10 SIMPLE HOUSE RULES for Better Combat | Dungeons and Dragons 5e

10 Simple Homebrew House Rules to Make Your Combat More Exciting and Tactical! Get creative and see which of these rules you want to bring to your D&D game. ⏬ More Content ⏬
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I want to inspire others to unlock their own creativity and “Think Outside the Box”! I want to help people customize their games and have more FUN! Thank you so much for your support in growing this channel with likes, comments, shares, and all the other things I have going on, it really does mean SO much!
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#DnD #dungeonsanddragons
0:12 Intro
1:47 #1 Advantage Stacking
3:52 #2 Flanking
5:00 #3 Targeted Attacks
6:55 #4 Opportunity Attacks
8:13 #5 New Prone Mechanic
9:49 #6 New Help Action
10:58 #7 Inter-Action
12:26 #8 Massive Criticals
14:20 #9 Movement
15:03 #10 Bloodied Condition
15:54 Bonus Tip
16:52 Outro

[@TheDungeonCoach]

What Homebrew Combat Rules do YOU use at your table? 🔴 JOIN 🔥 Become a KZbin Member kzbin.info/door/z8xkTADYdRQR7GP-f2PjOAjoin 🐲 Become a Patron 🐉 www.patreon.com/thedungeoncoach ▶️ Dungeon Coach Homebrew Playlist 📱 kzbin.info/aero/PLMzshUEANAtOovJb_pr27pwLOTR3nn19g The List: 1. Advantage & Disadvantage Stacking @ 1:48 2. Flanking Variant @ 3:53 3. Targeted Attacks (Called Shots) @ 5:07 4. Opportunity Attacks @ 6:55 5. Prone Variant @ 8:13 6. Help Action Variant @ 9:50 7. "Inter-Action" @ 10:59 8. Massive Criticals @ 12:26 9. Simple Movement @ 14:21 10. Bloodied Condition @ 15:03 Bonus Tip: Greater Weapon Master & Sharp Shooter

[@klyral]

house rule antimagic metal. The metal protects from magic and suppresses magic. +1 to hit and damage against casters and magical creatures. +2 to saves verses spells and magic effects. antimagic shackles were created to imprisoned casters and magical creatures all magical abilities and spellcaster neutered until removed. if a magical creature or caster is struck or a case such as a arrow stuck in player. that player is infected by a rotting disease. until arrow is removed. the player continues to take rotting damage 1 dm per turn until healed or flame root is used to purge metal from system. in our game magic is outlawed by the Drow separatist movement. the communist nationalist goals are to destroy magic and the gods. klyral

[@CrownRock1]

Cleric: "How are you feeling?" Barbarian: "On a scale of 1 to 88, I'd say I'm about a 13."

[@TheDungeonCoach]

CrownRock1 FLAG ON THE FIELD!! Meta game talk!!! Lol 😂

[@leos.2322]

A classsic of my table

[@emilianotort7236]

It feels like a real conversation with a friend about D&D, loved your attitude! Instantly subscribed.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Thank you! That really is what I’m going for. And I want to have those conversations here too! So welcome friend, I appreciate the feedback!

[@DanRothery]

Bump this. Awesome attitude and fun to listen to. Also, well thought out ideas focused on fun! Great work.

[@BigCowProductions]

He's a good guy in private chat and on channel. A genuine Dood.

[@GunnarWahl]

as for the crit thing, for rogues and paladins, it's simple. I allow for the max damage for only the "Weapon's" dice, and you roll the other bonus dice as normal, they still get twice as many, but those dice aren't maxed.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

GunnarWahl yeeeeaaaaa that’s a great fix that balances the game breaking reasons.... that’s brilliant!

