I totally agree with OP on this one, I’m finding the combat very frustrating and not very fun.
I see a lot of people putting out the advice: backstab, high-ground, scrolls! ...but this is supposed to be a ROLE-PLAYING game. I don’t want to have to resort to playing all of my characters like a ranged-rogue. I want to use all of my characters unique spells and skills!
And, I mean, at least in my experience the RNG during combat is so unfavorable towards the player. During dialog choices it feels a bit better, but definitely not combat. I’ve missed so many “85% chance to hit” shots that I now consider 85% to be more like 30% and anything below 60% to just being an automatic miss.
...and you know this would be okay if it also applied to the enemy AI but it absolutely does not. They have way better accuracy and damage.
Just tonight I was trying to take the goblin camp...I had the high ground with an 85% chance to hit using my Warlock’s Eldritch Blast. It missed 3 times in a row and when it finally connected it only did 3 damage. On the next turn a level 2 goblin from a lower position sniped me for 8 hit points and caused my character to fall off a cliff instantly killing me.
Like...I have never had anywhere CLOSE to that same kind of luck on my turns. It shouldn’t be this frustrating to fight a bunch of low level goblins.
Tend to agree with this.
I found combat either too hard or too easy.
Too hard when you played "normally" ie as you would the first time you walked in there without exploiting the mechanics - you frequently get disadvantage of low ground, grenades getting lobbed and taking damage 2 or 3 times from it, missing many attacks with <45% chance to hit, missing spells due to low ground disadvantage etc.
Too easy when you knew what was coming, carefully positioned your party and/or used known exploits - high ground advantage (suddenly your to hit chance is 95% ffs!), just eat a pig's head after getting shot by a duergar with 3 attacks (!), shove people off things for 3 x damage you could do with your weapon etc.
I'm not sure either experience was optimal. I feel like with a well balanced, robust party not every encounter should have you in mortal peril!
