Cleave

Weapon mastery property. Requires a feature that unlocks this weapon’s mastery; weapon proficiency alone is not enough.

Trigger and effect

After you hit a creature with a melee attack roll using a Cleave weapon, you can make another melee attack with the same weapon against a different creature. The second creature must be within 5 feet of the first creature and also within your reach.

Make a separate attack roll against the second creature. On a hit, deal the weapon’s damage, but omit a positive ability modifier. A negative ability modifier still applies. For example, normal damage of 1d12 +4 becomes 1d12 for the Cleave attack; a −1 ability modifier is still included.

Limits and timing

You can make this extra attack once per turn. Cleave itself does not spend a Bonus Action. It does not grant another complete Attack action or automatically hit the second target. Both positioning requirements still apply even when your weapon has Reach.

Example weapon: Greataxe.

Workshop tracking

The workshop shows supported mastery information for selected, proficient weapons. Resolve targets, rolls, movement, timing and effects at the table.

All weapon masteries · weapon proficiency · basic actions.

Source: supplied Player’s Handbook (2024), chapter 6, Mastery Properties (PDF page 213; printed page 214). Paraphrased quick reference; specific rules can override these general rules.