[@tyler1673]

And here I am with new inspiration mechanics allowing them to say "Mmmmno that's actually a crit by the power of this inspiration I'll burn here"

[@ryanvox7812]

My lad you predicted OneD&D XDD

[@GunnarWahl]

@@ryanvox7812 I am a game designer lol. So it's not to shocking they came to a similar conclusion. lol

[@themetamancer7402]

Only cowards don't allow double damage

[@evanwhite5704]

The reason I like the base rules prone condition is because it’s really good to willingly drop prone against long-ranged enemies, to make yourself a smaller target. Sometimes being prone is purposeful, so I don’t think it would take your reaction to stand up

[@TheDungeonCoach]

That is a very good point! If somebody willingly went prone then I probably would not enforce this on them. I see what you mean!

[@thedollardm4672]

Makes me want to tweak it specifically for acrobatic fighters (martial artists, blade dancers, etc) so the can fight from the ground. Maybe a special skill? I'm picturing drunken boxing and jujitsu, wrestlers and gunslingers able to still fight while on the ground.

[@blakscot]

Holey moley, there's a lot here. I've had to watch 3 times already with a LOT of pausing. Great ideas.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Yea? Im glad man! This channel has become more and more homebrew focused! Stay tuned haha

[@theDMLair]

Dude, looking good! 👊

[@TheDungeonCoach]

the DM Lair DUDE!!! Thanks man! The response from this video has been nuts! I love talking about homebrew, and apparently my people do too! Jaw dropped when you came by! Means a lot bro! I appreciate it!

[@stateofhibernation]

Doctor "on a scale of 1 to 10 how does it feel?" Me "well bloodied."

[@snobgoblinDK]

The help alternative moves into bard territory making one of their signature abilities no longer unique. But good ideas overall :)

[@TheDungeonCoach]

I agree! And IF you had a Bard in your group, I'd probably not run it like this, or find another way to BOOST the help action. But If you dont have a Bard in the party, id steal from their mechanics all day! Haha Glad you liked the ideas!

[@AdmiralStoicRum]

@@TheDungeonCoach how would you handle a bard joining the group mid campaign?

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Admiral Stoic Rum 1. have a group discussion and change the house rule 2. Buff the bard with some SUPER strong inspiration mechanics I’d lean towards the 2nd, because I give my players bonus us level ups and they’ll be stronger than usual and I’d just BOOST that bard so he still feels special!

[@LordOz3]

Great suggestions! #2 - instead of flanking, I use a multiple attacker bonus - +1 for each attacker after the first in melee. I tend to run TotM as opposed to minis, so this is easier to adjudicate. #4 - how about an Acrobatics check to avoid the opp attacks for standing up? Something like DC 10 + 1 per threatening creature. #6 - Giving a d10 to hit and damage feels like stepping on the battlemaster. When my players gang up on a target, they also get the multi bonus from above. Against a hard to hit foe, they may Help the character with the best to-hit chance, or all attack hoping for the Menzia Effect(sp?) to pay off. #8 - I use this for weapon attacks. Natural and spell attacks still roll double dice. Also, anything that adds to the damage rolls the doubled dice as well, so a paladin with a longsword, 2d8 smite, and +2 damage bonus would do 5d8+10. I also require paladins to declare smite up front. #10 - I use the bloodied condition as a descriptive - and for a skeleton I saw cracked (it can be fun coming up for descriptors for unusual foes). I don't use the other levels to described, but now I might.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Jon Osborne #2 that makes a ton of sense for TotM, and from what you said in the other video, +1 makes sense for that too! #4 I try to limit rolls where possible since that slows down the game having to do that whole process, but I’ve given a rogue an evasion like ability that they can use once per turn to avoid one outright (high level rogue) #6 I would definitely change things if a battle master was in the group. But most groups won’t have em, so I love stealing from class abilities for new mechanics (but would modify if I had one, so they still feel special) #8 I TOTALLY AGREE! Feels so bad to have them declare smites after a hit... I know it’s a nerf but I hate when they just wait for a crit then use it lol #10 that’s so funny, because that is the exact same thing that happens at my table when I describe all things being “bloodied “ lol

[@thechaotimagnet]

