Apologies if I'm missing something obvious but while browsing an app, looking at the monsters for my upcoming LMoP campaign I got myself confused.
Where a monster's attack states (eg Twig Blight) "Claws, +3 attack" but its strength modifier is - 2 do they combine to total -1 to my d20 melee attack roll? Or, is the strength modifier already factored into the stats for Claws, meaning I'd roll d20 +3?
For some creatures, you can manually work out where the bonuses are coming from
In the example of the twig blight, its attacks are Dex based, so it is Dex + proficiency to hit and 1d4 + Dex for damage. It has a proficiency in Stealth, so we can see that the proficiency bonus is 2.
Therefore it is +3 to attack and 1d4+1 for damage.
For some creatures, you can manually work out where the bonuses are coming from
In the example of the twig blight, its attacks are Dex based, so it is Dex + proficiency to hit and 1d4 + Dex for damage. It has a proficiency in Stealth, so we can see that the proficiency bonus is 2.
Therefore it is +3 to attack and 1d4+1 for damage.
Err, now I am confused. How do we know that they are dex based for this melee attack? Is it a finesse weapon?
The short answer is not to worry about it. Sometimes monsters have attacks (or skills) that are not balanced against their stats. They just skip to the good stuff and put the modifier right in the attack itself like you were asking about initially.
For some creatures, you can manually work out where the bonuses are coming from
In the example of the twig blight, its attacks are Dex based, so it is Dex + proficiency to hit and 1d4 + Dex for damage. It has a proficiency in Stealth, so we can see that the proficiency bonus is 2.
Therefore it is +3 to attack and 1d4+1 for damage.
Err, now I am confused. How do we know that they are dex based for this melee attack? Is it a finesse weapon?
When you look at a creature's stat block you can, usually, figure out the primary stat STR/DEX based on which of the two has a larger modifier in the Attributes section. It is important to understand that, unlike player characters, creatures can use either attribute for melee attacks without needing the "Finesse" tag anywhere on their stat block and will almost always use the higher number for To Hit Bonus and Damage Modifiers.
In this case when you look at the STR score it has a modifier of -2 and a DEX modifier of +1. When you look at the to hit bonus you'll see a +3, and the damage has a modifier of +1. From this we can figure out that the primary stat used for the creature is based off of DEX, further more we can figure out that it has a Proficiency of 2 (to hit bonus minus dexterity modifier).
Pretty much. If you can't find an appropriate modifier for something like a skill or a save, then you'll look to the appropriate ability modifier. Anything that changes is listed in the block in addition to their primary attacks.
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Apologies if I'm missing something obvious but while browsing an app, looking at the monsters for my upcoming LMoP campaign I got myself confused.
Where a monster's attack states (eg Twig Blight) "Claws, +3 attack" but its strength modifier is - 2 do they combine to total -1 to my d20 melee attack roll? Or, is the strength modifier already factored into the stats for Claws, meaning I'd roll d20 +3?
Cheers.
The attacks listed in the actions section are fully calculated for you, so you don't need to modify them. :)
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For some creatures, you can manually work out where the bonuses are coming from
In the example of the twig blight, its attacks are Dex based, so it is Dex + proficiency to hit and 1d4 + Dex for damage. It has a proficiency in Stealth, so we can see that the proficiency bonus is 2.
Therefore it is +3 to attack and 1d4+1 for damage.
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Ah, that's great. Cheers :)
Err, now I am confused. How do we know that they are dex based for this melee attack? Is it a finesse weapon?
The short answer is not to worry about it. Sometimes monsters have attacks (or skills) that are not balanced against their stats. They just skip to the good stuff and put the modifier right in the attack itself like you were asking about initially.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
When you look at a creature's stat block you can, usually, figure out the primary stat STR/DEX based on which of the two has a larger modifier in the Attributes section. It is important to understand that, unlike player characters, creatures can use either attribute for melee attacks without needing the "Finesse" tag anywhere on their stat block and will almost always use the higher number for To Hit Bonus and Damage Modifiers.
In this case when you look at the STR score it has a modifier of -2 and a DEX modifier of +1. When you look at the to hit bonus you'll see a +3, and the damage has a modifier of +1. From this we can figure out that the primary stat used for the creature is based off of DEX, further more we can figure out that it has a Proficiency of 2 (to hit bonus minus dexterity modifier).
Thanks for the help chaps. So, the only modifier to worry about is the one detailed in its attacks.
Pretty much. If you can't find an appropriate modifier for something like a skill or a save, then you'll look to the appropriate ability modifier. Anything that changes is listed in the block in addition to their primary attacks.