Summary

  • Arcana is crucial for determining magical origins and benefits the entire party.
  • Investigation is paramount for looting, finding traps, and discovering clues.
  • Perception is vital for examining your surroundings and has an essential passive component.

168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons' fifth edition has eighteen different skills within the core six: Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma, though 🏅no s♐kills fall under Constitution. These individual skills can vary drastically when it comes to whether or not they're actually useful. Of course, this all depends on the type of campaign you're playing or the type of character you are.

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However, gene🅰rally speaking, some skills are just going to be more useful than others. That's why we've created this list. Here is every single skill in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons,ꦉ ranked by whether or not they're actually helpful or not.

18 Religion

A cleric stands outside a magnificent cathedral amidst a crowd in the Greyhawk setting of Dungeons & Dragons.
Holy Days by Martin Mottet

Core Skill

Intelligence

Useful For

Determining Alignment, Symbology

Unless you're a cleric or a paladin, or somehow also religiously aligned, Religion as a skill just isn't going to prove that useful to you. At the very most, this skill really can only be used to help ಌdetermine the nature of a god, what followers they might attract, and the alignment of those who worship said deity.

If you are a cleric or a paladin, you might find additiona𒈔l uses. But, ultimately, this skill is only going to prove he🌳lpful to a select few.

17 History

A wizard studying a magic book in DND.
Magic Spellbook via Wizards of the Coast

Core Skill

Intelligence

Useful For

Lore

A💫 lot of the chไecks that fall under the umbrella of Intelligence aren't always that helpful. History is another such check. Typically, your Dungeon Master will call for a History check when you need to uncover an important piece of lore, or if you're testing your knowledge on a certain subject.

However, a lot of the time, DMs might dole out this information regardl༒ess of a check if it's needed to progress the story. Placing progression behind a History check isn't always a great DM tool, so these checks tend to occur seldom.

16 𝕴 ꦏ Animal Handling

Two adventurers parley with an owlbear in DND.
Owlbear Parley via Wizards of the Coast

Core Skill

Wisdom

Useful For

Parlaying With Animals

There are plenty of situations in which an Animal Handling check could come up. If you're trying to ride a horse and not get bucked, or if you're trying to negotiate♈ with a beast you've come across in the woods, you might need to make an Animal Handling check.

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However, a lot of the t𒆙ime, the creatures you might come across ꩵthat would require such a check are typically enemies. After all, you're not really going to negotiate with a pack of wolves. This check is usually rendered null by combat.

15 Nature

A druid surrounded by animals in DND.
Druid by Jessica Fong

Core Skill

Wisdom

Useful For

Understanding Natural Phenomena

Nature is a skill tha♏t often gets confused with the Survival skill. Technically speaking, your Dungeon Master really should be calling for Nature checks only if you're trying to understand the nature of some kind of nature-based effect.

If you'🦩re trying to figure out what kind of monster something is, or what kind of plant you're looking at, that would require a Nature check. However, checks for tracking animals and such usually require a Survival check, which is far more important. Ultimately, Nature checks can feel a bit niche, and there are a lot of abilities that can replace this skill, generally speaking.

14 𒅌 Performance ♔

The bardic realm of Kartakass in Dungeons & Dragons.
The Crystal Club by Mark Behm

Core Skill

Charisma

Useful For

Bardic Performance

There are a lot of Charisma-based skills that are highly important in Dungeons & Dragons, but Performance isn't really one of them. Unless you're🅠 trying to play an instrument or perform some sort of feat, you're not going to need this check. Lying or disguising yourself will always require a Deception check over a Performance one, making this skill far less important.

Of course, if 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:you're playing a Bard, this skill c🌟ould come in handy, particularly if you're trying to scrounge up a few extra co💛ins. But again, this is a pretty specific circumstance.

13 Athletics

Two adventurers escape a falling bridge in DND.
Collapsing Bridge via Wizards of the Coast

Core Skill

Strength

Useful For

Climbing, Lifting

Athletics is the only Strength-based skill in the core bunch. Obviously, marital characters like barbarians and fighters might want to rely on their Strength to solve problems. And, this skill can be useful for overc💝oming physical obstacles.

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But, a lot of Dungeon Masters tend to rule that, if you can justify it, players caꦉn use their Acrobatics to overcome similar obstacles. So, a lot of players with higher Acrobatics tend to defer to that skill, making this one less utilitarian.

12 🉐 Acrobatics

A monk using ki-powered strikes against enemies in Dungeons & Dragons.
Ki-Fueled Strikes For Tasha's Cauldron to Everything By Sam Keiser

Core Skill

Dexterity

Useful For

Deft Movement

And speaking of, Acrobatics is actually next on our list. As mentioned, this skill can prove helpful for less strong characters to overcome 𒈔physical obstacles. Even squishier characters like wizards and sorcerers tend to place decently high stats in Dexterity, meaning Acrobatics will come in handy sometimes.

Acrobatics can also prove to be a useful way to get your character out of harm's way in a pinch. Unless you're being forced to make a saving throw, a lot of players might rely on their Acrobatics to reposition thems🌠elves safely without risking a Strength check.

11 💫 Sleight Of Hand 🌸

Three players playing a card game in Dungeons & Dragons.
Three-Dragon Ante via Wizards of the Coast

Core Skill

Dexterity

Useful For

Thievery

Regardless of whether you're 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:playing a rogue or not, Sleight of Hand is goin🐟g to come up in a Dungeons & Dragons game. There's just always an opportunity for pick-pocketing, stealing impor♛tant treasures, and generally being deft and nimble.

Obviously൩, more chaotic and neutrally aligned characters tend to favor this skill and can find plenty of creative ways to use it. Ultimately, Sleight of Hand can be used in a lot of creative ways, so it's definitely a more valuable skil𒁏l than most.

10 Insight

The NPC Valin Sarnaster from the Candlekeep Mysteries module in DND.
Valin Sarnaster via Wizards of the Coast

Core Skill

Wisdom

Useful For

Assessing Lies

While Insight can be used for a handful of things, it's primarily used by players and Dungeon Masters for one very specific reason: to see if someone is lying to you. In roleplay-heavy c𒀰ampaigns in particular, this skill is invaluable.

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Plus, there's nothing more fun than getting a secret whisper from your DM based on what you intuited from your check. Ultimately, being able to spot a liar mig🔜ht just save your life during a session, so this skill is not to be overlooked.

9 Medicine

A cleric attempts a raise dead spell surrounded by glowing white light in Dungeons & Dragons.
Raise Dead by Polar Engine

Core Skill

Wisdom

Useful For

Healing

There are a lot of different classes in Dungeons & Dragons that can h༒eal, and even more items and features that can as well. However, sometimes, in a pinch, a non-healer character might be the only one who can try to꧑ revive or stabilize a wounded ally.

That's where the Medicine check comes in. This check is actually immensely helpful if you're trying to resuscitate an ally, but aren't a healer yourself. With the right Medicine check, you can, at the very least, stabilize y𒁃our ally, preventing them from having to make death saves.