His argument is that technically, a Critical Hit is only defined by doubling the damage dice, but the automatic hit is only guaranteed by the nat 20.
The only sentence in these 3 sections that might contradict his point of view is (ironically) in the only one that's not titled "Critical Hit":
Rolling 20 or 1
"If you roll a 20 on the d20 (called a “natural 20”) for an attack roll, the attack hits regardless of any modifiers or the target’s AC. This is called a Critical Hit (see “Combat” later in this chapter)."
And even though this is quite explicit, it isn't really THAT explicit. Is the Critical Hit what is granted by the guaranteed hit, or is the guaranteed hit included in the definition of the Critical Hit?
My DM also pointed out that by the time you meet enemies with 20+ AC, your attack modifier with your Champion or your Hexblade should be so high that this would never become an issue, even fighting a Tarrasque.
But still... I'm having a hard time finding an ironclad text in the rules that says that a Champion rolling a 19 on the dice is a guaranteed hit even if you're fighting some homebrew God with 50 AC.
Level 3: Improved Critical, for example, allows Champions to land a critical on a roll of 19 or 20, following the same rule you quoted, and the attack hits regardless of any modifiers or the target’s AC.
Your attack rolls with weapons and Unarmed Strikes can score a Critical Hit on a roll of 19 or 20 on the d20.
Yes, and my DM's argument was that it only gives doubled damage, but does not guarantee a hit, because "scoring a Critical Hit" is doubling the damage dice, and the "automatic hit" part is only guaranteed by a nat 20 and is not included in the definition of a Critical Hit.
I initially disagreed with them, but now that I can see their point of view, it's hard to unsee it. The definition says that if you roll a nat 20, you automatically hit, and then you get a Critical Hit...
And if you read it this way, scoring a Critical Hit doesn't mean it's an automatic hit if it's not on a nat 20.
@20771646 I have a question about the champions improved crit hit range on 18-20 Are they automatic hits like a normal 20? @JeremyECrawford Yes, they are.
I remembered sharing some tweets in the thread Critical Hit Mechanics that might also be useful for you or your DM. Maybe the last tweet is the most interesting in this case.
(the conversations referred to the 2014 rules, but for this topic they're essentially the same as in 2024)
Some tweets from the Dev about the interaction between Adamantine Armor, ignoring AC, and rolling a 20 (or 19 or another number, if applicable):
@usmcbearsDoes the nat 20 still auto hit against adamantine armor? @JeremyECrawford Yes.
@MGreat321New Print read like this: N20=ignore modifiers and AC= Critical hit(also 2xdamage). Where as original read like N20=ignore modifiers and AC+Critical hit。 The new print seem to imply crit=ignore modifiers and AC and roll 2xdamage. Where as old crit=2xdamage. @JeremyECrawford As the person who wrote both versions of that rule, I can tell you that the rule means what it says: rolling a 20 is what ignores AC. The 20 is also called a critical hit, the effect of which is explained in the critical hit rule.
@TheyCallMeTomu Adamantine Armor negates critical hits. The crux of the question is, does a natural 20 automatically hit as a result of being a natural 20, or does it automatically hit as a result of being a critical hit. Previous editions were clearer on this point. @JeremyECrawford"If the d20 roll for an attack is a 20, the attack hits regardless of any modifiers or the target's AC" (PH, 194).
@MGreat321 I know N20 is a critical hit and how the critical hit works when you roll damage. But ignoring modifiers and target AC are not tie to the critical hit in the original PHB, now srd and dndbeyond seem to imply that they do. @JeremyECrawford In every version of the PH, rolling a 20 is what causes you to automatically hit.
@MtS_Designer So to conclude: A champion fighter roll a 19 against a creature with 20 AC wearing an adamantine armor. The fighter will still auto-hit that target even if this phenomenon of auto-hitting is called a critical hit (which the armor gives immunity). @JeremyECrawfordYes, that fact hasn't changed since the core books were published.
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I thought the answer to that question was an obvious "yes". Until one of my DMs pointed out that RAW... not really.
It's a bit confusing because the definitions for crits are scattered in 3 different places:
https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/phb-2024/rules-glossary#CriticalHit
https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/phb-2024/playing-the-game#Rolling20or1
https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/phb-2024/playing-the-game#CriticalHits
His argument is that technically, a Critical Hit is only defined by doubling the damage dice, but the automatic hit is only guaranteed by the nat 20.
The only sentence in these 3 sections that might contradict his point of view is (ironically) in the only one that's not titled "Critical Hit":
And even though this is quite explicit, it isn't really THAT explicit. Is the Critical Hit what is granted by the guaranteed hit, or is the guaranteed hit included in the definition of the Critical Hit?
My DM also pointed out that by the time you meet enemies with 20+ AC, your attack modifier with your Champion or your Hexblade should be so high that this would never become an issue, even fighting a Tarrasque.
But still... I'm having a hard time finding an ironclad text in the rules that says that a Champion rolling a 19 on the dice is a guaranteed hit even if you're fighting some homebrew God with 50 AC.
Level 3: Improved Critical, for example, allows Champions to land a critical on a roll of 19 or 20, following the same rule you quoted, and the attack hits regardless of any modifiers or the target’s AC.
Yes, and my DM's argument was that it only gives doubled damage, but does not guarantee a hit, because "scoring a Critical Hit" is doubling the damage dice, and the "automatic hit" part is only guaranteed by a nat 20 and is not included in the definition of a Critical Hit.
I initially disagreed with them, but now that I can see their point of view, it's hard to unsee it. The definition says that if you roll a nat 20, you automatically hit, and then you get a Critical Hit...
And if you read it this way, scoring a Critical Hit doesn't mean it's an automatic hit if it's not on a nat 20.
The feature is overriding the General Rule.
Also, this is from the Dev (link to sageadvice.eu):
Word of the designer. That ends the question once and for all. Thanks :)
I remembered sharing some tweets in the thread Critical Hit Mechanics that might also be useful for you or your DM. Maybe the last tweet is the most interesting in this case.
(the conversations referred to the 2014 rules, but for this topic they're essentially the same as in 2024)