Deception
Full rules text, use cases, and edge-case handling for this skill.
Description
Deception covers any attempt to mislead through falsehood — outright lying, telling half-truths, misdirection, fast talk, and maintaining a false identity. It is the Charisma skill of dishonesty, contrasted with Persuasion (sincere influence) and Intimidation (coercive influence).
Check
Deception checks are most often contested by the target's Wisdom (Insight). When there is no active skeptic, the GM sets a flat DC based on how plausible the deception is.
| Difficulty | DC |
|---|---|
| Easy | 10 |
| Medium | 15 |
| Hard | 20 |
| Very Hard | 25 |
| Nearly Impossible | 30 |
Common Uses
- Telling a convincing lie to an NPC
- Passing off a forgery or fake identity document
- Maintaining a disguise under questioning
- Misleading someone about your intentions
- Bluffing in a game of chance
- Fast-talking a guard or official
Contested Checks
When a target is actively trying to detect the deception, your Deception check is contested by their Wisdom (Insight). In roleplay-heavy encounters, the GM may also weigh the plausibility of the lie regardless of the roll — an impossible lie may simply fail outright.
Passive Score
Passive Deception (10 + modifier) represents how convincingly your character maintains background cover stories and incidental social lies without actively trying — useful for long-term infiltration scenarios where rolls every minute would be impractical.
Proficiency
Deception proficiency is common among Rogues, Bards, and Warlocks. Characters built for social infiltration often take Expertise in Deception, making it extremely difficult for NPCs to see through their stories.
Special
- Rogue (Expertise): Doubling Deception's proficiency bonus is a core part of the Face Rogue archetype. Combined with high Charisma, it produces totals most NPCs cannot beat.
- Bard (Expertise): Same benefit as Rogue; Bards are the other class that frequently applies Expertise to Deception.
- Actor (feat): +1 Charisma, advantage on Deception and Performance checks when pretending to be a different person.
- Zone of Truth (spell): Prevents outright lies within its area; Deception cannot overcome it, but the target is aware they are affected — clever misdirection through technically-true statements is still possible and may not require a check.
- Detect Thoughts (spell): A caster reading surface thoughts gains advantage on Insight checks against the target, making Deception harder to sustain.