What happens when a creature with 3 natural attack and grab uses a full attack action. If the grab attack hits and the creature decides to grapple its prey do the rest of the attacks happen. Or after you start a grapple in any way you loose the rest of your attacks?
Constrict and grab are two separate abilities.
I don't know if there's a set way of doing this. A lot of it depends on whether monster attacks all occur at the same time or in rapid succession.
First, a monster without constrict:
What happens when a creature with 3 natural attack and grab uses a full attack action
The creature has the option to conduct the grapple normally, or simply use the part of its body it used in the grab to hold the opponent. If it chooses to do the latter, it takes a –20 penalty on its CMB check to make and maintain the grapple, but does not gain the grappled condition itself
Bob the large , grabbing, three headed Venus flytrap Attacks with head 1 and Hits Fred the fighter. The head hits. Bob may attempt to grapple Fred either using "normally" (including his other 2 heads) at no penalty or take a -20 and attempt to grapple fred with one head. If he chooses the latter (since there's no penalty for doing so), Bob can keep attacking with heads 2 and three.
-"normally" creatures can only make one grapple check in a round, not as many as they have limbs. So if the monster chooses to act without the -20 penalty it has to stop attacking and concentrate on the grapple. This prevents anything with 8 limbs and constrict from being a Total party kill.
On hit 2, Bob can cut his losses on hit 2 and start a grapple without penalty, or he can try to grapple at -20 and hope and then take attack 3. On attack 3 there's no reason not to try the full body grapple if he hits.
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
So grab, on its own, doesn't let you deal double damage by the grapple release plan. It does let the monster damage and pin or move the opponent.
Sally the squid with constrict can pull the trick mentioned above.. grapple and let go, grapple and let go. The problem is that unless it takes the -20 its other limbs become occupied. So with three functioning tentacles, sally can do everything bob did above, except that thanks to constrict every time she wins she deals constrict damage. EVERY successful grapple check deals constrict damage, including the ones to start the grapple.
What is not totally clear for me is that:
The first attacks succeeds. The monster chooses to make a free grapple. It succeeds! (without the -20) Then it doesn't release the victim as a free action (it chose to do so, in order to be sure that it has him) will the rest of the attacks happen or since it hasn't released him the rest of the attacks are lost?
By reading these 2 threads it is not clear for me if the rest of the attacks are lost when:
a) you succeed a grapple check?
b) you succeed a grapple check and do not release as a free action?
c) They are never lost but on the next round you can maintain only one of them of course.
HERE I am always talking about the first round and without receiving the -20 penalty(the monster receives grapple condition normally). It is clear for me the next one.
Thanks in advance!
Grappled condition (p567):
Grappler & grappled can do full attack action or move (not displacement) + standard if it is an action which doesn't require 2 hands to perform.The first round, the grappler has no need to take a standard to maintain its grapple, so it may keep on to strike and grapple and finish its full round attack action with opponents grabbled.
Of course the grappler need tentacles or hands available & free to strike.If it keep its grapple, it has a penalty of -2 on its attacks. If it release its grapple by free action, it has no more penalty.
But i don't know if the penalties for grapple (-2 attack) stack with the number of grapple you have.
Ex: if monster has already 2 grapples, has it a penalty of -2 +(-2) =-4 for its 3th attack & grapple???
I believe that it is clear that they do not stuck. The -2 penalty originates from the grappled condition. A condition can be applied only one time, you cannot be stunned and stunned as you cannot be grappled and grappled. So it is clear for me that the -2 does not increase by RAW.
So in your opinion a creature with three available parts of its body that can grab can grab on the first round 3 creatures and w8 for the 2nd round to decide which one of them to sustain. Is this generally acceptable? For example BigNorseWolf said that :
-"normally" creatures can only make one grapple check in a round, not as many as they have limbs. So if the monster chooses to act without the -20 penalty it has to stop attacking and concentrate on the grapple.
What is the right argument for this. For now both of the explanations feel reasonable so I do not know which one is true. I had both of them in my mind before starting the thread and I am still confused.
By the way a grappler without 2 free hands have a -4 to grapple check. Does this apply to grab attacks or not. And how 2 hands free is translated for creatures with tentacles tales mouths and claws. It is a bit fuzzy in those situations.