[RPG] When a creature travels via a teleportation spell, what can it carry

dnd-5espellsteleportation

There are various teleportation spells in 5th Edition D&D. Most of them have language like "You teleport" or "This spell instantly transports you".

Some, like Dimension Door, contain the following clause:

You can bring along Objects as long as their weight doesn't exceed what you can carry.

For teleportation spells without such a clause, and therefore without such a clear definition of what creatures teleported with the spell can bring along (like Misty Step, Scatter, Teleport, Plane Shift, etc.), what exactly can teleported creatures take with them?

Examples of things a teleporting creature might want to take:

  • Clothes/armor
  • Weapons
  • Miscellaneous adventuring gear they usually carry
  • Treasure chests within their carrying capacity
  • Treasure chests not within their carrying capacity

Best Answer

The RAW can get a bit weird for teleporting.

If we strictly follow the RAW for misty step, you would be naked after teleporting since it just says "You".

You teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space that you can see.

Although hilarious, it would get old pretty fast. This is why most people interpret "You" as you and all your gear. If you had a treasure chest you would have to stuff everything you can carry in your pockets and leave the rest.

Then there are spells like teleport:

This spell instantly transports [...] a single object that you can see within range, to a destination you select. If you target an object, it must be able to fit entirely inside a 10-foot cube

This means that you can teleport with all your gear and you could bring the treasure chest as long as it fits the 10-foot cube, even if it exceeds your carrying capacity. Unfortunately, you can take only the chest and not the treasure since it states that it must be a single object.

But there are also spells like thunder step (XGtE, p. 168):

You can bring along objects as long as their weight doesn’t exceed what you can carry.

This would mean that you get to bring your gear with you and also the treasure chest with the treasure as long as you can carry it.

My point is: it differs from spell to spell. You should always read the spell description before teleporting and accidentally leaving your treasure behind. And of course, talk to your DM to make sure "you" means you and your gear, or your party might get stranded in the Elemental Plane of Fire, naked in front of a fire giant, if you cast plane shift.

Related Topic