Performance
Full rules text, use cases, and edge-case handling for this skill.
Description
Performance covers entertaining an audience through music, dance, acting, storytelling, or other artistic expression. It measures how effectively your character moves, captivates, and affects people through their art — not just technical skill, but presence and emotional impact.
Check
The GM calls for a Performance check when the quality of your artistic expression matters.
| Difficulty | DC |
|---|---|
| Easy | 10 |
| Medium | 15 |
| Hard | 20 |
| Very Hard | 25 |
| Nearly Impossible | 30 |
Common Uses
- Entertaining a crowd for coin or favor
- Performing as cover during an infiltration
- Distract onlookers while allies act unseen
- Impress a noble or patron with artistic skill
- Maintain a persona through extended impersonation
Performance vs. Deception: Performing as an entertainer or actor uses Performance. Actively lying to a specific person to deceive them uses Deception. A disguised infiltrator performing for a crowd uses Performance; the same infiltrator telling the guard a false identity uses Deception.
Passive Score
Passive Performance (10 + modifier) represents the baseline quality of your character's casual artistic output — how good they sound humming to themselves, or whether their natural storytelling voice draws listeners in without effort.
Proficiency
Performance is the signature skill of Bards, who often have Expertise in it. Characters with the Entertainer background also gain Performance proficiency. It is less mechanically central than Persuasion or Deception but enables distinctive social and infiltration approaches.
Special
- Bard (Bardic Inspiration): Bards use their performance as a narrative justification for Bardic Inspiration — the mechanics don't require a check, but the flavor is deeply linked.
- Actor (feat): +1 Charisma, advantage on Deception and Performance checks when pretending to be a different person; can mimic voices and speech patterns after a minute of listening.
- Instrument proficiency (tool): Musical instrument tool proficiency can be added to Performance checks involving that instrument, per the tool rules in Xanathar's Guide.
- Hypnotic Pattern / Otto's Irresistible Dance: Spells that overlap thematically with performance — the GM may occasionally call for Performance to enhance their effectiveness or narrative impact.