How often does the grapple mechanic come up in your game?

[cincinnati reds]

PCs in our game love the grapple. They grapple everything they can, and I have yet to see a party that does not have at least one dedicated grappler (sometimes two).

Worgs also seem to have an unhealthy fascination with grappling my wizard and dragging him away from the party. Ouch.

 

[Davelozzi]

Grappling, along with bull rush, trip, and other similar special attacks, rarely come up in my game. However, if the rules were improved I think they would come up quite a bit more often, as almost every time that they do come up the person who used it says they would not have if they realized what a pain in the butt and sub-optimal choice it was.

 

[The_Gneech]

Probably once every two or three sessions -- and we still have to look up the rules every time. Four years and it hasn't gotten any easier!

-The Gneech

 

[TracerBullet42]

My dwarven beast wrestler uses grapple rather frequently...he once even tried to grapple a dragon. Didn't work out so well for him...

Me: "Ok, let's see...enlarged, bull's strengthed, armbands of might, improved grapple, etc....(rolls dice) I got a 43!"

DM: "Let's see...the dragon has a +49 to his roll..."

Me: "Oh crap..."

I thought I had a bit of a chance...the lesson is don't grapple a dragon...EVER!

Anyway, as much as I studied up on the grappling rules, and I felt that I had them down pretty well, I do feel that it slowed things down a bit.

Fun character, though.

 

[Chaldfont]

Last session my gnome conjurer with a 6 strength got grappled by a double-crossing PC who had been infected with lycanthropy by the bad guys. He was dragged off never to be seen again.

We use grapple almost every session, though we have no PCs specialized in it. Its almost to the point where no one wants to play a halfling or gnome because we know our PC is going to get swallowed or strangled or tossed out a window.

Though it has also led to some of the coolest parts of our game, like when the druid wildshaped into a dire ape just before he was going to be swallowed by an advanced behir.

 

[the Jester]

Grapple comes up often imc; lots of cool monsters have Improved Grab, and monks often do it. In my epic campaign there is an Improved Grapple monk, for instance.

Not to butt in to Bullgrit's thread, but just wondering --

For those who use the grapple mechanic frequently, do you have a BattleBox? Do you use the grapple info card from that?

Best. Product. EVAR. Give to me by Brain as a gift for GM's Day. I love this thing.

Yes, we use the card.

I too find that it really increased the incidence of special maneuvers I would use or see used by the pcs.

 

[heirodule]

I have a PC optimized to use the grapple mechanic.

My 12th level wizard with telekinesis.

Grapple is stupid-good with TK. Grappling liches is for bonus points.

 

[Woas]

Pretty common. As a DM, I often try and include some type of npc/monster that can grapple (or that has a good shot at doing so) in the encounters.

 

[Taloras]

I use grapple frequently, but as I had mentioned in the Trip thread, I am playing a Monk that is a master of all forms of combat, so he has most of the Improved this or that.

Being a Goliath doesn't hurt for grapple checks either.

So true. Goliath Monk grappler here. Comes up every combat.

I thought I had a bit of a chance...the lesson is don't grapple a dragon...EVER!

My goliath managed to grapple a young shadow dragon.....DM ruled i could hold its mouth shut(like steve irwin holds crocs mouths shut). kept him from using that negative level breath....ick.

 

[davidschwartznz]

My dwarven beast wrestler uses grapple rather frequently...

When you say 'beast wrestler' I don't suppose you're using the alternate ranger combat style from Dragon #326? (He asked hopefully.)