Now that the concept of proposals have been brought up.
https://forums.larian.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=758672#Post758672 What do you all think about this? In another thread dropping prone was brought up.
Prone defined, so we're all on the same page.Concept: Remove the benefit of disadvantage on incoming attacks with higher ground and add in a prone or dodge action.
I like the intent of the idea and here's where I'm going with this.
- If high ground doesn't natively provide disadvantage on incoming attacks, it will be less of a "must-have" for ranged abilities.
- Ranged attacks from below wouldn't be punished as much at the start of combat.
- Dropping prone to have ranged attacks come at disadvantage is a strategy in DnD 5e.
- Dropping prone would create a defensive option for the player/NPC that the game is currently lacking.
If the game requires that 1 action is spent to drop prone, then there will be more tactical depth. There would be more trade-offs as the player would have to consider if it is worth it to use an action to have disadvantage on incoming attacks and then spend half their movement to get up on the next turn.
Similar logic could be applied to adding a
Dodge action. What are all your thoughts on this?
If there is no advantage to ranged for having the high ground (which I am against actually), then there should be a physical disadvantage to prone for melee. Meaning if your prone, you should have a similar disadvantage that applies if you under sleep and get hit by a melee strike. If you just laying on the ground prone, there should be a multiplier to being hit by a melee strike from lets say a battleaxe.
Like many of the things that Larian has home-brewed or ignored, 5e already has a pretty reasonable answer for this.
If you are prone:
-Your only movement option is to stand up (thereby removing the condition) or to crawl (you move at half-speed).
-You have disadvantage on attack rolls (it's harder to attack when you are lying down).
-An attack roll against you has advantage if the attacker is within 5 feet of you (most melee attacks; because it's more difficult to dodge). Otherwise it has disadvantage (most ranged attacks; because you present a smaller target)
If you are unconscious (because you are sleeping, knocked out, under the effects of a spell, etc.):
-You cant take actions or reactions.
-You can't move or speak, and are unaware of your surroundings.
-You drop whatever you are holding and fall prone.
-You automatically fail STR and DEX saves.
-Any attack that hits you is a critical hit if the attacker is within 5 feet of you.
I'm not saying that the 5e solution is necessarily best, but it works as part of a system with the other 5e rules. Arbitrarily changing or throwing things out without considering their place in that system is likely to lead to an poorly balanced game.
I'm not aware of any official rule for high ground. I would potentially give the person on high ground partial cover (effectively increasing their AC) against ranged attacks from the low ground, but that's about it. I suppose a person on high ground using a ranged weapon (but not a ranged spell) could have a greater effective range. They would probably have a better view of the battlefield. But I don't see why being higher up with make it any easier to shoot someone below them. The advantage/disadvantage thing feels like substantial overkill.
