DnD stats explained in simple language

When you want to sling a spell, dodge a blow, or fell a foe, it's the six basic Dungeons and Dragons stats that decide your fate. Every time you roll a D20 to take an action, one of your character's fundamental stats (a.k.a. ability scores) comes into play - sometimes saving you from a bad roll, sometimes dooming you in spite of a good one. Understanding how DnD stats work is crucial to the whole game - and this simple guide will teach you everything you need to know.

Alright, let's start simple. The six DnD stats are Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. You decide the starting value of these 'ability scores' during character creation, but they can be modified by certain character options (DnD races in 5e, for example, or DnD backgrounds in 5.5e - check out the linked guides to learn more).

Your ability scores are split into physical and mental stats. This classic Tumblr post gives an excellent description of what each of the stats allows a character to do, in terms of a tomato:

• Strength - helps you crush a tomato.
• Dexterity - helps you catch a thrown tomato.
• Constitution - helps you eat a bad tomato and not get sick.
• Intelligence - helps you understand why a tomato is a fruit.
• Wisdom - helps you recognize that a tomato shouldn't be in a fruit salad.
• Charisma - helps you to sell a fruit salad made of tomatoes by marketing it as salsa.

The higher your ability score, the better you are at getting things done. Higher ability scores have higher ability score modifiers, and it's the modifiers you get to add to rolls of your D20.

Some stats also modify other parts of your character which aren't used for rolls. For example, your Strength modifier decides your character's carrying capacity, while Constitution affects your hit point maximum.

Strength

Strength is a specialist skill in D&D. Unless you plan to swing a sword (or greathammer, or almost any other melee weapon), you probably don't need it. Sure, it makes you great at Athletics, and it increases your carrying capacity. But these aren't a high priority for anyone except Bob the Barbarian.

Dexterity

Dexterity is, in my opinion, the unsung hero of D&D stats. It can do almost everything Strength can, provided you're okay with Finesse weapons only. It also allows you to use ranged weapons, and it boosts your armor class. That last one is crucial for almost any character. Dexterity-based martial characters are among the strongest character builds. And, when a spellcaster needs extra defense, they reach for Dexterity, not Strength.

Constitution

Constitution gives you the fewest benefits of any stat, but it's oddly more important than any other. Constitution decides your hit point maximum, which decides how many hits you take before you're dead. In a combat-focused campaign, nothing is more important than that number. Plus, Constitution decides how well you maintain concentration on spells - and that's pretty darn essential for magic users.

Intelligence

Wisdom

Wisdom is the spellcasting ability of choice for Clerics, Druids, and Rangers. Monks also use it to power their focus abilities. While that makes it those class' top priority, plenty of other characters benefit from Wisdom, too. It fuels skills like Survival and Perception (in my opinion, some of the most important skills in the game). Plus, Wisdom saving throws are incredibly common, so a high score in this stat protects you from enemy spellcasters.

Charisma

Charisma represents both divine power and a gift of the gab. By that, I mean it's the spellcasting ability for Bards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, and Paladins alike. Naturally, it's also the fuel for all your social interactions. If you want your character to be as smooth a talker as you are in real life, you better boost their Charisma score.

How to pick stats

When deciding how to pick stats for your character, start by prioritizing your 'primary ability score'. The Player's Handbook lists a key ability score for each class. This is usually your spellcasting ability or, if you can't use magic, your main method of attack.

Most classes only rely on a single stat to function. We call this SAD (Single Ability Score Dependent). For example, a Wizard only really needs a high Intelligence to be good at casting spells.

For SAD characters, your second stat to focus on is usually Constitution. This boosts your maximum hit points and your ability to concentrate on spells, so it's key to the survival of pretty much any character.

For some classes, there is an argument for making Dexterity your second-most important stat. This increases your armor class, so it's handy for defense. It's also tied to a lot more useful skills than Constitution.

Not every class is SAD, though. At the other end of the scale are MAD (Multiple Ability Score Dependent) characters. These classes must focus on two or more stats in order to excel. For example, a Paladin uses Charisma for spellcasting, but they also need a high Strength score for smites. Similarly, a Monk fuels their Focus with Wisdom, but they'll need Dexterity for attacking and defending in melee.

