Race And Languages
All characters know how to speak Common. A dwarf, elf, gnome, half-elf, half-orc, or halfling also speaks a racial language, as appropriate. A character who has an Intelligence bonus at 1st level gains extra skill points to spend in additional languages (see Skills).
Small Characters: A Small character gets a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +2 size bonus on Stealth checks. A Small character’s carrying capacity is three-quarters of that of a Medium character.
A Small character generally moves about two-thirds as fast as a Medium character (base land speed 20 feet instead of 30).
A Small character must use smaller weapons than a Medium character.
Medium Characters: Medium characters have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size. Base land speed for a Medium character is 30 feet unless otherwise noted.
Races
Vital Statistics
Age
You can choose or randomly generate your character’s age. If you choose it, it must be at least the minimum age for the character’s race and class (see Table 1). Your character’s minimum starting age is the adulthood age of his or her race plus the number of dice indicated in the entry corresponding to the character’s race and class on Table 1: Random Starting Ages.
Alternatively, refer to the table below and roll dice to determine how old your character is.
Table 1: Random Starting Ages
Race | Adulthood | Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer |
Bard, Fighter Paladin, Ranger |
Cleric, Druid Monk, Wizard |
---|---|---|---|---|
Human | 15 years | +1d4 | +1d6 | +2d6 |
Dwarf | 40 years | +3d6 | +5d6 | +7d6 |
Elf | 110 years | +4d6 | +6d6 | +10d6 |
Gnome | 40 years | +4d6 | +6d6 | +9d6 |
Half-elf | 20 years | +1d6 | +2d6 | +3d6 |
Half-orc | 14 years | +1d4 | +1d6 | +2d6 |
Halfling | 20 years | +2d4 | +3d6 | +4d6 |
With age, a character’s physical ability scores decrease and his or her mental ability scores increase (see Table 1). The effects of each aging step are cumulative. However, none of a character’s ability scores can be reduced below 1 in this way.
When a character reaches venerable age, the DM secretly rolls his or her maximum age, which is the number from the Venerable column on Table 1, plus the result of the roll indicated on the Maximum Age column, and records the result, which the player does not know. A character who reaches his or her maximum age dies of old age some time during the following year.
The maximum ages are for player characters. Most people in the world at large die from pestilence, accidents, infections, or violence before getting to venerable age.
Table 2: Aging Effects
Race | Middle Age1 | Old2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age |
---|---|---|---|---|
Human | 35 years | 53 years | 70 years | +2d20 years |
Dwarf | 125 years | 188 years | 250 years | +2d% years |
Elf | 175 years | 263 years | 350 years | +4d% years |
Gnome | 100 years | 150 years | 200 years | +3d% years |
Half-elf | 62 years | 93 years | 125 years | +3d20 years |
Half-orc | 30 years | 45 years | 60 years | +2d10 years |
Halfling | 50 years | 75 years | 100 years | +5d20 years |
1 -1 to Str and Con; +1 to Int and Wis.
2 -2 to Str and Dex; +1 to Wis.
3 -1 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int and Wis.
Height and Weight
The dice roll given in the Height Modifier column determines the character’s extra height beyond the base height. That same number multiplied by the dice roll or quantity given in the Weight Modifier column determines the character’s extra weight beyond the base weight.
Table 3: Random Height and Weight
Race | Base Ht. | Ht. Mod | Base Wt. | Wt. Mod |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dwarf, male | 4' 0" | +2d4 | 140 lb. | ×(2d6) lb. |
Dwarf, female | 3' 10" | +2d4 | 130 lb. | ×(2d6) lb. |
Elf, male | 4' 5" | +2d6 | 85 lb. | ×(1d6) lb. |
Elf, female | 4' 3" | +2d6 | 80 lb. | ×(1d6) lb. |
Gnome, male | 3' 7" | +2d4 | 70 lb. | ×(1d3) lb. |
Gnome, female | 3' 5" | +2d4 | 60 lb. | ×(1d3) lb. |
Half-elf, male | 5' 0" | +2d8 | 100 lb. | × (2d4) lb. |
Half-elf, female | 4' 8" | +2d8 | 80 lb. | ×(2d4) lb. |
Half-orc, male | 4' 10" | +2d12 | 150 lb. | ×(2d6) lb. |
Half-orc, female | 4' 8" | +2d12 | 110 lb. | ×(2d6) lb. |
Halfling, male | 3' 9" | +2d4 | 60 lb. | ×(1d3) lb. |
Halfling, female | 3' 7" | +2d4 | 50 lb. | ×(1d3) lb. |
Human, male | 4' 10" | +2d10 | 120 lb. | ×(2d4) lb. |
Human, female | 4' 8" | +2d10 | 85 lb. | ×(2d4) lb. |