# Video Games vs D&D

# Introduction

If you’re someone who are new to D&D and have only ever played video games, or are just struggling in general, then you have come to the right place!

This document is designed to explain the differences between more popular games and D&D, so that you can manage your expectations when you play. Please note that this won’t teach you the mechanics around how to play D&D; for that, you should check out here.

Let’s get started!

# Playstyle Differences

# Games Are Not On Demand

In a video game, you can usually play a game whenever you want to (for single player) or queue for a match and get matched pretty quickly (for multiplayer). However, D&D games are hosted by a human (the DM) who has to plan their life around their hobby, thus it is subject to availability. In addition, each game is unique, and requires a few hours of preparation. Depending on the season, you could play one game every couple of weeks, or if you're lucky, a couple times every week.

# Games Take a Long Time

Games that are designed to be short such as arenas and pits typically take around 2 hours. However, for bounties, these can usually take upwards of 6 hours, with 8 or even 10 hour games being normal. It is considered bad manners to abandon a game midway, and this will warrant Demerit Points on the server. As such, please ensure you can commit for the entire duration before signing up.

# Game Rules are Complex (and may not even have definite rulings)

As a TTRPG, D&D publishes its manuals in book-form. These rules attempt to accommodate the potentially limitless possibilities within D&D. In addition, over the years, dozens of books have been released to expand on what you can do with the game.

As such, a lot of the game requires reading. We recommend you start with our New to D&D guide. Please ask questions in #beginner-help , as this is the easiest way to clarify what you are unsure about and prevent rule breaking.

# Games Emphasize Teamwork

In single player games, you have more flexibility to play how you want, and you can go off and make reckless choices like killing a villager just to see the consequences.

In D&D, being a lone wolf is a generally ineffective strategy and will likely lead to disappointment. Much of Dnd World relies on interplayer roleplay outside games. In addition, taking the most chaotic path for no reason other than for seeing the world burn is generally frowned upon and is termed “Chaotic Stupid”. This is because this derails the session that the DM has painstakingly crafted, and affects the experience of your teammates who may want to play seriously.

This is not to say you cannot have shenanigans. You just have to use your judgment to determine when is the time for it. Befriending the villager or the "misunderstood" villain? Go ahead! Taking an impromptu shopping trip with said villager, or trying to befriend the mindless mummy screaming death in your face? Probably a bad call that stalls the experience for everyone else.

As a rule of thumb, if the game is approaching the 8th hour and someone is already commenting they need to sleep soon, now is a good time to wrap things up and not a good time to try antics.

# Time is Wonky

In most video games, progression is in real time. This is also true for our roleplay channels. However, in combat, time is usually handwaved or dictated by the DM. This is because D&D is designed such that a round (where everyone gets a turn) lasts 6 seconds. 10 rounds is a full minute.

Yet, in real life, each turn usually takes a couple of minutes, and a round can last an hour or more. D&D battles also usually don’t hit the 10 round mark. As such, in order to retain the epicness of battle, suspension of belief is required.

# There is No Save Point/Free Respawn

In D&D, revivals are expensive and as such usually unavailable to low levels. The cheapest revival method costs 300gp (Revivify) and requires a class available to cast it within one minute of death.

Once you die in a game, unless you are immediately revived, you are out of the game. Your friends or guild mates will have to arrange the revival for you, if they want to and can afford it. A Gentle Repose spell can increase the resurrection window to 10 days.

As such, sacrificial plays are not encouraged. Retreats are usually available and can be the best option if you deem the battle unwinnable. Just be sure to communicate with your party before retreating, as abandoning your teammates is bad form.

# You Don’t Have to Kill All Enemies

Unlike games, where video game characters are programmed to do a certain set of actions, there are infinite possibilities in D&D. Creatures have differing levels of intelligence, and some monsters such as undead are inclined to fight to the death, while others like humanoids are more willing to negotiate, retreat, or surrender. Intimidation can be used to goad enemies or make them stand down, while crowd control spells also allow you to incapacitate creatures without killing them.

