Blog (A5E) Let’s Look At Combat Maneuvers

One of our goals with Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition was to create a more tactical combat system. But it was very important to us that we not create a more difficult combat system. Which is why our combat maneuvers are a buffet of over 150 bite-sized options, not unlike spells. Combat maneuvers are nonmagical.

Let’s Look At Combat Maneuvers — Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition (A5E)

Our combat maneuvers are a buffet of over 150 bite-sized options, not unlike spells.

www.levelup5e.com

 

[Faolyn]

I still wanna know what expertise die you were talking about.

 

[Morrus]

I still wanna know what expertise die you were talking about.

I think that's actually an old reference and the current draft just says 1d4. Or proficiency bonus. I'd have to check.

 

[Faolyn]

I think that's actually an old reference and the current draft just says 1d4. Or proficiency bonus. I'd have to check.

It's in the new blog post, under Bloody Roar. So it could still just be an old ref that didn't get edited out.

Any hostile creature within a 30 feet cube centered on you suffers psychic damage equal to your expertise die plus your proficiency modifier

 

[Stalker0]

Talkin' bout this guy:

Looked around in the 5E ruleset and could not find any ruling for moving 30 feet and making an attack as an action (or moving 60 feet and attacking on your turn without using a bonus action).

There's rules for movement (usually 30 feet a turn, unless you Dash), and then there's rules for attacking (an action), but nothing for charging as an action (moving 30 feet and attacking, which above is an action that has nothing to do with movement on your turn other than explicitly stopping any use of Dash).

Edit: I think you may be inserting a "when" into the maneuver. It doesn't say "when you move up to 30 feet in a straight line you make a melee weapon attack". It says "<do this> and <also this>."

The relevant clauses are:

Breaking Up Your Move​

You can break up your Movement on Your Turn, using some of your speed before and after your action. For example, if you have a speed of 30 feet, you can move 10 feet, take your action, and then move 20 feet.

Moving between Attacks​

If you take an action that includes more than one weapon Attack, you can break up your Movement even further by moving between those attacks. For example, a Fighter who can make two attacks with the Extra Attack feature and who has a speed of 25 feet could move 10 feet, make an Attack, move 15 feet, and then Attack again.


So movement in 5e is very fluid. You can for example with multi-attack:

1) Move 15 feet, attack, move 15 feet, and attack again.
2) Move 30 feet and attack twice.

So in reality, your maneuver provides no benefit (its actually weaker than standard rules), but now requiring a resource expenditure. That's why it got my worse rating in my nitty gritty review.

Now if you allow dash, than its fine, as you can move 60 ft and get an attack in, which is something a fighter can not do currently.

 

[Mike Myler]

The relevant clauses are:

Breaking Up Your Move​

You can break up your Movement on Your Turn, using some of your speed before and after your action. For example, if you have a speed of 30 feet, you can move 10 feet, take your action, and then move 20 feet.

Moving between Attacks​

If you take an action that includes more than one weapon Attack, you can break up your Movement even further by moving between those attacks. For example, a Fighter who can make two attacks with the Extra Attack feature and who has a speed of 25 feet could move 10 feet, make an Attack, move 15 feet, and then Attack again.


So movement in 5e is very fluid. You can for example with multi-attack:

1) Move 15 feet, attack, move 15 feet, and attack again.
2) Move 30 feet and attack twice.

So in reality, your maneuver provides no benefit (its actually weaker than standard rules), but now requiring a resource expenditure. That's why it got my worse rating in my nitty gritty review.

Now if you allow dash, than its fine, as you can move 60 ft and get an attack in, which is something a fighter can not do currently.

The word 'speed' isn't there because the maneuver has nothing to do with your movement before or after using it, aside from what it explicitly forbids (using the Dash action).

 

[Stalker0]

The word 'speed' isn't there because the maneuver has nothing to do with your movement before or after using it, aside from what it explicitly forbids (using the Dash action).

I got you, so I could technically move 30 ft (activate charge to move 30 more feet and then get an attack). In that case its perfectly fine.

 

[Mike Myler]

I got you, so I could technically move 30 ft (activate charge to move 30 more feet and then get an attack). In that case its perfectly fine.

I would like to narrow down where the disconnect is. Can you identify what in the wording (or what the wording lacked) led you to interpret it as using your movement for the turn?

Ex: Does it need something to the effect of "This maneuver moves you 30 feet in a straight line..."? Extra clause on "You cannot take the Dash action this turn, but this otherwise does not effect your movement for the turn." or similar?

 

[Faolyn]

I would like to narrow down where the disconnect is. Can you identify what in the wording (or what the wording lacked) led you to interpret it as using your movement for the turn?

Ex: Does it need something to the effect of "This maneuver moves you 30 feet in a straight line..."? Extra clause on "You cannot take the Dash action this turn, but this otherwise does not effect your movement for the turn." or similar?

Not speaking for Stalker0, but I would add the sentence: "You still can use your normal movement before or after using this maneuver, but you can't take the Dash action this turn."

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

How will be the combat when nPCs use those maneuvers? Could ki-techniques or special potions be used to "reload" exertion?

 

[Stalker0]

I would like to narrow down where the disconnect is. Can you identify what in the wording (or what the wording lacked) led you to interpret it as using your movement for the turn?

Ex: Does it need something to the effect of "This maneuver moves you 30 feet in a straight line..."? Extra clause on "You cannot take the Dash action this turn, but this otherwise does not effect your movement for the turn." or similar?

Maybe something like "You move up to 30 feet in a straight line, which does not consume your movement". This also would concretely allow for a character with less than 30 speed to also move that 30 feet on the charge (assuming that is the intention).