[RPG] How are ability modifiers affected by leveling

Daggers are melee weapons that have the finesse property. The finesse property allows an attacker to use their dexterity modifier for their attack bonus and damage bonus, in place of the strength modifier.

In this case, the tiefling has a +3 proficiency bonus and a +2 dex modifier, so the attack bonus should be +5 with a finesse weapon, unless there is something missing from the sheet that explains the extra +1 to bring it to +6 such as the dagger being a magic weapon or something. That doesn't appear to be the case here because the equipment for the character is listed on the sheet but something is not adding up correctly, or else I'm missing something on the sheet completely.

As for the piercing damage question, piercing is the type of damage the dagger does. The table in the equipment chapter that details the weapons tells the reader what damage die a weapon uses and also the damage type for the weapon. A dagger does 1d4 damage, and the damage type is piercing. The damage bonus is calculated by adding the attack modifier (in this case dexterity because the weapon has the finesse property) plus any other modifiers to the damage (in this case, none), giving a total of 1d4 + 2.

I'm not certain why the sheet is showing the attack bonus as +6 to hit. All of these sheets seem to have an extra 1 that I can't figure out the source of. If someone finds it, please comment because it's really bothering me and I don't know if I'm just missing something plainly obvious.

I'm leaning towards the calculations on all of these sheets being wrong and chalking it up to an error on the first sheet not being checked and being carried over to every other sheet after. I can see no reason why the bonus is +1 higher than it should be, especially since the spell attack modifier is calculated correctly using the warlock's charisma bonus + proficiency modifier.

Skill modifier = relevant ability modifier + proficiency bonus (if proficient) + other modifiers

What follows is a distillation of much of Chapter 7 of the PHB, "Using Ability Scores"

• relevant ability modifier: each skill usage is associated with an ability; you can find which either in tiny letters next to the skill on a WotC character sheet or in a chart on PHB p.174.^* Your skill modifier has, as one component, that ability’s modifier.

• proficiency bonus (if applicable): if you are proficient in the skill, then you also add your proficiency modifier to the skill modifier. You obtain skill proficiencies from your class, from your background, and possibly from downtime activities.

• other modifiers: you might pick up some other modification, the most commonly Rogues' "expertise" or Bards' "Jack of all Trades" class features. Their impact on skill modifiers is described in their respective class descriptions.

An example:

Stealth: +4 modifier

• your DEX modifier is +2

• you are proficient and (assuming you're starting this character at level 1) have a proficiency bonus of +2

• you have not mentioned being a rogue with expertise applied to Stealth, so I'll assume no other modifiers. (Jack of all Trades kicks in at level 2, and I'm still assuming level 1)

^{* - Okay, it's actually a bit more than that. Skills aren't uniquely tied to the ability listed on the sheet or in that chart; those are simply the most common abilities that invoke those skills. (And for many GMs they're the only ones that ever do.) If you read chapter 7 carefully you'll see that what we're describing aren't skill checks, but are ability checks to which a skill proficiency might be applied. So when walking into the Wizengamot and trying to talk circles around the gathering, a GM might find it appropriate to ask for an Intelligence-based intimidation check. See also the DMG p.239 or Angry GM's screed on the topic.}