First Published 30 April 2016 | Last Updated 30 May 2022

Warriors in combat

Combat is a critical part of Dungeons & Dragons. The combat round has 5 steps -

1. Determine surprise - The DM determines whether anyone involved in the combat encounter is surprised. (More information on surprise can be found below).
2. Establish positions - The DM decides where all the characters and other creatures are located. Given the adventurers' marching order or their stated positions in the room or other location, the DM figures out where the adversaries are - how far away and in what direction.
3. Roll initiative - Everyone involved in the combat encounter rolls initiative, determining the order of combatants' turns. (More information on initiative can be found below).
4. Take turns - Each participant in the battle takes a turn in initiative order.
5. Begin the next round - When everyone involved in the combat has had a turn, the round ends. Repeat step 4 until the fighting ends. (More information on rounds & turns can be found below).

Surprise

If neither side tries to be stealthy, they automatically notice each other. If one side sneaks up on another it may gain surprise over the other.

• The DM compares the Dexterity (Stealth) checks of anyone hiding with the Passive Wisdom (Perception) score of each creature on the opposing side.
• Any character or creature that doesn't notice a threat is surprised at the start of the encounter.
• One member of a group can be surprised even if the other members aren't.
• If you're surprised, you can't move or take an action on your first turn of the combat, and you can't take a reaction until that turn ends.

Initiative

Initiative determines the order of turns during combat.

• When combat starts, every participant makes a Dexterity check to determine their place in the initiative order.
• The DM makes one roll for an entire group of identical creatures, so each member of the group acts at the same time.
• The DM ranks the combatants in order from the one with the highest Dexterity check total to the one with the lowest. This is the order (called the initiative order) in which they act during each round.
• The initiative order remains the same from round to round.
• If a tie occurs, the DM decides the order among tied DM-controlled creatures, and the players decide the order among their tied characters. The DM can decide the order if the tie is between a creature and a player character. Optionally, the DM can have the tied characters and creatures each roll a d20 to determine the order, highest roll going first.

Rounds & Turns

The game organises combat into a cycle of rounds and turns.

• A round represents about 6 seconds in the game world.
• During a round, each participant in a battle takes a turn.
• The order of turns is determined at the beginning of a combat encounter, when everyone rolls initiative.
• Once everyone has taken a turn, the fight continues to the next round if neither side has defeated the other.

More information on the Combat Round can be found on page 189 of the 5e Player's Handbook.