A Wizard's question on Grapple

[Wardo]

Now that's a very interesting point.
I may bring that one up to see if it stops the grapple-o-thon that my wizard gets to participate in all the time. See, I don't mind the normal attacks b/c my normal AC is pretty high (as it should be with the right magics). But my grapple touch AC is not high enough I guess.


Thanks for all the suggestions everyone
I've definitely got some ideas to use in the next fight!

I'd keep trying to come up with in character solutions to the problem - it looks like you have piles of great advice in this thread. I'd avoid criticizing your DM's tactics. It sounds like these combats are tense and interesting. Furthermore, it sounds like you get a fair amount of the spotlight by being the wizard - villains are gunning for you, fighters are protecting you.

Honestly, it sounds like a lot of fun. I'd take that over safely decimating my enemies from the back lines any day.

 

[Nail]

At about 7th level, my group of players found battlefield control spells, rather than blasting spells, to be most effective. Evard's Black Tentacles tops that list, BTW.

Also: Use Mirror Image, fer cryin' out loud! No worries about grapplers after that!

 

[Kaledor]

I'd keep trying to come up with in character solutions to the problem - it looks like you have piles of great advice in this thread. I'd avoid criticizing your DM's tactics. It sounds like these combats are tense and interesting. Furthermore, it sounds like you get a fair amount of the spotlight by being the wizard - villains are gunning for you, fighters are protecting you.

Oh, absolutely it is a lot of fun!
And honestly, some of the flash and spark that attracts enemy attention is the fault of playing in character. My elven wizard is from a warmonger species... So, he is more apt to cast offensive spells than defensive and utility ones.

But when I end more combats knocked out than those that end with me in positive HPs, I
need to have more player options as well as character options.

And our group is pretty open with comments, so my DM is more than willing to listen... we never tell each other "what's what". And the DM does have the final say about rules, but he's also a good enough DM to listen to his players' thoughts. So, I'm sure that he would listen to my thoughts on constant grapples. Of course, he also runs his combats VERY deviously, so I imagine if he stops grappling the wizard he will just come up with new and exciting ways too challenge the party.

It's what keeps the rollplaying as interesting as the roleplaying.

 

[Kaledor]

At about 7th level, my group of players found battlefield control spells, rather than blasting spells, to be most effective. Evard's Black Tentacles tops that list, BTW.

Also: Use Mirror Image, fer cryin' out loud! No worries about grapplers after that!

I almost selected Black Tentacles for 7th level, it seems like a great spell!
I think it will be one that I pick up as soon as possible. A field of tentacles in front of my character and careful arrangements to the side/behind him would be a great idea.

As for Mirror Image, I had never considered it as good an option as say shield, haste, and armor... but seeing as this is the second or third suggestion of that spell I should re-evaluate my position on it

 

[lukelightning]

My wildshaped druid (in great big bear form) one managed to grab a mirror-imaged wizard. We all broke up laughing at the thought of all these duplicate images of the wizard thrashing about in the air, mimicking the wizard's thrashing as he was mauled to death.

 

[RigaMortus2]

Invisibility
Greater Invis
Fly
Spider Climb

 

[LostSoul]

yeah I like sound tactics a smuch as every other DM, but it every foe is using sound tactics or even just the majority of them I think there is a problem, maybe its because I run enough less than brilliant foes or something.

This question doesn't have much to do with the topic on hand, but here goes.

Does the CR rating assume that the DM will play low-Int creatures as less tactically efficient?

In other words, do low-Int creatures have CR ratings that are too low if they are played as intelligent combatants?

 

[Kaledor]

This question doesn't have much to do with the topic on hand, but here goes.

Does the CR rating assume that the DM will play low-Int creatures as less tactically efficient?

In other words, do low-Int creatures have CR ratings that are too low if they are played as intelligent combatants?

[off topic]
I would say yes.
It would seem that a DM (mine definitely) could take a low CR creature(s) and use terrain, special abilities, companions, traps, tricks, ambushes, tactics... all to the enemies advantage (beyond what the publisher of the creature had originally intended) and that would certainly add to the CR of an encounter.
BUT at the same time, a particularly creative group of PCs may defeat high CR creatures with little trouble through the same application of "combat-extras" (or perhaps the DM doesn't play the creature as devious as the publisher had intended) -- so should the CR be reduced (ie less XP b/c it was too easy)? or should the players be rewarded with MORE xp b/c they were more clever than expected?

Perhaps the best way is to just leave the CR's alone and expect that any deviation due to "combat extras" will even out in the end (some sort of "deviation to the mean").

[/off topic]

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

I almost selected Black Tentacles for 7th level, it seems like a great spell!
I think it will be one that I pick up as soon as possible. A field of tentacles in front of my character and careful arrangements to the side/behind him would be a great idea.

You're better off just dropping it on top of the bad guys to start with. If they were the kinds of guys who'd be deterred by the field, they'll probably end up grappled within it. Otherwise, at least you reduce the amount of fodder so that your allies can stay between you and the few who make it out of the tentacles.

 

[Kaledor]

Black Tenticals Spell Suggestion

Thanks for the tactic note EB!
I would have used it to funnel them kinda like the Wall spells, but I can see how this would work better.