Touch attacks while grappling

[MerakSpielman]

What is the rule for this? Do you automatically hit, since they are in physical contact with you? Do you get bonuses to hit? Do they have to break contact to try to avoid it?

For example, a cleric is being grappled by a fighter. He casts Harm, succeeding in getting the spell off despite the grapple penalties. Does he have to roll to-hit?

 

[Dash Dannigan]

Unless the Harm spell was cast metamagicked with a Still Spell, spells with somatic components cannot be cast at all during a grapple. Only Verbal can be cast at penalty.

 

[MerakSpielman]

So say it was stilled. The question still applies.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

I would make the character succeed at an opposed grapple check. The situation seems akin to the Hollywood standbye of two characters wrestling and one of them has a knife. The other grabs his wrist and they struggle for control of the knife. In that situation, I'd rule that the harm spell is the knife. The grappler is just keeping the glowing black energy around the cleric's hand from touching him instead of keeping the knife away from his jugular.

 

[kreynolds]

Only Verbal can be cast at penalty.

Not exactly. Spells with material components can be used if you already had the material component(s) in hand or if you take a full-round action to retrieve it(them). You can't, however, retrieve the material component(s) if you are pinned. This is in the FAQ.

 

[Pielorinho]

How does it change if a cleric is holding the charge for a touch attack spell?

This came up in our game recently: a tiger animal companion pounced on (and grappled) an enemy cleric who had prepared for battle by casting Slay Living. The DM ruled that on her action, after being grappled, she automatically succeeded in touching the tiger.

Although this is slightly ambiguous, it seems like the most reasonable ruling to me.

Daniel

 

[Brekki]

The cleric has to succeed with a touch attack, just like usual. No bonusses no penalties, since it is the same as attacking with a light weapon and part of the casting.