Ability Scores: What Are They and What Do They Do? – For Those About To Roll, We Salute You!
In 2017, I talked a lot about my views on this crazy game as a whole. I wanted to be as wide open as possible so that as you learned/played the game it didn’t become a to-much-at-once situation. Now that 2018 is here, I thought that some of you have taken my advice and started a game. So, getting into some of the nuts and bolts of the game would help you begin making your own characters, and learn where all the “numbers” on your sheet came from. Let’s talk ability scores. 5th Edition has done a good job in minimizing character complexity so new players don’t get overwhelmed by the numbers. If any of you have friends that played 4th Edition, ask them to see a typical 1st level character sheet. You know, all 4-5 pages of it! For 5th Edition there are a few numbers to calculate, but everything comes from your 6 Ability Scores: Strength (Str), Dexterity (Dex), Constitution (Con), Intelligence (Int), Wisdom (Wis) and Charisma (Cha).