Z's Advantage Stacking (5e Variant Rule)
 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
 | |||||||||
|
Rate this article Discuss this article | |||||||||
Contents
Z's Advantage Stacking[edit]
A take on making Advantage - And, of course, Disadvantage - A little more dynamic without slowing down combat too much. While I should warn you that players will work together more often to achieve the highest bonus, intelligent monsters will also be able to utilize this to the same extent.
The Existing Rules[edit]
You cannot gain advantage, nor suffer from disadvantage, from more than one source - Multiple instances do not stack to provide a higher benefit, not matter how many instances you have.
Additionally, if you have both Advantage and Disadvantage, the effects cancel each other out completely, leaving you with an ordinary roll.
Thus, having Advantage from 4 sources is no better than having Advantage from only one source, and if you also suffer Disadvantage from a single source, it cancels out all 4 sources of Advantage you have.
The Variant[edit]
Advantage can stack up to 3 times, and Disadvantage can stack up to 3 times. They cancel each other out on a 1-to-1 basis - If you have Advantage on a roll from 2 sources (True Strike combined with an ally's Help Action), and Disadvantage from one source (Making an attack from 10ft away against a prone target), then you count as having Advantage 1, since one instance of Advantage was neutralized by the Disadvantage.
- Advantage/Disadvantage 1 is the same as the core game - You roll 2d20, and take either the higher or lower of the two rolls.
- Advantage/Disadvantage 2 is the same as Advantage/Disadvantage 1, except that you gain an additional +2 bonus to your roll in the case of Advantage, or a -2 penalty to your roll in the case of Disadvantage.
- Advantage/Disadvantage 3 is the same as Advantage/Disadvantage 2, except that the size of the bonus or penalty is increased to +5/-5.
The only rule here is that you cannot gain more than one instance of Advantage or Disadvantage from the same ability, trait or feature, unless otherwise specified - For instance, if an ally uses the Help action to give you Advantage 1, you cannot gain Advantage 2 if another ally gives you the Help action against the same creature, but you could gain Advantage 2 if the target is prone, stunned, or paralyzed.
Examples[edit]
The Paladin (5th level, Str and Cha 16) is making an attack roll with his Greatsword against an Adult Red Dragon the party has managed to ground. The Mastermind Rogue is using the Help action at a range, calling out the weak point in the dragon's scales; And the Paladin is benefitting from a Silvery Barbs spell cast by the Bard on the last round; And from a Guiding Bolt cast by the Cleric on the last round.
This gives the Paladin all the help he needs - When he makes his attack, he rolls twice, takes the higher of the two rolls, and adds an additional +5 bonus, for a total of a +11 bonus to the higher roll.
However, if at the last second the cave dimmed - Due to a legendary action taken by the dragon, no doubt - His Advantage would drop to Advantage 2, causing his additional bonus to be reduced from +5 to only +2. This reduces his total bonus from +11 to +8.
The Results[edit]
Your players will conspire the get the best possible roll in every situation, especially one crucial rolls that can make or break a campaign.
However, remind them that monsters can also work together to abuse this mechanic - When you tire of the powergaming, you should start to have intelligent monsters work together to get the best possible attack roll against a player, or have them work together to remove the advantage the players worked so hard to achieve. Do this sparingly, though, so they still feel powerful when they work in tandem.
Back to Main Page → 5e → Variant Rules
