Hey :)
I would be interested in knowing how you manage amunition, like arrows or even bullets. In my group a few players are using crossbows or bows and since we are all really new to DnD, we at some point lost track in how to manage arrows. At some point I just went with the houserule, that you don´t need to track amunition. It now plays a bit like in a video game, that is for sure.

How could I handle this and how are you handling this in general?
Can this become fatal at some point?

I know, that we could simply start tracking arrows again but since there is a lot going on in our heads when we play we often will forget that again.

Thanks in advance :)

I think most tables, unless they're playing a hardcore survival campaign where resource management is the point, just give up with ammunition tracking pretty quickly assuming they everdid it at all. It's pretty boring, makes a big chunk of every session either collecting arrows after a battle or shopping for new ones, and it puts ranged fighters at a unique disadvantage of being the only players who might run out of the ability to fight mid-combat because they're the only one whose resource doesn't refill on a long rest

Yes, I totally agree and I cannot imagine a scenario, where an "infinite" amount of arrows could be utterly broken for the players, unless they have some magically modified god-like bow/crossbow bought from god himself :D - which will never happen in my campaign.

I usually play that the character would be smart enough to carry enough basic ammunition to complete an adventure and would know to restock afterwards so I do not record basic arrows etc.

non basic ammunition is different, if they craft, find or buy something with extra punch I ask them to record the amount and keep a tally. So in my current campaign the ranger has ∞ arrows but only 20 silver arrows.

I run "count your ammunition" campaigns almost exclusively. I share this in my Session Zero.

Then I trust the players to track as best as they can. If they lose count or forget it's not the end of things.

When the party is in a town or a city they have to buy some arrows or bolts to "restock", beyond that we just assume they are able to reclaim or scavenge arrows from downed foes enough for it not to be an issue in between shopping. I know some tables do track to the arrow and bolt and bullet exactly how much has been used and you had and all, but I think the majority of tables don't bother. I've played a few games where there was an attempt to do that, but it gets so tedious and fun killing, it was basically forgotten about and then abandoned with in a few sessions. You have to judge your players and table to decide how they would handle it. Would they find it fun to spend time post every combat doing the accounting to determine how many arrows exactly they have left or would that be boring?

Quote from CunningSmile >>

I think most tables, unless they're playing a hardcore survival campaign where resource management is the point, just give up with ammunition tracking pretty quickly assuming they everdid it at all. It's pretty boring, makes a big chunk of every session either collecting arrows after a battle or shopping for new ones, and it puts ranged fighters at a unique disadvantage of being the only players who might run out of the ability to fight mid-combat because they're the only one whose resource doesn't refill on a long rest

It's not remotely that big a deal, to be honest. I'm tracking crossbow bolts for a character in a Dark Domains campaign right now, and knocking one off your total on a crit fail or when the stupid nightmare runs away with your bolt in its flank (grumble grumble) just takes a second. "Collecting your bolts" happens while the rest of the party is gathering their thoughts after a fight, unless you choose to bore the party with excruciating detail about where they ended up and how you carefully inspect the tips for damage before putting them back

I generally handwave it away too in 5e, but if you want to track it, it's not a buzzkill

I make players track ammo. They are assumed to go around collecting it after a fight, and they get half their spent ammo back each time as per RAW. The rest are assumed to either be lost or broken. I have them track their own and rely on the honor system. It hasn’t ever been a problem in the past, most of the time each PC gets, like, 2, maybe 3 turns, 4 at the outside. So loosing an arrow here or an arrow there isn’t a big deal. Especially when they periodically get to loot arrows from fallen foes, or re-up whenever they hit a town. Arrows are cheap, so buying 40 at a time is not a problem, 20 in the quiver for now, 20 in the backpack for later.

I also make them track actual spell components (instead of cash value), torches/candles/lamp oil, and rations & water too. It’s rare that they ever run out, but when they do it forces a bit of creativity, reinforces the verisimilitude of adventuring life, and accents the story in ways other stuff just doesn’t. Plus it actually makes use of the wilderness & survival aspects of the game too. That way rangers, druids and other survival type characters of any class get to actually use those skills and features to interact with the game and contribute to the party’s wellbeing. Not to say I run a “hardcore survival” game by any means because I don’t. I do however try to make use of all three aspects of the game though, hopefully in balance with each other.

I understand it’s not for everyone, but I find it adds to the overall experience of playing D&D. That might be because I started playing the game 30 years ago, and have had multiple characters die from exposure or dehydration in the past. So to me, that aspect has always been a part of the game.

How it works is you need either a quiver or a bolt case depending on if you are using a bow or a crossbow, which allows for you to have access to 20 shots.  Make sure that you carry extra as a portion of the 30 lbs of adventuring gear allowed in your backpack if that is not enough for the mission you are on.  

After the fight, players should be allowed to recover half the ammunition they shot, rounded down. 

You know how drawing a piece of ammo to fire is considered “part of the attack” so you can draw and load as many pieces of ammo as you can fire each turn? Interestingly enough, one thing most people don’t realize is that RAW, that only counts if you store your ammo in a container like a quiver, boltcase, or pouch. Technically speaking you can actually only pick up one piece of loose ammo each turn as a free item interaction. 😂😂

My issue with tracking ammo is that if I'm running resource management, then the party also needs to keep track of spell components and rations and water and weather-appropriate shelter and clothing and now half the session is everyone head-down silently entering numbers into a spreadsheet. I acknowledge that this brings a certain depth to the game, but it just eats too much time from what I consider the best parts of the game. My group is all busy adults with limited time, so the time we do have to game we want to optimize for fun.