# Character Roles

Within multiplayer games are the subset of character roles. Not every role can be fully recreated within D&D's design, but understanding the basic concept can help you build your character.

It should be noted that with how many subclasses and feats have been released since D&D 5e’s original publication, every class can be built to fulfill tankiness, damage, or support roles. Some are just designed to do it better than others; others can only accomplish it with specific builds. This guide is just to give you a broad simplified overview.

Contents:

• Tank
• DPS
• Summoner
• Healer
• Support

# Tank

A tank is someone with a lot of health, designed to take the brunt of enemy damage. This role relies on good positioning and builds that aggro enemies as well as punishes them for attacking teammates. This is best displayed in the Barbarian class, as well as Fighter class to a slightly less extent.

To maximize tankiness, sink your highest stats into Constitution, in order to increase your Hit Points (HP). This will increase the amount of damage you can take. At higher levels, you can also take feats that increase your health, such as Tough.

Also be sure to increase your Armor Class (AC) as much as possible. This determines the minimum roll needed to hit you, and the higher the better. AC depends on two things: your Dexterity score and the armor you are wearing (determined by your class and affordability).

Dexterity determines how agile you are and in turn how hard you are to hit. As with Constitution, the higher the stat you allocate for this, the better. Your Dexterity modifier (not to be confused with score) is added to your base armor to give your final AC. For example, if you are wearing Leather armor, and you have a Dexterity score of 14, your AC is

11 [Base Armor for Leather] +2 [Dexterity modifier] =13

Classes designed to be tanky such as Barbarian and Fighter will give you access to medium or heavy armor, which allows you to have higher AC. Barbarian also has Unarmored Defense, which allows you to forgo armor and instead only use your Dexterity modifier. As you level and save more money, you will also be able to afford more expensive armor, which will increase your AC.

# DPS

A DPS is someone who does a lot of damage but sacrifices other aspects such as health and utility. This role relies on good movement as well as builds that have both reliable damage and features/spells that mitigates hits. Although many classes in D&D fit this category, it is most prominent within the Fighter, Rogue, Monk, Paladin, Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard.

To maximize your damage, be sure to sink your highest stats into the stat you use to attack. For Rogues and Monks, this is Dexterity, and for spellcasters, this is referred to as your casting stat and defers by class.

It should be noted not all spells, feats, or subclasses are created equal. Some are more situational than others. If being effective in combat is very important to you, you are advised to research guides and discuss with other players plans for your build.

# Subtype: Glass Cannons

Wizard deserves a special mention for the fact that they are the prime example of a Glass Cannon. Their d6 hit die paired with no bonus to constitution saves (unlike the Sorcerer) makes them susceptible to both weapons and spells. However, at higher levels, they gain more and more abilities to counter their enemies. They can increase their toolbox by researching new spells, and eventually gain powerful spells like Force Cage that completely shut down their enemies.

# Subtype: Gish Builds

Gish builds allow you to both attack with weapons and cast spells. Some base classes already allow you to do this, known as half-casters (e.g. Ranger, Paladin, Spellsword (Homebrew), and the Wizard Bladesinger subclass). However, Gish builds' potency are often optimized through multiclassing, e.g. Sorcadins (Paladin/Sorcerer).

Gishes trade greater utility in exchange for being within the heat of combat. As such, it is important that you invest in Constitution and Dexterity so that you do not suffer from being in melee range.

# Subtype: Grappler Builds

If you like getting up and close, D&D has a ridiculous number of ways you can build grapplers: melee warriors who specialize in pinning enemies and pummeling them.

Some common builds include the Grappler feat paired with the Fighter's Runeknight subclass or the Barbarian's Path of the Giant subclass. However, the trade-off is that you can't escape danger (such as a stray Fireball) easily, and out of game this leaves you with little utility.

