swarm attacking rules

mostholy2 · Apr 6, 2004

What are the rules for swarms attacking characters?

The swarm must enter the character's space to attack him. Does the swarm need to stop in threatened melee spaces in front of the character? Since the swarm is made up of multiple creatures, does a character with combat reflexes get multiple AoO against it as it moves into his space?

If a 10' swarm is attacking a character that is adjacent to another character, can the swarm also move onto the 2nd adjacent character and attack him as a separate attack?

If someone casts sleep or confuse against a swarm what happens? Does the swarm save as a single creature? or does it lose an appropriate number of hit dice and spaces assuming that X% of the creatures that make up a swarm succumb to the spell where X% is the % that would normally miss the save check.

Your help is appreciated.

WCrawford · Apr 6, 2004

Well, if you took the time to read the monster manual entry, you'd discover that a swarm is treated as a single creature. A swarm is shapeable (also in the Monster Manual entry).

Since the swarm is treated as a single creature, you cannot take multiple attacks of oppurtunity for a single provoking action.

Further, a reading of the individual MM entries reveals that swarms don't make attacks. They deal their damage to any creature whose square they occupy at the end of their movement.

Yes, I'm being an ass, but I get really irritated when people will take more energy to write a post about something they could have just read in the book if they bothered to look it up.

frankthedm · Apr 6, 2004

SWARM
Swarms are dense masses of Fine, Diminutive, or Tiny creatures that would not be particularly dangerous in small groups, but can be terrible foes when gathered in sufficient numbers. For game purposes a swarm is defined as a single creature with a space of 10 feet—gigantic hordes are actually composed of dozens of swarms in close proximity. A swarm has a single pool of Hit Dice and hit points, a single initiative modifier, a single speed, and a single Armor Class. It makes saving throws as a single creature.
Many different creatures can mass as swarms; bat swarms, centipede swarms, hellwasp swarms, locust swarms, rat swarms, and spider swarms are described here. The swarm’s type varies with the nature of the component creature (most are animals or vermin), but all swarms have the swarm subtype.
A swarm of Tiny creatures consists of 300 nonflying creatures or 1,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Diminutive creatures consists of 1,500 nonflying creatures or 5,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Fine creatures consists of 10,000 creatures, whether they are flying or not. Swarms of nonflying creatures include many more creatures than could normally fit in a 10-foot square based on their normal space, because creatures in a swarm are packed tightly together and generally crawl over each other and their prey when moving or attacking. Larger swarms are represented by multiples of single swarms. A large swarm is completely shapeable, though it usually remains contiguous.
COMBAT
In order to attack, a single swarm moves into opponents’ spaces, which provokes an attack of opportunity. It can occupy the same space as a creature of any size, since it crawls all over its prey, but remains a creature with a 10-foot space. Swarms never make attacks of opportunity, but they can provoke attacks of opportunity.
Unlike other creatures with a 10-foot space, a swarm is shapeable. It can occupy any four contiguous squares, and it can squeeze through any space large enough to contain one of its component creatures.
Vulnerabilities of Swarms
Swarms are extremely difficult to fight with physical attacks. However, they have a few special vulnerabilities,
as follows:
A lit torch swung as an improvised weapon deals 1d3 points of fire damage per hit.
A weapon with a special ability such as flaming or frost deals its full energy damage with each hit, even if the weapon’s normal damage can’t affect the swarm.
A lit lantern can be used as a thrown weapon, dealing 1d4 points of fire damage to all creatures in squares adjacent to where it breaks

Cheiromancer · Apr 6, 2004

WCrawford said:
I get really irritated when people will take more energy to write a post about something they could have just read in the book if they bothered to look it up.

You get irritated because someone else is wasting energy? On a hobby they enjoy? Sorry, but I just don't understand that.

While we are talking about swarms, has anyone devised a template that makes things into swarms?

(hopefully this is not something that is easily look-up-able :uhoh:

)

Li Shenron · Apr 6, 2004

mostholy2 said:
Does the swarm need to stop in threatened melee spaces in front of the character?

No. It moves normally "over" the characters, and has to fill a character's space to damage him.

mostholy2 said:
Since the swarm is made up of multiple creatures, does a character with combat reflexes get multiple AoO against it as it moves into his space?

It counts as a single creature and provokes only 1 AoO per movement.

mostholy2 said:
If a 10' swarm is attacking a character that is adjacent to another character, can the swarm also move onto the 2nd adjacent character and attack him as a separate attack?

Yes. It doesn't really make attacks, just automatically deals damage to everyone whose space it occupies at the end of its move (but not to creatures the pass over during their move) - although I think they meant at the end of their TURN.

mostholy2 said:
If someone casts sleep or confuse against a swarm what happens? Does the swarm save as a single creature? or does it lose an appropriate number of hit dice and spaces assuming that X% of the creatures that make up a swarm succumb to the spell where X% is the % that would normally miss the save check.

First of all, normally a swarm is immune to mind-affecting spells such as sleep or confuse. It loses the immunity only if it has an Int score and the Hive Mind ability, in which case it counts as a single creature (1 save). The effect applies to the swarm as a whole.

FireLance · Apr 6, 2004

mostholy2 said:
What are the rules for swarms attacking characters?

First off, welcome to the boards!

The swarm must enter the character's space to attack him. Does the swarm need to stop in threatened melee spaces in front of the character?

Not sure what you mean by this. Normally, a creature does not *have* to stop in threatened melee spaces, although it may certainly attract an AOO if it moves though them.

Since the swarm is made up of multiple creatures, does a character with combat reflexes get multiple AoO against it as it moves into his space?

No, a swarm is treated as a single creature.

If a 10' swarm is attacking a character that is adjacent to another character, can the swarm also move onto the 2nd adjacent character and attack him as a separate attack?

Generally, I treat each 5 ft. by 5 ft. section of a swarm as a separate "creature". As long as each section is adjacent to another section, I allow each individual section to move up to the limit of its move (and don't forget that a swarm can take a double move). If one target is behind another relative to the swarm, I would allow one section of the swarm to move through the target in front to attack the one in the rear so that another section of the swarm can attack the target in front.

If someone casts sleep or confuse against a swarm what happens? Does the swarm save as a single creature?

A swarm is generally immune to mind-affecting effects unless it has a hive mind. If it has a hive mind, it saves as a single creature and is either totally affected or not affected at all.