Last Updated on January 22, 2023
Some people are just naturally luckier than others. They just don’t seem held to the same fate-related constraints as us mere mortals. Where the natural fails, the supernatural powers of the lucky step in to ensure that things will go smoother than you first thought.
Having these lucky fellows around can improve one’s own outcomes as well! It can seem as though their extraordinary good fortune can bring fortune to those around them.
D&D 5e players looking to harness the transcendental power of luck can take the Lucky feat to leverage their power against the tides of fate itself.
Table of Contents
What is the Lucky Feat?
Amongst the feats present in Dungeons and Dragons 5e, few are so ubiquitously considered powerful as Lucky.
Found in the Player’s Handbook, as the name implies, characters with the Lucky feat just seem to have better outcomes than their less lucky compatriots.
You have inexplicable luck that seems to kick in at just the right moment.
You have 3 luck points. Whenever you make an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw, you can spend one luck point to roll an additional d20. You can choose to spend one of your luck points after you roll the die, but before the outcome is determined. You choose which of the d20s is used for the attack roll, ability check, or saving throw.
You can also spend one luck point when an attack roll is made against you. Roll a d20, and then choose whether the attack uses the attacker’s roll or yours. If more than one creature spends a luck point to influence the outcome of a roll, the points cancel each other out; no additional dice are rolled.
You regain your expended luck points when you finish a long rest.
Players who take the Lucky feat are given luck points that they can use to attempt to influence the outcome of a roll. It is a more robust version of the Halfling’s racial trait, Lucky, which grants the player a reroll when they roll a natural 1.
Though it can only be used three times per day, its strength lies in allowing the player to choose the die they want to use, rather than the Halfling trait, which requires using the second die roll.
It’s important to remember that the Lucky feat does not grant the user advantage; instead, its wording is that you “roll an additional d20”. This allows a second — or third die — to be rolled alongside the original dice, and the player then chooses between the possible outcomes.
Lucky Dice: What Are They And Are They Useful?
Lucky dice are, simply put, a pool of additional dice that a player can use to affect the outcomes of their actions. A player will get three of them per long rest, or three per day, as most parties will long rest about once a day.
Players can choose when and where to use their Lucky dice. As stated, the player’s luckiness is paranormal — it kicks in whenever they decide they need it.
When they choose to do so, they roll an additional die on top of however many they started with and then select any of the dice. The choice involved in Lucky overrides the compulsory choice of other dice modifiers like disadvantage.
It’s critical to remember that, when attacking, two Lucky characters will cancel each other out. If both the attacker and the defender attempt to use their Lucky trait, the points cancel out, and no additional dice are rolled.
A player cannot spend more than one Lucky die on a single roll, even if no counterpoint is spent. The trigger for Lucky is an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw being made by the character or an attack roll being made against the character. The roll for Lucky is not any of these things. So, Lucky cannot trigger on a Lucky roll.
The dice can only be spent on rolls involving the Lucky character. That is to say that Lucky can only be used with rolls made by or against them and cannot be used to influence saving throws made against them.
Lucky dice also only grant a single extra die option. The higher or lower value is discarded when rolling with advantage or disadvantage before the Lucky die is rolled. So you will choose between either the advantageous or disadvantageous die and the Lucky die, not all three.
As a DM, it would be possible to make a house rule or exceptions to allow Lucky players to extend their luck to other players or even NPCs. It would be best to keep these to roleplay scenarios to avoid Lucky starting to feel oppressively overpowered.
What Synergises Well With Lucky?
Lucky has synergy with pretty much every class, subclass, and race. A few stand out amongst them all, but there isn’t really a wrong time to take the Lucky mechanically.
Unless your character is seriously shy of the required benchmarks for their preferred ability scores, Lucky will improve your chances of succeeding at almost everything.
Variant Humans and Halflings have powerful synergy with Lucky. Variant Humans get to have a feat at level 1!
