Hydra's Combat Reflexes

[Celtavian]

re

I've managed to push them to the edge a few times of late, but haven't killed anyone yet.

Despite the monk that keeps throwing herself single-handedly into the middle of things before the rest of the party can catch up

-Hyp.

Those nutty monks, they run too fast for their own good.

 

[ForceUser]

A hydra can make an attack of opportunity with each of its head, each round.

Are the heads considered to act as separate creatures, or is the hydra still subject to the one-AoO-per-opponent rule?

eg, if an archer takes a shot from within the threatened zone of a 6-headed hydra, is he subject to one AoO or 6?

Do we assume all six heads can attack the same 5' square in one round?

Tangential hydra question : Does it seem odd that a Lernean Pyrohydra and a Lernean Cryohydra have the same CR? Sever a head and deal fire or acid damage is harder when one of them's immune to fire...

(Random thought - a skeletal Lernean Pyrohydra, taking half damage from slashing weapons, could get dangerous...)

-Hyp.

Hyp, if you read the hydra entry in the 3.5 MM closely, you'll note that it says that the hydra can make one AoO with each head every round. However, standard D&D AoO rules state that no one opponent can occur more than one AoO for the same action, so you archer is subject to one AoO, not multiples. If he shot within a threatened space, then moved within a threatened space, he'd be subject to two AoOs (one for shooting, one for moving). Furthermore, a hydra can always attack with all of its heads every round as a standard action, even if it moved first. Hydras are a bag of own.

 

[Nail]

...standard D&D AoO rules state that no one opponent can occur more than one AoO for the same action, so you archer is subject to one AoO, not multiples.

See, that's where I'd be coming from too.

That is, even feats like "combat reflexes" don't allow you to attack the same opponents more than once per provokation. (And now that the Whirlwind - Great Cleave option is gone....)

Moreover, the hydra is only one creature, despite having more than one head. See the Ettin, as an example.

Multiple heads does not equal multiple monsters. The only way to get multiple AoOs from one action is to provoke them from multiple opponents. Q.E.D.

 

[Artoomis]

The actual rule is:

Feats: A hydra’s Combat Reflexes feat allows it to use all its heads for attacks of opportunity.

The question is NOT how many heads can attack on an AoO, it's how many AoOs it gets.

One? Or one per point of Dexterity bonus per the Combat Reflexes feat?

I ruled it got one only, but with all its heads per the very clear quote above. I ruled that it's Combat Reflexes was "special" and the rule that it got all its heads for an AoO superceded the normal Combat Reflexes feat.

It was quite a surprise!! It's fun to be able to take the players by surprise like that!

It would also be very reasonable to apply the Combat Reflexes feat normally with the addition of the Hydra getting to use all its heads for each attack. It might be more technically correct, but it's a close call. It's much deadlier, of course.

You may notice that this is much different than the way other mutli-headed creatures work. I presume that's because they don't have the same sort of Combat Reflexes feat.

 

[the Jester]

Note that, in 3.5, you are no longer limited to one AoO per opponent per round, but rather to one per opportunity, when you have combat reflexes.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Of course, quoting 3.5 rules doesn't help me all that much.

It's fairly obvious I was asking about the 3E Hydra...

... since I posted the question a year and a half ago!

-Hyp.

 

[Nail]

Holy Crap.

Didn't even think to check......

 

[the Jester]

Of course, quoting 3.5 rules doesn't help me all that much.

It's fairly obvious I was asking about the 3E Hydra...

... since I posted the question a year and a half ago!

-Hyp.

Whoops!

Obviously, someone didn't look at the date involved...

 

[Artoomis]

An oldie but a goodie...

Holy datecheck, Batman - this one's a year and a half hold!

Wow.

A 3.0 rules quote for you:

Feats: A hydra’s Combat Reflexes feat allows it to use all its heads for attacks of opportunity each round.

No difference, really.

 

[Hypersmurf]

A 3.0 rules quote for you:

No difference, really.

Oh, I know that.

But given that the encounter in question has been resolved (just a few sessions back), I didn't really need the answer any more

But there was actually a very similar thread that came up for 3.5 in the last few weeks...

Are there ever any new questions in this forum?

-Hyp.