Just learning to play 5e and 3.5e at the same time, never played before.
Keep confusing the two editions, I'm playing 5e as I type this and am looking for a way for my human rogue to be able to see in the dark without using lanterns or such. Lanterns and other light sources aren't exactly stealthy.
Any recommendations? Everyone at the table is learning 5e as we go and aren't being helpful, so I thought I'd try out here.
Without magic items, you can't. This is one of the challenges of playing a human rogue. (I occasionally play one as well.) There is a magic item in the DMG called "Goggles of Night," but you should keep in mind that magic items are entirely up to DM discretion and that, unlike in some of the earlier editions, characters aren't really expected to be able to simply acquire specific magic items. As a DM, I probably would not grant a magic item like that to a 2nd level character, though, a little later, I might allow a character to perform a quest in search of one.
One very common tactic is to have somebody cast the "light" cantrip on a small object which you can be quickly and easily concealed. I like to cast it on a dagger and then wrap a cloth around the dagger. That way, by loosening or tightening the cloth, I can have rough control over the amount of illumination I am giving off. A small radius of light isn't going to be visible to anybody who isn't already looking at you. (And, since a creature with darkvision can probably see you anyway, this is only going to be a problem if another human or halfling is hiding in the dark, or if you are hiding from a dark-seer who is more than 60 feet away.) You don't have to worry about the dagger going out if you drop it to free a hand up, or sheathe it.
If the light cantrip is unavailable, you can also use a hooded lantern. I believe it's standard with the burglar's kit. This works much the same way as what I described above — by closing the hood, the lantern merely gives off a 5' radius of dim light. Perfect for being a sneaky bastard in the dark. A lantern can also be set down more easily than a torch, again allowing for use of both hands when you need them.
Another thing to remember is that darkvision only allows characters to see in total darkness as if it were dim light. By the rules, characters in dim light have disadvantage on perception checks relying on sight. This means that your passive perception for spotting traps and tripwires will be at -5. A lot of the traps in my dungeons are spotted (or at least severely hinted at) with a DC of 13, meaning that your average perceptive person can easily pick them out in bright light, but if trying to get by on darkvision alone, the wood elf with a passive perception of 14 will not notice most traps.
