D&D 5E Grab a creature and throw it?

[Saeviomagy]

The only way it would make sense is if the monster threw the PC straight up and the damage was calculated from the highest point in the trajectory. Throwing one PC at another, damage AFAICS see should be unaffected by distance; 10' or 50' the velocity should be much the same.

Well if a monster throws you straight up (or if, as a player, you use something to fling a monster upwards), then falling damage will happen as a separate thing...

or maybe not? I mean any throw is going to have an arc: if you're not going to break out the ballistics calculations if you're throwing (primarily) horizontally, why should you do it for a pure vertical throw? Maybe you should just take the throwing damage regardless of where the endpoint of the throw is, and assume that falling is rolled in.

 

[redrick]

Creatures would make rather poor improvised weapons — they are actively TRYING to be bad weapons. So I like the idea of splitting damage between thrown creature and the target, or maybe doing improvised damage minus 1 die, but to both the thrown creature and the target.