System Reference Document 5.2.1
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MarcHinG ordEr
The adventurers should establish a marching order 
while they travel, whether indoors or outdoors. A 
marching order makes it easier to determine which 
characters are affected by traps, which ones can spot 
hidden enemies, and which ones are the closest to 
those enemies if a fight breaks out. You can change 
your marching order outside combat and record the 
order any way you like: write it down, for example, 
or arrange miniatures to show it.
a door, and the GM describes what happens. Some -
times, however, rules govern what you can do with 
an object, as detailed in the following sections.
What Is an Object?
For the purpose of the rules, an object is a discrete, 
inanimate item like a window, door, sword, book, 
table, chair, or stone. It isn’t a building or a vehicle, 
which are composed of many objects.
Time-Limited Object Interactions
When time is short, such as in combat, interactions 
with objects are limited: one free interaction per 
turn. That interaction must occur during a crea-
ture’s movement or action. Any additional inter -
actions require the Utilize action, as explained in 
“Combat” later in “Playing the Game.”
Finding Hidden Objects
When your character searches for hidden things, 
such as a secret door or a trap, the GM typically asks 
you to make a Wisdom (Perception) check, provided 
you describe the character searching in the hidden 
object’s vicinity. On a success, you find the object, 
other important details, or both.
 If you describe your character searching nowhere 
near a hidden object, a Wisdom (Perception) check 
won’t reveal the object, no matter the check’s total.
Carrying Objects
You can usually carry your gear and treasure with -
out worrying about the weight of those objects. If 
you try to haul an unusually heavy object or a mas -
sive number of lighter objects, the GM might require 
you to abide by the rules for carrying capacity in 
“Rules Glossary.”
Breaking Objects
As an action, you can automatically break or oth -
erwise destroy a fragile, nonmagical object, such 
as a glass container or a piece of paper. If you try to 
damage something more resilient, the GM might use 
the rules on breaking objects in “Rules Glossary.”
Hazards
Monsters are the main perils characters face, but 
other dangers await. “Rules Glossary” defines the 
following hazards:
Burning
Dehydration
Falling
Malnutrition
Suffocation
Travel
During an adventure, the characters might travel 
long distances on trips that could take hours or 
days. The GM can summarize this travel without 
calculating exact distances or travel times, or the 
GM might have you use the travel pace rules below.
 If you need to know how fast you can move when 
every second matters, see the movement rules in 
“Combat” later in “Playing the Game.”
Travel Pace
While traveling outside combat, a group can move 
at a Fast, Normal, or Slow pace, as shown on the 
Travel Pace table. The table states how far the 
party can move in a period of time; if riding horses 
or other mounts, the group can move twice that 
distance for 1 hour, after which the mounts need a 
Short or Long Rest before they can move at that in -
creased pace again (see “Equipment” for a selection 
of mounts for sale). “Gameplay Toolbox” has rules 
that affect which pace you can choose in certain 
types of terrain.
Travel Pace
Pace
Distance Traveled Per …
Minute Hour Day
Fast 400 feet 4 miles 30 miles
Normal 300 feet 3 miles 24 miles
Slow 200 feet 2 miles 18 miles
Each travel pace has a game effect, as defined below.
 Fast.  Traveling at a Fast pace imposes Disadvan -
tage on a traveler’s Wisdom (Perception or Sur -
vival) and Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
 Normal.  Traveling at a Normal pace imposes Dis -
advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
 Slow.  Traveling at a Slow pace grants Advantage 
on Wisdom (Perception or Survival) checks.
Vehicles
Travelers in wagons, carriages, or other land vehi -
cles choose a pace as normal. Characters in a water -
borne vessel are limited to the speed of the vessel, 
and they don’t choose a travel pace. Depending on 
the vessel and the size of the crew, ships might be 
able to travel for up to 24 hours per day. “Equip -
ment” includes vehicles for sale.