck (and the possible consequences).
Taking 20: If there is no penalty for failure, then you can choose to take 20 when making a skill check. The skill takes 20 times the amount of time as a normal skill check requires. It is identical to rolling a 20 on a skill check roll. Conceptually, you are rolling the die over and over until you get a 20. It’s a good choice for a character to use if you have the time to spend because it ensures the best possible result. Some types of skill checks you are not allowed to take 20 regardless of the situation.
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Aid Another
Teamwork is essential to success. One little known rule in D&D is the option for one character to Aid Another. If one character is attempting to do something, another character can attempt to aid them. To successfully aid them, the character must succeed against a DC of 10 (Taking 10 is not allowed when aiding another). If the aid is successful, the first character gains a +2 on their attempt. The option of Aid Another can even be used in combat using a similar procedure. Rather than attacking an opponent, you can choose to aid an ally. You then make an attack as if you were attempting to hit AC 10. If you succeed, your ally will get +2 to hit on their next attack or +2 AC on the next attack against them (aiding character’s choice). The only limit on the number of people that can Aid Another is how many people can realistically gather around the object that the original attempt is being made on. Certain skill checks cannot be aided due to their nature (Spot, Move Silently, etc.)
For example, if Jozan is about to perform a Search check, Arynda could decide to aid him. Arynda makes a search check against DC 10 and, if she succeeds, Jozan gains an additional +2 to his Search check. Later, Quill and Arynda are both next to a monster. When it’s Quill’s turn, she decides to aid Arynda. Quill makes a normal attack roll as if she was trying to hit AC 10. She succeeds and chooses to give Arynda a +2 to hit on her next attack.
The possible uses for Aid Another is limitless. If you have a poor Search skill but an ally is good at it, help them out. If you are in combat and your weapon is ineffective or your opponent is just too hard for you to hit, aid your fighter. Even wimpy magic users can hit AC 10 without too much trouble and it’s a free +2 hit for your killer ally.
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