5E Effects for Advanced Automation
Effects for Advanced Automation
What is an Effect?
One of the most powerful features of Fantasy Grounds VTT is the effects system. An effect is small section of code (like a macro) which makes some kind of change to various situations, mainly in combat. To be effective the effect must be placed on any actor (Player Character, Non-Player Character, Trap, Hazard, or Vehicle) that is on the Combat Tracker. An effect can alter any dice roll made by an actor on the Combat Tracker, such as an attack roll, damage roll, saving throw, skill check, or ability check whether made by the attacker or the defender. Effects can also come into play when the actor’s turn starts or ends, or when the round starts or ends.
Automatic Effects
In the case of Player Characters many effects are created automatically for you when you create a character or level one up either by dragging and dropping from the source material or by using the Character Wizard. For example, dragging spells into the actions tab will in almost every case create an effect in the actions tab of the character sheet. Where an effect is not created via this method the probability is very high that either the spell doesn't require an effect or Fantasy Grounds doesn't have a built-in way to handle whatever the spell is trying to do. For example, the spell 'Animal Messenger' doesn't require an effect since this spell and others like it are simply 'Theatre of the Mind' spells. For more information see the 5E Character Sheet
In the case of NPCs effects appear on the Combat Tracker when the NPC is placed there either from the NPC list or from an encounter. This action causes Fantasy Grounds to attempt to parse the information contained in the NPC sheet and create the effects. Most of the standard NPCs from the Monster Manual will, when dragged to the Combat Tracker, create any necessary effects so that the DM can use them. Again, not everything will create an effect either because one isn't required or Fantasy Grounds doesn't have a way to create one. For more details see the 5E NPCs and Encounters and the section below on the wording used to create NPC effects.
Creating Effects - Player Characters
In the Player Character Sheet, Effects are created in the Actions tab. An Effect can be added to an existing power group or if no power group exists a new one can be created. To create a new power group, click the 'Add Power' icon at the bottom right of the Actions tab (you may need to unlock the Character Sheet first). To add a new item to an existing power group, click on the green '+' icon next to the power group name.
Create a new power group and add a new line to that group; or add a new line to an existing one.
See the Character Sheet article for more information on power groups.Now, right click on the new line created above to bring up the context menu and select 'Add Action'. This will bring up a submenu which allows you to create the following:
Add Cast: this allows you to create an attack roll to be made against the target or forces the target to make a saving throw - or both
Add Damage: As its name suggests this allows for the creation of a damaging effect to apply to the target
Add Heal: Create a healing effect
Add Effect: This allows for the creation of effects which will be applied either onto the character or onto another actor that is the target of the character.
Whichever you choose, a new line will be created with a small cog icon to the right of the line. Click the cog icon to open the dialog associated with each effect type.
Cast Dialog
When you click on the cast dialog a new line is created with a Cast, Atk, and Save action. Click on the cog icon to the right of the line to open the cast dialog.
Attack
The first section is concerned with Attacks. Click the words under 'type' to cycle through the options to select the attack type: Ranged, Melee or None ( - ).
Under Base, click to cycle through the options:
Group Attack+: This refers to the Power Group, and the base attack will feed off whatever the base attack has been set within the power group (see the character sheet article for more on Power Groups). So, if the Power Group ability has been set to STR then this attack will use the character's STR to determine any bonus or penalty to the attack roll.
Ability: This allows for setting an ability for this attack independent of whatever has been set for the Power Group. Click the 'Stat' field to cycle through the options. This can be set to an ability modifier, class level, the character’s overall level (lvl), or character’s proficiency bonus. Setting this to 'Base' will feed off the ability which has been set for the Power Group.
Fixed: Allows for entering a straightforward number. This is useful if the attack is not based on any ability, class or level. In this case enter the number desired in the 'bonus' box.
Bonus: Enter a number if any bonus is to be applied to this attack roll (for example, from a magic item or character feature).
Save
The second section of this dialog is concerned with Saving Throws.
Type: Click to cycle through the options. For example, if you want the target to make a DEX saving throw, set this to 'Dex'. Once again, 'Base' represents the ability set in the Power Group.
Base: This is the same as the 'Base' option described above in the attack section.
