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=== Damage Roll === | === Damage Roll === | ||
When an attack is successful, the damage it does to the target, in terms of hit-points, is determined through the Damage Roll. This can involve any type and number of dice. For example, a successful hit with a [[Dagger]] will lead to a d4 being rolled to determine the damage, whereas a successful attack with a [[Greatsword]] will lead to two d6 being rolled (referred to as 2d6) for a total damage of 2 to 12. | When an attack is successful, the damage it does to the target, in terms of hit-points, is determined through the Damage Roll. This can involve any type and number of dice. For example, a successful hit with a [[Dagger]] will lead to a d4 being rolled to determine the damage (referred to as 1d4 damage), whereas a successful attack with a [[Greatsword]] will lead to two d6 being rolled (referred to as 2d6) for a total damage of 2 to 12. | ||
Note that due to the mathematics of dice rolls, the difference between 1d8 and 2d4 is more than just | The total value resulting from the roll is affected by the attacking creature's [[#Ability Score Modifier|Ability Score Modifier]] and [[#Proficiency Bonus|Proficiency Bonus]]. | ||
==== A bit of Mathematics ==== | |||
Note that due to the mathematics of dice rolls, the difference between, say, 1d8 and 2d4 is more than just the higher minimum value of 2 on the 2d4 roll. With the d8, you have an equal chance of getting, say, a 5 and an 8. On the other hand, the 2d4 roll is statistically more likely to lead to a total value of 5, than a total value of 8. This is most easily explained with a table of all possible outcomes: | |||
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Notice how often the 5 appears in the possibilities for the '''total value''' (4 out of 16) vs. how often the 8 appears (1 out of 16). This means a 2d4 roll has a 25% chance of resulting in 5 points of damage, but only a 6.125% chance of resulting in 8 points of damage. Meanwhile, the 1d8 roll actually has a higher chance of maximum damage, since 1 out of 8 | Notice how often the 5 appears in the possibilities for the '''total value''' (4 out of 16 possibilities) vs. how often the 8 appears (1 out of 16). This means a 2d4 roll has a 25% chance of resulting in 5 points of damage, but only a 6.125% chance of resulting in 8 points of damage. Meanwhile, the 1d8 roll actually has a higher chance of resulting in the maximum damage value of 8, since 1 out of 8 possibilities (12.5%) result in an 8. | ||
=== Saving Throw === | === Saving Throw === | ||