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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 8179727" data-attributes="member: 20323">Years ago I tackled this question for a 4th edition party running through Dragon Mountain which featured lots of kobolds. Like you, I was looking to allow for some familiar strategies of fighting a monster to feel relevant while also offering more opportunities for interesting challenges & creative lateral thinking. Besides minion rules and a bunch of other devices, I created a Kobold Horde stat block which emphasized unusual ways of interacting.It had the following traits (translating for 5e parlance):<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">From All Sides: The kobold horde occupies an enormous undefined area, and it can move into and through enemies' spaces and does not provoke opportunity attacks. It is considered adjacent to all enemies in the encounter at all times, and has advantage on melee attacks thanks to Pack Tactics.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Swarm Attack: At the start of each of the kobold horde's turns, all hostile creatures in the area are grappled (escape DC #). A creature starting its turn grappled by the horde takes 5 bludgeoning damage.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Horde Immunities: The kobold horde is immune to all conditions that don't originate from area effects. If it would be incapacitated, the swarm instead lets go of the nearest grappled creature.</li> </ul>It also had the following actions/bonus actions/legendary actions:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Overwhelming Surge: The kobold horde makes an attack against each creature in the area. If a creature has been disarmed of a magic weapon, then one of these attacks is made with that weapon.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Swarm the Fallen: The kobold horde targets each prone creature in the area with a special attack that disarms the creature of a held item.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The Horde Presses Down: Each creature in the area must choose once check to make (DC X) to resist the horde: Athletics, Perception, Stealth, or Survival. A failed check indicates that creature has been separated from the rest of its party, in addition to the following:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the creature fails Athletics, it is restrained until the end of its next turn and the kobold horde gets a free attack against it.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the creature fails Perception, it is forced into a trapped passage (roll on Random Trap Table) until the end of its next turn.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the creature fails Stealth, any light source it has is lost and it is forced into a dark passage until the end of its next turn.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the creature fails Survival, it is forced into a tight passage until the end of its next turn – its speed is halved and attacks against it have advantage due to squeezing, and its attacks with non-Light weapons suffer disadvantage.</li> </ul></li> </ul></blockquote>

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