Bonus: Again, this is the same as the bonus section in the attack section.
On Save
On Save: Click here to select 'Half on Success' if the creature takes only half damage on a successful Saving Throw.
When finished creating the affects you want, close the dialog.
Once completed, the Effect will appear in the Actions tab ready for use. Clicking the small dice icon beside the Effect will cause Fantasy Grounds to make the Attack and/or Saving Throw against the target of the attack. Players can also perform the Attack and save separately by clicking first on the little sword icon, and then on the dice icon beside the save.
Damage Dialog
When you click on the Damage dialog, a new line is created with a damage Action. Click on the cog icon to the right of the line to open the cast dialog and then click on the green '+' to add a new damage line.
Drag dice and drop them into the 'Dice' box (just below the word Dice) for the damage amount. For example, if the damage is 2d6; click and hold a d6, then right-click to add a second dice, and then drop into the box below 'Dice'. You can also drag dice one at a time and drop them in the dice box. Each dice dragged in need not be the same as the first; for example, it’s possible to have the damage be 1d6 + 1d8 by dragging in a d6 and then a d8.
If the action gets a bonus from an ability click on the box below 'Stat' to cycle through the options. Once again 'Base' will feed off whatever ability was set in the Power Group. You can enter a value in the ‘multi’ box if the character gets a multiplicative bonus to the damage based on their ability modifier. For example, if the damage is 1d6 + half your dexterity modifier then set the Stat to Dex and enter 0.5 in the ‘multi’ box.
Add any bonus to the damage, for example from a magic item, if this is relevant.
Enter the type of damage that the effect will do (all in lower case). Multiple damage types are allowed separated by a comma; for example, fire, magic.
You can add new lines by clicking the green cross icon if necessary. For example, if the action did 1d6 bludgeoning and 1d8 cold damage then you would need a line for each one.
You can delete lines by clicking on the edit list button and then on the trashcan icon that appears next to the line.
You can clear the dice from the dice box by right clicking on it and selecting clear dice from the context menu.
Heal Dialog
When you click on the Heal dialog, a new line is created with a Heal Action.
Click on the cog icon to the right of the line to open the Heal dialog.
Type/Targeting
Select the target of the heal by clicking through the options in 'Targeting'. 'Self' will only heal the caster. Targets will heal any target selected including the caster if they are selected.
Cycle through the options under 'Type'. 'TEMP' will give the target temporary hit points, 'HP' will remove wounds from any targets selected by the character using the cast.
Heal
Drag dice from the dice pool and drop them into the dice box if the healing requires a dice roll.
Select a stat if appropriate in the stat box by clicking through the options. Again 'base' will use the ability from the power group. There are also options to add level, proficiency or class.
Enter a figure for any bonus to the heal (for example, from any magic items, traits, or abilities that give the character a bonus to healing). This box can also be used when the healing is for a fixed amount with no dice roll required.
More lines can be added if needed using the green ‘+’ icon (for example, if healing is based on character level plus an ability bonus create one line for the level and another line for the ability).
Lines can be deleted by clicking on the edit list button and then on the trashcan icon that appears next to each line.
Dice can be cleared from the dice box by right clicking on it and selecting clear dice.
Effect Dialog
When you click on the effect dialog a new line is created with an effect action.
Click on the cog icon to the right of the line to open the effect dialog.
Description/Conditions/Modifiers
The Descriptions/Conditions/Modifiers line is where you enter your effect. Almost anything can appear here including 'dummy' text. More information on how to create effects in this box is given below.
Duration
Duration specifies how long the effect lasts. By clicking on the 'RND' word you can cycle through the available time unit intervals (RND = Round, MIN = Minute, HR = hour and DAY = day). You can then enter a number into the box to the left to indicate how long the effect lasts using the selected time unit. If the effect should never expire, leave the value blank.
You can also specify when the effect decrements by using the small box to the right of the RND box. Clicking on this box will cycle through the options:
STRT: The duration will decrement at the start of the round that the effect was applied.
END: The duration will decrement at the end of the turn that the effects was applied.
RSTS: The effect will expire when the actor takes a short rest.
RSTL: The effect will expire when the actor takes a long rest.