Thank you for your thoughts on advantage disadvantage stacking, I spent some time yesterday trying to find something that works for my mind. I highly value 5e bounded accuracy system so I think even +2 is a little to much, and going even further really through the math off in my mind. However, a simple +1 means about a +5% chance of rolling a 10 or more, and about a +10% of rolling a result of 20, while retaining the same probability to roll a natural 20. This does break bounded accuracy but not by much, and that I think is the special thing you get by having two sources of advantage or disadvantage. This also follows the Jargon D&D already has with "+1 Weapons" which I think makes the rule easier to memorize and say. "I have advantage +1" or "I have disadvantage -1" Obviously you can keep stacking the +1s for infinite scaling, but I think just the single +1 add depth to 5e while retailing bounded accuracy. Although I have one more Idea. If you have Advantage +1 and roll doubles on your two dice make that a critical success, regardless of the numbers on the dice. This increase the chance of critical success by 5%, which is almost exactly what standard advantage does by rolling two d20s. So standard roll is a 5% crit chance, advantage roll is a 10% crit chance, advantage +1 roll is a 15% crit chance. And of course rolling doubles with disadvanage -1 is a critical failure.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Thechaoticmagnet I love your comments! I’m a math teacher and love the high end math talk, I totally see what you say about bounded accuracy for SURE Myself, I am fine with the “guarantee” high roll modifiers because of what the players have to do to get it. That teamwork is well rewarded for me. But mathematically I totally agree with you

[@l3lixx]

Does rolling double 1's on Advantage +1 result in a critical sucess or failure using your rolling doubles rule

[@thechaotimagnet]

@@l3lixx rereading my comment, it seems like yes any double would count as a crit. As a side note, now I am just in favor of letting advantage or disadvantage stack twice (rolling up to 3 dice and taking highest or lowest) since the 3rd die has diminished benefits compared to the first (I think it was an average of +3 bonus/penalty adding the 3rd die)

[@FlatOnHisFace]

There's really no such rule for getting crits outside of attack rolls, and you can have advantage or disadvantage to any kind of roll. You shouldn't marry the two, unless you also houserule crits for skills, saves, and other ability checks.

[@skeetazaurus]

Number 10 is genius! The game has a perfect scaling mechanic with proficiency that goes wildly underused. I also love your thoughts of how to stack advantage. I personally would keep Help as advantage on the attack roll (with your stacking rules applied, if necessary), but maybe add a damage die or the helping creature's proficiency to the damage roll.

[@Equeon]

My main problem with the standing-from-prone causing opportunity attacks is that it can be a real wombo combo of everyone just tripping enemies over and over. A ranger's wolf becomes even stronger than all the other companion choices because of its automatic prone STR saving throw on every melee attack. Anyway, really good stuff here. I already use 1, 6, 8, & 10. Subscribed!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Yea I could see how abusing the mechanic could be a cluster of shoving lol! I haven’t seen my players abuse it yet, but if I did I’d probably make it harder to make certain enemies prone and make them stronger/ think ahead and give them outs (misty step/ burrow) Love that these were so closely aligned to what you do! Glad to have ya in the crew! (Hey that kinda rhymed...) p.s. love your icon pic! What is that?

[@Equeon]

@@TheDungeonCoach It's a cartoony drawing (not mine) of Otachi, the best monster from the over-the-top kaiju/mecha movie Pacific Rim.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Equeon I loved Pacific Rim haha! ROCKET PUNCH!! It was like an over the top transformers. Reminds me of a post apocalyptic D&D one shot game I was a Player in... I was a Druid who’s “shapeshifts” were “transforming” lol... like a beast wars transformer... if you know what that is! Anyway, love the icon even more now

[@dankruew8641]

Great content dude, but I'd recommend not describing skeletons as 'well-boned!' XD

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Hobbitz Hahahah that’s a whole different type of description! What about “we’ll rattled” lol

[@liammckenney6792]

Maybe it would be a cool thing for some creatures that you cant see how bloodied they are; you can't see how bloody a ghost is, not a skeleton.

