House Rules

The following West Marches House Rules represent modifications, inclusions, and clarifications of the rules of Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. The West Marches DMs have decided to use these House Rules to provide a more fun and engaging game for all of the players.

Lifestyle Expenses
RAW: Represents the cost per day of maintaining a particular lifestyle in town. Each lifestyle has its own benefits or detriments.

WM: Between adventures, characters are assumed to maintain a Modest Lifestyle, and do not pay the associated cost. Players can choose a higher lifestyle, but must pay to do so.

Reason: Lifestyle expenses would be a pain to track and would feel like a tax on the players.

Starting Equipment
RAW: If you roll for starting gold, you do not receive the equipment granted by your background.

WM: Regardless of whether you roll for starting gold or take standard starting equipment, you receive the equipment granted by your background.

Reason: Mechanically, even before factoring in background equipment, taking standard starting equipment is significantly better than rolling for gold in most cases. This rule makes things more balanced. Additionally, receiving background equipment is an expectation most people have and therefore causes less confusion, and background equipment often comes with backstory flavor items that aren't purchasable, which adds to the dynamic of a character.

Variant: Skills with Different Abilities
RAW: The DM might ask for a check using an unusual combination of ability and skill, or you might ask the DM if you can apply proficiency to a different check. Example: Charisma (Stealth) check to blend into a crowd.

WM: Use at DM's discretion.

Reason: Certain situations may call for unusual checks. This also allows for player creativity in unusual situations.

Special Types of Movement: Swimming
RAW: Armor has no effect on swimming.

WM: If a set of armor gives the character disadvantage on stealth checks, they also have disadvantage on any checks to swim. This does not apply to characters with a swim speed.

Reason: This disadvantage represents the weight and encumbrance of certain types of armor and how it would affect a character's movement.

Initiative
RAW: 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 monster and a player character. Optionally, the DM can have the tied characters and monsters each roll a d20 to determine the order, highest roll going first.

WM: Follows RAW.

Reason: Many people in the P&PGA solve initiative ties based on a character's Dexterity modifier as a shorthand. This isn't a bad shorthand, but it should be noted it isn't RAW.

Combat: Optional Rule: Flanking
RAW: Creatures' attack rolls gain advantage if there is an enemy of their target on the opposite side of the target from them (in melee). A creature can't flank an enemy that it can't see. A creature can't flank while incapacitated. A Large or larger creature is flanking as long as at least one square or hex of its space qualifies for flanking.

WM: Use at DM's discretion. As a default, it isn't included.

Reason: Flanking tends to overpower larger groups but can also reward players for teamwork/tactics/risky maneuvers.

Downtime Activities: Crafting Magic Items
WM: Follows RAW. The description in XGtE is somewhat wordy for the resources required, so a simplified version is provided here: Players can craft magic items with new effects. To do so, tell your idea to a DM ahead of time to develop the item. For more information, see the page on magic items and the Crafting a Magic Item section of the Downtime Expanded page.
 * Formula: Contains how to make the item and the exotic material required. Learned through Lore (research downtime) or other means.
 * Exotic Material: Usually found as part of an adventure. The exact material depends on the item being crafted.
 * Cost: Downtime weeks and cost in gold vary based on the rarity of the item being crafted.
 * Crafting Skill: The character crafting the item needs proficiency in an appropriate tool or in the Arcana skill.

Downtime Activities: Work
RAW: For a week of downtime, the character gains the benefit of a certain Lifestyle Expense depending on a skill check, with the possibility of gaining 25gp on a high check.

WM: The Poor Lifestyle for a low check has been replaced with the Modest Lifestyle. Characters now earn gold based on the result of their check, as follows: 1-5 = 5gp, 6-10 = 10gp, 11-15 = 15gp, 16-20 = 20gp, 21+ = 25gp.