In this case, some players aim to increase these stats at an equal pace. Others prefer to lean more heavily on one than the other. A Paladin that doesn't do too much spellcasting with Charisma is still perfectly playable as long as you build around their Strength score.

MAD characters still benefit from high Constitution or Dexterity scores, but these become tougher to prioritize when you want to juggle more than one primary Ability Score.

How to calculate DnD stats

The three methods of calculating your base DnD stats are:

1. Rolling
2. Standard array
3. Points buy (27 rule)

How do you roll for DnD stats?

To roll for a character's stats, roll 4D6, remove the lowest die result, and note the total. Do this six times to generate six numbers between three and 18, then assign each of these numbers to one of your stats. Voila! You have your base stats, ready to add any bonuses from your character's race.

Randomly rolled stats can have more extreme results than other methods, but it's the only way to get a base stat above 15 (before you add bonuses). It's generally favored by players that enjoy exploring characters' big weaknesses - because you could well end up with some stats so low you'll take a minus two or minus three to your roll every time you use them!

What is standard array?

Standard array is a fixed set of base stats: 15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8. You will use each number in the array for one stat. It's equivalent to making average dice rolls, or building a balanced character with points buy.

The main advantages of using the standard array system are speed and reliability. There's no random chance involved - you can simply plop the bigger scores onto the most important stats for your chosen class, giving your a character a basic statline that's optimized for the type of role you're intending to play in the party, but also balanced across other stats. Most importantly, you'll only have one true 'dump' stat below ten.

On the downside, of course, you won't have any truly excellent ability scores. Not only is it impossible to get any ability score higher than 15, but you'll only have one stat at 15. By rolling for stats, you could end up with 18s for everything - so the question is: are you feeling lucky, punk?

How does the points buy system work?

The points buy system gives you 27 points to spend on your stats, with each stat value costing a fixed number of points. This is sometimes called the D&D '27 rule'.

The points buy system is the most fiddly way to calculate stats, but it gives you the most control over your character's core abilities.

How to increase DnD stats

The main way to get better stats is to level up! At certain stages of play, you'll get the chance to choose an Ability Score Increase. Alternatively, you can pick another general feat that gives you a less impressive stat boost (along with another cool ability).

Most classes get stat improvements at fourth, eighth, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, but the Fighter and Rogue both also receive stat improvements at sixth and 14th level. A multiclass character does not gain stat improvements based on its overall level, but on each class level separately - so a second-level Fighter / second-level Wizard would not receive a stat improvement.

The only other way to fiddle with your scores after character creation is magic items. These can even get your stats past 20 - something regular Ability Score Increases can't offer!

The most impactful of these items are the infamous, single-use Tomes and Manuals, each of which permanently increases a given stat by 2. All are Very Rare, Wondrous Items that you should expect to find very occasionally. You'll need to study the book for 48 hours over a period of six days to get the effect - after that it can be used again, but only after a century.

These items are:

• Manual of Gainful Exercise - increase STR by 2
• Manual of Quickness of Action - increase DEX by 2
• Manual of Bodily Health - increase CON by 2
• Tome of Clear Thought - increase INT by 2
• Tome of Understanding - increase WIS by 2
• Tome of Leadership and Influence - increase CHA by 2

Beyond that, there are a variety of magic items that grant you buffs to stats only while you have them equipped.

These are also all very rare, but the most commonly seen are:

• Ioun Stones - Small stones that float around your head, conferring +2 to a given stat, depending on the type of stone - to a maximum of 20. Others can give temporary bonuses to AC, Proficiency Bonus, and more.
• Belt of Dwarvenkind - Increases CON by 2 to a maximum of 20. Also gives you 60ft of Darkvision, resistance to poison and Advantage on saves against poisoned, makes you better at persuading Dwarves, and gives you a 50% chance of growing a beard every day.
• Gauntlets of Ogre power - Sets your STR to 19 exactly, but has no effect if you're already at 19 or higher.
• Belt of Giant Strength - Sets your STR to a given total between 21 and 29, depending on the type of Giant.
• Amulet of Health - Sets your CON to 19 exactly, but has no effect if you're already at 19 or higher.
• Headband of Intellect - Sets your INT to 19 exactly, but has no effect if you're already at 19 or higher.

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This guide directly presents rules text for D&D Attributes, published by Wizards of the Coast under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.