#(i'm bad at using keys and have generally low dexterity so that needs to be taken into account)

[general-sleepy]

My toxic trait is that I earnestly believe I would survive way more Saw traps than I realistically would be able to.

#saw #like the eyeball vac trap #all that ive gotta do is spin a dial that breaks my fingers? #pft i'm doing it in a minute max #or the one where you press a button that gouges out your eyes or your limbs get ripped off #i'm slapping that button like a seal slapping its belly #(i'm bad at using keys and have generally low dexterity so that needs to be taken into account) #oh the venus fly trap #i could also do that one #though i feel like i'd go for a bare fingers gouging method of getting the eye out #rather than the stabbing strategy whatsisname goes with #the tongue trap's not even a question #one step and you're home safe #no one is allowed to criticize me on this topic #i would absolutely survive these traps

[thessalian]

Thess vs D&D Maths

I am not good at maths. I generally feel bad about this, because one of the hobbies I have chosen (namely D&D) requires a lot of maths.

I feel less bad now, because I have just encountered someone who is apparently worse at maths than me. Reddit again. (I should know better, I really should.) I was talking about having had to graduate to ancient dragons sooner than the average party because my party is so large, and this individual butted in with, "Party size doesn't matter if players need to roll a nat 20 to hit it, so something else is up".

Which.

I mean.

I'm not great at maths, but that didn't sound right to me. Especially not for level 13. So I went and looked at my players' sheets and ran some figures compared to the AC of an ancient red dragon (the biggest and baddest ancient of Tiamat's chromatic bunch). I may have been slightly generous with magical weapons of late (though I took that and everything else away the last combat they had, so they're not exactly taking it for granted) but I ignored that in the immediate for my calculations.

Base Proficiency Bonus: I would hope that if you are unwise enough to be attacking an ancient dragon, you are attacking said dragon with a weapon with which you are actively proficient. Your proficiency bonus at level 13 is +5. Add that to the roll of a d20, and you need ... well, okay, say an 18 because ties go to defender in my world. (I know this is probably not how this works and it should be "you meet this target number and you hit" ... but let me tell you, my players love it when the same applies to something huge going after them with a mega-attack and it misses because the tie went to them as the defender.)

Ability Modifier: We're also hoping that by level 13, you have an actual ability modifier in the key areas. I mean, you should have had some kind of modifier in whatever your main area of attack is since level 1, and it should have grown from there. By level 13, a player has had up to three opportunities to increase their ability modifiers, because levels 4, 8, and 12 are when you get to pick feats or ability score improvements. So if we're looking at a low average of +3 on your ability score for a +8 to hit total, that takes what you have to roll to hit an ancient red dragon (AC 22, remember) down to 15.

Magical Weapons: I should hope a few people have a magic weapon by level 13. If not, the DM is being a dick. So that's at least +1 to attacks, so that brings the base number you have to roll to hit down to 14.

Feats and Abilities: I'm sure this individual is counting on things like wing attacks to knock people prone. Well, that goes out the window if the party's smart and has a few people who specialise in ranged attacks, who should be staying well out of range of that kind of thing. But even with a DC 25 Dexterity check, those with Dex proficiency don't need to roll a nat 20 to save against it. Yes, the roll is high, but it's not nearly impossible. And by level 13, anyone who does make that save probably won't take damage from it (as my former monk said once, "yay Evasion"; also "yay Shield Master feat"). Either way, the front line melee is holding. If your ancient dragon has blown their legendary actions for the round on Wing Blast and Tail Attack, and can't use Detect that round as a result, a rogue can still go sneaky and get Sneak Attack advantage bonus to attack.

Helpful Spells and Magic: Perhaps this individual is also going, "Well, the Frightful Presence of an ancient red dragon should impose disadvantage on everyone, right?" However, the save is comparatively low at DC 21, and more to the point, if the party has planned to fight this ancient dragon ... by this level, if you have a druid or a cleric, you've hopefully prepped for this by doing a Heroes' Feast before you even started. Even if you didn't have time for that, if you have a Bard, there's Countercharm. So we're taking the imposed disadvantage out of the equation. And if that doesn't come into play (or even if it does) - does your cleric have Guidance? If so, that's the roll of a d4 added to your roll right there. Maybe the cleric cast Guiding Bolt - there's advantage for the next attacker. Do you have a bard? We have two, and while one tends to burn their Inspiration dice for Swords Bard Flourishes, we have a Valour Bard who's very generous with the Inspiration dice, so a bard at that level is giving out d10s to add to attack rolls (or damage rolls, because yay Valour bards).

Now, obviously there are other issues, like lair actions, that kind of thing. I've used those to great effect with adults, never mind ancients. But what I objected to was being told that you need a nat 20 to hit an ancient dragon. Which ... clearly no. And I was generous to this entity and used the ancient red - again, the baddest of the bunch. The DC for the other ancient chromatic dragons' defensife stuff is lower - though the AC stays the same, more or less.

I always feel like a bit of a dilettante when set up against the roll-players - the ones that live and die by the stats. But when I, the DM who measures that shit with their heart, am better at the mathematics behind an ancient dragon fight than someone who is apparently all about the stats ... my world is askew.

#Thess RPs