So they can utilize Lucky right off the bat. Halflings have their own Lucky trait that has synergy with Lucky as a feat since they can avoid using their Lucky feat in situations where they can use their racial feature instead.
Divination Wizards also gain access to Portent, which allows them to roll Portent Dice at the beginning of the day, which they can use to replace rolls of their choice during the day. You can’t use Lucky to reroll your Portent Dice.
However, you can use the Portent to supplement your Lucky feature to give you even more supernatural “luck”. Divination Wizards also get the ability to utilize spells such as Guidance to provide them with more boosts to their rolls.
Bards can add their Bardic Inspiration dice, and Warlocks with Fiend Patrons can utilize their “Dark One’s Own Luck” die to supplement their otherworldly luck.
Warlocks, in particular, can learn Guidance from the Pact of the Tome, which can also be used to improve their appearance of unearthly good fortune.
Divine Soul Sorcerers get access to spells such as Bless and Guidance because they have access to the entire Cleric spell list, meaning that they, too, can aid their allies with their supernatural powers of Luck.
It is even possible to build an entire party around the concept of Luck by combining the Cleric, Bard, Warlock, and Wizard boosts with the Lucky feat.
These adventurers are more than just your average adventurers; they’re also extremely lucky! Where other adventurers fail, this group has pure, dumb luck on their side, and that’s how they become legendary heroes.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lucky
Does the Lucky feat override the Halfling’s Lucky trait?
Kind of. The Halfling trait triggers when you roll a 1. So if you rolled a 1, you could reroll first with Lucky and then if you rolled another 1, proceed to use the Halfling racial trait on the Lucky die, but you would have to use the value rolled with the Halfling racial trait.
You can’t use the Lucky dice on the reroll from the Halfling racial trait because it is not considered an attack roll or saving throw but a reroll of a current die value.
Can you use Lucky on an Initiative roll?
No. Initiative is not an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw.
Does Lucky work on a Death Saving Throw?
Yes. Death Saving Throws can trigger Lucky.
Is Lucky Good?
Lucky is extremely powerful. The ability to simply choose to reroll a die is undeniably useful in almost every situation. Taking Lucky over an ASI may not be as potent as the ASI as a reroll versus a higher modifier is statistically similar when the modifiers are low.
However, once a player has reached their benchmark goals for their ability, Lucky becomes better than an ASI in a dump stat. With a statistic that won’t be used as often, Lucky gives the player the chance to reroll bad dice and even roll higher for good dice as they are able to choose what dice to take.
Is Lucky Overpowered?
This is a tricky question because it is really based on the player and the Dungeon Master. Lucky is undeniably strong and the fact that is nearly impossible to build a character who can’t use Lucky lends credence to the idea that Lucky is overpowered.
That being said, the problem with Lucky isn’t an innate power imbalance within the Lucky feature. It is more of a lack of strong alternative options.
Lucky will change the outcome of roughly 1 to 6 interactions per session depending on the length and pace of the sessions. That’s not a very high amount, though since it is for only one player, it is undoubtedly influential in their particular strength within the party.
The issue with Lucky seems easier to remedy by offering other feats that are similarly strong. Lucky isn’t overpowered but it is often the best option of the feats available.
Other feats range from situational to bad and Lucky tends to cause a lack of diversity within feats, simply due to there being no other options that are so universally strong. Which is a more pervasive problem than simply Lucky being too strong.
Conclusion
The Lucky feat’s power is undeniable for any character who doesn’t need the ASI. There’s no way around the potency of a reroll that you can choose to use whenever you want.
Players whose characters have reached their benchmarks for their preferred ability scores may also find that the power of being Lucky is just what they need as well.
Players who are playing using 5e’s Variant Human traits might consider taking Lucky off the bat so that they can utilize the power right out of the gate. Halfling players may want to grab the feat to boost their already potent Lucky trait.
Divination Wizards, Bards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, and Clerics may see particularly potent uses for the Lucky feat when combined with their class features. There may be even more powerful combinations if used by Halfling or Variant Human characters.
