D&D 5E The Grappler's Manual (2.0) - Grappling in 5th Edition

[Gladius Legis]

The updated Shield Master ruling pretty much kills that feat for grapplers, and Tavern Brawler becomes the better option. Alas.

 

[Yunru]

The updated Shield Master ruling

This annoys me so much.
Sage Advice is no more a ruling than my father’s brother’s nephew’s cousin’s former roommate's DM ruling is.

 

[Gladius Legis]

This annoys me so much.
Sage Advice is no more a ruling than my father’s brother’s nephew’s cousin’s former roommate's DM ruling is.

In your own home games, sure. In sanctioned play (e.g. AL), it does matter.

 

[Yunru]

In your own home games, sure. In sanctioned play (e.g. AL), it does matter.

Wait, sanctioned play follows unoffical rulings?

 

[Gladius Legis]

Sage Advice is official, being from WOTC. Again, your own home games don't have to use it, but AL has to.

 

[Yunru]

Sage Advice is official, being from WOTC. Again, your own home games don't have to use it, but AL has to.

Sage Advice is official staff making there own rulings. The only official rulings are those in the books and errata.

EDIT: And I guess the Sage Advice Compendium could be considered so as well, but I've yet to see shield master mentioned in any of those.

 

[BainIthron]

The Guide to Ravnica introduces a huge game changer in the Loxodon. Looking forward to it being added here.

Alas, the OP has been MIA for a long time. The guide won't be updated, unless someone creates a new thread.

Sage Advice is official staff making there own rulings. The only official rulings are those in the books and errata.

EDIT: And I guess the Sage Advice Compendium could be considered so as well, but I've yet to see shield master mentioned in any of those.

Sage Advice Compendium makes reference to it indirectly, since the core of this discussion about Shield Master is the main action triggering the bonus action, meaning you can only use the bonus action after completing the triggering action. As such, it covers Eldritch Knight in this part:

Does the “when” in the Eldritch Knight’s War Magic feature mean the bonus attack comes after you cast the cantrip, or can it come before?
The bonus action comes after the cantrip, since using your action to cast a cantrip is what gives you the ability to make the weapon attack as a bonus action. That said, a DM would break nothing in the system by allowing an Eldritch Knight to reverse the order of the cantrip and the weapon attack.

This is all referenced in the tweet sage advice record here anyway: https://www.sageadvice.eu/2018/05/23/clarification-about-bonus-actions/

That said, unless you're playing AL, do whatever the heck you want. I'm sure most GMs wouldn't care, especially if it was a martial class doing this, as the last thing martial classes need are more hurdles.

 

[John Blaise Lent]

The Guide to Ravnica introduces a huge game changer in the Loxodon. Looking forward to it being added here.

Doesn't change anything. Carrying capacity was never really a limit on the build.

 

[John Blaise Lent]

Simic Hybrid though is great. Manta glide for when you have no spike growth to drag someone through means you can climb up a building, release the target, then just drop down 100 feet no problem. And grappling appendages lets you do a normal attack then grapple as a bonus, which is pretty cool (though not as good as free restrain from octopus etc.)

 

[Ugly Weirdo]

Doesn't change anything. Carrying capacity was never really a limit on the build.

Carrying capacity? The trunk is functionally a third arm that does almost anything that isnt a weapon attack. The possibilities for expanded action economy are huge for grappling and just about any other play style.