[@sillymonger]

Been watching D&D videos most days for years now, these were all great new ideas I haven't heard before. Really nicely done brother, great video!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

sillymonger I love to hear comments like this because that’s exactly what I’m trying to do here! Thank you so much

[@EapenLeubner]

Fantastic channel you are creating. I’m going to take over DMing at my table and I have been working on an Eberron campaign. Almost every single tip lines up with what I want to accomplish to give a swashbuckling experience. I appreciate the clarity and brevity. You are onto something here.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Eapen Leubner Man thank you, for real! I feel like you see the vision of what I’m trying to do here! Clarity and brevity, love it. Glad this is a go to resource for you! Keep letting me know if you need anything else and you can always catch me on discord for a chat!

[@kianrackley2967]

A good fix for the help action could be a static bonus to what they’re doing either based on the description of how they help, or their proficiency. You could use the +2 +5 rule depending on if a wizard, for example, is trying to help a barbarian swing his axe or if he distracts the enemy with a minor illusion flourish or something interesting.

[@perrygrosshans8537]

This was the first video of yours I saw and I still love it. I started using the bloodied description right away those many months ago and it's been great as it adds to the way I DM at my table. So many good ideas here to use and after running and playing 5e since it came out I totally see all the "faults" you mention with each rule. Will definitely be using many of these in my new games after ToA super module is done!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Perry Grosshans glad to hear it! I’m just trying to give DMZ out there more customizable options!I combined them all together in that PDF that I’ll keep updating!

[@samchafin4623]

I really like that aid other rule variant, and allowing players a free interaction roll that doesn't cost the if it doesn't work. I'm fond of a rule from DCC which allows martial characters to engage in "mighty deeds". Basically, concurrent with the attack roll, the character declares what else they are trying to do - push the enemy, disarm them, rally allies, swing on a chandelier - what ever. That player rolls a d6, and on a 5 or 6, they succeed, if the attack roll also hits. This may not be tactical enough for your game, but I like how it opens up the players to creative possibilities, and doesn't require a lot of number crunching.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Sam Chafin you summed it up pretty good with that last line. Creative possibility’s without number crunching! That’s my goal!

[@manusaxena6691]

I love these ideas! I’m incorporating most of them into the new homebrew campaign I’m starting soon. Here’s what I’m thinking of doing with Help, it’s a bit similar to what someone else already suggested: Help: say how you’re helping - making a feint (make a regular attack roll), causing a distraction (“look over there! A dragon!” - make an opposed INT check), taunting the opponent (“hey ugly, you couldn’t beat an egg!” - make an opposed WIS check), etc. On a success, whoever you’re helping gets to add + 1d8 to their next roll (and to damage, if they’re attacking). On a critical, they add + 1d12. A failure gets nothing. On a fumble, your ally must subtract 1d8. To make it more desirable, I’m wondering whether to make Help a free action on a failure, like you suggested with improvised actions.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Manu Saxena I actually REALLY love that!! That’s pretty great! I would make it free if failed to encourage team play and see how that went and if It got too strong 👌🏼

[@manusaxena6691]

I’ll try that! I’ll let you know how it works, and if you try anything similar please let us know too. Thanks for your awesome videos, and the energy you bring to them!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

@@manusaxena6691 I appreciate it!, thank you! I will!

[@Lumine100]

Help action suggestion: Like you mentioned it could work similar to bardic inspiration. You could probably make the die scale with the player level. Like starting as a d4, then d6, and so on up to d12.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Lumine100 yeaaaaas I love the player scaling idea! Good stuff!!

[@aidan50203]

I really like that help action mechanic. Off the top of my head, you could make it more customisable based on who the helper is and what they're doing. Rather than adding a d10, you add a d8 PLUS their ability modifier depending on what they are helping with

[@jasonmkc7797]

Great channel. Thanks for sharing. At our table each ally within melee range of your target gives -1 to the target’s AC. No facing rules is simpler for us and this works well even battling in theater of the mind.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Jason MK C I love that and perfect for a theatre of the mind like you said!! Thanks for sharing!