On the DM side, a Lucky NPC or enemy could offer some variance and extra challenges to your players when it comes to defeating or overcoming their influences in the world.
Whether you’re using the feat for roleplay or mechanical purpose, there is a meaningful method out there for all players to get good use out of the Lucky feat! The possibilities are endless!
FAQs
How good is the lucky feat 5e? ›
Lucky is always good. Not just good for every character, but good in every campaign type, every pillar of gameplay, every session. The only sessions where its not helping you are sessions where you never fail a single roll, in which case you probably don't need much help regardless.
Why is the lucky feat op? ›Lucky essentially puts a foot on the scale in the player's favor, so that the really important campaign defining moments may never properly take shape. With 3 uses per day, there is a pretty good chance that the player will always succeed when it matters.
Does Lucky Feat work on death saves? ›Lucky Feat.
By essentially giving you advantage on your death saves, the Lucky feat means you'll be almost 25% more likely to succeed. You're also nearly 5% more likely to roll a natural 20, which will revive you instantly.
The Lucky feat allows a player to use a luck point on attack rolls that happen against them. The second bullet says: You can also spend one luck point when an attack roll is made against you. Roll a d20, and then choose whether the attack uses the attacker's roll or yours.
Is luck better than skill? ›Skill is the ability to fire knowledge readily in performance and execution. We know how to do something, and when the moment comes, we can do it. Luck has three specific features — it works for an individual and/or organization, it can be good or bad, and it's reasonable to expect something else could have happened.
How do you balance Lucky feat? ›- You have 3 luck points. Whenever you make an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw, you can spend one luck point to roll an additional d20. ...
- You can also spend one luck point when an attack roll is made against you. ...
- You regain your expended luck points when you finish a long rest.
Short answer yes - BUT ask your dm at the start of the game for their ruling - A dm is always right . Think of the luck feat as having advantage 3 times a session rather than a re-roll . Whenever you make an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you may spend 1 luck point to roll an additional d20.
Can you use lucky Feat for initiative? ›Yes you can, initiative is an ability check and thus can be rerolled on a 1.
What does the luck blade do? ›You gain a +1 bonus to Attack and Damage Rolls made with this Magic Weapon. While the sword is on your person, you also gain a +1 bonus to saving throws.
Can Lucky be used on saving throws? ›Yes, the Halfling racial feature Lucky works with death saving throws. Whenever you start your turn with 0 hit points, you must make a special saving throw, called a death saving throw, to determine whether you creep closer to death or hang onto life.
Does Lucky work on enemy saving throws? ›
It cannot. Lucky can be used to re-roll your own attack roll, ability check, or saving throw and an attack made against you. Nowhere does it state that you can apply the extra d20 roll to another creature's saving throw. Only your own.
What happens if you fail 3 death saves? ›On your third success, you become stable (see below). On your third failure, you die. The successes and failures don't need to be consecutive; keep track of both until you collect three of a kind. The number of both is reset to zero when you regain any Hit Points or become stable.
Is there luck in D&D? ›Luck in the D&D game is usually represented entirely by the player's luck, not the character's. If you roll high consistently, you, as a player and a die roller, are lucky, and your character benefits. If you roll low, you're unlucky, and your character suffers.
What is lucky spell 5e? ›You grant a touched creature a limited gift of luck. While the spell lasts, the target can gain advantage on any three rolls of its choice. Once three rolls have been affected by the gift of luck, the spell ends.
What does the Prodigy Feat do? ›Introduced in Xanathar's Guide to Everything, Prodigy is a racial feat available only to Humans, Half-Elves, and Half-Orcs. Prodigy is very similar to Skill Expert in that it grants a Skill and an Expertise. Unlike Skill Expert, Prodigy is not a hybrid feat, instead granting both a Tool and a Language.
Can luck be a superpower? ›Deadpool said it best, “Luck isn't a superpower!” And he's completely correct… however, probability manipulation most certainly is a superpower. The ability to change the probability of any situation is a small version of reality manipulation.
