Hi Folks,
I'm running "Burnt Offerings" this Saturday and need some help regarding the Tentamort - 3.5 grappling rules, tactics and Pathfinder rules.
The Tentamort has melee +5 (1d4+2), grapple +9, constrict (1d4+2) and sting +0 (1d4+1) and improved grab.
So if the Tentamort hits, he deals 1d4+2 damage, could initiate a grapple for free, and - if he wins the check - could immediatly constrict for 1d4+1 damage. Could he also use his sting or melee attack in this round?
Next round he could damage the hero, do constrict damage and use his sting (all as a full round action)?!
As for tactics: could the Tentamort simply grab, constrict every round and try to move the constricted hero outside the cave? The Tentamort can climb, thus I guess he would need two rounds to leave the cave with the poor hero - which makes this fight really hard as he could drop into the water when the Tentamort is slain (if they ever could reach it).
In addion: when you attack the Tentamort which is grappling a hero - is there a chance that you hit the hero instead? Can't find this type of rules.
If we pathfinderize the Tentamort:
- CMB would be +9 for grapples
- dealing damage equal to unarmed damage - this would be the standard damage of 1d4+2? In addition to constrict 1d4+1?
Thanks you for your help,
kikai
Creative Director
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Ahhh, grapple! Here's how I'd run it:
The tentamort basically has its two attacks. One is its constriction tentacle; if it hits with that one, it does normal tentacle damage and tries to grapple. If it wins the grapple, it immediately does the constriction damage. It also gets to make its stinger attack as well; if it grapples a foe, it tries to sting the grappled foe (but can't sting someone else) and takes a –4 penalty on that sting attack since it's grappling.
On the next round, on the tentamort's turn, it makes another grapple check. If it wins that check, it deals constriction damage again. It can try to sting the grappled foe again as well. All as a full-round action.
(ADVANCED NOTE: If the tentamort elects to try to grapple ONLY with its tentacle, it can do so by taking a –20 penalty on its grapple check. If it STILL grabs a foe, it does constrict damage but isn't considered to be grappling itself, and can sting other foes as well. The tentamort's probably not smart enough or strong enough to try this stunt, though, so it's best to ignore this option.)
As for tactics: Remember that the tentamort is SUPER STUPID. It probably won't try anything fancy once it grabs a foe other than constricting and stinging. If it's being attacked by other creatures and it's taking a lot of damage, it'll probably just drop its grappled victim and try to crawl away (since moving while you're grappling a foe is tough). In any event, the tactic of grabbing a foe, moving to the exit, and then dropping the foe isn't something a dumb tentamort would do, especially since that's basically throwing away its lunch.
When you attack a creature that's grappling another creature, you don't have a chance to hit the creature being grappled. A lot of folk house rule this, but I don't; being grappled is already bad news, and it's both silly to assume that your friends are suddenly such bad shots that they don't bother to try not hitting you and mean to make it a possibility. Beyond that... adding this wrinkle makes the whole grapple scene EVEN MORE COMPLICATED by adding a new variable; an unnecessary variable, at that.
Constrict damage doesn't double up on dealing unarmed damage, as far as I know. Constrict's big thing is basically letting you start the process of doing that damage on the round you initially grapple, rather than forcing you to wait until the next round after you start the grapple to start squeezing.
NOTE: Grapple's complex. The above is how I run grapple in my game, but there are certainly other interpretations.
Might be worth adding a specific statement in the Pathfinder RPG that there's no chance to hit a grappled ally.
Ahhh, grapple! Here's how I'd run it:
thank you very much, this is very helpful :)
just some comments on certain parts below
As for tactics: Remember that the tentamort is SUPER STUPID. It probably won't try anything fancy once it grabs a foe other than constricting and stinging. If it's being attacked by other creatures and it's taking a lot of damage, it'll probably just drop its grappled victim and try to crawl away (since moving while you're grappling a foe is tough). In any event, the tactic of grabbing a foe, moving to the exit, and then dropping the foe isn't something a dumb tentamort would do, especially since that's basically throwing away its lunch.
I don't think it would do in on purpuse, but it could simply go for a quit place which would be outside of the cave. So the danger is not that the Tentamort tries to kill its prey, but not that the Tentamort is the only thing which keeps the hero from dropping into the water. This could add an exciting element but also be very deadly. I'm thinking about it.
Constrict damage doesn't double up on dealing unarmed damage, as far as I know. Constrict's big thing is basically letting you start the process of doing that damage on the round you initially grapple, rather than forcing you to wait until the next round after you start the grapple to start squeezing.
I thought: how would I handle it when it's not 3.5, but Pathfinder?
The rules just offer to deal damage equal to your unarmed damage. So what would the Tentamort - after a successufl check - do for a damage? is the unarmed damge 1d4+2? What about constrict? And there is no word about attacking a grappled creature with a weapon like the sting. Maybe this is something which needs some additional lines.as a side note: I don't post must, so I'd like to express how much I like the Paizo-team and your products. My FLGS is very happy about you, too, because I spend so many EUROs in his store.
The Tentamort does its tentacle damage in addition to constrict damage every round it maintains the grapple. Check definitions of Improved Grab and Constrict on the SRD or Monster Manual:
From Improved Grab entry:
"If the creature does not constrict, each successful grapple check it makes during successive rounds automatically deals the damage indicated for the attack that established the hold. Otherwise, it deals constriction damage as well (the amount is given in the creature’s descriptive text)."
Hope this helps
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I thought I was going crazy there because I remembered a rule but was having trouble finding it. You actually do roll randomly to see which character you strike in a grapple, but only for ranged attacks.
According to the SRD 'Combat Modifiers' chart-
Grappling (but attacker is not) +0(1) +0(1,3)
(1)The defender loses any Dexterity bonus to AC.
(3)Roll randomly to see which grappling combatant you strike. That defender loses any Dexterity bonus to AC.
Its not under the grappling section though. Things are always way too hard to find in this book. I was thinking I had just made that up for a second there.
-Tarlane
Edit for clarity: That is on Armor class modifiers under the combat modifiers section of the SRD. Chart 8:6 in the PHB.