I've been compiling the Homebrew rules I've been using at my table for some time now, and as I write more, I think of better ways to improve the current rules that I am unsatisfied with. This is my first piece of Homebrew material that I am posting for critique and revision. I am in no way a professional writer, and my wording is a little jumbled in areas. if anyone has any suggestions on how to better improve these rules, how they use similar rules in their own game, or a better way to phrase my poor choice of words, I would love to hear it.
The following are revisions and additions to the current grappling ruling in D&D 5th Edition, written with the intent to make grappling more interesting, flexible, and useful.
Status Effect: Grappled
A creature must have two open hands when attempting to grapple.
When grappling a creature, the creature’s speed is reduced to 0, you can then choose one of the following additional effects; you cannot choose an additional effect if you are prone.
(In no particular order)
Pin: The grappled creature has disadvantage on its Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check to escape, and it cannot make a Strength (Athletics) check to move while grappled.
Strangle: (Required 13 Strength.) You grasp at the creature’s throat with the intent to suffocate. If the grappled creature fails to escape after 3 rounds + their Constitution modifier (minimum of 1 round), it must succeed a DC 15 Constitution saving throw on the following turn or fall unconscious. A creature automatically succeeds the saving throw if they cannot be suffocated.
Disarm: You lunge for a creature’s weapon. The creature has disadvantage on attack rolls they make for the duration of the effect. At the start of your next turns, the grappled creature must succeed on a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check contested by your Strength (Athletics) check or have their weapon thrown 10 feet away from them. On a success, the disarm feature ends but the creature is still grappled. On a fail, you must make a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw or take the weapons damage. If it is a ranged weapon or has the loading property it can only be fired once while grappled this way.
Restrain: The grappled creature is now considered restrained. Any check you make while grappling is at disadvantage. If the grappled creature escapes they can use their reaction to make a melee attack against you.
Drag: (Required 15 Strength.) You try to pick up or move a creature to another location. The grappled creature has advantage on any melee attacks against you. You can only use your action to move the creature up to half your movement speed. Dropping grapple is an action, the creature then falls prone 5 feet in front of you. You cannot use this effect if the grappled creature is one size or larger than you.
Tackle: (You must spend at least 10 feet of movement on your turn before you grapple to use this effect.) Both you and the grappled creature are knocked prone. The grappled creature cannot stand up without escaping the grapple.
You must attempt to grapple again if you want to switch effects.
A grappled creature can move half of its movement speed without escaping grapple by making a successful Strength (Athletics) check contested by your Strength (Athletics) check at disadvantage. After attempting this they can no longer use their action to try to escape that turn.
The grappler can use their action to attempt to move up to half their movement speed on a successful Strength (Athletics) check contested by the grappled creature’s Strength (Athletics) check at disadvantage.
A creature with the Grappler feat can choose one additional effect after they successfully grapple a creature.
It seems interesting on first read, I do like the over all idea of adding risk/reward to the situation.
Some quick questions (not intended as criticism, just more curious about your intent)
A creature must have two open hands when attempting to grapple
Maybe restrict this to only be req for the advanced grapple techniques? Reaching out with one hand and grabbing the enemy clothing/armor while bashing at him with your one handed weapon is the quint-essential case for grappling, it be shame to loose that.
you cannot choose an additional effect if you are prone.
But one of the additional effects is "pin" is that not a reference to a wrestler style pin? is that something else?
On the disarm, that's a lot of rolls. I wonder if the taking damage from the weapon could be done if you fail the contest by more than 5 or something. But that is interesting, mechanic with a high risk/reward so that is interesting.
Strangle: min 4 rounds to work, that's a long time. And seems you'd get there faster just attacking with non-lethal damage. Might have use in RP.
Restrain: So, once you get to restrain state, it is actually easier for the target to break the grapple? That doesn't seem logically consistent, you would do this to give your team a round of advantage attacks but at the risk of a return attack on you when the target breaks out?
Drag: Not sure about the drop at the end, i guess you could flavor it as a push pull contest and you just let go of them so they fall back? still feels like that shouldn't be a guaranteed outcome of drag?
