D&D 5E [Grappling] A Dire Lion pounces. What next?

[[no code]]

I think I kind of understand the grappling rules, but the Pounce / Improved Grab / Rake abilities of certain MM creatures like the Dire Lion really have me stumped. I just don't get the sequence of events, or what the creature can do on subsequent rounds, or whether it needs to make attack rolls to deal damage, etc etc.

Could somebody step me through it? Imagine I'm standing 10ft away from a Dire Lion. It's the Lion's initiative and it Pounces... what next?

 

[Olive]

Could somebody step me through it? Imagine I'm standing 10ft away from a Dire Lion. It's the Lion's initiative and it Pounces... what next?

I think, and I'm going off of memory here, that the lion pounces, and it gets a full attack. So it can just full attack, or it can try to grapple. There's no real sequence.

Unless a dire lion is one of those creatures that gets a auto-grapple when it hits with, say, a bite attack. Then it goes pounce, full attack and if it hits witht he required part, grapple.

 

[reapersaurus]

The lion Pounces, getting its full attack + 2 Rakes.
Against a medium or smaller opponent, it can use Improved Grab with its bite attack, so if it hits, it can do a grapple attempt as a free action.

Next round, its slightly different.
It has to have a hold of the opponent to get the Rakes off.