Natural armor and unarmored defense class features

PCI_StatMonkey · **Posted:** Wed Oct 19, 2016 10:34 am

5e, at its core, is controlled by something they call "bound accuracy"

Natural Armor, Armor, Spells which grant AC, and Armor like abilities from classes do not stack.

You simply apply the best one.

RexSplode · **Posted:** Wed Oct 19, 2016 3:37 pm

FGJustice wrote:

Commenting on the original intention. I wrote Bestial Hide to reflect the wording of Draconic Resilience, because with 5e math you can't have race adding to AC; it throws everything off and makes that race too powerful.

Ah, I had not thought of natural armor causing such havoc within the rules, but a lot of things in 5e are strange. I enjoy the game and yet at the same time miss some aspects of older additions.

EddieS · **Joined:** Fri Sep 27, 2013 11:55 pm **Posts:** 297

PCI_StatMonkey wrote:

Natural Armor, Armor, Spells which grant AC, and Armor like abilities from classes do not stack.

Curious. Dark'kin's Bestial hide trait isn't, as per how 5e rules are written, considered Natural armor (fits more along the lines of the Sorcerer's Draconic Resilience ability, but isn't a class feature, instead being a racial one). Does this mean it stacks (or the intention being that the racial trait is meant to be a Natural Armor)?

FGJustice · **Joined:** Sun May 04, 2014 6:46 am **Posts:** 85

What Pedro was essentially saying is that you only get one method of determining your AC. For example, a Monk/Barbarian can use either the Monk's method or the Barbarian's. Everything that provides AC either provides a formula, or sets your AC at a specific value. There are very few bonuses in 5e in general, and especially AC bonuses, the Defense fighting style being one notable bonus.

PCI_StatMonkey · **Posted:** Mon Oct 24, 2016 5:02 pm

From official errata

Quote:

A bonus always gets added when the game instructs you to add it, unless you’re already receiving the bonus from a game feature with same name. Don’t confuse a bonus to AC (such as +2) with an AC calculation (AC = 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Constitution modifier). AC calculations don’t stack with each other. Bonuses do.

Hawk Knight · **Joined:** Mon Oct 10, 2016 4:32 pm **Posts:** 43

FGJustice wrote:

What Pedro was essentially saying is that you only get one method of determining your AC. For example, a Monk/Barbarian can use either the Monk's method or the Barbarian's. Everything that provides AC either provides a formula, or sets your AC at a specific value. There are very few bonuses in 5e in general, and especially AC bonuses, the Defense fighting style being one notable bonus.

Just one correction. According to multi-classing rules only the class you selected first gives you Unarmored Defense. So you don't get to choose if you are Monk/Barbarian. You only get it from the one you selected earlier. PHB pg 164.

PCI_StatMonkey · **Posted:** Mon Oct 31, 2016 9:14 am

Hawk Knight wrote:

FGJustice wrote:

What Pedro was essentially saying is that you only get one method of determining your AC. For example, a Monk/Barbarian can use either the Monk's method or the Barbarian's. Everything that provides AC either provides a formula, or sets your AC at a specific value. There are very few bonuses in 5e in general, and especially AC bonuses, the Defense fighting style being one notable bonus.

Just one correction. According to multi-classing rules only the class you selected first gives you Unarmored Defense. So you don't get to choose if you are Monk/Barbarian. You only get it from the one you selected earlier. PHB pg 164.

Interesting exception to the rules.

Natural armor and unarmored defense class features

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