Looking at the rules, both how they are written and their design intent, it becomes clear that most characters are simply not meant to be able to hide in the midst of a melee.
If the circumstances are right, it is possible to make a ranged attack from hiding, though it will reveal your position (unless you miss and have the Skulker feat). If the rogue wishes to approach stealthily, it would require taking the Hide action (possibly as a bonus action using Cunning Action), again contested by the target’s passive Wisdom (Perception). This section is the second reason why a rogue can’t simply pop out of hiding and stab someone, especially if the creature was aware of their presence (even if they couldn’t see them before they emerged to attack). However, under certain circumstances, the DM might allow you to stay hidden as you approach a creature that is distracted, allowing you to gain advantage on an attack roll before you are seen. In combat, most creatures stay alert for signs of danger all around, so if you come out of hiding and approach a creature, it usually sees you. As well, if you hid by retreating behind total cover and the creature from which you were hiding moves to regain line of sight, your position will be revealed.Īdditionally, the Hiding sidebar from page 177 in the Player’s Handbook details the following: This also means that if the total of the Dexterity (Stealth) check doesn’t exceed a creature’s passive Wisdom (Perception) score, you aren’t hidden from it.
Avoiding DetectionĪs mentioned above, a successful Wisdom (Perception) check will reveal the presence of hidden creatures if the check’s total exceeds the result of the creature’s Dexterity (Stealth) check. Even an invisible creature does not automatically count as hidden, as it might give away its position by making noise or producing other “signs of its passage”. You can’t hide behind a low wall if you’re carrying a torch, even if you go entirely prone to have total cover. Hiding involves concealing all traces of your presence, including sound and light. Note that even if a target has total cover, it is not necessarily hidden. To preserve the usefulness of the lightfoot halfling’s Naturally Stealthy feature, we recommend requiring regular creatures have at least three-quarters cover in order to hide. Just how much cover is needed to hide depends on various factors, all left up to the DM’s discretion. Coverīecause you can’t hide from a creature that can see you clearly, an individual attempting to hide from another creature in an area without environmental effects such as thick fog or darkness will almost certainly have to seek cover. In addition to these benefits, while you are hidden from a spellcaster, you severely limit its options for attacking you, as most spells specify that they can only target a creature the spellcaster can see.
When a creature can’t see you, you have advantage on attack rolls against it. When you attack a target that you can’t see, you have disadvantage on the attack roll. So what do you get for being hidden? From page 194 and 195 of the Player’s Handbook: For example, in darkness a creature could hide from a target that doesn’t have darkvision, and a wood elf could attempt to hide in light rain or patchy fog. These tools can help guide you in making a determination about who can hide from whom, and what it would require. So the rogue wanting to hide in the middle of a wide open room would take some incredible ingenuity.įor new DMs who require guidance on what the acceptable circumstances for hiding might be, the same page directs you to the Vision and Light section on page 183, which details certain classifications of illumination and visual obstruction: lightly obscured, heavily obscured, bright light, dim light, and darkness. The DM has every right to tell you that you can’t hide from a creature if there is no way to obscure its view of you. You can’t hide from a creature that can see you clearly. Until you are discovered or stop hiding, that check’s total is contested by the Wisdom (Perception) check of any creature that actively searches for signs of your presence. When you try to hide, make a Dexterity (Stealth) check. The DM decides when circumstances are appropriate for hiding. The mechanics of hiding are described on page 177 of the Player’s Handbook.
It isn’t a universal truth you don’t roll to become capital-H Hidden, you roll to small-H hide-specifically, from a particular creature or group of creatures. Hiding is not a condition like charmed or incapacitated. First of all, let’s establish what it’s not.
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