I will still roleplay it - as a ranger I might describe retrieving arrows after a battle or crafting new ones during a long rest - but I'm not gonna track it.

Quote from scatterbraind >>

My issue with tracking ammo is that if I'm running resource management, then the party also needs to keep track of spell components and rations and water and weather-appropriate shelter and clothing and now half the session is everyone head-down silently entering numbers into a spreadsheet. I acknowledge that this brings a certain depth to the game, but it just eats too much time from what I consider the best parts of the game. My group is all busy adults with limited time, so the time we do have to game we want to optimize for fun.

I will still roleplay it - as a ranger I might describe retrieving arrows after a battle or crafting new ones during a long rest - but I'm not gonna track it.

 
No one thinks twice about it when we track and manage HP, spell slots, experience, and a host of other resources so it has always baffled me as to why we do when it comes to adventuring gear and components. 

Quote from scatterbraind >>

 and now half the session is everyone head-down silently entering numbers into a spreadsheet.

Umm, no offense, but how long does it take your players to subtract a single-digit number from a double-digit number... ?

Quote from scatterbraind >>

My issue with tracking ammo is that if I'm running resource management, then the party also needs to keep track of spell components and rations and water and weather-appropriate shelter and clothing and now half the session is everyone head-down silently entering numbers into a spreadsheet. I acknowledge that this brings a certain depth to the game, but it just eats too much time from what I consider the best parts of the game. My group is all busy adults with limited time, so the time we do have to game we want to optimize for fun.

I will still roleplay it - as a ranger I might describe retrieving arrows after a battle or crafting new ones during a long rest - but I'm not gonna track it.

 
Really? Is it that they can’t find the stuff in their inventories? Or that they can’t read? Or is it that they don’t know how to add and subtract by 1? Or are you blowing through supplies every session like Gallagher through produce? Or something else? I don’t understand. I mean….

That’s👆tracking 4 arrows in, what, 8 seconds…. My guy can only shoot two arrows every 6 seconds. I don’t see the problem.🤷‍♂️

If you are only using normal ammo and aren't going for a survival,  stealth or free form exploration game then I wouldn't bother tracking ammo. The reasons you would track ammo are :

• To limit combat generally in survival or stealth. This requires ranged ammo and weapons generally to be rare and you'd probably also want to limit things like cantrips by giving them ammo too. 
• To force players to use save  ammo for the right situation. This requires multiple ammo types and difficult fights that require exploiting weaknesses. I don't really think 5e is built for this personally but with some effort you can pull it off.
• Limiting exploration with attrition. This involves using resources like ammo and food as a timer that forces players to turn back. This would be for something like a wilderness exploration campaign with the idea being to force them to return to base camp. 

If you don't want  players to avoid fights or turn back because they're out of ammo don't track ammo. If you do then track ammo. Overall I don't think 5e is particular designed to take advantage of limited ammo so I dont think you lose much ignoring it.

I stopped viewing ammo as being something worth tracking when cantrips became infinite-use.  When the party wizard can just spam Firebolt at will, I don't see the need to keep track of how many nonmagical arrows the fighter has.  Of course, if a player really wants to, I'm not going to stop them but it isn't something I insist on.

Quote from 6thLyranGuard >>

I stopped viewing ammo as being something worth tracking when cantrips became infinite-use.  When the party wizard can just spam Firebolt at will, I don't see the need to keep track of how many nonmagical arrows the fighter has.  Of course, if a player really wants to, I'm not going to stop them but it isn't something I insist on.

 
The balance is I make the casters track components, so it all comes out fair in the end. I mean, sure, they can spam fire bolts, but if they want to keep summoning and resummoning their familiar they better have enough charcoal, incense and herbs to keep doing it, because if they run out, that it. Fin. No más.

An Arcane/Divine Focus removes the need for most components.  I mean, sure, track whether or not the party has the diamonds for Raise Dead or other expensive components, but for spells like Sleep or Fireball, it's not really a resource that needs to be tracked because 5E doesn't consume material components unless the spell description says so.

Quote from 6thLyranGuard >>

An Arcane/Divine Focus removes the need for most components.  I mean, sure, track whether or not the party has the diamonds for Raise Dead or other expensive components, but for spells like Sleep or Fireball, it's not really a resource that needs to be tracked because 5E doesn't consume material components unless the spell description says so.

 
True, but when one adds up all the stuff that does need to be tracked (powdered silver for this, diamond dust for that, a gem encrusted bowl for this other thing… it adds up. Plus there’s all the weirdly specific stuff that doesn’t get consumed but they still must procure and Cary available if they want to cast those spells, like a golden hourglass with diamond dust instead of sand, or tiny little doll-sized replicas of stuff, or some kind of special tears sealed in a vial made from a ruby worth I forget how many gp (I think it was 500). Gotta get (or make) all those before you can cast your spells. In the end, spellcasters end up with more crap to track than a martial character tracking ammo.

That comes down to spell selection.