Characters can also be grappled by any number of creatures with a bite attack. If someone had their hydra follow suit, it stands to reason they'd be better at grappling.
Characters can also be grappled by any number of creatures with a bite attack. If someone had their hydra follow suit, it stands to reason they'd be better at grappling.
There are certainly some creatures that, in 3e parlance, "grapple as a free action" with a successful bite attack. The Hydra in 5e, using current 5e rules cannot do that. The UA changes make a Hydra an automatically great grappler. Could this be possibly justified? Yes. But A) I don't see any reason why a creature with only mouths and no hands should be automatically better at grappling than one with a mouth and four hands, and B) the grappling Hydra is a tougher Hydra, which should be reflected by an increase to CR.
Characters can also be grappled by any number of creatures with a bite attack. If someone had their hydra follow suit, it stands to reason they'd be better at grappling.
There are certainly some creatures that, in 3e parlance, "grapple as a free action" with a successful bite attack. The Hydra in 5e, using current 5e rules cannot do that. The UA changes make a Hydra an automatically great grappler. Could this be possibly justified? Yes. But A) I don't see any reason why a creature with only mouths and no hands should be automatically better at grappling than one with a mouth and four hands, and B) the grappling Hydra is a tougher Hydra, which should be reflected by an increase to CR.
If the proficiency bonus only kicked in if you were trained in athletics and they actually gave monsters some skill trainings creatures like the girllion might have the training while a Hydra wouldn't.
What makes a monster "better" at grappling is not the STR score, but the movement type. Setting aside the mouth vs hands of Hydra vs Girallon, the hydra has more utility in grappling. With a swim speed, a hydra can grapple, then swim downwards with its prey. Similarly a flying creature can grapple and fly upwards, splitting the party and causing falling damage.
Also the hydra gets multiple opportunity attacks, meaning it can grapple and shove prone a hapless fleeing adventurer.
Characters can also be grappled by any number of creatures with a bite attack. If someone had their hydra follow suit, it stands to reason they'd be better at grappling.
There are certainly some creatures that, in 3e parlance, "grapple as a free action" with a successful bite attack. The Hydra in 5e, using current 5e rules cannot do that. The UA changes make a Hydra an automatically great grappler. Could this be possibly justified? Yes. But A) I don't see any reason why a creature with only mouths and no hands should be automatically better at grappling than one with a mouth and four hands, and B) the grappling Hydra is a tougher Hydra, which should be reflected by an increase to CR.
If the proficiency bonus only kicked in if you were trained in athletics and they actually gave monsters some skill trainings creatures like the girllion might have the training while a Hydra wouldn't.
What makes a monster "better" at grappling is not the STR score, but the movement type. Setting aside the mouth vs hands of Hydra vs Girallon, the hydra has more utility in grappling. With a swim speed, a hydra can grapple, then swim downwards with its prey. Similarly a flying creature can grapple and fly upwards, splitting the party and causing falling damage.
Also the hydra gets multiple opportunity attacks, meaning it can grapple and shove prone a hapless fleeing adventurer.
EDIT: typo.