Hi all, I'm about to start in a campaign as a druid with a lion animal companion. It has the rake ability but no grab. I'm trying to understand how to make this work and follow the sequence of events to make it happen.
My understanding is that to rake, the lion would have to first initiate a grapple with CMB vs CMD of target and forego its normal attack as well as provoking an AOO. Then once the grapples achieved it can on the following round while maintaining the grapple inflict its bite damage and two rake claw damage. Does this sound right?
If so then wouldn't it just be smarter to move up to the opponent and bite on round 1 then full attack on round two. Thereby gaining an extra attack and not suffering an AOO?
Please help me to see what if anything I'm not following with this scenario.
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Cat, Big (Lion, Tiger)
Starting Statistics: Size Medium; Speed 40 ft.; AC +1 natural armor; Attack bite (1d6), 2 claws (1d4); Ability Scores Str 13, Dex 17, Con 13, Int 2, Wis 15, Cha 10; Special Attacks rake (1d4); Special Qualities low-light vision, scent.
7th-Level Advancement: Size Large; AC +2 natural armor; Attack bite (1d8), 2 claws (1d6); Ability Scores Str +8, Dex –2, Con +4; Special Attacks grab, pounce, rake (1d6) .
They have grab and rake. The bite attack has the grab bonus as per the bestiary
There's two situations where rake comes in quite handy: grappling and pouncing.
As you note, the druid's lion companion won't get Grab or Pounce until level 7. So until then, the only use you'll get out of it is a situation like the following:
- Round 1: The lion attempts a grapple, provoking an attack of opportunity.
- Round 2+: The lion continues the grapple (doing unarmed strike damage or pinning, as desired) and gets two free rake attacks.
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The free action grab from a level 7+ lion companion does not provoke an AoO
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Grab (Ex) If a creature with this special attack hits with the indicated attack (usually a claw or bite attack), it deals normal damage and attempts to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. Unless otherwise noted, grab works only against opponents at least one size category smaller than the creature. 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. A successful hold does not deal any extra damage unless the creature also has the constrict special attack. 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).:::
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Edit: oops. That's weird...rake at 1. They are better off not raking at all and just using claw claw bite.
Greetings, fellow travellers.
IMO, being better off depends on the situation: if Kitty can live with the AoO, but the group needs all the damage it can get or the grapple shuts down enemy spellcasting etc. rake does help.
On the other hand: Is the Imp. Grapple feat viable for an AC with natural weapons? For a lion it becomes obsolete with the improvement at lvl 7, but for others?
Ruyan.
Apologies for the slight necro-thread here (though it's not as bad as I've seen). I had a question in regards to the Big Cat Animal Companion Grab ability. Ordinarily the grab ability is shown tied to one (or more) specific natural attack, but in the companion's case it's just "he has this ability." So, does the grab take effect on just the bite (like the Lion in the bestiary), on one or more claws, or on any successful natural attack (like the Tiger in the bestiary)?
Unlike the Small Cat (which is obviously meant to be a cheetah), the Big Cat is ambiguous as to which large cat it's meant to be. I think this is a good thing, as it lets the player decide. The two cats are mechanically similar enough that it doesn't matter TOO much. Where the Grab comes into play is important though, especially when considering the Weapon Focus feat, and what natural weapon is going to receive a Greater Magic Fang casting, for instance.
Rise up from the grave good old thread :)
digitalpacman is wrong. Everybody can use combat maneuvers including grapple. It is a common tactic from some beast like the dire ape.
If a dire ape is stymied by a heavily armored foe, it attempts to grapple its foe, pin it to the ground, and rend it.
The dire ape has neither 'grab' nor 'improved grapple'.