Does Booming Blade Damage Double on a Crit? A Comprehensive Guide
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The short answer is yes, the damage dice from Booming Blade are doubled on a critical hit in D&D 5th Edition. However, understanding the nuances of how this works, and how it interacts with other rules and abilities, can be crucial for optimizing your character’s damage output. This article dives into the specifics of critical hits with Booming Blade, and provides answers to frequently asked questions.
The Core Mechanics of Critical Hits
Before diving into Booming Blade, let’s recap how critical hits function in D&D 5e. When you roll a natural 20 on an attack roll, you score a critical hit. This means you roll all of the attack’s damage dice twice and add them together. Then, you add any relevant modifiers, like your Strength or Dexterity modifier, as normal.
Importantly, only the damage dice are doubled. Flat damage bonuses from abilities, feats, or magic items are not doubled. For example, if you have a +3 modifier to your damage roll, you only add that +3 once.
Booming Blade and Critical Hits
Now, let’s apply these principles to Booming Blade. This cantrip has two sources of potential damage.
- Initial Attack Damage: When you cast Booming Blade, you make a melee weapon attack. If this attack is a critical hit, you double the weapon’s damage dice and any additional damage dice provided by Booming Blade. For example, at 5th level, Booming Blade adds 1d8 thunder damage to the initial hit. This 1d8 thunder damage is also doubled on a critical hit.
- Secondary Movement Damage: If the target willingly moves 5 feet or more before the start of your next turn, it suffers additional thunder damage. This secondary damage is not doubled on a critical hit. It is treated as a separate damage instance. The critical hit only affects the initial attack roll.
Therefore, a critical hit with Booming Blade doubles all damage dice rolled as part of the initial attack, including the weapon dice and the bonus thunder damage from the spell itself, but does not affect the additional movement-based damage.
Example Scenario
Let’s say a 6th level character with a longsword casts Booming Blade and scores a critical hit. The initial attack damage would be as follows:
- Longsword damage: 1d8. Critical = 2d8
- Booming Blade bonus damage: 1d8 thunder. Critical = 2d8 thunder
- Total rolled dice: 2d8 + 2d8 thunder
- Add the character’s relevant modifier (e.g., +4 Strength) once
If the target then moves, they would take the normal 2d8 thunder damage (as per the 5th level version of the cantrip) without any doubling.
Key Takeaways
- Critical hits double all damage dice associated with the initial attack.
- Booming Blade’s initial attack damage dice are doubled on a crit, including its bonus thunder damage.
- Booming Blade’s secondary movement-based damage is not doubled on a crit.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What exactly is doubled on a critical hit in D&D 5e?
A critical hit doubles the number of damage dice rolled for an attack, including dice from spells, abilities, and weapon damage. Flat bonuses, such as modifiers and rage damage bonuses, are not doubled.
2. Does Sneak Attack damage double on a critical hit?
Yes, the rogue’s Sneak Attack damage dice are doubled on a critical hit. The rules clearly state that “If the attack involves other damage dice, such as from the rogue’s Sneak Attack feature, you roll those dice twice as well.”
3. Does Hunter’s Mark damage double on a crit?
Yes, the extra damage die added by Hunter’s Mark is doubled on a critical hit as it constitutes extra damage dice.
4. Does rage bonus damage double on a crit?
No, rage bonus damage is a flat modifier and, like other flat modifiers, is not doubled on a crit. Only the damage dice are doubled.
5. Does Sharpshooter damage double with a crit?
No, the +10 damage from Sharpshooter is not a damage die; thus, it is not doubled on a critical hit. Only damage dice are affected.
6. Does the extra damage from Divine Smite double on a crit?
Yes, Divine Smite uses damage dice, which would all be doubled on a critical hit. The rule is consistent; if you roll damage dice, they are doubled on a crit.
7. Should I use Booming Blade or Extra Attack?
This depends on your build and the situation. Extra Attack generally deals more consistent damage over multiple attacks. Booming Blade offers a more burst-damage option and provides battlefield control by punishing movement.
8. Can you combine Booming Blade with Extra Attack?
No, you cannot combine Booming Blade with Extra Attack, as Booming Blade takes the action you would typically use to take an attack. You can, however, use action surge to take extra attacks and use booming blade during your additional action.
9. Does Booming Blade work with Shadow Blade?
Yes and no, you can use booming blade with shadow blade, however due to wording and interpretations, some groups consider this to be incorrect. Shadow Blade doesn’t make a “weapon” that can use weapon cantrips, although it is a “blade”. The consensus is that it is acceptable to use it, provided that the material component requirements of the spell are met.
10. Does Booming Blade work on opportunity attacks?
Yes and no, it depends on interpretation. If an opponent triggers an opportunity attack and moves, then it could be interpreted that the secondary damage would trigger as well. However, due to the wording of the spell, this is a table-specific rule and should be discussed with your DM beforehand.
11. How can I increase my chance of a critical hit?
There are a few methods, such as gaining advantage on attack rolls, some character classes such as the Champion Fighter that crits on 19 or 20, or conditions like paralyzed or unconscious, which will guarantee a critical hit if the attack hits.
12. What is the typical crit rate in D&D 5e?
The standard crit rate for most attacks is 5% (1 in 20). Some features and items may alter this probability.
13. What is the difference between rolling double the dice and doubling the dice values?
In D&D 5e, a crit doubles the number of dice you roll, not the values on each die. For example, instead of rolling 1d8 and multiplying the value by two, you roll 2d8. This means you could have a result of two 1s, or two 8s, or everything in between.
14. Is there a way to guarantee a critical hit in 5e?
Yes, the main way is to inflict the Paralyzed or Unconscious conditions on a creature and then hit it with an attack. Attacks that hit a paralyzed or unconscious target automatically become critical hits.
15. Are there specific items or weapons that enhance critical hits?
Yes, many magic items and weapons can improve critical hits. Some may increase the crit range (like Champion Fighter), some may add extra dice to critical hits, and some may have other unique abilities triggered by critical hits.
Conclusion
Booming Blade’s critical hit interaction is quite straightforward: double all damage dice associated with the initial attack, while leaving the secondary movement-based damage unaffected. By understanding these rules, you can effectively leverage Booming Blade, and optimize its use with critical hits to deal significant damage. Understanding and utilizing these mechanics effectively will empower players to maximize the capabilities of their characters.