Where the d4 shows up
- Weapons. A dagger, club, sling, whip and light hammer all deal 1d4.
- Magic Missile. Three darts, each 1d4 + 1 force damage, and they never miss. At 1st level that is 6 to 15 damage.
- Bless and Bane. Bless adds a d4 to attack rolls and saving throws; Bane takes one away.
- Guidance. One d4 added to one ability check. Small, and it wins more arguments than it should.
Reading a d4
A d4 has no face on top: it lands on one. Each corner carries a number, and on most d4s you read the number that sits upright at the top point. Some older dice put the number along the bottom edges instead. The roller above shows you the result either way.
Why it hurts to step on
Four points and no flat top means it always lands with one point up. Caltrops in the rules work on the same idea, and every player who has walked across a dark room after a session knows it.
Your odds on a d4
Every face of a fair d4 is 1 in 4, exactly 25%. For a number or higher:
| You need | Chance |
|---|---|
| 2 or higher | 75% |
| 3 or higher | 50% |
| 4 | 25% |
Waiting for a 4? The chance of at least one climbs with every roll:
| Rolls | At least one 4 |
|---|---|
| 1 | 25% |
| 2 | 43.8% |
| 3 | 57.8% |
| 4 | 68.4% |
| 6 | 82.2% |
| 8 | 90.0% |
Two d4s add up to 2 through 8, and 5 is the likeliest total, 1 in 4. The dice calculator works out any roll, and the d6 and d8 rollers sit one size up.
Spells that roll 1d4
Base damage in the SRD, before upcasting or cantrip levels.
- Divine Favor (1st level)
Questions
What does 1d4 mean?
One four-sided die. The number in front is how many dice, so 2d4 is two d4 added together and 3d4 + 3 is a 1st-level Magic Missile. The Dice Notation Guide covers the rest.
What is the average roll on a d4?
2.5, halfway between 1 and 4. Each extra d4 adds 2.5, so 2d4 averages 5 and Magic Missile's three darts (each 1d4 + 1) average 10.5 damage.
How much does Bless help?
The d4 adds 2.5 on average. On a d20 roll that turns into 12.5 percentage points: if you needed an 11 (50%), Bless lifts it to 62.5%. The same holds for any target from 5 to 21.
How do I read a d4?
Read the number that sits upright, the right way up. On most d4s it is at the top point; on some older dice it runs along the bottom edges. Either way the upright number is the roll.
How can I roll a d4 without one?
Roll a d8 and halve it, rounding up (1-2 is 1, 3-4 is 2, and so on). A d12 divided by 3 or a d20 divided by 5, rounded up, works too. All three stay perfectly fair. Or tap the roller above.
Is this d4 roller random and fair?
Yes. Each roll comes from your browser's cryptographic random number generator, with no bias towards any face. Every face is exactly 1 in 4. Roll up to 20 d4 at once and add a modifier.