Targeting/Expenditure
The Targeting box determines who should be the target of the effect. Click on the word ‘Targets’ to cycle through the options:
Targets: This effect will be applied to any target or targets that the actor has selected, this can be friend or foe or any actor on the Combat Tracker (including the actor applying the effect).
Self: This effect will be applied to only this actor.
Targets (-> Self): This effect will appear on the target but will only apply the effect to any dice roll made by that target against the actor who applied the effect. For example, a bonus to an attack roll will only apply if the actor making the roll is attacking the actor who applied the effect.
Self (-> Targets): This effect will appear on the actor but will only apply the effect to any dice rolls made against targets selected by the actor. For example, a character applies an effect which gives a bonus to attack rolls to two out of 6 NPCs. The character will get that bonus against only those two targets and not to any others.
Click through the Expend? options. This determines whether the effect can expire based on usage (i.e. expended), in addition to duration. The options are as follows:
Never: The effect will never be expended, and the length of the effect is only governed by the duration.
Once per turn: This effect will apply only once per turn. For example, a character gets a bonus to the first damage roll they make. The extra damage will apply to the first damage roll they make and then the effect will be supressed until the beginning of their next turn.
Once per round: This effect will apply only once per round and will be supressed until the start of the next round.
Twice per round: This effect will apply twice per round and will then be supressed until the start of the next round.
On Next Action: The effect will be expended on the next relevant action. So, if the effect is a damage effect, then it will be used up when the player next rolls for damage.
On Next Roll: The effect will be expended immediately on the next relevant roll made by the character. For example, if the effect modifies both attack and damage the effect will be used up on the next attack or damage roll. If there are several targets, then each of the targets will be affected by the roll not just the first.
Once per modifier: The effect will continue until a roll has been made involving all the modifiers in the effect. For example, if there is an effect which applies to both attack and damage. The attack part will be used on the first attack even if the character makes several subsequent attacks. The effect will then be expended completely once a damage roll has been made.
Anatomy of an Effect
An effect has a specific syntax which must be followed for the effect to work properly. If we take a simple example “Special attack; ATK: 1” the “Special attack” is simply text and must be followed by a semi colon. This part is entirely optional and isn’t necessary to have. However, if a character has a lot of effects on them it can be useful to know why they have a certain effect. This text makes this clear. The text can be anything you want and must end in a semi-colon (;) Fantasy Grounds VTT will ignore this text and will read the next part if it ends in a semi-colon. The next part “ATK:” is the modifier. The is the heart of the effect, and this tells FGVTT what it should be doing and when. If it’s a damage effect it will apply it to a damage roll, if it’s an attack effect it will apply it to an attack roll etc. Modifiers are always in all caps and (almost) always end in a colon. The “1” in this case is the description telling FGVTT how the modifier should act; it is saying to FGVTT that when the actor rolls an attack 1 should be added to the die roll.
The description can, in some cases, be dice. For example, ATK: 1d4 will roll a d4 whenever at attack roll is made and will add the result to the d20 roll. For certain rolls this can be further refined to limit the modifier to a range. Range is melee, ranged, spell, or weapon. One or more of these can be included in the modifier, separated by a comma. For example, ATK: 1d4, melee, spell will limit the additional d4 bonus to only melee spell attacks. The modifier can also have a bonus related to one of the character’s statistics such as an ability modifier ATK: [STR], their class level ATK: [BARBARIAN], overall level, ATK: [LVL] or their proficiency bonus. ATK: [PRF]. The bits with square brackets are known as PCTags and are discussed in more length below.
The description can also be negative. ATK: -1, ATK: -1d4, ATK: [-PRF], ranged; ATK: [-LVL], melee, spell are all examples of negative descriptors. Effects can also be chained together separated by a semi-colon. For example, Ring of Protection; AC:1; SAVE: 1. FGVTT will process the first part of this effect whenever the character is attacked, by adding 1 to their Armor Class, and when they make any saving throw it will add a 1 to the dice roll. Not every modifier requires a descriptor; for example, DISATK gives disadvantage to attack rolls and doesn’t need anything else to change how that works.
Finally, effects can also be conditions like Poisoned, or Blinded.
