D&D 5E Arcane Rules- What is your favorite "hidden" rule in 5e?

[BoldItalic]

My favorite is the bush-wood elf-lightfoot halfling hiding line. The wood elf hides behind a little bush ('cuz they can hide in lightly obscured natural terrain), and then the halfling hides behind the wood elf.

But can the elf equally hide behind a halfling sorcerer who was turned into potted plant by a wild magic surge? The rules are unclear. Rule-of-Fun says "Yes! And give the guy inspiration".

 

[Cyan Wisp]

Thieves' Tools mentions that those proficient can add Prof. Bonus to disarm traps and open locks (implying that anyone can try to do these activities with the tools even without proficiency).

Under "Lock" in equipment, however, it says that "creatures proficient in Thieves' Tools" can pick the lock (implying that not everyone can do this activity, only those who are proficient in the tools). Personally, I prefer that this is the case.

I don't yet have the DMG (shamefully), so I don't know if this is clarified anywhere.

 

[Paraxis]

Not sure how obscure this is but maybe it fits.

Death Saving Throws are in fact saving throws.

What does this mean, well halflings can reroll natural 1's on them, paladin auras give them a bonus, bless spell gives them a bonus, and monks can become proficient in them at 14th level and spend a ki point to reroll them.

Halfling high level monks play connect four and twister with the Reaper and win very frequently. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA5ryowAyLk

 

[meomwt]

But can the elf equally hide behind a halfling sorcerer who was turned into potted plant by a wild magic surge? The rules are unclear. Rule-of-Fun says "Yes! And give the guy inspiration".

Or, indeed, behind the illusion of a bush that has grown suddenly from the cracks in the floor of a cell...

 

[delericho]

I hate "hidden" rules. If it's not important enough to be called out in great big letters, it's probably not important enough to be a rule in the first place.

 

[garnuk]

My favorite rule is that homebrew, custom classes, spells, and monsters are all officially ruled and there are rules to let you know if its "balanced" or not.

 

[lowkey13]

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[PnPgamer]

Getting to fling more than one spell in a round can be confusing:
If you get to cast as action and bonus action, one of them must be a cantrip.
If you get two actions to cast spells such as being lvl 2 fighter and some caster combo, you can cast both as anything you like. If you add bonus action casting, you again cannot use more than one leveled spell.

 

[delericho]

Well, while this might be a common desire for contracts, it doesn't work quite as well for games. "Hidden" can mean different things to different people- and even games as simple as Monopoly have rules that are unknown to many casual players.

That's because nobody actually reads the rules for "Monopoly" - they get handed down from generation to generation, having never actually been read in the first place.

But that's not really "Monopoly"'s fault. And if the rules are clearly presented in an easily-accessible rulebook, they're not hidden.

For example, in 1e there are rules that are hidden due to lack of observance and/or lack of familiarity at most table (Elves have spirits, and cannot be resurrected).

And this would be exactly the sort of rule I object to - either put it under the race write up (if it's important enough) or drop it (if it isn't).

There are rules that are hidden because they are buried in a separate place (if you're playing an assassin, you may not know that the rules for poison for your class are buried in the DMG). There are rules that conflict due to error (monk attacks as thief or cleric). There are rules that might conflict, not due to error, but just as applied.

Again, these are things I would object to - poor organisation in a rulebook or contradictory rules are design flaws. These are all examples of things that should be fixed in a new edition - or they would be, if D&D's editions were about clearing up an existing ruleset rather than wholesale revisions.

There are optional rules that people might not read fully.

Again, if the rules are clearly presented and explained, and properly organised, then they're not hidden. And it's not the game's fault if people don't read the rules.

 

[lowkey13]

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