Adventuring
This chapter covers the basics of the adventuring life, from the mechanics of movement to the rules of resting and activities your character might pursue between adventures.
Heroic though they might be, adventurers can’t spend every hour of the day in the thick of exploration, Social Interaction, and Combat. They need rest — time to sleep and eat, tend their wounds, refresh their minds and spirits for Spellcasting, and brace themselves for further adventure.
There are two kinds of rests, short and long.
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Resting, short
A short rest can be anything from taking a couple of minutes after a tough fight to bind your wounds, to a longer break, taking time to eat and rest.
After combat (or other event causing loss of hp) you can spend a few minutes catching your breath. This allows you to spend 1 Hit Die and use a Healer’s kit.
You can also take a longer Short rest if you have access to a safe place, like your camp. Resting like this allows you to eat and spend any number of Hit Die. A longer short rest also gives you some time to investigate a magic item, and hopefully discover how it works.
Healer’s kit
(5 gp, 3 lbs)
You can also use a Healer’s kit to bind wounds and apply simple first aid during a short rest. Make a DC 10 Wisdom (Medicine) check to treat a creature that was damaged within the last 10 minutes. On a success, the target can expend 1 Hit Hie to heal, plus 1 additional die for each 10 points you exceed the DC.
You can also, as an action, spend one use to stabilize a creature that has 0 hit points, without needing to make a Wisdom (Medicine) check.
A Healer’s kit starts with a 1d10 usage die.
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Resting, long
A Long rest is a period of extended downtime, at least 8 hours long, in a safe place like a camp or an inn. Before starting your rest, you gain the benefits of a Short rest.
A Long rest is usually spent sleeping, but you can perform light activity: reading, talking, eating, or standing watch. If the rest is interrupted by a period of strenuous activity, like marching, fighting or similar adventuring activity, you must begin the rest again to gain any benefit from it.
You can’t benefit from more than one Long rest in a 24-hour period.
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Benefits of a Long rest
You must have at least 1 hit point at the start of a Long rest rest to gain its benefits. Otherwise you regain 1 hp and become conscious at the end of the rest.
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Resting in Armor
Sleeping in armor can make it difficult to recover fully during a long rest.
When you finish a long rest during which you slept in armor, after you selected the benefits, make an Constitution (Physique - Endurance - Armor familiarity) check against DC 5 (light armor), DC 10 (medium) or DC 15 (heavy).
If you succeed you gain the benefits as usual. On a failed check you gain no benefits, unless you selected to regain hit points or HD, in which case you regain half the usual amount.
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When you finish a Long rest, you gain the following benefits
If you are a full spellcaster, regain a number of spent spell slots equal to your proficiency bonus. You regain your lowest spell slots first. Other spellcasters, regain a number of spent spell slots equal to half their proficiency bonus (rounded up). You regain your lowest spell slots first. If you have spent the entire rest close to a magical item, you attune to it. Classes may have other benefits. -
In addition, choose one of the following benefits
If not at max hit points, regain up to your max hp/2 (round up). If not at max Hit Dice, regain up to your max HD/2 (round up). Remove 1 exhaustion level. Attempt to remove a negative condition (ex. reduced max hp or a disease). Regain 1 reduced ability score. If less than 3 inspiration, regain 1 inspiration. Regain your lowest spell slot. Some classes can add choices.
Rest Activities
During a long rest, you can perform one primary activity before you sleep. Below are listed some example activities.
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Cook Food
If you know how to cook and have the right supplies, you can prepare a meal for the group. This requires use of a campfire and cooking tools.
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Craft an Item
You can spend time crafting simple items — bandages, salves, arrows — if you have the right materials and tools.
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Maintain Gear
“Take care of your equipment and it’ll take care of you.”
You can spend time maintaining your weapons and armor, if you have the right knowledge, materials and tools. -
Gear maintenance kit
(3 gp, 1 lbs)
This kit contains a whetstone, metal polish, conditioning oil for leather, two soft cloths, extra leather straps, a sewing needle, and a few buttons.
The skills required to make proper use of this kit depends on the type of eqipment being maintained (see below).
A Gear maintenance kit starts with a 1d8 usage die.
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Daily Upkeep. Spend a use of your gear maintenance kit taking care of your armor and weapons. For each weapon where you have rank 2, and for shields with which you are proficient, the following applies. The first time during the next day when a weapon or shield you are holding would break, it doesn’t.
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Sharpen Weapon. If you have rank 2 with a weapon, you can spend some time maintaining it - this includes sharpening edged weapons, adjusting and maintaining balance of hammers and polearms, etc, taking care of the wear and tear put on it by adventuring and putting in peak condition.
This peak condition is represented by giving the wielder of that weapon the ability to reroll a damage die. You must use the new result after rerolling the die.
Spend a use of your gear maintenance kit and roll an Intelligence check against DC 10.
– Success: You successfully take care of the weapon.
– Failure: The weapon does not receive a bonus.If you have a suitable craft skill you can roll an Intelligence (Craft) check instead, and on a success grant an additional number of rerolls equal to your proficiency bonus.
Skill Weapons Bowyer Bows Leatherworking Sling Metalwork - Metalsmith Metal weapons Tinkering Crossbows Leatherworking Wooden weapons -
Maintain Armor. Proficiency with Leatherworking or Metalwork - Metalsmith allow you to buff and repair appropriate armor, bringing it to peak condition. This peak condition is represented by giving the wearer temporary hit points equal to your proficiency bonus. These hit points last until expended.
Spend a use of your gear maintenance kit and roll an Intelligence (Tool) check against DC 10.
– Success: You successfully take care of the armor.
– Failure: The armor does not receive a bonus. -
Repair an Item
If you’re proficient with the appropriate tools, you may perform basic repairs on damaged equipment—sharpening a blunt sword, sewing up a torn robe, hammering out some dented armor. You can try to repair an item with a appropriate Intelligence (Craft) check against DC 10.
– Success: You successfully repair the item.
– Failure: You were unable to make the repairs.