Effects Dialog
Whilst, in most cases, effects will be applied either from a player characters actions tab or from the Combat Tracker the GM can also create and apply effects from the effects dialog. To open the dialog, click on the effects tool on the top right of the UI. To create a new effect, click on the green ‘+’ at the bottom of the window. To remove effects, click on the edit list button and then on the trashcan icon that appears against each line.
Effects can be typed into the blank line in the same way as they are typed into the effects dialog on the character sheet. They must have the same syntax and have all the same restrictions. The small box at the left of the line can be clicked on and cycles through the same options as the Expend? Box in the character sheet dialog, and the button on the right can be cycled to determine when the effect should decrement, again using the same options as the one next to the duration in the dialog in the character sheet. The RND text can be clicked and will cycle through the same time periods as the dialog on the character sheet and the box beside it can be used to enter the number of whatever time unit is chosen. One further option appears and that is the eye icon on the extreme right of the line. If the GM clicks this icon so that it is greyed out, when the effect is applied to a character it will be set to GM visible only on the Combat Tracker. This means that the GM can apply an effect to a character and this will not be signalled to the player; a useful way to apply curses and such like to a character without the player knowing they have been cursed.
To apply an effect from the dialog, click the icon on the left of the line. The effect will be applied to the currently selected actor on the Combat Tracker. You can also drag this icon and drop it onto any actor on the Combat Tracker.
The effects dialog also includes a list of conditions (all except Exhaustion). These conditions can be applied in the same way as custom effects either to the currently active actor on the Combat Tracker or by dragging and dropping them onto an actor on the Combat Tracker. These conditions will add any effects that apply to the actor; for example, adding the Blinded condition to an actor will automatically give then disadvantage on attack rolls and grant advantage to any attack rolls made against them. See the information below for what effects get added to an actor via these conditions.
Combat Tracker
When an effect is applied to an actor in the combat tracker, some additional fields are available to the DM. See the 5E Combat Tracker for more details.
Active State: By default, an effect is set to always be active (i.e. On). The active state can be toggled to Skip or Off. If set to Skip, the next application of the effect will be skipped, and then the effect will be set to On again. If set to Off, the effect will no longer be applied to rolls, but will remain in the CT.
Visibility: By default, an effect is set to visible to all. The button can be clicked to change the state to GM only meaning that only the DM can see the effect. (When an effect is applied invisibly from the effects dialog, as above, this will automatically be set to GM only).
Action: The action button will show the same information that was set from wherever the effect was applied. The GM can change this by selecting the desired option by clicking on the button to cycle through the options.
Duration: To the right of the effect line is a button which shows when the effect will decrement. This can be changed by the GM by clicking on the button and cycling through the options.
Applied By: The active actor will be used as the source actor of an effect and shown in the lower right of the effect entry. If no actor is active, then this field is hidden. To set the source actor of an effect, drag the name field of a CT actor onto the label field of a CT effect entry. The source is usually just informational but may occasionally be used to support advanced effects (such as Marked). Click on the Applied By field to clear the source actor.
Targets: By default, effects are applied to relevant rolls for all targets. However, some effect components can be targeted (such as attack and damage modifiers). A targeting button is shown next to each effect entry and can be dragged onto a CT entry or CT-linked token to specify that the effect is targeted to a specific actor or set of actors. Additional options to target all allies or enemies are available by right-clicking on the targeting button. The Targets field is hidden unless targets are defined. Click on the Targets field to clear the targets.
Global Effects
You can create effects which will affect every actor on the Combat Tracker. To do so click the icon on the top left of the Combat Tracker and then on the green ’+’ button at the bottom of the window.
Type the effect that you want into the blank line and press tab to exit. All the usual syntax rules apply to whatever you type in here. On the left-hand side there’s a group of buttons which mimic the same group next to each effect on the Combat Tracker allowing the effect to be visible to all or just the GM, and how often the effect should apply as well as whether the effect is on or off. There are boxes for the number of rounds that the effect last for and what initiative count that the effect duration should decrement. You can cycle through the box at the end of the line to determine when the effect decrements and finally there’s a targeting reticule allowing the GM to drag the effect onto only specific targets (this allows for the effect to apply to only PCs, for example, or to any actors that are on a certain area of the map).
