Learning to Play D&D | 5e Character Sheet

In this video, I walk you through the D&D 5e character sheet—an essential tool for every player. It’s where you track all of your character’s stats, abilities, equipment, and backstory details. I know it can look a little overwhelming at first, but once you understand how it all fits together, it makes gameplay much smoother.

I break the sheet down into sections:

Character Essentials – Name, class, background, race, and alignment.
Ability Scores and Modifiers – How your character’s strengths and weaknesses impact rolls.
Skills and Proficiencies – How your background and class shape what you’re good at.
Combat Info – Armor class, hit points, and how to track damage and healing.
Attacks and Spellcasting – Where you record weapons, spells, and how to calculate attack rolls.
Equipment and Money – What your character carries and how much gold they have.
Personality and Roleplaying Touchstones – Traits, bonds, ideals, and flaws to help you bring your character to life.
Features and Traits – Special abilities that make your character unique, based on race, class, and background.

I also talk about how to use the sheet during play—like knowing what modifiers to add to your dice rolls, how to calculate your attack bonus, and how to manage your hit points and death saves when things get tough.

One thing I always like to emphasize is that the character sheet isn’t just about numbers. It’s a living document that evolves as your character grows. If you’re playing in a campaign, it becomes a storybook of your character’s journey—each new trait, spell, or piece of equipment a mark of your adventure.

I’d love to hear from you—what part of the character sheet do you find most helpful, or maybe the trickiest to understand? Let me know in the comments, and check out the video for a deeper dive into each section.

Cheers,
Brian