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Badger 5e: Stats, Burrowing and the 2024 Badger
A badger is a CR 0 Tiny beast with a 20-foot walking speed, a 5-foot burrow speed, 30-foot darkvision and a +2 bite for 1 piercing damage. The 2014 badger has AC 10 and 3 hit points. The 2024 badger (SRD 5.2.1) gets a real upgrade: AC 11, 5 hit points, Constitution 16 and Resistance to poison damage. It's not a fight, but it's the only CR 0 creature in either SRD with a burrow speed, which makes it useful to druids and, in 2024, to wizards picking a familiar.
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Badger Stat Block (2014)
Badger
Tiny beast, unaligned
Armor Class 10
Hit Points 3 (1d4+1)
Speed 20 ft., burrow 5 ft.
STR
4 (−3)
DEX
11 (+0)
CON
12 (+1)
INT
2 (−4)
WIS
12 (+1)
CHA
5 (−3)
Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages —
Challenge 0 (XP 10; PB +2)
Traits
Keen Smell.The badger has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.
Actions
Bite.Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1 piercing damage.
Stat block from the SRD 5.1 (2014 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
The 2014 badger's one trick is Keen Smell: Advantage on Perception checks that rely on smell, for an effective passive Perception of 16 against anything it could smell. With Strength 4, its bite deals a flat 1 damage no matter what.
Stat block from the SRD 5.2.1 (2024 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
2014 Badger
2024 Badger
AC / HP
10 / 3 (1d4 + 1)
11 / 5 (1d4 + 3)
Str / Con
4 / 12
10 / 16
Perception
Keen Smell, passive 11
+3, passive 13
Resistances
None
Poison
Speed / Senses
20 ft., burrow 5 ft.; darkvision 30 ft.
Same
Bite
+2, 1 piercing
+2, 1 piercing
Hit points nearly doubled and it now shrugs off half of any poison damage. The bite didn't change, so the 2024 badger isn't more dangerous. It's harder to kill, which suits a druid or a familiar better than a monster.
How a Badger Fights
A badger bites once a round for 1 damage. Against AC 14 its +2 bite hits on a 12 or higher, 45% of the time. Even a 2024 badger is a nuisance, not a threat.
Play it as a defender. A badger that's cornered at the mouth of its sett holds its ground and bites; one in the open retreats underground. At 5 feet per round of burrowing it isn't fast, but nobody without a burrow speed or a shovel can follow.
Badger Wild Shape, Familiars and Messengers
Wild Shape. A badger has no fly or swim speed and is CR 0, so it's a level 2 form in both editions. In both SRDs, the badger and the giant badger are the only beasts of CR 1/4 or lower with a burrow speed. A druid in badger form can tunnel under a fence, a palisade or a locked garden gate through soil at 5 feet a round: a 10-foot tunnel under a wall takes two rounds. It can't burrow through solid rock, and the SRD doesn't say a burrowing creature leaves a tunnel behind, so whether the party can follow is your DM's call.
In 2014 the druid has the badger's 3 hit points. In 2024 the druid keeps its own hit points, gains temporary hit points equal to its druid level, and gets poison Resistance from the form.
Familiar (2024 only). The badger isn't on the 2014 Find Familiar list. The 2024 spell adds any Beast of CR 0, so a badger familiar is legal. It's the only burrowing option, and with 5 hit points it's sturdier than any form the spell names (most have 1 or 2). It's also slow: 20 feet on foot, 5 feet underground.
Animal Messenger. The spell targets a Tiny beast, and in 2024 it only works on Tiny beasts of CR 0. A badger qualifies in both editions. Non-flying messengers travel about 25 miles a day.
Running a Badger Encounter
A badger is worth 10 XP. Four level 1 characters have a 2024 Low budget of 200 XP, and a badger barely dents it. Use badgers as part of the terrain. Our encounter calculator handles the 2014 numbers if you include a couple in a bigger fight.
When the party needs a real fight with a badger, use the giant badger: CR 1/4, Medium, 13 hit points in 2014 (15 in 2024) and a burrow speed of 10 feet. Three of them are 150 XP, inside a level 1 Low budget, and they can pop up behind the party's back line.
A field full of badger setts makes good hazard terrain. Treating the ground as difficult terrain for anyone running across it is a DM ruling, not rules text, but it explains why the cavalry won't charge across that meadow.
How Players Beat a Badger
•Leave the sett alone. A badger that isn't cornered goes underground.
•Don't count on poison against a 2024 badger. Resistance halves poison damage. Use a weapon.
•Charm it.Animal Friendship works on its Intelligence of 2 in both editions.
•Ask it what's down there.Speak with Animals on a badger tells you about tunnels, cellars and anything else that's been digging nearby in the last day.
Badger Encounter Ideas
The undermined wall. A town's earthen rampart is sagging. Badgers have dug setts through the base, and a goblin band has noticed and is widening one to sneak in. The party finds fresh goblin footprints in the badger spoil.
The druid's tunnel. A druid prisoner in a lord's stockade escapes overnight. The only clue is a narrow tunnel under the fence and a trail of badger tracks. If the party is hunting her, they need someone who can follow a 5-foot-a-round digger.
The guard badger. A hermit keeps a badger in his root cellar. It bites anyone who opens the trapdoor without saying the word the hermit taught it. Speak with Animals gets the word out of it, for a price in mealworms.
Frequently Asked Questions
What CR is a badger in 5e?
CR 0, worth 10 XP, in both the 2014 and 2024 rules. The giant badger is CR 1/4 (50 XP).
Can a badger burrow in 5e?
Yes, at 5 feet per round through sand, earth, mud or ice. It can't dig through solid rock.
Is the 2024 badger resistant to poison?
Yes. The 2024 badger has Resistance to poison damage, 5 hit points and AC 11. The 2014 badger has no resistances, 3 hit points and AC 10.
Can a druid Wild Shape into a badger?
Yes, from level 2 in both editions. It's one of the few burrowing forms available that early.
Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.
This page includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Loreify is not affiliated with Wizards of the Coast.