Can hard work Defeat luck? ›Luck gives you success directly but hard work gives you success with a lot of experience , skills and sometimes failure lessons too . But the fight between luck and hard work doesn't finish with achievement of the goal , it also plays a crucial part in surviving in that position.
Is luck actually skill? ›Luck is a skill itself.
Success that you have by chance and not because of anything that you do (Macmillan Dictionary) Good things that happen to you by chance, not because of your own efforts or abilities (Oxford Learners' Dictionary)
A feat represents a Talent or an area of Expertise that gives a character Special capabilities. It embodies Training, experience, and Abilities beyond what a class provides. At certain levels, your class gives you the Ability Score Improvement feature.
How do you gain feats in 5e? ›So when do you get feats in 5e? Most character classes can choose feats at levels 4, 8, 12, 16, and/or 19. These are the standard levels for ability score increases. At level 4, for example, Druids can increase an ability score by 2 or two ability scores by 1.
How does portent work with disadvantage? ›
Portent does not interact with advantage/disadvantage because it replaces an entire roll. The 2020 Sage Advice Compendium makes clear on p.
Can you use Lucky twice in a row? ›By RAW, you can use them once per attack roll, ability check, or saving throw.
Can you stack the Lucky Feat? ›Jeremy Crawford answered this in Sage Advice, you can't use multiple luck points from the lucky feat on the same roll. If you attack and roll poorly, you can use the luck point only once for that roll.
Can you stack the tough feat? ›The feat "Toughness" does not list anything specific within the description that says you can choose the feat multiple times for increased health, meaning that you cannot select the feat multiple times.
How many times can halflings use Lucky? ›Benefit: Once per day, when one of your allies within 30 feet makes a saving throw, you may roll the same saving throw as if you were the one subject to the effect requiring it. You may use this ability after your ally has rolled, but before the GM declares if the roll was a success or failure.
Does Luckstone increase initiative? ›When Character attunes on a Stone of Good Luck from inventory, Then Initiative is increased by 1.
Is there a feat that gives find familiar? ›This feat gives you access to 2 cantrips and a 1st level spell from a spell list of your choice. And Find Familiar is conveniently a 1st level wizard spell . The other good news is that it's a ritual spell, so if you are a ritual caster you can also get one without having an available spell slot.
What does the luck buff do? ›Lucky is a buff which increases player Luck. The more time the buff has left, the more the player's luck is increased.
What does luck do shellshock? ›Luck. Increasing Luck increases the chance of getting higher tiered weapons in the beginning of the match or in crates.
How good is grafted blade sword? ›Grafted Blade Greatsword explained
When wielded two-handed and leveled all the way up to +10, the weapon is capable of dealing well over 1,000 points of damage per hit. Its Skill, Oath of Vengeance, is extremely powerful as well, adding five points to all your Attributes for 30 seconds, as well as increasing Poise.
Can you spend luck on sanity rolls? ›
Luck points cannot be spent on Luck rolls, damage rolls, Sanity rolls, Sanity loss rolls, or a pushed roll. Criticals, fumbles, and firearms malfunctions cannot be changed by luck.
Can you purposefully fail a saving throw? ›A creature who makes a Strength saving throw to avoid being bowled over may well do so voluntarily. So long as that character is sufficiently aware of the threat, the creature could just as easily choose to go limp and not resist.
Can you willingly fail saving throws? ›Most definitely! Normally there is no provision in the rules for voluntarily failing a saving throws unless the spell has "(harmless)" listed under Saving Throw. You can absolutely voluntarily fail a saving throw.
Can unseen servant go through walls? ›It can open only normal doors, drawers, lids, and the like. It has an effective Strength score of 2 (so it can lift 20 pounds or drag 100 pounds). It can trigger traps and such, but it can exert only 20 pounds of force, which is not enough to activate certain pressure plates and other devices.