Once applied, whenever the next actor button is clicked on the Combat Tracker the created effect will be applied to the actor whose turn it is. The effect(s) will be applied to all the actors in turn, or only to those actors that have been targeted by the DM using the targeting reticule. The effect will continue for however many rounds that have been designated or until the DM switches off the effect for whatever reason.
Effect Targeting
As described above in the dialog for Spell/Ability Effect there is a box for ‘Targeting’ and the first two options can be set either to ‘Targets’ or ‘Self’. It is important to understand that this isn’t asking you to tell Fantasy Grounds who the target of the effect is but rather where the effect should reside.
If we take a simple case of a character who gets some extra d6 of damage from some source they can set up an effect of DMG: 1d6. It is the character who is the beneficiary of this additional damage (not the creature who is going to take it) and so when creating the effect, the character needs to set the ‘Targeting’ box in the dialog to read ‘Self’. When the player clicks the action button to apply the effect it will correctly be set on the character and the effect will fire when they deal damage.
On the other hand, suppose we have some spell or ability which means that an enemy gets disadvantage on attack rolls DISATK:. Clearly there’s no use this effect sitting on the character; it must be placed on an enemy and so when setting the targeting we make sure that it reads ‘Targets’.
So, when setting the ‘Targeting’ to ‘Targets’ or ‘Self’ we need to think about what the effect is setting out to achieve, who should benefit or who should take the penalty. Once you have sorted that out you should be able to work out on which creature that effect should be sitting.
However, there are instances where an effect needs to be narrower than just Self or Targets. If we take the example of the Hex spell; this allows the caster to get an extra d6 necrotic damage on a hit against a target that they have ‘marked’. So, we know the effect will be DMG: 1d6 necrotic but if we apply that to self then the actor is getting the extra damage against any target. Therefore, we need to be more specific as to when this effect is going to come into play. In the targeting box we will apply the effect as Self (-> Targets), and we will need to make sure we are targeting the actor that we are marking when applying the effect. This will apply the effect whenever the caster of the spell makes a damage roll against only that target and no other.
On the other hand, suppose a spell or character trait forced an enemy to have disadvantage on attacks against only them, then the effect (DISATK) needs to be on the target, but the effect must only apply to the caster and not any other actor. So, when selecting the Targeting option we select Targets (-> Self).
Spells and Constitution Saving Throws
In many cases when a Spellcaster casts a spell they must maintain concentration on that spell for the duration. If, whilst concentrating on a spell, the spellcaster takes damage they must make a constitution saving throw with a DC of 10 or half the damage whichever is greater. On a failure concentration on the spell is lost. Fantasy Grounds can handle this automatically provided that the effect is affixed with ;(C). If the caster who is concentrating on the spell takes damage Fantasy Grounds will make the appropriate saving throw and, on a failure, remove any effects from any actors who are being influenced by the spell.
So, for example, if an effect is created for the Bless spell, then it should be ATK: 1;SAVE: 1;(C)
Note: As noted in the table below 'concentration' can replace the ability modifier for advantage and disadvantage to saving throws or to the save effect itself.
@Tags
There’s a whole suite of tags which start with the ampersand (@) character. In all cases these tags should be applied to a target and effectively do the opposite of what the equivalent tag without the @ symbol does. For example, DMG: 1d6 will add additional damage to the actor who is doing the damage whereas @DMG: 1d6 will add damage to the target that is taking the damage. Whilst they both look like they are doing the same thing the @DMG effect will apply to any actor who damages the target and not just the actor who has DMG: 1d6 on them. In addition to attack and damage tags, there are tags for healing, advantage and disadvantage to attacks and saving throws.
