I know that the proficiency bonus from CR is used to calculate saving throws and skills. Is there a way to access this number when editing the attack descriptions? I see other keywords like 'action', is there a '[proficiency /]' or something like that?
I am trying to edit a Steel Defender to level up with my character. It would be nice to just change the CR and have the proficiency bonus automatically update in the attack the way it does other stats.
Thanks!
EDIT: Trying to put the action tooltip in this post and getting 'Tooltip Not Found' revealed that these keywords are called tooltips. Found that documentation, but I don't see anything about a proficiency tooltip. Does that mean it doesn't exist or it's just not documented for user consumption?
Proficiency bonus isn't derived from CR but from hit dice. The number of hit dice indicates a monsters 'level' and then you use that to look up their proficiency bonus using any PC class table.
For example, take an Aboleth with 135 (18d10 + 36) hp. That tells you it's an 18th 'level' monster as it has 18 hit dice (d10s), and also if you divide the HP modifier by it's constitution bonus of +2, you get 18. If you look at any class table, you'll see an 18th level character has a +6 proficiency bonus. Now things start to break down because in theory the aboleth should have +11 to it's attacks (+5 strength, +6 proficiency), but it's only got +9. This is an adjustment likely made to lower it's CR, as CR is based off it's to hit bonuses, HP, etc.
Proficiency bonus isn't derived from CR but from hit dice. The number of hit dice indicates a monsters 'level' and then you use that to look up their proficiency bonus using any PC class table.
For example, take an Aboleth with 135 (18d10 + 36) hp. That tells you it's an 18th 'level' monster as it has 18 hit dice (d10s), and also if you divide the HP modifier by it's constitution bonus of +2, you get 18. If you look at any class table, you'll see an 18th level character has a +6 proficiency bonus. Now things start to break down because in theory the aboleth should have +11 to it's attacks (+5 strength, +6 proficiency), but it's only got +9. This is an adjustment likely made to lower it's CR, as CR is based off it's to hit bonuses, HP, etc.
Proficiency bonus is based off CR. The aboleth is CR10 which is a +4 bonus. Nothing breaks down, everything matches.
@OP: actions don't calculate proficiency bonus automatically like they do for saves, you have to change them manually.
Proficiency bonus isn't derived from CR but from hit dice. The number of hit dice indicates a monsters 'level' and then you use that to look up their proficiency bonus using any PC class table.
For example, take an Aboleth with 135 (18d10 + 36) hp. That tells you it's an 18th 'level' monster as it has 18 hit dice (d10s), and also if you divide the HP modifier by it's constitution bonus of +2, you get 18. If you look at any class table, you'll see an 18th level character has a +6 proficiency bonus. Now things start to break down because in theory the aboleth should have +11 to it's attacks (+5 strength, +6 proficiency), but it's only got +9. This is an adjustment likely made to lower it's CR, as CR is based off it's to hit bonuses, HP, etc.
Proficiency bonus is based off CR. The aboleth is CR10 which is a +4 bonus. Nothing breaks down, everything matches.
@OP: actions don't calculate proficiency bonus automatically like they do for saves, you have to change them manually.
Ah, I was completely wrong. How are hit dice derived if not based on some kind of pseudo-level?
Proficiency bonus isn't derived from CR but from hit dice. The number of hit dice indicates a monsters 'level' and then you use that to look up their proficiency bonus using any PC class table.
Proficiency bonus is based off CR. The aboleth is CR10 which is a +4 bonus. Nothing breaks down, everything matches.
Ah, I was completely wrong. How are hit dice derived if not based on some kind of pseudo-level?
I believe first they decide the size of the creature, then they decided the amount of HP they want. In other words, no particular formula is used, they have as many hit dice as it takes to get the HP they wanted. The DMG tells you how HP factors into CR (but the official monsters actually use a different method to derive CR).
No, the snippet codes only work for Classes and Races I think.
And for Monsters, D&D Beyond hasn't calculated anything, you have to manually add it all up.
Not true-- Monster Saving Throws and Skills add the proficiency bonus derived from CR.
But not actions, as I mentioned. The monster stat block just has actions as a big text block, it doesn't currently have a way to pick out different values.
