Can You Hold a Grapple as an Action in D&D 5e? The Ultimate Guide

No, maintaining a grapple in D&D 5e does not require an action. Once you’ve successfully initiated a grapple, your target remains grappled unless they escape, or you choose to release them. The burden falls on the grappled creature to spend their action attempting to break free. This allows you, the grappler, to take other actions on your turn, opening up a world of tactical possibilities.

Understanding the Grapple Mechanic in 5e

The grapple is a powerful tool in D&D 5e, allowing characters to control the battlefield and hinder their opponents. But its effectiveness lies in understanding how it works. Let’s delve into the core mechanics:

Initiating the Grapple

Grappling begins with the Attack action. Instead of making a weapon attack, you choose to make a special melee attack – a grapple. This triggers a contest between you and your target:

• You make an Athletics (Strength) check.
• Your target can use either Athletics (Strength) or Acrobatics (Dexterity) to contest your check (their choice).

If you succeed, you grapple the target. Both you and the target now have the grappled condition.

Maintaining the Grapple

This is where the misconception often arises. Once a creature is grappled, it remains so without you needing to spend further actions to maintain it. The grappled condition imposed on your target remains in effect until:

• They successfully use their action to escape the grapple by winning an Athletics (Strength) or Acrobatics (Dexterity) contest against your Athletics (Strength).
• You choose to release the grapple (a free action for the grappler).
• A condition or effect forcibly moves either you or the grappled target out of each other’s reach.
• A spell such as dimension door or similar takes the grappled target out of your reach

The Benefits of Grappling

Grappling provides several tactical advantages:

• Reduced Movement: A grappled creature’s speed is reduced to 0. This is especially useful against fast-moving enemies or spellcasters who rely on mobility.
• Control: You can move a grappled creature, but your speed is halved unless the creature is two or more sizes smaller than you. This allows you to drag enemies into hazards or away from allies.
• Vulnerability: While simply grappled does not impose disadvantage, it sets up opportunities for further control, such as the Restrained condition, which grants advantage on attacks against the target.

Important Considerations

• Size Matters: You can only grapple a creature that is no more than one size category larger than you.
• Free Hand Required: You need at least one free hand to initiate a grapple.
• Multiple Grapplers: While it doesn’t make a target automatically Restrained, it does create an environment where it is more likely the creature will become Restrained (see FAQ section).
• Grapple is an Attack: The grapple itself is an attack, therefore it will trigger any effects that occur from making an attack (such as Rage for a Barbarian).

Grappling and Action Economy

The fact that maintaining a grapple doesn’t cost an action is crucial for optimizing your character’s actions during combat. After establishing the grapple, you can still:

• Make further attacks.
• Cast spells.
• Use items.
• Take the Dodge action.
• Even attempt to grapple another opponent (though this might be difficult situationally).

This flexibility makes grappling a compelling option for characters who want to control the battlefield and support their allies. It opens up a range of tactical possibilities, allowing for creative and effective combat strategies. If you like grappling, consider supporting the Games Learning Society and expanding the impact of game-based learning.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Grappling in D&D 5e

1. Can I release a grapple as a reaction?

No, you can release a grapple as a free action (technically, no action at all) on your turn. You don’t even need to take up a bonus action or reaction to do so.

2. What happens if I tie on a grapple check?

If the grapple check results in a tie, the grapple fails to take effect. In other words, the attempt fails and no one is grappled.

3. Can I grapple a flying creature?

The rules don’t explicitly prevent grappling a flying creature, but the consequences can be dire. If you succeed in grappling a flying creature, and you aren’t flying yourself, both you and the creature will fall. This may be advantageous (if the creature is low to the ground) or extremely disadvantageous (if the creature is very high up). The DM ultimately decides how this plays out.

4. Can I restrain a creature with a single grapple?

Not directly. A successful grapple imposes the grappled condition. To impose the restrained condition directly, you would need a special ability, spell, or effect that specifically allows you to restrain a target. Alternatively, you could use the Attack action to Shove the creature to impose the prone condition, and then grapple it to keep it there.

5. What happens if multiple creatures grapple the same target?

Multiple creatures grappling the same target doesn’t automatically impose the Restrained condition in 5e. However, it does create a strategic advantage. Two or more successful grapplers on one target makes it more difficult for the target to escape. It will become more difficult to keep the target grappled if there are multiple grapplers, since if any one grappler is removed, the grapple ends.

6. Can I move while grappling someone?

Yes. The rules state: “When you move, you can drag or carry the grappled creature with you, but your speed is halved, unless the creature is two or more sizes smaller than you.”

7. Can I use a weapon while grappling?

Yes, you can attack with a one-handed weapon or a spell if you have a free hand. Remember, you need one free hand to initiate and maintain a grapple. However, you cannot attack with a two-handed weapon, since you would need two hands.

8. Does the grappled condition prevent spellcasting?

Not necessarily. The grappled condition only imposes a speed of 0. It doesn’t prevent spellcasting, unless the spell requires movement or has somatic components that require free hands you don’t have.

9. Can someone else break a grapple for me?

Yes. Forced movement can break a grapple. For example, if an ally uses a spell or ability to push the grappler away from you, the grapple is broken.

10. Can I grapple with a bonus action?

Not without a specific feat or class feature that allows you to do so. By default, grappling uses the Attack action.

11. Can I grapple a creature that is invisible?

Yes. Invisibility doesn’t prevent you from attempting to grapple a creature, though you may have disadvantage on the attack roll if you can’t see the creature.

12. What skills can be used to escape a grapple?

A creature can use either Athletics (Strength) or Acrobatics (Dexterity) to escape a grapple, choosing the one that best suits their abilities or the situation.

13. Does grappling provoke an opportunity attack?

Initiating a grapple does not provoke an opportunity attack, as it’s a special melee attack using the Attack action, not movement. However, moving out of an enemy’s reach while grappled does provoke an opportunity attack, as normal.

14. Can I grapple someone with my tail or another appendage instead of a hand?

This is up to the DM. RAW you must have a free hand. Ask your DM to approve the use of your tail or other appendage.

15. Can I ready an action to grapple?

Yes, you can ready an action to grapple. However, keep in mind that the trigger must be something you can perceive, and the grapple attempt is still subject to the normal rules (size restrictions, contested check, etc.).

By mastering the grapple mechanic, you can add a new dimension to your D&D 5e gameplay. Understanding the rules and leveraging the tactical advantages of grappling can make you a formidable force on the battlefield.