Reference
In the pages that follow the meaning of various values and descriptors are noted below:
(T) = Effects can be targeted to only apply to conditions against certain opponents
(D) = Dice and numbers supported for value attribute
(N) = Only numbers supported for value attribute
(-) = Neither number nor dice supported for value attribute
[ranged] = melee, ranged, spell, weapon
[damage type] = acid, cold, fire, force, lightning, necrotic, poison, psychic, radiant, thunder, adamantine, bludgeoning, cold-forged iron, magic, piercing, silver, slashing
[stat] = strength, constitution, dexterity, intelligence, wisdom, charisma
[ability] = strength, constitution, dexterity, intelligence, wisdom, charisma
[skill] = any skill name NOTE: skills with space such as Sleight of Hand or Animal Handling should be written without the spaces. For example, SKILL: 2, sleightofhand
[condition] = Any condition as noted in the PHB (both legacy and 2024) apart from exhaustion. Note [condition] must be all lower case
[alignment] = LG, LN, LE, NG, NE, CG, CN, CE, lawful, lawful good, lawful neutral, lawful evil, neutral good, neutral evil, chaotic, chaotic good, chaotic neutral, chaotic evil, good, evil
[size] = T, S, M, L, H, G, tiny, small, medium, large, huge, gargantuan
[creature type] = aberration, beast, celestial, construct, dragon, elemental, fey, fiend, giant, humanoid, monstrosity, ooze, plant, undead, aarakocra, bullywug, demon, devil, dragonborn, dwarf, elf, gith, gnoll, gnome, goblinoid, grimlock, halfling, human, kenku, kuo-toa, kobold, lizardfolk, living construct, merfolk, orc, quaggoth, sahuagin, shapechanger, thri-kreen, titan, troglodyte, yuan-ti, yugoloth
[multi] multiplier can be a decimal fraction (e.g. 0.5) or a whole number
When you see an asterix ( * ) against an entry it means that multiple entries of this descriptor are allowed (separated by a comma)
Conditions
Conditions are built into the 5e ruleset and when applied to a character or NPC will apply the effects as noted below. Conditions can be applied either via effects in the action tab, or by applying it from the effects button accessed via the tool menu in the right-hand side of the UI. When applied from the effects button clicking on the condition will apply it to the currently selected character on the CT; the effect can also be dragged to any character by holding down the left mouse button and dropping it onto the character on the CT or onto a token on the map. When applied from the effects button the effect will remain until removed. If you want to limit how long the effect applies, then create them in the actions tab and use the effect dialog options to specify the limit.
When creating effects on the Actions tab use the effect dialog and type in the name of the condition; they are not case sensitive. Note also that effects do not stack; so, for example, a character that suffers Blinded and Frightened will not suffer double disadvantage on attacks.
Condition | Modifiers Applied | Notes |
Status | ||
Blinded | GRANTADVATK, DISATK |
|
Charmed |
| Does nothing mechanically |
Cursed |
| Does nothing mechanically. |
Deafened |
| Does nothing mechanically |
Encumbered | DISATK, DISCHK: strength, DISCHK: dexterity, DISCHK: constitution, DISSAV: strength, DISSAV: dexterity, DISSAV: constitution |
|
Frightened | DISATK, DISCHK |
|
Incapacitated |
| Does nothing mechanically. |
Intoxicated | DISATK, DISCHK |
|
Invisible | ADVATK, GRANTDISATK | (T) |
Paralyzed | GRANTADVATK | Automatically fails STR and DEX saves |
Petrified |
| Does nothing mechanically. |
Poisoned | DISATK, DISCHK |
|
Prone | DISATK, GRANTADVATK: melee, GRANTDISATK: ranged |
|
Restrained | GRANTADVATK, DISATK, DISSAV: dexterity |
|
Stable |
| When dying, actor makes death rolls unless it has Stable effect. (option) |
Stunned | GRANTADVATK | Automatically fails STR and DEX saves |
Turned |
| Applied to a creature that has been turned. Does nothing mechanically. |
Unconscious | Prone, GRANTADVATK | Automatically fails STR and DEX saves |
Exhaustion
It's worth mentioning exhaustion here as it is a condition but not one that appears on the effects UI. It can only be applied via the actions tab (or by creating a custom effect in the effects UI). The syntax is EXHAUSTION: x where x represents a number (no dice strings allowed). A character can have more than one EXHAUSTION effect on them and if they do the numbers are accumulated; hence if a character has EXHAUSTION: 1 and EXHAUSTION: 2 effects then Fantasy Grounds will treat that as EXHAUSTION: 3
In the legacy rules on a value of 1 or 2 EXHAUSTION will apply DISCHK and on a value of 3+ it will apply DISCHK, DISATK, and DISSAV. In the 2024 rules EXHAUSTION applies a cumulative -2 penalty to d20 rolls per level. Thus, if you have EXHAUSTION: 3 all d20 rolls will be made with a -6 penalty.