@Leech2220 I agree, thank you for your feedback. I overlooked that while writing, I will make sure to specify that you only need two hands when applying a grapple effect, not just when grappling.
In response to your edit: The inclusion of the "Pin" effect is actually why I included that ruling on being prone, otherwise it would have been the only excluded effect. In wrestling you have to apply your whole body and weight to properly pin an opponent. I don't see that as a possibility if you are stuck on the ground. The only issue I can think of that this creates, is the inability to switch effects after tackling someone without standing up, which seems a little... lame? IDK it sort of breaks the fluidity of the RP this creates. Perhaps a good workaround would be that you can still use an effect if you are BOTH prone.
As for Strangle, it's a mistype, the "minimum of 1" is for the number of rounds, not the minimum modifier, making it really only useful for taking out low constitution creatures without causing them any harm. So yes, might have some good use in RP. I also considered having the strangle check be made at advantage because of your "fury", because it is obviously the most "personal" effect, but I feared players abusing this as an alternative that make combat too easy sometimes.
The logic on Restrain is you have to fully apply yourself to use this, leaving many openings for the grapple to be broken. Restrained as an effect is very powerful for a player to wield freely, and giving yourself disadvantage really just balances it back to a straight roll. It is one of the more "high risk, high reward" options on this list, but immensely useful if your party can outnumber the enemy.
Drag was the most recent one I wrote and is still under the most amount of rewrite. I imagine it most as a fireman's carry or something similar. Where you have the option to let them down gently, or ruthlessly toss them to the ground. I might end up renaming it to avoid misunderstanding.
I don't think these rules would have the effect you intend, for a number of reasons.
Requiring both hands rules out attacking with a weapon, and grappling two creatures at once.
Strangle is a bad deal in terms of action economy. You're forgoing several rounds worth of attacks.
Disarming is usually suboptimal in the RAW compared with making regular attacks.
Dragging an enemy is already done for free (at a movement penalty) under RAW.
Tackling seems like a worse deal than using the shove action while grappling.
Overall, it just seems overly complicated. A sound strategy for grappling under RAW is to liberally use grappling on multiple creatures, use the shove action in tandem with multiple attacks, and use movement. These rules seem to make those actions either impossible or more complicated to achieve.
I don't think these rules would have the effect you intend, for a number of reasons.
Requiring both hands rules out attacking with a weapon, and grappling two creatures at once.
Strangle is a bad deal in terms of action economy. You're forgoing several rounds worth of attacks.
Disarming is usually suboptimal in the RAW compared with making regular attacks.
Dragging an enemy is already done for free (at a movement penalty) under RAW.
Tackling seems like a worse deal than using the shove action while grappling.
Overall, it just seems overly complicated. A sound strategy for grappling under RAW is to liberally use grappling on multiple creatures, use the shove action in tandem with multiple attacks, and use movement. These rules seem to make those actions either impossible or more complicated to achieve.
Well thank you for the feedback. These have been considered now, and were considered while writing them. These are not replacements for the current rules on grappling, just additions to make a fight that has active grappling more compelling. A player that uses these rules can always just make a standard grapple and not be subject to any give/take scenarios. As for the two-handed required grapple I have already revised that on a separate document to where it now states you only need both hands open to use one of the effects while grappling.
Strangle is worded poorly, I understand. But it gives you the option to knock unconscious a low Constitution enemy in just 2 rounds without causing them any harm. I can see how from a War-Gamer viewpoint, strangle, tackle, and disarm can seem extremely suboptimal, but from an RP standpoint, these can be great additions to your game that make combat more dynamic without taking levels in Battle Master or Monk.
I absolutely agree, the rules are a little complicated for a feature that everyone would freely have access to. If you have any notes on how to simplify or streamline these notions, I am open for feedback. Otherwise, your criticism still helps too!
I've been compiling the Homebrew rules I've been using at my table for some time now, and as I write more, I think of better ways to improve the current rules that I am unsatisfied with. This is my first piece of Homebrew material that I am posting for critique and revision. I am in no way a professional writer, and my wording is a little jumbled in areas. if anyone has any suggestions on how to better improve these rules, how they use similar rules in their own game, or a better way to phrase my poor choice of words, I would love to hear it.
