DnD Stat Roller: 4d6 Drop Lowest Ability Score Generator

How this stat roller works

In short

How do you roll stats in D&D 5e? Roll four six-sided dice, drop the lowest and add the other three. Do it six times and assign the results to Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma. The official alternatives are the standard array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) and point buy with 27 points.

Each roll throws four six-sided dice. The roller sets aside the lowest die and records the sum of the other three: that is one ability score, always between 3 and 18. Press Roll, or drag the dice into the tray and let go, and repeat until you have six rolls.

After the sixth you see the six scores, each with its modifier, plus the total of all six. The scores appear in the order you rolled them, but in fifth edition you can assign them to Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma however you like. To start another character, press “New ability score roll” and the counter resets.

If two dice tie for lowest, only one is dropped. A roll of 4, 2, 2 and 6 keeps 4, 2 and 6, for a score of 12.
The modifier is the score minus 10, divided by 2 and rounded down: 15 gives +2, 10 gives +0 and 9 gives −1.
The total lets you compare your set with the standard array, which adds up to 72.

The three official methods in 5e

The 2014 rules and the 2024 revision offer the same three ways to generate ability scores. The DM chooses which one the table uses, and usually the whole party uses the same method so the characters stay comparable.

1. Roll 4d6 and drop the lowest

Roll four d6, add the three highest, and do it six times. This is what the roller on this page does. It produces varied characters and, on average, slightly better ones than the other two methods, at the price that one player can end up far stronger than another.

2. Standard array: 15, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 8

Six fixed numbers you place wherever you want. Everyone starts from the same baseline and nothing is left to luck. Run through the point buy table, these six numbers cost exactly 27 points.

3. Point buy with 27 points

Every ability starts at 8 and you have 27 points to raise them. Nothing can go above 15 or below 8 this way. The 2014 rules presented it as an optional variant; in 2024 it is one of the three standard methods.

Score	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Point cost	0	1	2	3	4	5	7	9

Going from 13 to 14 and from 14 to 15 costs two points each rather than one, so piling points into a single ability gets expensive. Some legal spreads: 15, 15, 15, 8, 8, 8; 15, 15, 13, 10, 10, 8; or 13, 13, 13, 13, 13, 10.

After choosing the numbers

Your character's ability score increases are added on top. Under the 2014 rules they come from race. Under the 2024 rules they come from your background, which lets you add +2 to one ability and +1 to another, or +1 to three different ones, and no score can exceed 20 at character creation.

Exact odds of 4d6 drop lowest

Four d6 give 6 × 6 × 6 × 6 = 1,296 equally likely combinations. The table counts how many of them produce each score when you add the three highest dice. It was worked out by going through every combination, not by simulation.

Score	Combinations (out of 1,296)	Chance	This or higher
18	21	1.62%	1.62%
17	54	4.17%	5.79%
16	94	7.25%	13.04%
15	131	10.11%	23.15%
14	160	12.35%	35.49%
13	172	13.27%	48.77%
12	167	12.89%	61.65%
11	148	11.42%	73.07%
10	122	9.41%	82.48%
9	91	7.02%	89.51%
8	62	4.78%	94.29%
7	38	2.93%	97.22%
6	21	1.62%	98.84%
5	10	0.77%	99.61%
4	4	0.31%	99.92%
3	1	0.08%	100.00%

The average is 12.24 (15,869 points spread over 1,296 combinations). With 3d6 it is 10.5.
An 18 needs at least three sixes: 21 combinations out of 1,296, or 1.62%, roughly one roll in 62.
A 3 only comes from four ones: 1 in 1,296 (0.08%).
The most common score is 13 (13.27%), followed by 12 and 14.
The chance of 15 or more on a single roll is 23.15%.

All six rolls together

At least one 18 among the six: 9.34%.
At least one 16 or higher: 56.76%.
At least one 15 or higher: 79.40%.
At least one score of 7 or lower: 29.73%.

With 3d6 the curve is symmetrical around 10.5: 15 or more has a 9.26% chance and an 18 is 1 in 216. Dropping the lowest die pushes the whole curve upwards and skews it, so high results become more common than low ones.

Is rolling better than the standard array?