[@AndiVx]

The rules for movement in dnd 5 are the same as your house rules. Dnd 5e diagonal is only 5 feet for every diagonal. The 5-then-10-then-5 was from dnd 3.5 I think. Edit: Yeah, I just checked it, and the 5-10-5 it's also an optional rule on the current DMG (but I'm pretty sure it was the way we played 3.5 too) as an alternative to the non-euclidean 5 foot diagonals of the PHB.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Someone on Reddit commented and told me the same thing, you are SO RIGHT!!! That blew my mind. Back when I first started playing my first DM told us this rule and I never questioned it! I’ve read the PHB multiple times and never caught it. So nuts! Well props to 5e for keeping it simple! Thanks for the accountability check! Props to you too! Haha

[@AndiVx]

I would have missed it too if it wasn't because the master that taugh us dnd 5e explicitly stated that he liked the 5-10-5, so he warned us it was homebrew from 3.5. I kinda like it. But he also used the optional rule for flanking, and I really hate that rule too. I also like some of your rules, mainly the prone one, although I always worry about death spiral whenever I change something like that. But I'm making my own homebrew version of dnd/pf, and I wanted to make Attacks of Opportunity more prevalent... So I'll probably steal that! haha. Though most of my home rules for 5e (real 5e, not my homebrew) are not for combat, only outside of combat stuff.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Haha me personally, I can totally handle counting by 5s/ 10s (I’m a math teacher IRL) but players always struggle lol I always teach my players the Prone mechanic the hard way by having a scenario unfold where they get put in a bag situation so they understand/ respect it. Ex: group of orc/ goblins and big strong orc makes the front liner prone as the goblins surround, so once he stands up its a scary thing. Then they get it. Kinda like a “tutorial battle” I love the PDF! Steal everything you like! Glad to have ya!

[@FlatOnHisFace]

It's older than 3.5. It goes all the way back to 3!

[@benlambert4922]

Dude, I am loving your homebrew rules. I will be incorporaing a lot of these into our new campaing. I especially like the one for falling prone. Had it happen to me once in a real life mob situation and it was very terrifying. I got away and survived it, but it was a near thing. I think you rules adds a realistic element to falling down in a mass melee.

[@rorybeckstrom9602]

I love all these ideas and this vid really has my creative juices flowing for incorporating them

[@JoshuaJacobs83]

I love the idea of damage thresholds and targeted. I am doing that in my home brew but didn’t know how to balance. Love this!

[@chrisrohlfing6585]

Best house rules video I’ve seen! Will immediately implement at least 2 probably 3 of these.

[@michaelminugh5357]

Awesome house-rules, tied to what exists but adding good stuff, and solving problems that definitely exist. Really wanna try these out now.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Michael Minugh thanks! Glad you appreciate my attempts to “honor” / blend my home brews into what currently exists! You see the vision! Let me know how they work! We can always brainstorm tweaks here too!

[@kainzow45]

The best way I've heard "Standing from prone takes half your movement" explained is really it just takes 3 seconds to stand up, so you've only got half a round left to move regardless of how fast you are. If a player wants to do a kip-up I'd allow an athletics/acrobatic check to reduce the penalty, with a large fail reducing their speed to zero for the round (but they can still stand up).

[@glock112983]

My table uses a few of these rules already, but you have a few I definitely want to bring to my group. Loving your videos btw!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Thanks Rob! I always pitch new stuff to my players at the beginning of the session to then weave it in there nice and smooth lol. Glad to be of service sir!!

[@VexxarAlHara]

I watched a lot of D&D 5e. Or rather, a lot of TTRPGs videos. This video is one of the absolute best of them all. I'll be using and tweaking almost all of those rules. In fact, I was already technically using the "inter-action" rule on my Savage Worlds table, but you managed to conceptualize it very well, even putting a very fitting name to it! Instantly subscribed!

[@GrandOldDwarf]

I enjoy looking back on Coach's older content. Seeing spoilers for what will become DC20 is really cool.