Reason: With the change to lifestyle expenses, the lifestyles gained from the work downtime has no noticeable effect on the player. We also wanted to reward players' usage of their downtime, as not receiving any compensation for a single low roll didn't seem right.

For more information, see the Work section of the Downtime Expanded page.

Re-Learned Proficiencies: Skills, Languages, & Tools
WM: If a race, class feature, or multiclassing would grant a character proficiency in a skill, language, or tool that the character is already proficient in, they may choose proficiency in another of the same type (skill/language/tool). Reason: Certain fun thematic builds (such as a Dragonborn Draconic Sorcerer) grant proficiency to the same skills, languages, and tools multiple times and was a detriment to players.
 * If there is a choice of multiple skills, languages, or tools, they may not choose another proficiency unless they are proficient in all items of that list.
 * If the race, class feature, or multiclassing that would grant the proficiency is removed, the original proficiency that would have been granted is removed.
 * If the race, class feature, or multiclassing that grants the proficiency would grant an extra benefit with that proficiency (such as a Knowledge Domain Cleric's Blessings of Knowledge), that benefit must be applied to the proficiency that would be originally granted.

Non-Magical Pets
WM: If pricing already exists for an animal, use that. Otherwise: Notes Reasoning: Many players are interested in having non-magical pets. Having a set pricing table streamlines the process.
 * Pet, Mundane: min. costs 1cp (tiny, pest animal); 1sp (tiny, non-pest animal); 1gp (small). Average 5gp for a healthy animal.  It cannot do tasks or obey you.
 * Pet, Exotic: 10+gp, availability may vary. Working animal that can do tasks related to its specific purpose.  10gp medium, 50gp large, 250gp huge.
 * Combat-Capable Animal: price of the working animal +300gp.
 * Any player who buys a pet should contact a DM for approval. Some pets may be vetoed.
 * With the exception of the warhorse, no animal for purchase in the PHB is considered combat-trained.
 * For details regarding the training of an animal, see the Training a Tame Animal and Combat-Training a Tame Animal sections of the Downtime Expanded page.

Magic Item Attunement Slots: Player-Controlled Companions
WM: For characters who have companions (such as a familiar or summoned steed), the attunement slots of those characters are shared with their companions. That is, the total items they are attuned to as a group cannot exceed three, unless the character has features which grant them additional attunement slots.

Familiars and Equipment
WM: When a familiar is temporarily dismissed, it can take with it items that are worn or carried, up to its Carrying Capacity (Strength score * 15 / 2 for a size Tiny creature), which reappear with the familiar when it reappears. The familiar cannot interact with any items while dismissed.


 * If the familiar dies, any items that are worn or carried fall to the ground in its space.
 * If the familiar was summoned with any equipment (e.g. a sprite's statblock has equipment listed), those items disappear when the familiar dies.

RP Channel Abilities: Lasting Mechanical Effects
WM: Players wishing to receive a lasting mechanical benefit from consistent use of an ability over the interim week between games should talk to a DM. These mechanical benefits may be adapted to an adequate downtime (such as an arcana-based Work downtime for casting Fabricate and selling the products, or a reflavored Selling a Magic Item downtime for using a magic item to produce goods for sale). If no downtime is appropriate, or the intended action does not otherwise fit, the player will likely be told that they can receive no mechanical benefit for that action.

Reason: Discord RP and the interim weeks are intended to be benign to canon. Downtime is our way of mechanically representing actions taken during that time (as well as being a balancing mechanic amongst players), and thus all mechanical benefits should be received through that.

Travel Between Cities
WM: When traveling between cities for adventures, travel fare is assumed to be paid by the Adventurers' Guild. When traveling between cities for personal reasons, travel fare must be covered by the character. Contact a DM to resolve the travel fare and time.

Reincarnate: Possible Races Table
WM: Every allowed race in West Marches has an approximately equal chance of being rolled when the Reincarnate spell is cast. If a race has subraces, the player may choose which subrace they would like. The table is as follows: