Grappled: targets, movement and dragging
A grapple is not the same as restraint or incapacitation. Keep the grappler’s identity on the table because it determines which attack rolls the condition penalizes.
Use it at the table
- Set the grappled creature’s Speed to zero; it cannot increase.
- Apply Disadvantage to its attack rolls against targets other than the grappler.
- When the grappler moves with it, charge one extra foot per foot unless the size exception applies. Use the grapple’s separate escape rules or effect to resolve escape.
Make the call
A grappled fighter attacks the creature holding them, then considers attacking another adjacent enemy. Which attack is penalized by the Grappled condition?
The ruling
The attack against the other enemy.
Grappled applies its attack penalty to targets other than the grappler. It does not apply that penalty to the attack against the grappler itself. Other sources of Advantage or Disadvantage still matter. Speed zero restricts movement, but the condition does not say the creature loses its action.
Watch for this mistake
Do not grant incoming attacks Advantage solely because the target is Grappled. That is a feature of several other conditions, including Restrained. Also keep escape procedure separate from the condition’s ongoing effects.
Ask the table
Who is the grappler, who is the attack targeting, and which size exception applies to dragging?
The source rule
SRD 5.2.1, page 182. Read the official PDF.
While you have the Grappled condition, you experience the following effects. Speed 0. Your Speed is 0 and can’t increase. Attacks Affected. You have Disadvantage on attack rolls against any target other than the grappler. Movable. The grappler can drag or carry you when it moves, but every foot of movement costs it 1 extra foot unless you are Tiny or two or more sizes smaller than it.
Source and reuse
This work includes material from the System Reference Document 5.2.1 (“SRD 5.2.1”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available at dndbeyond.com/srd. The SRD 5.2.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, available at creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
The explanation, example and table prompt are Table Ready adaptations; source text has been reflowed and tables reformatted. This guide and its printable card are available under the same CC BY 4.0 license. Independent reference; no official affiliation. These rules are optional for our system-neutral adventures.