Combat Rule Changes

These rules provide changes to ‘fighting with two weapons’, ‘changing weapons’ in combat, and ‘unarmed fighting’.

Fighting with two weapons

When you take the attack action and attack with a melee weapon that you’re holding in one hand, you can use a bonus action to attack with a different melee weapon that you’re holding in the other hand that has the light property.

You don’t add your ability modifier to the damage of the bonus attack, unless that modifier is negative.

If the light weapon also has the small property, making this additional attack does not use your bonus action (this does not allow you to make more than one additional attack per turn for wielding two weapons).

If either weapon has the thrown property, you can throw the weapon, instead of making a melee attack with it.

Changing weapons

Once on your turn, you can change the weapons or other items that you wield (such as stowing your sling and then drawing a dagger with each hand).

A weapon with the small size property can be drawn at any time during your turn.

Unarmed Fighting

All creatures can engage in unarmed fighting, utilizing their hands, feet, or head to make unarmed strikes:

·         Unarmed Strike. Melee attack., reach 5ft., 1 bludgeoning damage.

However, unarmed strikes offer more versatility than simple damage. If you hit another creature with an unarmed strike, you can forgo dealing damage choose one of the following options:

Shove. You push the target 5 feet away from you if it is your size or smaller.

Grapple. If you have a hand free, you grapple the target giving you both the grappled condition if the target is your size or smaller.

Trip. The target must make a Dexterity or Strength saving throw (DC = 8 + the attacker's Strength modifier + proficiency bonus). On a failed save, the target falls prone if it is one size larger than you or smaller.

Notice that creatures with natural weapons, such as claws or bites, treat those weapons as unarmed strikes.

If you score a critical hit on an unarmed strike, you either double the damage dice (as normal) or you chose two effects (e.g. you could chose to deal damage and push a target when you score a critical hit with your unarmed strike).

Rules for attacking creatures

There are three ways to make an attack roll in the game.

Whether you’re striking with a melee weapon, firing a weapon at range, or making an attack roll as part of a spell, an attack has a simple structure:

·         Choose a target. Pick a target within your attack’s range: a creature, an object, or a location.

·         Determine modifiers. The GM determines whether the target has cover and whether you have advantage or disadvantage against the target. In addition, spells, special abilities, and other effects can apply penalties or bonuses to your attack roll.

·         Resolve the attack. You make the attack roll. On a hit, you roll damage, unless the particular attack has rules that specify otherwise. Some attacks cause special effects in addition to or instead of damage.

There are three types of attacks in the game, melee attacks, ranged attacks, and spell attacks.

Melee attacks. Melee attacks add strength to their attack and damage rolls and have a reach.

Ranged Attacks. Ranged attacks add Dexterity to their attack and damage rolls and have both a normal and long reach. If a creature makes a ranged attack at long range, the attack has disadvantage. Ranged attacks made within the reach of a hostile creature also have disadvantage.

Spell Attacks. Spell attacks add the creature’ spell casting modifier to attack rolls but not damage rolls. Spell attacks have a range. Spell attacks made within the reach of a hostile creature have disadvantage unless their range is ‘touch’.