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Message: <blockquote data-quote="EricNoah" data-source="post: 4845465" data-attributes="member: 4">Wrote this up for my game group, thought I would share.  Hope the formatting works ok...----------Grapple: Many D&D monsters have an Improved Grab ability that allows them to start a grapple after hitting with a melee attack and suffering no attack of opportunity.  Larger monsters have a very great advantage over smaller PCs.  This combines to make a very lethal situation for PCs.  They hit, they grapple, the PC is out of action for the rest of combat, in grave peril, and can do nothing about it. As someone who has been stuck in “unbeatable” grapples before, with no options available to me or to my allies to get me out, I know how frustrating this can be.  When I play D&D I see scenes in my head, and in these scenes I see heroes hacking at tentacles to chop them off or render them useless.  There’s no D&D rule to accommodate that very likely scenario.  So here are my proposed changes to the rules (some affect possible PC actions, most affect the DM’s side of the screen during prep and play). 1)    Adjust Monster Grapple Stats: Many monsters with the Improved Grab ability really don’t deserve to have it.  In my mind, Improved Grab is for creatures with tentacle-like appendages, and with reach greater than 5’.  In addition, I want to lessen the advantage that large size has over the Grapple score (and lessen the penalty small size has).  So with these thoughts in mind, I change creature stats as follows: a.    Reduce large creature grapple scores, improve small creature grapple scores.  Using the Pathfinder* “combat maneuver bonus” adjustments for size instead of the “special size modifier” from the DMG, it works like this (apply these as changes to any Monster Manual/SRD Grapple value to get a more Pathfinder-like value): i.    Diminutive Creatures: add 8 to MM Grapple to get Pathfinder Grapple ii.    Tiny Creatures: add 6 to Grapple iii.    Small Creatures: add 3 to Grapple iv.    Large Creatures: subtract 3 from Grapple v.    Huge Creatures: subtract 6 from Grapple vi.    Gargantuan Creatures: subtract 8 from Grapple b.    Remove Improved Grab from creatures that don’t deserve it. Tentacled creatures with 10’ or greater reach are the typical monster that will have Improved Grab; the rest will need to grapple with the normal rules (drawing attacks of opportunity and not getting a damaging attack in just prior to the grapple). c.    Apply a Hackable Limbs weakness to any creature who does have Improved Grab.i.    A Hackable Limb has an AC and hit points.  1.    AC = the creature’s AC (if not yet grappling) or Flat-Footed AC (if grappling; even if the attacking creatures is taking -20 on check to avoid being flat-footed, the grappling limb itself is flat-footed), plus a size modifier with the tentacle being 2 sizes smaller than the creature. (A Large creature has Small tentacles, and thus gains +2 size modifier to AC). 2.    Hit points = 1/10 to 1/5 of the monster’s normal total hit points, plus additional hp equal to ½ the monster’s natural armor bonus.  DM decides how “thick” the tentacles are based on how many tentacles the creature has and other factors.  The hit points for a Hackable Limb are separate from the creature’s hit points. ii.    The only attacks that can “hack” a Hackable Limb are slashing weapons or directed energy damage (an energy spell with an attack roll, for example). You can crit on attacks vs. Hackable Limbs, even against creatures that are normally immune to critical hit damage (constructs, plants).  iii.    The damage against a Hackable Limb must exceed the limb’s hit points in one blow (you don’t get to keep hitting the same spot) in order to destroy it. Exception: if you are the grappled target and your arms are free and you have an appropriate attack form, you can continue to hit the same spot over and over again.  You will need to keep track of the hit points.  iv.    When a Hackable Limb is destroyed (takes more hp in damage than it has, in one blow, from an appropriate damage source), the creature can no longer attack or grapple with that limb and any grappled target is immediately freed and falls prone in an open square adjacent to the creature. 2)    Adjust Grapple procedures: a.    On the initial check to see if the creature attempting to start a grapple is successful, compare the opposed grapple checks.  If the defender fails by 10 or more, his arms are pinned.  If he fails by 9 or less, his arms are free.  (This may then allow the grappled victim to possibly hack off the limbs of the grappling creature himself).  3)    Adjust Grapple tactics for monsters: a.    The vast majority of creatures will use the option to take a -20 on grapple checks made to maintain a grapple in order to avoid becoming flat-footed (one of the drawbacks of engaging in a grapple).  Some mindless creatures (plant creatures, constructs) might not have such self-preservation instincts. 4)    Grapple and Tentacle Hacking options for PCs: a.    If you have Improved Sunder, you do an extra +2d6 damage on attacks to Hack a Tentacle.  b.    If the grappling creature is flat-footed, you can apply sneak attack damage to your Tentacle Hacking attempts. c.    If you have Escape Artist skill ranks, you can use that skill to escape grapples as normal. Each round you use Escape Artist to attempt to escape, if you fail by 9 or less your arms are freed.  In addition, if you are grappled and your arms are pinned during the initial grapple, you can immediately make an Escape Artist roll vs. that grapple check to get your arms free. d.    Spellcasting is still difficult while grappled and concentration checks are required as normal.  If your arms are free, you can cast spells with M and S components; if they are pinned, you can only cast spells that have only V components.  *Pathfinder is Pazio Publishing’s D&D 3.5 variant.  <a href="http://paizo.com/pathfinder" target="_blank">http://paizo.com/pathfinder</a></blockquote>

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