Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback What stats mechanics define chance to hit?

Well, it's more, you force the enemy to make a saving throw - you're doing something, and the enemy is attempting to save themselves from the effect. It's just like when a dragon breathes fire at you - they aren't targeting your ability scores, they're just blowing fire... it's up to you to try to save yourself from the effects of that, and you use your natural abilities to do so (your dexterity, or your constitution, etc.). When you cast grease, you aren't attacking a specific enemy, you're just making grease; the enemy that's in the area has to *save themselves* from falling over as a result.

Think of it this way:

Attacks and Ability Checks are proactive: they are you initiating something. Saving Throws are reactive: they are you responding to something.

With an attack or an ability check, you can miss or fail, and the targeted creature or intended activity may simply not occur.
With a Saving Throw, you are just doing something; it can't miss or fail, it just happens... the roll comes in because you are forcing the *enemy* to react to what you're doing.


Ability Scores is the 5e terminology for your six core stats - that feeds into ability checks, which are checks that utilise a specific ability score. Once again, the general rule of thumb works here: Ability Checks are proactive, while Saving Throws are reactive. Trying to recall a specific piece of lore so you can tell the party might call for an Intelligence Check - or, if a specific skill applies to what you're trying to recall (such as it being about a particular god), you might make an Intelligence (religion) check instead, and add your proficiency bonus if you are proficient with religion.

On the other hand, if you are about to go blundering into an area that will almost certainly incinerate you, just like a colleague warned you about previously, but you seem to have forgotten, your DM might offer you an Intelligence Saving Throw, to catch yourself and remember just before you have a bad time - recalling the danger was not something you actively chose to do or thought about, it was your memory reacting to the hitherto forgotten dangerous situation.