I can't get this to work at all. I created a homebrew monster and set Charisma as a saving throw proficiency, but it just says +3 which is just the regular modifier for a score of 17. I dialed up the CR to 30 and the Hit Dice to 50 and the saving throw is still only +3. The only effect it seems to have had on the final stat block is it now says "20th-level Medium humanoid, lawful good" but all the stats are unchanged.
I am also having this issue. I want my Ranger to have a beast companion like the Revised Ranger UA subclass and I got everything to work EXCEPT for having accurate saving throws due to no place to input a proficiency bonus.
so because this was never answered i am going to ask again. is there a way to access a character proficiency or spell attack modifier in a custom monster?
the reason i am asking is trying to create a companion monster that levels with the character. so when the to hit goes up for the character the monster stat would go up automatically. instead of having to create a new stat block for each level.
so because this was never answered i am going to ask again. is there a way to access a character proficiency or spell attack modifier in a custom monster?
the reason i am asking is trying to create a companion monster that levels with the character. so when the to hit goes up for the character the monster stat would go up automatically. instead of having to create a new stat block for each level.
Im sorry my answer a year ago was not to your satisfaction.
the reason i am asking is trying to create a companion monster that levels with the character. so when the to hit goes up for the character the monster stat would go up automatically. instead of having to create a new stat block for each level.
This is exactly the reason I asked initially. It's such a burden, the way it's currently implemented.
There's official content that provides creatures that scale with the level/attributes of the owner/caster character, so we're planning to build out a system to support this. It'll also include sidekicks.
I know that's not a solution currently, but wanted to let you know where we're at.
Posting here instead of creating a new thread as it seems related as opposed to creating a new thread.
It would be great if in creature creation if the Challenge Rating (CR) dropdown included the proficiency information
ie:
4 (+2 proficiency bonus) 5 (+3 proficiency bonus) etc.
It's on page eight of the Monster Manual, and other than Levels 0 - 1/2 (which are all +2), it lines up with PC Proficiencies, i.e., 1-4 is +2, 5-8 is +3, 9-12 is +4, etc., going up by 1 every 4 "levels" (CR Rating).
Instead of listing it on the monster homebrew page (which would still be helpful), it would be even better if we could just set the proficiency of homebrew monsters ourselves... Homebrew tools don't have to follow the RAW, as by their very definition, they're not official... So why can't I have a CR 1/2 creature with 5d8 Hit Dice and a +3 Proficiency?
I first thought, like Davyd did, that monster Proficiency was tied to Hit Dice, and honestly, that makes much more sense than CR Level - if a monster has 5dX Hit Dice, then they should be Level 5, just like a PC with 5dX Hit Dice is Level 5... It just makes sense to keep that the same, instead of arbitrarily saying "these over here have Hit Dice that match their Level, and Proficiency also scales off that, but these things over here have Hit Dice that are completely random, because we feel like doing it that way, and proficiency scales off some arbitrary CR Rating that is loosely assigned based on randomly chosen stats"...
Reviving this because I am having the same problem and I wonder if there is a solution yet. I am trying to make a companion creature with a proficiency that scales as it matures, but I have been unable to find a way to set the proficiency values that I want.
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I know that the proficiency bonus from CR is used to calculate saving throws and skills. Is there a way to access this number when editing the attack descriptions? I see other keywords like 'action', is there a '[proficiency /]' or something like that?
I am trying to edit a Steel Defender to level up with my character. It would be nice to just change the CR and have the proficiency bonus automatically update in the attack the way it does other stats.
Thanks!
EDIT: Trying to put the action tooltip in this post and getting 'Tooltip Not Found' revealed that these keywords are called tooltips. Found that documentation, but I don't see anything about a proficiency tooltip. Does that mean it doesn't exist or it's just not documented for user consumption?
Proficiency bonus isn't derived from CR but from hit dice. The number of hit dice indicates a monsters 'level' and then you use that to look up their proficiency bonus using any PC class table.
For example, take an Aboleth with 135 (18d10 + 36) hp. That tells you it's an 18th 'level' monster as it has 18 hit dice (d10s), and also if you divide the HP modifier by it's constitution bonus of +2, you get 18. If you look at any class table, you'll see an 18th level character has a +6 proficiency bonus. Now things start to break down because in theory the aboleth should have +11 to it's attacks (+5 strength, +6 proficiency), but it's only got +9. This is an adjustment likely made to lower it's CR, as CR is based off it's to hit bonuses, HP, etc.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
Proficiency bonus is based off CR. The aboleth is CR10 which is a +4 bonus. Nothing breaks down, everything matches.
