The numbers, what do they mean?

Every character and creature in D&D has an ability score that describes how skilled they are at any given ability. These ability scores are tied to specific modifiers and modifiers increases the higher your ability score gets. These numbers are usually fixed for most D&D campaigns but there could be unconventional ones that bend the rules a little or if the DM decides not to use conventional rules.

These ability scores will be tied to the six different attributes, Strength, Dexterity, Constituition, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma which in-turn dictate how proficient you are at certain skills governed by these attributes.

I.e. Having a high Strength will let you do things like moving boulders easily or use heavy weapons more effectively while having a high Wisdom may let you do things like knowing enemy weaknesses or casting magic more effectively.

As mentioned before, ability scores come with modifiers, which in my opinion is the real meat of this game and you'll see why that's the case too.

So, how do these modifiers work?

If you were paying attention during the introductory page, you would remember that dice rolling is a big part of this game and how it determines whether a player's action is successful or not. How does it work exactly though?

Well the DM sets a "Difficulty Check" or "DC" for short, setting a number for it. The player would then have to roll a number higher than the check in order to pass it and successfully complete whatever action he or she was intending to do. How high the number for the number would depends entirely on the DM who would decide after hearing the player's decision. A fair DM would set the number low if a player's action is plausible and set the number high if the player's action seems almost impossible.

Modifiers allows players to add in an additional number to help the player pass this check. For example, let's say your character is trying to cut down a tree and your DM tells you that you must pass a Strenght DC of 10 to succeed. But uh oh, you only managed to roll an eight, does that mean that you failed?

Not Quite! Your Strength actually has an ability score of 16 meaning your modifier is +3. Having a modifier allows you to add in the modifier amount to your roll, resulting in a total of 11!

Congratulations! You showed your prowess in Strenght and successfully cut down that tree! I hope this little example has shown you in concept how modifiers work. Below, you'll see a table showing you the nature of how Difficulty Checks are presented.

This however does not come into play in combat as combat uses a lot of specific numbers that are tied to the player's and enemies' statistics. This will be briefly explored in the "World Interactions" section but for now, we need a window for you to explore this world, your character.