D&D 5E Is the Help action broken?

[Dausuul]

If the familiar enters combat, treat it like a combatant. One hit will take it down and may kill it outright. And don't let the wizard forget to apply AoE damage to the familiar. One fireball is a certain kill.

I'm usually pretty generous on familiars and combat. I assume it makes itself scarce and the wizard doesn't have to worry about it becoming collateral damage. But if you're going to put it in harm's way for a fleeting tactical advantage... so be it.

 

[Sacrosanct]

IME in actual play, it goes something like this:

"Wow, I can grant advantage on attack rolls of my allies? Awesome!!! Wait, my familiar only has 1 hp? Screw that."

So in practical application, the help action in combat is used very sparingly. I imagine it wouldn't be used at all if the FF spell was like AD&D and you permanently lost CON and had to make a system shock roll when it died

 

[Reynard]

Yes, this is the point of a familiar. However, just make sure that you not making it too good by misreading the rules.

Outside combat, the familiar can only provide help to Ability Checks if the familiar can do the action himself (see PHB, page 175, Working Together).

In combat, the Help action (PHB, page 192) either:
a) gives Advantage to Ability checks taken by the helped character (Attack rolls, including spell casting Attack rolls are not an Ability Check), or
b) gives Advantage to an Attack roll against an opponent within 5' of the helper (which makes the familiar vulnerable to being thumped).

That's the thing I missed. When you read it in the combat section, it reads like Help has no limitations on it at all. But the ability score/skill section makes it clear you have to be able to contribute meaningfully. Thanks.

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Note BTW that familiars aren't the only creatures which can Help. If you have a bunch a cheap zombies in chain mail and shields, they may not have very strong attacks (especially if the DM rules that they aren't proficient in chain mail/shields and therefore have disadvantage on everything) but they can grant advantage to PCs on their attacks. And zombies of course have no concentration requirement, so it winds up being sort of like a concentration-free all-day Bless spell that also provides 80+ HP of meat shields with Undead Fortitude.

The point is, Help is great for anyone weak (a kobold) helping someone strong (a red dragon).

 

[Charles Rampant]

The worst familiar for this is the Owl, I believe, since it has the ability to fly in, inflict the Help action on someone, then fly away again without granting an opportunity attack thanks to its Flyby ability. That said, it isn't like the familiar has a huge AC, so a single archer devoting a turn can put it out of the fight.

Find Familiar is pretty good, yeah. Is it broken? I don't think so, at least not in comparison to other tricks that PCs can pull.

If you want true carnage, let a Druid character summon a horde of Giant Elks, and watch all your monsters come undone in the face of mobile walls of meat that have knockdown attacks

 

[Reynard]

If you want true carnage, let a Druid character summon a horde of Giant Elks, and watch all your monsters come undone in the face of mobile walls of meat that have knockdown attacks

Great. Now I'm hungry.

 

[Plaguescarred]

The problem is not Help granting advantage so much as having the familiar spamming it all the time since his action is superflous. What else better they can do?

 

[Helldritch]

The problem is not Help granting advantage so much as having the familiar spamming it all the time since his action is superflous. What else better they can do?

Not that much. But help is really good.
A wizard won't risk that often. As the familiar will be smashed real fast if the ennemy has even a tiny flicker of intelligence. Low intel beast and animals will usually attack the biggest threath; not realizing that a lot of this threath comes from the non-damaging but helping familiar.

 

[Plaguescarred]

Not that much. But help is really good.

Not that really just look how often a PC uses it...Help in itself is advantage as an action for 1 attack only, which is pricey as it cost an important ressource and has a limited range dependancy. Unless a creature have nothing better to do with its action it's not something it usually does.

Really it's when the cost and the range is easily achieved by using a familiar or other enabler that it's potency becomes really good.

 

[nexalis]

The worst familiar for this is the Owl, I believe, since it has the ability to fly in, inflict the Help action on someone, then fly away again without granting an opportunity attack thanks to its Flyby ability. That said, it isn't like the familiar has a huge AC, so a single archer devoting a turn can put it out of the fight.

Any sufficiently annoyed opponent with a ranged attack or the ability to ready an action can partake of a quick owl snack whenever the fancy strikes him. I agree that familiars are not broken.