@OP: actions don't calculate proficiency bonus automatically like they do for saves, you have to change them manually.
Either way, is there an undocumented tooltip to access some of these derived stats that DnDBeyond has already calculated?
No, the snippet codes only work for Classes and Races I think.
And for Monsters, D&D Beyond hasn't calculated anything, you have to manually add it all up.
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Ah, I was completely wrong. How are hit dice derived if not based on some kind of pseudo-level?
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
I believe first they decide the size of the creature, then they decided the amount of HP they want. In other words, no particular formula is used, they have as many hit dice as it takes to get the HP they wanted. The DMG tells you how HP factors into CR (but the official monsters actually use a different method to derive CR).
Not true-- Monster Saving Throws and Skills add the proficiency bonus derived from CR.
But not actions, as I mentioned. The monster stat block just has actions as a big text block, it doesn't currently have a way to pick out different values.
Yeah, I know it's a block of text, but snippets are used elsewhere in homebrew text blocks. For example, {{proficiency}} works in homebrew classes in the text block. You don't have to manually calculate and hardcode the bonus.
https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/dungeons-dragons-discussion/homebrew-house-rules/25930-using-snippet-codes-in-your-homebrew
This snippet doesn't work for monsters for some reason, even though this is calculated for saving throws and skills.
I can't get this to work at all. I created a homebrew monster and set Charisma as a saving throw proficiency, but it just says +3 which is just the regular modifier for a score of 17. I dialed up the CR to 30 and the Hit Dice to 50 and the saving throw is still only +3. The only effect it seems to have had on the final stat block is it now says "20th-level Medium humanoid, lawful good" but all the stats are unchanged.
I am also having this issue. I want my Ranger to have a beast companion like the Revised Ranger UA subclass and I got everything to work EXCEPT for having accurate saving throws due to no place to input a proficiency bonus.
so because this was never answered i am going to ask again. is there a way to access a character proficiency or spell attack modifier in a custom monster?
the reason i am asking is trying to create a companion monster that levels with the character. so when the to hit goes up for the character the monster stat would go up automatically. instead of having to create a new stat block for each level.
Im sorry my answer a year ago was not to your satisfaction.
The only thing I can think to add is "no". Hope that helps.
This is exactly the reason I asked initially. It's such a burden, the way it's currently implemented.
Also, DxJxC, please be chill.
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D&D Beyond FoundersThere's official content that provides creatures that scale with the level/attributes of the owner/caster character, so we're planning to build out a system to support this. It'll also include sidekicks.
I know that's not a solution currently, but wanted to let you know where we're at.
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great thank you for this. you guys rock. keep up the great work on this site.
Posting here instead of creating a new thread as it seems related as opposed to creating a new thread.
It would be great if in creature creation if the Challenge Rating (CR) dropdown included the proficiency information
ie:
4 (+2 proficiency bonus)
5 (+3 proficiency bonus)
etc.
It's on page eight of the Monster Manual, and other than Levels 0 - 1/2 (which are all +2), it lines up with PC Proficiencies, i.e., 1-4 is +2, 5-8 is +3, 9-12 is +4, etc., going up by 1 every 4 "levels" (CR Rating).
Instead of listing it on the monster homebrew page (which would still be helpful), it would be even better if we could just set the proficiency of homebrew monsters ourselves... Homebrew tools don't have to follow the RAW, as by their very definition, they're not official... So why can't I have a CR 1/2 creature with 5d8 Hit Dice and a +3 Proficiency?
I first thought, like Davyd did, that monster Proficiency was tied to Hit Dice, and honestly, that makes much more sense than CR Level - if a monster has 5dX Hit Dice, then they should be Level 5, just like a PC with 5dX Hit Dice is Level 5... It just makes sense to keep that the same, instead of arbitrarily saying "these over here have Hit Dice that match their Level, and Proficiency also scales off that, but these things over here have Hit Dice that are completely random, because we feel like doing it that way, and proficiency scales off some arbitrary CR Rating that is loosely assigned based on randomly chosen stats"...
Reviving this because I am having the same problem and I wonder if there is a solution yet. I am trying to make a companion creature with a proficiency that scales as it matures, but I have been unable to find a way to set the proficiency values that I want.