[@Vypr-iy7ny]

I used to DM Pathfinder years ago, but due to moves and life....haven't been able to restart any campaigns. Some friends all were talking about wanting to play, during this time so I organized them to play in Fantasy Grounds. I'm now learning D&D, since it feels more streamlined and will be easier for my players (whom 80% have NEVER played any type of game like this.) So now I'm having to learn the rules by both watching others play and videos like this, as well as reading the book/reference guides. Some of the rules, like death saves and Advantage/Disadvantage seemed almost TOO simple...so I loved your ideas! Instant subscribe because of it! Will have a discussion with my players (especially the couple that have played before but not for YEARS!) about some of these ideas/changes.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

donot needtoknow thats awesome!!! I am glad I can contribute to your table! That’s why I make these! More efficient and more fun! I have another rules vid coming in a few weeks!

[@jasonp9508]

Also, I like the return of the "called shot" (disadvantage for attacking specific location for specific effect). I've been thinking about how to bring this into 5E (we used to do a -4 to hit) but I didn't want to steal thunder from Fighter maneuvers. But I guess disadvantage levels that field. In that vein we used to play a "called shot to the torso" to gain max damage (don't roll damage dice just take maximum).

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Jason P Oooooo that’s AWESOME!! I’d love to do a video on effects from called shots! That would definitely be one of them!

[@thedollardm4672]

This would be super useful for say a monk who specializes in a martial art that uses targeted strikes to disable.

[@silverhippie3910]

I’m definitely using a few of these. Great video!!!✌️

[@dougantelope5013]

Great video! I really like the stacking advantage and nat 20 rules. Very creative!

[@poseidensheilds1767]

I like adding the 1d10 to the attack roll for the help action. I would like to discuss further how it would affect the damage roll there. I think there's something really unique that could be done there. I'll message you later today once I'm off of work.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Ooooo Im excited to hear it! And yea I think HELP action in combat should be more appealing. Ill await your comment!

[@Intuitionize]

Dude! I just found this channel via TikTok. Now all I want to do is play in one of your games. Your homebrews sound amazing.

[@jwraper1498]

Awesome! I actually already use that critical hit rule when I DM. The other DM’s I sometimes play with also adopted this version and named it after me, lol!

[@DarkSuo1]

Great video man, love your passion. You earned a sub.

[@CadolfWasHere]

this literally feels like one of my buddies is tryin to teach me how to play dnd my frens and i wanna start playing but i cant rely on them to learn how to play so im doing all the research myself great ideas here keep makin good content

[@dreadmorg]

Wow, lots of great ideas! And the presentation is great. Well done!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Thank you! When I choose a topic I try and really make a great one so that it can "stand the test of time" and eventually have every topic! Thanks again!

[@fushicon6121]

Got the DMG and MonMan for Xmas 🎉 Can’t wait to half-read all of it and then homebrew everything myself!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

I absolutely LOVE the "half-read it all and then homebrew"! To this day I never use anything directly out of the monster manual, i always homebrew those. I use it as inspiration for sure, but only as that

[@paulduquette1102]

I have a younger player at my table and loves to call shots. I don't want to discourage his creativity so I think I'm gonna try your suggestions. Great video!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Paul Duquette that is the exact reason I created this lol, hope it helps! It’s been fun for me for sure!

[@poseidensheilds1767]

I really like your rule on opportunity attacks, and it really seems that it would be more exciting

[@kinthor88]

Here are a couple of mine. 1. If you are bloodied (half hp or less) your movement is reduced by half. 2. Shooting into melee. If you fire a missile or spell into melee that could miss, if you domiss, count the number of pcs, PCs, monsters within 5 feet of the target you missed. Each one give a 10% cumulative chance to hitting one of them. Example. You fire at a goblin who is engaged with your teammate fighter and he has a goblin beside him. You roll and miss. There are two targets within five feet of him, the fighter and the other goblin for a total of 20%. Roll percentile. If you roll less than 20%, you hit one of the non targets (choose at random). I always start pcs at max health on level 1. I also reroll 1s on all forms of healing.

