Vehicles

From chariot races to pirate ship attacks to airship journeys, countless adventures take place atop speeding vehicles.

All vehicles have the following properties:

• Terrain: Vehicles fall into three terrain categories: land vehicles, water vehicles, and air vehicles. Vehicles travel in the terrain of their category. Proficiency with a category of vehicles allows a creature to add its proficiency bonus to any checks made regarding that type of vehicle.
• Size and Armor Class: Just like creatures, vehicles have size categories and each has an AC that determines how difficult it is to hit with attacks.
• Hit Points: When a vehicle is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points it is destroyed. In addition, when a vehicle is reduced to 50% of its total hit points, it suffers a malfunction and must roll on Table: Malfunction.
• Speed: Vehicles are listed with their movement speed, as well as their journey speed for traveling long distances.
• Crew: Many vehicles only require a single crewman as a driver, but larger vehicles may require even dozens of people to properly operate. Drivers cannot perform actions using a vehicle unless the minimum crew requirement is met.
• Immunities: As objects, vehicles are immune to poison and psychic damage. They are also immune to the blinded , charmed , confused , deafened , fatigued , frightened , incapacitated , paralyzed , petrified , poisoned , prone , slowed , strife , stunned , and unconscious conditions, as well as any other effect that would result from failing a Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma saving throw .
• Havens: A vehicle acts as a haven if it provides accommodation and shelter from the elements. At the Narrator’s discretion, the environment may not be suitable for it to act as a haven.

Unlike creatures, all vehicles have a “front”, in many situations this facing will dictate the way the vehicle moves.

In order to move, all vehicles require a driver. While at the steering (such as the reins of a wagon or the wheel of a ship) a creature can use a bonus action to make the vehicle perform one of the following actions:

• Drive: The vehicle moves half of its movement speed directly forward, then the driver may change the vehicle’s facing by up to 90 degrees (a full turn left or right) before moving up to the remaining movement speed. The vehicle gains momentum.
• Maneuver: The vehicle moves half of its movement speed forward, and the driver may change the vehicle’s facing by up to 90 degrees (a full turn left or right) up to 2 times during this movement. This action cannot be performed while the vehicle has momentum.
• Ahead Full: The vehicle moves one and a half times its movement speed directly forward. The vehicle gains momentum. If the vehicle would roll for a malfunction before it is used to take another action, it rolls twice on that table instead (reroll any duplicate results).
• Brake: The vehicle moves half of its movement speed directly forward, then it loses momentum.
• Stop: The vehicle comes to a complete stop. This action cannot be taken while the vehicle has momentum.

Momentum. At the initiative count of 20, all vehicles with momentum move half their movement speed directly forward. Momentum ends automatically after 1 minute if no actions with a vehicle are taken.

Saving Throws. Unlike most objects, vehicles must make Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution saving throws as if they were creatures against effects that would call for them. All vehicles have a Strength and Constitution score based on their size (see below). A driven vehicle has a Dexterity score equal to its driver’s Dexterity score (a vehicle without a driver has a Dexterity of 0).

Size

The size of a vehicle determines many of a vehicle’sproperties:

Strength, Constitution, and Carrying Capacity. A vehicle’s Strength, Constitution, and carrying capacity are determined by its size.

• Large: A Large vehicle has a Strength and Constitution score of 14 (+2), can carry up to 3 passengers along with the driver, up to 40 Supply, and up to 10 bulky items in addition to 2,000 lbs. of carrying capacity.
• Huge: A Huge vehicle has a Strength and Constitution score of 18 (+4), can carry up to 6 passengers along with the driver, up to 80 Supply, and up to 20 bulky items in addition to 4,000 lbs. of carrying capacity.
• Gargantuan: A Gargantuan vehicle has a Strength and Constitution score of 22 (+6), can carry a number of additional passengers equal to the minimum required crew, up to 800 Supply, and up to 200 bulky items in addition to 40,000 lbs. of carrying capacity.

Collisions. If a vehicle has momentum and enters the space occupied by a creature or another object, a collision occurs. Both the vehicle and whatever it impacts take damage according to the vehicle’s size: Large—4d6 bludgeoning damage, Huge—8d6 bludgeoning damage, Gargantuan— 12d6 bludgeoning damage.

If the object or creature impacted is the same size as the vehicle or larger, the vehicle immediately stops and loses momentum. If the object or creature impacted is smaller than the vehicle, it is shunted into the closest unoccupied space that allows the vehicle to complete its movement unimpeded.

Malfunctions

When a vehicle is reduced to half its total hit points or less, roll 1d6 on Table: Malfunctions to determine what aspect of the vehicle is breaking. Vehicle malfunctions are usually too extreme to repair quickly except by magical means, and remain until the vehicle’s hit points are restored to their maximum.