What is the best saving throw DND? ›These are Wisdom, Constitution, and Dexterity. Then there are the three “weak” saves that rarely ever come up. They are Strength, Intelligence, and Charisma. The best saving throw to have a high score in is Constitution.
Does hex affect saving throws? ›No, the hex spell's description says it affects ability checks that use the chosen ability. The description says nothing about affecting attack rolls or saving throws.
Can you save in death's door? ›Like most modern games, Death's Door has an autosave system. As expected, the game will occasionally flash a symbol at the corner of the screen, telling the player that the game is being saved. As long as they don't force the game closed during that time, possibly corrupting the save, then they'll have no problems.
Is 10 a successful death save? ›With death saves, anything below 10 counts as a failure, while 10 and above counts as a success. Players who roll a natural 20 immediately regain one hit point and return to consciousness.
What happens if you roll a NAT 20 on a death save? ›It clearly states that a death save is rolled at the start of your turn. When you roll a 20, considered a critical success, you immediately gain 1 hp. Unless your DM demands that you stay unconscious, then you would be able to take your turn as usual.
What is the most broken DND character? ›The most infamous broken build by far is the Coffeelock. An egregious combination of both Sorcerer and Warlock, the Coffeelock grants players unlimited spells. In addition, this build also eliminates the need for long rests, hence the name Coffeelock.
What is the most overpowered class in D&D? ›
- College Of Eloquence (Bard) For some reason, people sleep on this class. ...
- School Of Divination (Wizard) ...
- Arcane Trickster (Rogue) ...
- Horizon Walker (Ranger) ...
- Oath Of Vengeance (Paladin) ...
- Twilight Domain (Cleric) ...
- The Totem Warrior (Barbarian) ...
- Way of Mercy (Monk)
It is not only one of the strongest feats, it is also suitable for every build. Most other top feats are at least only good for a subset of builds where they are relevant, but lucky places highly for every build.
Does luck negate disadvantage? ›You still have advantage or disadvantage, since the feat doesn't say it negates it, but you get to pick the die. The upshot of this fact is that a rogue, for instance, who has disadvantage on an attack roll couldn't use Sneak Attack even if the rogue uses the Lucky feat to pick the die.
Do luck stones stack 5e? ›It does stack. It doesn't work with skill checks does it? It should. Skill checks are a type of ability check.
What is the most powerful Prodigy spell? ›As of now, it is the strongest spell in Prodigy Math Game. Focus Spells are pretty rare, although every player has a chance to cast it. The Focus Spell and the All-Out Attack has the colors blue and yellow, which are the colors of the Astral symbol. It cannot be used when fighting a boss, or used in Harmony Island.
What is the best feat in DND? ›- 8 Athlete.
- 7 Healer.
- 6 Sentinel.
- 5 Ritual Caster.
- 4 Fey/Shadow Touched.
- 3 Mobile.
- 2 Mounted Combatant.
- 1 Polearm Master.
2d6 will give more consistent damage while 1d12 has an equal chance. The casino game Craps is based off of the rolling of 2d6 and the payouts are based on the probabilities. Yep. 1d12 deals between 1-12 damage, 2d6 deals between 2-12 damage.
Can you take the lucky feat twice? ›Short answer yes - BUT ask your dm at the start of the game for their ruling - A dm is always right . Think of the luck feat as having advantage 3 times a session rather than a re-roll . Whenever you make an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you may spend 1 luck point to roll an additional d20.
Is 1d12 or 2d6 better? ›1 D12 is better, because you only draw one dice, so you have 1/12 to get a max damage. While 2d6, you have 1/36 to get max damage. 1d12+1 is a range of 2-13, 2d6 is a range of 2-12. So the first is a slightly better potential damage output.
What is the most overpowered DND character? ›2 Barbarian Moon Druid
Out of everything that D&D 5e allows you to do, this is by far the most overpowered build in the entire game. Some Game Masters restrict Wild Shape or flat out ban this multiclass because it is so powerful.