The standard array adds up to 72 and its modifiers total +5 (+2, +2, +1, +1, +0 and −1). With 4d6 drop lowest, the average total of six scores is 73.47, with a standard deviation of almost 7 points. Going through every possible set of six rolls:

Total above 72: 56.23%.
Total of exactly 72: 5.48%.
Total below 72: 38.29%.
Sum of modifiers above +5: 47.83%; +5 or more: 58.92%.
About one set in ten totals 64 or less, and about one in eight (12.43%) reaches 82 or more.

A stricter test is to sort your six scores from highest to lowest and check whether each one matches or beats its partner in the array (highest against 15, second against 14, down to the lowest against 8). That only happens in 32.39% of sets. The table shows the average value of each position:

Position	Average with 4d6	Standard array
Highest	15.66	15
Second	14.17	14
Third	12.96	13
Fourth	11.76	12
Fifth	10.41	10
Lowest	8.50	8

On average the roll beats the array at both ends (15.66 against 15 at the top, 8.5 against 8 at the bottom) and is almost level in the middle. In practice, players who roll usually get a good number for their main ability and fairly often get stuck with a weak one too.

Ability modifiers and what each ability measures

What goes into your rolls is the modifier, not the score: (score − 10) ÷ 2, rounded down. That is why 14 and 15 give the same +2, and an odd number only pays off if you plan to raise it by one later.

Score	Modifier
1	−5
2-3	−4
4-5	−3
6-7	−2
8-9	−1
10-11	0
12-13	+1
14-15	+2
16-17	+3
18-19	+4
20-21	+5
22-23	+6
24-25	+7
26-27	+8
28-29	+9
30	+10

According to the rules, 10 or 11 is the normal human average, 18 is about as high as a person usually gets, adventurers can reach 20, and monsters and divine beings go up to 30.

Strength

Physical power. Melee attacks with non-finesse weapons, Athletics and carrying capacity.

Dexterity

Agility, reflexes and balance. Armour Class in light or no armour, initiative, ranged and finesse weapons, Stealth and Acrobatics.

Constitution

Health and stamina. Its modifier is added to hit points every level and it protects spell concentration.

Intelligence

Reasoning and memory. Wizard spells, Arcana, History and Investigation.

Wisdom

Perception and insight. Cleric and druid spells, Perception and Insight.

Charisma

Force of personality. Bard, sorcerer and warlock spells, Persuasion, Deception and Intimidation.

Where to put each score by class

The general rule is to put your highest number in the ability your class attacks or casts with, and the second in Constitution or Dexterity, which give hit points and Armour Class. The 2024 Player's Handbook includes a suggested table with the standard array already assigned for each class:

Class	STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
Barbarian	15	13	14	10	12	8
Bard	8	14	12	13	10	15
Cleric	14	8	13	10	15	12
Druid	8	12	14	13	15	10
Fighter	15	14	13	8	10	12
Monk	12	15	13	10	14	8
Paladin	15	10	13	8	12	14
Ranger	12	15	13	8	14	10
Rogue	12	15	13	14	10	8
Sorcerer	10	13	14	8	12	15
Warlock	8	14	13	12	10	15
Wizard	8	12	13	15	14	10

If you rolled with 4d6, you can follow the same order: your highest number where the table has 15, the second where it has 14, and so on.

Your lowest number

Goes in the ability your class ignores: Intelligence for a barbarian, Strength for a wizard or bard, Charisma for a monk.

Do not neglect Constitution

Every class relies on it for hit points, and a spellcaster with a negative modifier loses concentration more often.

Think about increases before placing

Under the 2024 rules a 15 plus the +2 from your background becomes 17, and a 16 becomes 18. A 17 with +1 also reaches 18, so putting an odd score where a +1 will land makes that point count.

Classes with two key abilities

, such as the paladin (Strength and Charisma) or the monk and ranger (Dexterity and Wisdom), suffer more from a set with only one high number. If that happens, a different class or the standard array may suit you better.

