Armor Calculator 5e for AC and Damage Avoided

Armor Calculator 5e

Build a defensive profile for D&D 5e armor, shields, Dexterity, cover, magic bonuses, hit odds, stealth tradeoffs, and expected damage avoided.

🎯Descriptive 5e Armor Presets

Presets fill every field and recalculate immediately. They are examples for comparing defensive math, not character build recommendations.

🛡Armor and Attack Inputs

Armor type

Shield equipped

Dexterity modifier

Light armor uses full Dex, medium armor usually caps at +2, and heavy armor ignores Dex.

Defense fighting style

Magic armor or shield bonus

Cover against the attack

Armor feature or feat

Stealth disadvantage handling

Enemy attack bonus

The calculator applies natural 1 always misses and natural 20 always hits.

Enemy roll mode

Average damage per hit

Incoming attacks counted

Total Defensive AC

including cover if selected

Enemy Hit Chance

after advantage state

Hit Chance Reduction

versus unarmored baseline

Expected Damage Avoided

for the attack sequence

⚔Current Defensive Snapshot

Armor Category

Dex Modifier Used

Stealth Status

Expected Damage Taken

📘5e Armor Reference Table

Armor	Category	AC Formula	Dex Handling	Stealth
No armor	Unarmored	10 + Dex modifier	Full modifier	Normal
Padded	Light	11 + Dex modifier	Full modifier	Disadvantage
Leather	Light	11 + Dex modifier	Full modifier	Normal
Studded leather	Light	12 + Dex modifier	Full modifier	Normal
Hide	Medium	12 + Dex modifier	Max +2 normally	Normal
Chain shirt	Medium	13 + Dex modifier	Max +2 normally	Normal
Scale mail	Medium	14 + Dex modifier	Max +2 normally	Disadvantage
Breastplate	Medium	14 + Dex modifier	Max +2 normally	Normal
Half plate	Medium	15 + Dex modifier	Max +2 normally	Disadvantage
Ring mail	Heavy	14 flat	Dex ignored	Disadvantage
Chain mail	Heavy	16 flat	Dex ignored	Disadvantage
Splint	Heavy	17 flat	Dex ignored	Disadvantage
Plate	Heavy	18 flat	Dex ignored	Disadvantage

🧮Modifier Reference Table

Modifier	AC Effect	When It Applies	Calculator Handling
Shield	+2 AC	When a shield is equipped and usable	Added after armor formula
Defense fighting style	+1 AC	Only while wearing armor	Ignored for no-armor setups
Magic bonus	+1 to +3 AC	Magic armor, shield, or similar AC item	Added as one combined bonus
Half cover	+2 AC	Obstacle covers at least half the target	Included in defensive AC
Three-quarters cover	+5 AC	Obstacle covers about three-quarters	Included in defensive AC
Medium armor cap	Dex max +2	Most medium armor AC formulas	Cap can be raised to +3 by selected feature

🎲Hit Chance Reference Table

Attack Bonus vs AC	Needed Roll	Normal Hit Chance	With Advantage	With Disadvantage
+5 vs AC 13	8+	65%	88%	42%
+5 vs AC 16	11+	50%	75%	25%
+5 vs AC 18	13+	40%	64%	16%
+8 vs AC 20	12+	45%	70%	20%
+10 vs AC 24	14+	35%	58%	12%

🗂Comparison Grid

Setup	Example Inputs	AC Before Cover	Stealth Tradeoff	Best Use in Calculator
Unarmored scout	Dex +4, no shield	14	Normal stealth	Baseline for agile characters without armor
Leather archer	Leather, Dex +3	14	Normal stealth	Light armor comparison with full Dexterity
Studded duelist	Studded, Dex +4, shield	18	Normal stealth	High-Dex shield build math
Breastplate ranger	Breastplate, Dex +2, shield	18	Normal stealth	Medium armor without stealth disadvantage
Half plate bruiser	Half plate, Dex +2, shield	19	Disadvantage	Maximum common medium armor AC
Plate guardian	Plate, shield, Defense	21	Disadvantage	Heavy armor defensive benchmark

💡Armor Math Tips

Cover check: Half cover adds the same AC as a shield for attacks it applies to, so compare both before assuming a heavier armor choice changes the encounter math.

Stealth check: Medium and heavy armor can raise AC while changing stealth risk. Use the stealth override only when your table has a specific feature, magic item, or ruling.

Choosing armor in Dungeons & Dragons 5e involve calculating how armor interacts with attack. Armor affects how often attacks connects with you as a character. Armor also affects how much damage you take from attacks that connect with you.

Characters that need to move silently need a different type of armor than characters that stand in the front line of the battle. Armor has a base value based off the type of armor. Light armor allow you to add your Dexterity modifier to the Armor Class.

How to Choose Armor in D&D 5e

Medium armor permits only a portion of your Dexterity modifier to be added to the Armor Class. Heavy armor dont permit you to use your Dexterity modifier. Each type of armor is for a specific role for the character.

Characters with high Dexterity can use light armor to permit the full use of there Dexterity modifier. Characters with high Strength can use heavy armor even though they have to give up the use of Dexterity. Shields and fighting styles adds to the Armor Class.

The shield increases the Armor Class and isnt dependent upon you movement. The Defense fighting style permits a character to have an increased Armor Class but is only useful if you are wearing armor. Magic bonuses permit the enemy to have a higher target number to hit you.

These bonuses are additive to the Armor Class which your armor provides. Cover based on your environment provides an increase to your Armor Class. Some armor provides greater benefit than magic items.

However, cover require positioning. You can calculate the benefit of a shield compared to cover using a calculator. Your Dexterity modifier can interact with your armor in different ways.

Medium armor permits only part of the Dexterity modifier. You can use a feat to increase the Dexterity modifier. However, you must select the specific feat.

The Dexterity contribution change based on whether you have taken the feature. The calculator automatically change the Dexterity contribution if you take the feature. Stealth can be affected by armor choice.

Some armor choices make noise when you move and give the enemy advantage on stealth attacks. Other armor does not have this disadvantage. Stealth is important because many encounters will reward characters that sneak up on enemies.

However, a failed stealth attack might turn an ambush into a different type of fight. You calculate your Armor Class to determine your hit chance and the damage you will take. The enemy must roll a number on the d20 to determine if they will hit your Armor Class.

Advantage and disadvantage will change the chance that the enemy will hit you but will not change your Armor Class. Knowing your Armor Class and the damage you will take per hit will allow you to calculate the total damage that you will take during an encounter. The Armor Class calculator will calculate these attacks and allow you to determine if increasing your Armor Class is more worth the cost of losing stealth or speed.

Many people will make mistake in calculating Armor Class. One mistake is treating all Armor Class bonuses as equally valuable. For instance, a shield with half cover will give you a two-point bonus to your Armor Class, but the shield is a permanent item and half cover is situational.

A magic item will work every encounter, but cover may not work every round. When you calculate your Armor Class, you must decide if it is better to spend your gold on armor or to search for better position to use cover. The tables on this page provide the Armor Class base formula for each type of armor and the Dexterity modifiers for each armor.

The tables will allow you to quickly determine your assumptions. These tables will give you an idea of how armor types will fare against the same attack bonus. The goal of Armor Class is not to provide the highest Armor Class for your character.

It is to reduce the total amount of damage you will take during the game. In some instances, it is better to have a lower Armor Class to have better Dexterity and stealth. In other instances, it is better to have a higher Armor Class even if you must give up some of your movement or stealth.