Hello there, 

I need your help please. 

One of my player want prone a creature and use than grappler against that creature to keep the prone condition running. So the attacks against the prone creature stay advantage. 

I guess if he grappel a prone creature the condition prone is lost and the condition grappling starts

But i am absolutely not sure how rules in that case works. 

Cheers

Matthias 

You absolutely can Grapple a prone creature, which prevents them from standing up until the Grapple is broken. You can also Grapple a standing creature, then later use a Shove to push them prone without ending the Grapple. In both cases, there is advantage on all melee attacks against the target. 

Quote from Falent >>

 

I guess if he grapple a prone creature the condition prone is lost and the condition grappling starts

 

 Lol. Imagine a world where conditions don't stack.

A solid shove cures poison, blindness, paralysis, and even unconsciousness.

Falling asleep would make you stand up.

No. Multiple conditions do stack (some even rely on it). If you are grappled and prone, you can't stand up, but you can attack.

I don't disagree with you but a solid shove can be pretty good at curing unconsciousness IRL

Okay I see your point.

If the character grappel a creature that is prone, the character have to use least one hand and must be also go down and become also prone? 

Quote from Falent >>

Okay I see your point.

If the character grappel a creature that is prone, the character have to use least one hand and must be also go down and become also prone? 

No, you can Grapple a prone enemy while you are standing, and you can Grapple a standing enemy while you are prone. The requirement is one free hand and within 5ft.

You need one free hand to perform the grapple. Check. Do you need the free hand to maintain the grapple on subsequent rounds? Meaning once the prone creature is grappled, can the grappler use his greatsword or sword & broad to attack (with advantage since the creature is prone)?

Quote from fabianf81 >>

You need one free hand to perform the grapple. Check. Do you need the free hand to maintain the grapple on subsequent rounds? Meaning once the prone creature is grappled, can the grappler use his greatsword or sword & broad to attack (with advantage since the creature is prone)?

 I'm not even going to double check the rules, no DM will let you maintain a grapple without holding them with something.

Well if it's a DM ruling, that's fine, but that would also be homebrew. You could grapple someone by planting a foot on their chest, or by biting it (as dragonborne), by standing on its throat, etc.

If you would go and double check the rules (RAW and Sage Advice) it says, once an opponent is subject to the grapple-condition, this condition lasts until the following:

If you succeed [the grapple], you subject the target to the grappled condition. The condition specifies the things that end it [see below], and you can release the target whenever you like (no action required).

And in the condition it says its end:

• The condition ends if the grappler is incapacitated (see the condition).
• The condition also ends if an effect removes the grappled creature from the reach of the grappler or grappling effect, such as when a creature is hurled away by the thunderwave spell.

So this reads to me: as long as you are within 5ft of the target (hence not removed by an effect), you are not incapacitated the opponent would still be subject to the grappeled condition, which means you have both hands to attack it.

I believe sage advice confirmed this but can't find this at the moment.

From the basic rules on Grappling:

Using at least one free hand, you try to seize the target by making a grapple check .... and you can release the target whenever you like (no action required).

You must have at least one free hand to initiate a grapple, and releasing the target ends the grapple. Therefore it requires you to maintain a grip on the target to maintain a grapple.

no DM will let you maintain a grapple without holding them with something

I agree, you need to maintain the grapple. However, whether it takes a hand to do so will depend on the situation.

As mentioned, there are other ways IRL which you could use to maintain the grapple. Standing/sitting/kneeling on them would work. If I was DMing, it would depend a lot on how the player described their character's actions. Strictly, there is nothing in the rules which requires you to keep using that hand while maintaining the grapple that I can see, but I would need to hear a reasonable description of an alternative method of keeping someone held in place.

Do I understand then the rules right as follows:

fighter level 5 (2 Attacks)

1st attack: I make a shove attack and knock an opponent prone

2nd attack: grapple the opponent (with one hand)

Then his turn, he tries to escape and fails. 

my turn:

I automatically maintain grappling with one hand and can use my two attacks to make two short sword attacks (with advantage since opponent is prone)?

Or do I have to use one of these attacks to do another grapple to maintain then?

Quote from fabianf81 >>

my turn:

I automatically maintain grappling with one hand and can use my two attacks to make two short sword attacks (with advantage since opponent is prone)?

Or do I have to use one of these attacks to do another grapple to maintain then?

 You automatically maintain grapple, assuming it hasn't been broken somehow.

So this means that as homebrew we have to add a bullett to end the grapple:

as per PHB:

• The condition ends if the grappler is incapacitated (see the condition).
• The condition also ends if an effect removes the grappled creature from the reach of the grappler or grappling effect, such as when a creature is hurled away by the thunderwave spell.

and Homebrew-Addition:

• The condition ends also if the grappler has no hand free to maintain the grapple, such as attacking with a bow or making an attack with a two-handed weapon or wealding a shield. (Casting spells only requires one free hand - so nerf the Two-handed or two weapon fighters, and also the fighter how grappels the opponent by pressing his shield against an enemy in front of a wall...)

This additional bullet point wouldn't work for creatures that grapple without using hands; conditions are used by all creatures, not just PCs. However PCs are (almost) all humanoids with two limbs with which they can grapple; hence why the actions in combat specifies how a PC grapples.

As Davedamon quoted you can end the grapple by releasing them - no action required. If you attack with a two-handed weapon then you are obviously releasing them. There's no need for that extra homebrew bullet point because it's already accounted for.

So a Sword & Board Fighter who grappelt someone by pushing the shield against the opponent in front of a wall and makes an attack does not loose the grapple but a greatsword fighter who stands on the arm of a prone creatures (grappled) would loose the grapple?

A fighter wielding a sword and a shield can't grapple to begin with. They have no free hands. They would either have to disarm themselves by dropping or sheathing their sword - or doffing their shield (which takes an action).

As Davedamon said above - a free hand is required to grapple. So grappling with your foot technically isn't possible (for players). You can RP flavour it that way - but rules wise no can do.

Yeah, you definitely need the free hand to make the initial grapple RAW. I can see no written rule to stop you maintaining the grapple without using a hand, though. (Happy to be corrected if I have missed it)

Quote from UrthTheThoughtless >>

Yeah, you definitely need the free hand to make the initial grapple RAW. I can see no written rule to stop you maintaining the grapple without using a hand, though. (Happy to be corrected if I have missed it)

 Ok, the condition ends when you release them. Describe how you use that hand without letting go/releasing.