Special Features

There are any number of fantastical possibilities when it comes to vehicles but the following features are the most common:

Armed. Armed vehicles have one or more weapons in place on board (see Table: Siege Weaponry). A creature can use an action to fire a siege weapon, or use an action to reload it.

Drawn. A drawn vehicle is pulled by one or more beasts of burden and its movement and travel speeds are determined by the animal (or animals) pulling it.

Personal. Personal vehicles are designed for a single occupant and usually have far less space. Vehicles with this property can only ever carry a maximum of one person, and have 1/4th the carrying capacity of a normal vehicle of the same size.

Three-Dimensional. Usually found on airships, a three-dimensional vehicle may also turn up or down when making turns.

Transport. Transport vehicles are designed for cargo and crew, and have twice the carrying capacity and maximum number of passengers as normal for a vehicle of the same size.

 

Table: Land Vehicles

Vehicle	Size	AC	Hit Points	Speed	Crew	Cost	Supply	Weight	Special
Carriage	Large	15	120	Drawn	1	100 gp	40	1,800 lbs.	Drawn
Cart	Large	11	30	Drawn	1	15 gp	40	1,000 lbs.	Drawn
Chariot	Large	16	50	Drawn	1	250 gp	40	60 lbs.	Drawn, personal
Dog sled	Large	12	40	Drawn	1	20 gp	40	100 lbs.	Drawn, personal
Wagon	Huge	12	80	Drawn	1	35 gp	80	1,300 lbs.	Drawn

 

Table: Water Vehicles

Vehicle	Size	AC	Hit Points	Speed	Crew	Cost	Supply	Special
Canoe	Large	12	30	30 feet / 3 mph	1	25 gp	40	Personal
Galley	Gargantuan	15	500	40 feet / 4 mph	60	30,000 gp	800	Armed (Ballista x2), transport
Rowboat	Large	11	50	20 feet / 2 mph	1	50 gp	40	-
Sailing ship	Gargantuan	15	300	50 feet / 5 mph	30	10,000 gp	800	Armed (Ballista x2)
Warship	Gargantuan	16	600	40 feet / 4 mph	50	25,000 gp	800	Armed (Cannon x4)

 

Table: Air Vehicles

Vehicle	Size	AC	Hit Points	Speed	Crew	Cost	Supply	Special
Cloud galleon	Gargantuan	14	300	40 feet / 4 mph	15	40,000 gp	800	Transport, Three-Dimensional
Hot-air balloon	Large	10	40	20 feet / 2 mph	1	7,500 gp	40	Three-Dimensional
Sky skiff	Huge	12	60	50 feet / 5 mph	2	12,000 gp	80	Three-Dimensional
Wind raider	Gargantuan	15	180	50 feet / 5 mph	5	20,000 gp	800	Armed (Ballista x2), Three-Dimensional

 

Table: Siege Weaponry

 

Weapon	Cost	Size	AC	Hit Points	Range	Target	Damage
Ballista	500 gp	Large	15	50	140/480 ft.	One	3d10 piercing damage
Cannon	3,000 gp	Large	19	75	600/2,400 ft.	One	8d10 bludgeoning damage
Mangonel	850 gp	Large	15	100	200/800 ft.*	One	5d10 bludgeoning damage
Trebuchet	2,500 gp	Huge	15	150	300/1,200 ft. *	One	8d10 bludgeoning damage

* This siege weapon cannot attack targets within 60 feet.

 

Table: Malfunctions

D6	Malfunction
1	Movement. Movement has been compromised, such as losing the sails, losing the animal team drawing the vehicle, or destroying an engine. The Drive, Maneuver, and Ahead Full actions cannot be taken until it is repaired.
2	Integrity. Some key component holding everything together has been lost and the vehicle immediately loses an additional 25% of its hit point maximum.
3	Brakes. The ability to stop has been lost. The Brake and Stop actions cannot be taken until repaired.
4	Steering. The driver’s ability to fully control the vehicle has been compromised. The Drive and Maneuver actions cannot be taken until repaired.
5	Cargo. Half of any Supply currently carried by the vehicle are destroyed.
6	Superficial. The damage looks bad but doesn’t cause any further issues.

Creating Your Own Vehicles

Submarines, sky chariots drawn by drakes, steam-powered giant spiders—anything can exist in your fantasy world and Narrators shouldn’t feel constrained by the few vehicle options we’ve presented here. Think of these vehicles as simple templates ripe for reimagining and feel free to mix and match features to create something new.

Repairing Vehicles

Repairing damaged or malfunctioning vehicles requires a tool check against the DC listed for the vehicle’s primary material as shown on the Materials table. During a long rest you can make one check, ending any malfunctions it currently has on a success and restoring hit points equal to the result of your check. Alternatively you can hire someone to repair your vehicle for you (which is an automatic success and typically costs 1/5th of the vehicle’s total cost).