How Do Feats Work in D&D?

Session Zero

Character customization is one of the joys of Dungeons & Dragons, allowing players to create unique heroes and adventurers. But beyond choosing a class and race, there's a powerful tool in your customization arsenal: feats. So, how do feats work in D&D? Let’s dive into the world of feats and see how they can transform your character from ordinary to extraordinary.

Over the years and its various editions, Dungeons & Dragons has expanded the scope of the options available for players to customize their characters. As of the 3rd edition of D&D, the game added a new customization tool in the form of feats. Choices above and beyond those like race, class and sub-class, feats offer a wide array of customization to any character, but how do feats work? Let’s take a close look at how feats can help shape your character into the fantasy hero you know you want them to be.

What Are Feats?

Broadly speaking, feats are character options that players can choose for their player characters (PCs) to change how their PC interacts with the rules of the game. While some provide benefits in specific circumstances (looking at you Sharpshooter), others grant new actions and options (such as Ritual Caster or any multiclass feat) and still others provide opportunities to break the rules in new and interesting ways (hello Lucky).

It is important to note that feats are technically an optional rule in D&D, so it’s important to discuss how your Dungeon Master (DM) views them. While use of feats is almost a universal standard, we here at Camp Dragon Online always think that it’s best to err on the side of transparency and communication.

How to Gain Feats

As your character gains experience and levels, they’ll open up opportunities to take feats. At levels 4, 8, 12, 16 & 20, instead of gaining 2 points to distribute amongst your PC’s Ability Scores, you can instead elect to take a feat. Some classes, notably fighters and rogues, get Ability Score increases more frequently, and thus have more opportunities to exchange the bonuses for feats.

Further, some PCs may start their careers with feats. Some races, including the “Variant Human” from the Players Handbook, allow you to start with a feat at first level; this early leg up can help define your PC’s career. There are more than a few Camp Dragon Online staffers who always play Variant Humans to gain access to the Lucky feat at first level.

Popular Feats and Their Benefits

Feats can dramatically change how your character plays. Here are a few popular feats and what they bring to the table:

Great Weapon Master: If you’re playing a heavy-hitting melee combatant, then this feat is for you. Trade accuracy for damage and gain extra attacks after felling foes!
Sharpshooter: The ranged cousin of Great Weapon Master, this feat increases long range accuracy, lets you trade accuracy for damage and lets you ignore cover. A must for archers or ranged fighters of any kind.
Lucky: This feat is the gold standard of value for a feat. Your PC gains 3 Luck points that they can spend to gain rerolls on actions and force your foes to reroll successes. Every other feat has to measure up against the rubric “why choose this feat instead of Luck?”:
Alert: Be the character who’s always ready for a fight with this feat. You’ll never be surprised and you’ll gain a bonus to initiative, helping you act sooner each round.
Tough: Extra hit points not just now, but every time you level makes for a character that’s harder and harder to kill.

These are just some of the most useful feats. There is a world of flavorful and theme-enhancing feats out there to help you make your PC as uniquely yours as dare.

Strategic Use of Feats

Choosing the right feats can make your character shine, but it requires some strategic thinking. Consider your character’s role in the party and how a feat might enhance their strengths or mitigate their weaknesses. For example, a front-line fighter might benefit more from "Tough" or "Great Weapon Master," while a rogue might find "Alert" or "Lucky" more useful.

Not every feat is the right choice for every character, right? Otherwise it’s not an interesting choice if there’s just an objectively best feat choice for every character. Your PC’s role in the party should make a huge impact on your choice of feats, as should your intended playstyle. A sneaky rogue probably doesn’t need to take Great Weapon Mastery, while a front line fighter would get a lot less mileage out of Skulker or Lucky feat than the rogue would.

Something to be on the lookout for is feats that would buff an existing class feature that is core to how you want to play the game. Polearm Mastery could make a paladin’s Divine Smite feature an absolute game-changer with punishing opportunity attacks. Maybe you really want to play up an Elemental Affinity for your Draconic bloodline sorcerer by choosing the

Many players get a lot of satisfaction from planning out choices of game elements like feats levels in advance. Some come to the gaming table with choices made from level one all the way up to level 20. If that’s your style, awesome. If it’s not, also awesome. While thinking ahead can help you look for future opportunities to optimize your character, not every choice needs to be an optimal one to be a fun choice. Make sure you save some choices to add flavor and your own vibe to the character.

Insights from Veteran Players

Here’s what some of our friends in the community had to say about feats when we asked:

"The 'Lucky' feat has saved my character more times than I can count. Those rerolls can turn a disastrous moment into a heroic triumph." - Alex, player for 10 years.*

*Editor’s note: Yes, the Lucky feat really is as useful as we’re hoping you’ve noticed we think it is.

"I love 'Sharpshooter' for my ranger. Being able to ignore cover and shoot from a distance makes me feel like a true sniper." - Jamie, player and occasional DM.

"Feats like 'War Caster' have made my spellcasting much more reliable in combat. Maintaining concentration on spells while in the thick of battle is crucial." - Morgan, veteran player.

End of Session

Feats are easily the most powerful customization tool in the D&D player’s tool kit, with a huge range of unique options and enhancements that will make your character really stand out as “yours.” Bear strategy in mind, but look past mechanical benefits to find the feats that let you break the rules in all the right ways for your character. After all, rules were made to be broken.