Table variants: 3d6 in order, rerolling 1s and minimum totals

The original 1974 D&D rolled 3d6 for each ability in a fixed order, and you picked your class afterwards based on what came up. The AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide (1979) offered four methods meant to produce more viable characters: the first was already 4d6 drop lowest, arranged as you liked; the others were rolling 3d6 twelve times and keeping the best six, rolling 3d6 six times for each ability and keeping the best, or rolling twelve complete characters with 3d6 in order and choosing one. Fifth edition keeps 4d6 as its rolling method.

Many tables tweak the method to make rolls more generous or more even. These are the most common house rules, with their effect worked out:

Method	Average per score	Average total of six
3d6 in order	10.50	63.00
4d6 drop lowest	12.24	73.47
4d6, reroll each 1 once	13.27	79.60
4d6, reroll 1s until they stop	13.43	80.60
Standard array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8)	12.00	72.00

3d6 in order

The old-school option. Each score has a 25.93% chance of being 8 or less (10.49% with 4d6 drop lowest), and only 44.18% of characters get any 15 or higher. People play it to let the dice decide what sort of character they get.

Rerolling 1s

If you reroll them until they stop, the minimum score becomes 6 and the chance of an 18 rises from 1.62% to 2.72%. Rerolling each 1 just once gives almost the same average.

Minimum total

Many tables reroll the whole set if the six scores add up to less than 70. With 4d6 drop lowest that happens 28.17% of the time, and with the rule in place the average total rises from 73.47 to 76.79.

One set for the whole party

Roll six scores once and every player uses them. You keep the randomness without the gap between characters.

None of these variants is official in fifth edition; they are table agreements, best settled before anyone rolls.

Tips for a smooth character creation session

Agree the rules before rolling

Which method, whether rerolls are allowed and when, and whether scores are placed freely or in order. Changing the rules after seeing the dice tends to cause arguments.

Roll where everyone can see

That is what this roller is for: the whole group sees the same throw and the six numbers are recorded.

Write down all six scores before assigning them

You see the whole set and can decide calmly where each goes.

A 16 and an 18 differ by +1

It is rarely worth rerolling a whole character to chase an 18 when you already have a 16 in your main ability.

If your set is far below everyone else's

, talk to the DM. Some tables let you swap it for the standard array.

Low scores are part of the fun

A fighter with Intelligence 7 or a wizard with Strength 6 gives you something to roleplay.

Frequently asked questions

How do you roll stats in D&D 5e?

Roll four six-sided dice, drop the lowest and add the other three. Do it six times and assign the results to Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma. The official alternatives are the standard array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) and point buy with 27 points.

What is the average of 4d6 drop lowest?

12.24 per score, against 10.5 with 3d6. The average total of six scores is 73.47, a little above the 72 of the standard array.

What are the odds of rolling an 18?

On a single roll, 21 in 1,296, or 1.62%. Across the six rolls of a character, the chance of getting at least one 18 is 9.34%.

Is it better to roll or use the standard array?

Rolling gives slightly more on average: the total beats 72 in 56.23% of sets. But only 32.39% of sets match or beat the array score by score once sorted from highest to lowest. The array is safer; rolling is swingier.

How much does each score cost in point buy?

With 27 points: 8 costs 0, 9 costs 1, 10 costs 2, 11 costs 3, 12 costs 4, 13 costs 5, 14 costs 7 and 15 costs 9. You cannot buy above 15 or below 8.

How do you work out an ability modifier?

Subtract 10 from the score, divide by 2 and round down. 8 and 9 give −1, 10 and 11 give +0, 12 and 13 give +1, 14 and 15 give +2, 16 and 17 give +3, 18 and 19 give +4, and 20 gives +5.

Can I assign the scores in any order?

Yes. In fifth edition the six rolled scores are assigned freely. Rolling in order (first for Strength, second for Dexterity and so on) is a house rule that comes from the earliest editions.

What should I do if I roll a really bad set?

The 5e rules do not provide for a reroll, so it is up to the DM. A common house rule is to reroll the whole set if it totals less than 70, which happens in 28.17% of 4d6 sets. Another option is to swap it for the standard array.

What is the highest score at character creation?

With 4d6 you can roll up to 18 before increases; with point buy the cap is 15. Under the 2024 rules no score can exceed 20 once your background increases are added.