Your vision abilities determine how well you can see in different levels of light.
Categories of light
Light in the D&D game is defined in three categories: bright light, dim light, and darkness.
- Bright Light: This category includes the light provided by most portable light sources, daylight, and the light cast by surrounding fires or lava. There are no special rules for vision in bright light.
- Dim Light: This category includes the light provided by a candle or another dim light source, moonlight, indirect illumination (such as in a cave interior whose entrance is nearby or in a subterranean passageway that has narrow shafts extending to the surface), and the light cast by things such as phosphorescent fungi. Characters who have normal vision can’t see well in dim light: Creatures in the area have concealment (page 281). Characters who have low-light vision or darkvision see normally in dim light.
- Darkness: Darkness prevails outside on a moonless night or in rooms with no light sources. Characters who have normal vision or low-light vision can’t see creatures or objects in darkness; creatures in the area have total concealment to them. Characters who have darkvision can see in darkness without penalty.
Light sources
Many dungeons are adequately lit, but some adventurers bring a torch or sunrod when venturing. Light sources can generally be seen from at least a quarter-mile away, and exceptionally bright sources are visible up to a mile away.
| Source | Radius | Brightness | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jar of glowworms | 0 | dim | - |
| Candle | 2 | dim | 1 hour |
| Candle clocks | 2 | dim | 8 hours |
| Torch | 5 | bright | 1 hour |
| Everburning torch | 5 | bright | - |
| Lantern | 10 | bright | 8 hours/pint of oil |
| Bull's-eye lantern | special | bright | 8 hours/pint of oil |
| Campfire | 10 | bright | 8 hours |
| Sunrod | 20 | bright | 4 hours |
Vision and light conditions
The following table summarizes the effects of light on characters with different vision.
| Light Conditions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Vision | Bright Light | Dim Light | Darkness |
| Normal Vision | See normally | Cannot see well. Creatures in the area have concealment. | Can’t see creatures or objects. |
| Low-Light Vision | See normally | See normally | Can’t see creatures or objects. |
| Darkvision | See normally | See normally | See normally |
Special Senses
Some creatures have special sense that allow the to detect enemies in unusual situations, such as all-around vision, blindsight, darkvision, tremorsense, and truesight.