# Summoner

A Summoner is someone who summons multiple creatures in order to divide the attention of enemies, giving the party more room to attack the enemies. Creatures can usually attack enemies themselves, and are controlled by the player. This role relies on maintaining concentration of the spell while also making use of positioning.

That said, if you really want to play a summoner, the Druid or Wizard's Conjuration subclass is the best example of this, as it gives you access to most spells that start with “Conjure” or “Summon”. To a lesser extent, Ranger also gives you access to “Conjure Animals”, the lowest level and most commonly used summoning spell. The Ranger subclass Beast Master also gives you access to an animal companion at 3rd level.

This build really only comes online at higher levels once you have unlocked spells that allow you to summon creatures. Even then, for practicality reasons, most summoners choose to limit their number of active summons, as it usually clogs up the flow of combat for little benefit.

For summoners, as your ability to maintain concentration is extremely important, you may consider taking feats such as War Caster or Resilient: Constitution. It is important to position yourself as far back as possible to minimize the chances of taking damage and breaking concentration.

# Healer

A Healer is someone whose main ability is keeping their team alive. As with most games, Healers tend to be few in number and are thus higher in demand.

D&D does not have any classes that are designed to only heal. Healers can usually do other things which overlaps with the DPS or Support category. That said, classes that are best at healing are the Cleric (specifically Life Cleric), Bard, and Druid.

Some classes or subclasses have features that provide small amounts of healing. These are usually called "Backup Healers" and are found within the Paladin and Ranger classes as well as the Celestial Warlock, Divine Soul Sorcerer, Alchemist Artificer and Way of Mercy Monk subclasses.

However, as the amount of healing is small and usually come as a sacrifice for other abilities, it is recommended that each party has a designated healer and the backup is reserved for when the main healer is down, preoccupied, or out of resources.

It is possible to play those classes and not be a healer. Case in point, if you play Bard but do not pick any healing spells like Healing Word or Cure Wounds, you would simply be a DPS or Support class. However, it is recommended that you pick at least one healing spell if you play those classes, as people tend to account for some mode of backup healing if you are part of the party.

If you want to do some healing but your class does not have healing abilities, consider purchasing a Healer’s Kit and taking the Healer feat.

# Support

A Support is someone who usually aids the team in buffs, debuffs, or skill checks, at the cost of being less effective at dealing damage. During combat, they help to control the battlefield and speed up combat by helping teammates do their jobs better. Supports have some overlap with Healers, and many characters serve both roles.

There are a few main ways Supports help within combat:

• Area Denial/Battlefield Control: This involves limiting the area on the map your enemies can move through without risking damage, greatly kneecapping their mobility. Druids are excellent with this, with access to spells like Moonbeam, Spike Growth and Plant Growth. Other spells like Fog Cloud, Black Tentacles and Wall of Force are also deceptively powerful.

• Crowd Control: This involves incapacitating or severely debuffing enemies. In the beginning, this can be achieved through spells such as Sleep or Hold Person. As you level up, you will have access to more powerful crowd control (CC) spells, such as Hypnotic Pattern, Slow, and Banishment. Wizards get access to wicked powerful CC spells at high levels.

Outside of combat, they assist in skill checks by usually having high modifiers in many skills, thus increasing chances of success. They might also be equipped with spells or items that give some mode of utility, such as invisibility or the ability to breath underwater.

This is most evident in the Bard, Rogue, and Artificer classes. The former two are also considered Skill Monkeys, due to their access to Expertise for some skills of their choice, making their chances of success almost guaranteed at high level. This can be further expanded by taking feats such as Skilled, Skill Expert, Inspiring Leader, or Ritual Caster.

# Conclusion

And that's about it! To be sure, there are definitely niche subtypes that were skipped over, but we hope we covered all the main ones. Have fun creating your character, and if you have any suggestions for what else we should cover, do pop them in #server-suggestions !