The following are revisions and additions to the current grappling ruling in D&D 5th Edition, written with the intent to make grappling more interesting, flexible, and useful.
Status Effect: Grappled
(In no particular order)
It seems interesting on first read, I do like the over all idea of adding risk/reward to the situation.
Some quick questions (not intended as criticism, just more curious about your intent)
Maybe restrict this to only be req for the advanced grapple techniques? Reaching out with one hand and grabbing the enemy clothing/armor while bashing at him with your one handed weapon is the quint-essential case for grappling, it be shame to loose that.
But one of the additional effects is "pin" is that not a reference to a wrestler style pin? is that something else?
On the disarm, that's a lot of rolls. I wonder if the taking damage from the weapon could be done if you fail the contest by more than 5 or something. But that is interesting, mechanic with a high risk/reward so that is interesting.
Strangle: min 4 rounds to work, that's a long time. And seems you'd get there faster just attacking with non-lethal damage. Might have use in RP.
Restrain: So, once you get to restrain state, it is actually easier for the target to break the grapple? That doesn't seem logically consistent, you would do this to give your team a round of advantage attacks but at the risk of a return attack on you when the target breaks out?
Drag: Not sure about the drop at the end, i guess you could flavor it as a push pull contest and you just let go of them so they fall back? still feels like that shouldn't be a guaranteed outcome of drag?
Tackle: Sounds fun
@Leech2220 I agree, thank you for your feedback. I overlooked that while writing, I will make sure to specify that you only need two hands when applying a grapple effect, not just when grappling.
In response to your edit: The inclusion of the "Pin" effect is actually why I included that ruling on being prone, otherwise it would have been the only excluded effect. In wrestling you have to apply your whole body and weight to properly pin an opponent. I don't see that as a possibility if you are stuck on the ground. The only issue I can think of that this creates, is the inability to switch effects after tackling someone without standing up, which seems a little... lame? IDK it sort of breaks the fluidity of the RP this creates. Perhaps a good workaround would be that you can still use an effect if you are BOTH prone.
As for Strangle, it's a mistype, the "minimum of 1" is for the number of rounds, not the minimum modifier, making it really only useful for taking out low constitution creatures without causing them any harm. So yes, might have some good use in RP. I also considered having the strangle check be made at advantage because of your "fury", because it is obviously the most "personal" effect, but I feared players abusing this as an alternative that make combat too easy sometimes.
The logic on Restrain is you have to fully apply yourself to use this, leaving many openings for the grapple to be broken. Restrained as an effect is very powerful for a player to wield freely, and giving yourself disadvantage really just balances it back to a straight roll. It is one of the more "high risk, high reward" options on this list, but immensely useful if your party can outnumber the enemy.
Drag was the most recent one I wrote and is still under the most amount of rewrite. I imagine it most as a fireman's carry or something similar. Where you have the option to let them down gently, or ruthlessly toss them to the ground. I might end up renaming it to avoid misunderstanding.
I don't think these rules would have the effect you intend, for a number of reasons.
Overall, it just seems overly complicated. A sound strategy for grappling under RAW is to liberally use grappling on multiple creatures, use the shove action in tandem with multiple attacks, and use movement. These rules seem to make those actions either impossible or more complicated to achieve.
Well thank you for the feedback. These have been considered now, and were considered while writing them. These are not replacements for the current rules on grappling, just additions to make a fight that has active grappling more compelling. A player that uses these rules can always just make a standard grapple and not be subject to any give/take scenarios. As for the two-handed required grapple I have already revised that on a separate document to where it now states you only need both hands open to use one of the effects while grappling.
Strangle is worded poorly, I understand. But it gives you the option to knock unconscious a low Constitution enemy in just 2 rounds without causing them any harm. I can see how from a War-Gamer viewpoint, strangle, tackle, and disarm can seem extremely suboptimal, but from an RP standpoint, these can be great additions to your game that make combat more dynamic without taking levels in Battle Master or Monk.
I absolutely agree, the rules are a little complicated for a feature that everyone would freely have access to. If you have any notes on how to simplify or streamline these notions, I am open for feedback. Otherwise, your criticism still helps too!