5e Halfling Lucky Trait & Disadvantage

Vic99 · December 17, 2014, 09:40:10 PM

I have been digesting the rules for the 3 core books here and there for about 2 weeks. So far i like what I see.

If I read it correctly, a Halfling that rolls "1" rerolls it and must use the new number. So if the reroll is a "17", the 17 gets used.

What if a Halfling has disadvantage and rolls a "1" and a "15"? Could the Halfling reroll the "1", getting a "17" and then use the 17 because page 28 of PHB says, "you can reroll the die and must use the new roll". Thus, lucky sometimes helps during disadvantage?

What do you reckon?

danskmacabre · December 17, 2014, 09:52:56 PM

That sounds about right to me, meaning with disadvantage, if you roll a 1 and a 15, you could reroll the 1.

Omega · December 17, 2014, 11:31:42 PM

Quote from: Vic99;804978What if a Halfling has disadvantage and rolls a "1" and a "15"? Could the Halfling reroll the "1", getting a "17" and then use the 17 because page 28 of PHB says, "you can reroll the die and must use the new roll". Thus, lucky sometimes helps during disadvantage?

What do you reckon?

The rules just say you have to use the new roll. Not that it is THE new roll. So on the 15 and 15 disadvantage youd still end up using the 15. Luck doesnt allways favour you as well as youd want.

Exploderwizard · December 18, 2014, 08:30:45 AM

Quote from: Omega;804998The rules just say you have to use the new roll. Not that it is THE new roll. So on the 15 and 15 disadvantage youd still end up using the 15. Luck doesnt allways favour you as well as youd want.

Yep. Even funnier for the look of anguish from the Halfling player is if the rolls come up 1 and 3, they re-roll the 1 and get a 20! They have to keep the 20 but USE the 3 as their result due to disadvantage.

Oh the sweet tears of a wasted 20.

Blacky the Blackball · December 18, 2014, 09:17:40 AM

If this were in my game (as it happens, neither of my campaigns has a halfling in it) I'd suggest that the following were sensible:

The "lucky" roll replaces the entire original roll, but the re-roll has the same Advantage or Disadvantage that the original roll had.

So in the example where someone rolled a 15 and a 1, using the lucky ability would result in them re-rolling both dice and taking the lower of the two results just like they took the lower of the two original results.

They wouldn't have the choice to only re-roll the 1 and keep the 15. It's all or nothing.

Sacrosanct · December 18, 2014, 10:34:34 AM

Quote from: Exploderwizard;805042Yep. Even funnier for the look of anguish from the Halfling player is if the rolls come up 1 and 3, they re-roll the 1 and get a 20! They have to keep the 20 but USE the 3 as their result due to disadvantage.

Oh the sweet tears of a wasted 20.

Yeah, I've noticed the biggest disappointment in the game has come when someone rolled disadvantage and got a 20 as one of their rolls. Swearing has always ensued.

Omega · December 18, 2014, 10:48:17 AM

For me its criticals. Invariably it seems I will have the foe down to 1 HP. THEN score a critical. oooog.

cranebump · December 18, 2014, 05:28:39 PM

Isn't the halfling's "roll" the dice he's chosen? So on an advantage 15/1, the result is the 15, so no re-roll necessary?

crkrueger · December 18, 2014, 06:38:55 PM

You get to reroll the 1, but you take the lowest, no matter which one it is, the reroll or the original.

1 and 15, reroll 1 get a 7, so 7 and 15, take the 7.

1 and 3, reroll 1 get a 20, so 20 and 3, take the 3.

So I guess if the other (non-1) dice is a miss, there's no sense in rerolling the 1, because it can't be higher then the other die due to disadvantage.