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Who doesn’t love a bonus, especially one that grows as your character levels? A proficiency bonus is overall a net positive inDungeons & Dragons, but the math is, unfortunately, more complicated than it needs to be. This is a massive step from previous editions, which had a little more clarity when it came down to calculating it.
The great thing about proficiency bonuses is that every statblock in the game has one, so you have a couple of good examples on hand. Of course, you can also use the tables provided in the Player’s Handbook, but if neither is on you, here’s how proficiency works.
What Is A Proficiency Bonus?
A proficiency bonus isa bonus you get to a roll.
It scales with your character as they level up, and applies tosaving throws, skills checks, spell and weapon attacks, tools, and the ability to use certain armor or weapons effectively. It also applies tospell save DCs!
You donotadd your proficiency bonus to damage rolls.
How Does Proficiency Work?
Proficiency works in tandem with your character’s stat modifiers, tacking on to your preexisting bonus and giving you a little extra boost.It represents a skill your character is particularly adept at.
For instance, if you happen to play a bard, you may want to be good with your words. You’ll likely take proficiency inPersuasion or Deception, making the bonus you had to the roll larger.
If you play a Paladin, you may want proficiency in Religion, and playing a Fighter may make Athletics or Acrobatics more valuable to you. This tends to make your characterspecialized towards certain skill checks in a party.
Mechanically,proficiency bonuses make it so that you have a greater chance of succeedingat something your character should be good at.
From a roleplay perspective, it simply means that you’re better at that skill than the average guy or thatyou have training in a certain area, such as with tools, armor, and weapons.
Class And Proficiency
Being proficient in something means your party will shove you at whatever skill you’re proficient in! You’ll get a couple of proficiency bonuses when youchoose your character’s class, usually aligning with the theme of the chosen class.
Different classes will have different amounts of proficiencies they can take, though typically, your character will gettwo skill proficiencies, two skill proficiencies,anda tool proficiency.
Custom Lineageallows you to mix and match, reaching outside of the bounds of your character’s species to give them proficiency in whatever seems right for their background.
Some characters maymulticlass, making proficiency seem more convoluted. It’s not! Just remember to note that you don’t get separate proficiency bonuses based on classes, and theycertainlydon’t add together.
For example, if you are a level five ranger and a level eight rogue,your proficiency wouldn’t stack. Instead,your combined level(level 13)would help calculate your proficiency bonus.
Calculating Proficiency
Here’s where the math gets a bit tricky. Luckily, you have a chart that tracks your proficiency based on your character’s level. It looks something like this:
1st-4th level
+2
5th-8th level
+3
9th-12th level
+4
13th-16th level
+5
17th-20th level
+6
Proficiency bonuses aren’t added to everything. Just what your character is proficient in!
Tocalculate this on your own, take your total character level and divide it by four. Round up, and add one.Virtual Table Topscan often do this for you,such as D&DBeyond.
Using Proficiency For Passives
Passive abilities areabilities that don’t require rolls to use.
For instance, your party may be at a tavern after a long day of adventuring, and, while resting, the druid happens to hear two hooded figures murmuring about entering the party’s room at night once they’ve imbibed to steal the artifact they’ve recovered.
Or, the cleric may notice that these hooded figures have something glinting within the folds of their cloaks, and upon closer inspection, may recognize the insignia of the Zhentarim. When the bartender asks how the party is doing, the paladin takes note that he seems especially nervous.
This is an example of a character’s passives at work. Anything further than an initial tick that something is wrong may require a roll, though! Think of a passive as a tip-off!
You have three passives: Perception, Insight, and Investigation.Perception and Insight use theWisdommodifier, while Investigation usesIntelligence.
Perceptiontends to control what people hear or see without intention.Insightdetermines body language and ulterior motives, whileInvestigationhandles what people find without really looking for it in the first place, such as finding a clue.
Not all characters get a proficiency bonus in these skills, so be sure that you are one of the lucky few before doing your calculation!