No other effects are applied automatically either for the legacy rules or the 2024 rules (for example speed is not reduced, nor are max hit points reduced).
Combat Modifiers
Modifier | Value | Descriptors | Notes |
INIT | (D) |
| Modifies Initiative Rolls |
ATK | (D) | [ranged], opportunity | (T); Modifies Attack rolls |
AC | (N) | [ranged], opportunity | (T); Modifies Armor class |
CRIT | (N) | [ranged] | (T); Critical range e.g CRIT: 19 will result in a critical hit on a roll of 19 or a 20. |
DMG | (D) | [ranged], [damage type]*, critical | (T); Modifies Damage roll; If critical keyword, only applies to critical damage rolls. Note critical should be listed before damage e.g. DMG: 1d4 critical, radiant |
HEAL | (D) | - | Modifies Healing rolls |
SAVE | (D) | [ability], [concentration] or [death] | Modifies Saving throws. Without a descriptor will apply to all saving throws. If concentration modifies only concentration saving throws. If death applies only to death saving throws |
SAVEDC | (N) |
| Adds an adjustment to saving throw DCs |
Skill and Ability Modifiers
Modifier | Value | Descriptors | Notes |
SKILL | (D) | [ability], [skill] | Modifies Skill checks. If [ability] affects all skills based on that ability. |
CHECK | (D) | [ability] | Modifies Ability checks. Note this affects all checks based on the ability score. For example, CHECK: 5 dexterity will apply a bonus of 5 to any ability check, initiative, and any skill check where the skill is based on dexterity (such as Sleight of Hand). |
STR | (N) | [bonus] | Strength modifier. Modifies any strength-based check including attack rolls and damage rolls made with strength-based weapons |
DEX | (N) | [bonus] | Dexterity modifier. Modifies any dexterity-based check including attack rolls and damage rolls made with dexterity-based weapons |
CON | (N) | [bonus] | Constitution modifier |
INT | (N) | [bonus] | Intelligence modifier |
WIS | (N) | [bonus] | Wisdom modifier |
CHA | (N) | [bonus] | Charisma modifier |
Combat Skill and Ability Examples
Effect Code | Notes |
ATK: 5, melee | Adds a bonus of 5 to any melee attacks |
ATK: 1d4, spell, ranged | Adds a 1d4 attack bonus to any ranged attack spell. |
DMG: 1d6, ranged, fire | Adds a bonus of 1d6 fire damage to any ranged attack |
DMG: 3, weapon, slashing | Adds 3 to any damage done by a weapon that does slashing damage |
HEAL: 1d4 | Adds a 1d4 bonus to any healing rolls made |
SKILL: 1d4, dexterity, wisdom | Adds a 1d4 bonus to any skill roll made which is based on dexterity or wisdom (e.g Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Medicine etc) |
SKILL: 3, intelligence, sleightofhand, stealth | Adds 3 to Sleight of Hand and Stealth skill rolls, as well as any skill based on Intelligence (e.g. History, Investigation etc) |
CHECK: 1d6, dexterity, charisma | Ads a d6 to any dexterity or charisma check, and to any skills based on dexterity or charisma (this will also give a d6 to initiative rolls since that is a dexterity check). |
Note that SKILL and CHECK add a value directly to the roll being made. Modifiers to ability scores (STR, DEX, etc) do not change the value of the ability on the character sheet but are considered when an appropriate roll is made. Note also that in the case of ability modifier tags (STR, DEX, etc) the number which will be considered for any rolls is the ability score modifier including the value of any tag. So, for example, a character with a dexterity score of 16 (+3 modifier) and with an effect of DEX: 2 will get a +1 to any dexterity-based dice rolls which includes their ability modifier (since their dexterity is now treated as being 18). If you wish to change one of the base ability scores of a character you can do this using certain PCTags which are discussed in more detail below.
Damage Adjustment Tags
Modifier | Value | Descriptors | Notes |
DMGTYPE | (-) |