Looks like a very good usage of the toolset by the AI. Shove is like a glue that makes AI act relatively smart and creative in a sneakless combat. But of course I can understand your frustration here, but I hope they don't just dumb down those mechanics but make AI differ through difficulty levels. As of now you can actually counter it by athletics and acrobatics, rogues with expertise can have +8 in acrobatics and are very well protected from shove. You can have +5-7 in athletics with any character as well - with some strength, metallic boots and a proficiency.
This is absolutely not a matter of "difficulty" levels".
It's perfectly fine if the ennemy succeed at making things because even if I have +7 in athletics some of them are so powerfull that they succeed more or less often at pushing me. This is what difficulty levels are for.
I haven't considered myself "in difficulty" once in this combat : I've been ANNOYED.
- Annoyed to re-move my characters so often because the ennemies have changed my position.
- Annoyed to think of staying at least 10m away from holes (which is often not possible in the game).
- Annoyed that going higher was a worst choice than staying on the ground.
- Annoyed to revive characters because the AI has so powerfull tools.
- Annoyed that my engaged fighter didn't trigger an AOO on the archer (or force an attack with disadvantage)
- Annoyed to have been one shot (basically, that's what happened to SH but it usually apply to every characters shoved to death)
- Annoyed of spending so many actions to react such powerfull tools and survive rather than choosing how to use my ressources.
- Annoyed that a fight that could have ended in 4 rounds ended in 6.
Sure, it's very cool if the AI uses all the tools but it's not if the tools may have so big consequences on combats.
They should at least make shove a full action and reduce the distance to which we are pushed, whether it be with shove, items or special skills.
