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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Neonchameleon" data-source="post: 8747711" data-attributes="member: 87792">There are, to me, two key elements of the 5e MM goblin that is a failure of the system that isn't being talked about but makes 5e combat far grindier and more boring than it would otherwise be. The relevant stats that to me make the goblin a problem are below.Hit Points 7 (2d6) <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Scimitar: Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) slashing damage.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Shortbow: Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 80/320 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.</li> </ul>Hit Points 7 is IMO a sucky number. It's too high to be a minion; the low level non specialists aren't going to reliably one shot it (the fighter and barbarian almost certainly will - but the cleric doing 1d6+3 damage with their mace and the wizard doing 1d10 damage with a firebolt really won't). I don't want to track four wounded goblins (I'd rather have minions with a damage threshold so e.g. 8 damage one shots or two hits of any strength; less bookkeeping).The far more important part is the scimitar and shortbow stats. They are exactly the same (and they are close to the same for most other archers who all carry finesse weapons) meaning that there is little margin in e.g. a monk diving the back line to force the archers into melee. It's not that this is impossible to work tactically (in 4e this would be one of the two types of Skirmisher*) but on its own it's not very interesting. It's especially uninteresting if this is the main type of monster there is.* For all Skirmishers were officially one monster role in 4e in reality they were two. The first was boring "balanced" monsters (as in the Goblin Warrior above) with no real strengths or weaknesses, and the second was for monsters with situational damage such as Sneak Attack that would do little damage if they couldn't do their thing and a lot if they could.</blockquote>

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