[@acromantulus]

Good rules. Can't wait to try some of them out at my table.

[@Finn5659]

What if when you do the help action, you do it with a skill and describe it (perception to spot a weakness, athletics to trip them, intimidate to throw off their focus in battle), so you get to roll that die BUT COULD ALSO add your proficiency and modifier bonus? This is even stronger, but it could be simply balanced by making it so you also have to make a skill roll, or instead that skill roll is AN OPTION to try and get more out of the help action (than just a d10) but it’s at the risk of it failing and you getting nothing. This way there can be even more of a bonus, the way you can help is different for each character, skills become more potent, and the help action becomes more descriptive

[@chriskaschafsky5846]

These house rules and awesome. I am starting a new game Saturday, I think I just might add most of these.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Chris Kaschafsky that’s awesome!! Well Saturday morning I have PART 2 to this video lol! So check those out too!

[@JNJTabletop]

Targeted Attacks!! Love this idea! We like rewarding creativity in in our games! Nicely done!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

JNJ Tabletop thanks man!! I had one player that kept doing cool moves! So I had to do something 😆

[@reynirreynisson1971]

I always use the crit homebrew where you max out one of the damage dice. And usually describe the condition with flavor text and usually never describe hits with descriptive wording like gashing wound across the chest or impaled (these are death descriptions), i regard hp´s to be a mix of hardiness, your armor, skill and a bit of luck, you only get the wound description when you cross a threshold, preferably at deaths door one (like the day after "Hmm yesterday you had a gaping gurgling chest wound and now your strolling about eating rabbit).

[@apolloaiello8025]

Love watching your videos, you talk like a genuine player and not a "celeb player". Not that those players/GMs are bad, they are in fact very good but feel they become too scripted in how they word things for the camera, but I feel like people can relate to your videos much more due to how you portray your content!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Apollo Aiello Thank you so much man! I will honestly take that to heart as we keep growing here and always stay true to myself. It sounds deep when I say it like that, but you know what I mean! I just want to help people and I’m glad that comes across!

[@bananabanana484]

I feel like the help action could benefit from your free form rule for Targeted attacks. The help action gives the next attack a bonus effect, but it also grants advantage. This makes it an actual strategy, instead of your friend giving you help with one attack.

[@marshallparsons5371]

I'm new here - just subbed - and I'm loving your content. About the new help action, I feel like it could be better than a true flat random buff. I'm thinking.. 1d4 plus your proficiency bonus if you're proficient in however you're helping. This will allow higher level characters help more than lower, and let players lean more into helping as that character would. Maybe your fighter helps the ranged player by maneuvering the enemy with their fighting prowess and positing, or the bard creates some particularly loud, discordant tones near the enemy to distract them momentarily. Keep up the awesome stuff though. I'm going to try implementing some of these into my homebrew game.

[@BobBrackney]

Love you ideas, and even utilize many of them either already of from you videos. I would love to run my movement systems past you sometime. I believe it's more dynamic, never liked the idea of 1 player moving all at once then another. I've been running it for a couple years now in my home-brews and would like fresh eyes.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Bob Brackney shoot me an email and I’ll shoot you back an email of what I can try and do for Homebrew system look overs! Sounds cool!! [e-mail]

[@YpnosGR]

I love these, especially flanking! Playing CoS, there's a lot of cramped spaces, like small shops or houses. I'm gonna run this past the players and see what they thing. With regards to critical hits, I have always used the same rule:"Max damage, plus your roll". So whatever they got the crit with, they can add up the max damage they could do and then roll some extra damage. Especially since playing this on Roll20 where crits are as rare as hen's teeth, it feels extra special to roll a 20!

[@campbellfamily1928]

Really great ideas!

[@user-xk9cn2vd2f]

I love all of these ideas

[@Davedave000]

This might be an OP idea, but what if help is a reaction rather than an action? Instead of advantage, if your next to an enemy that's taking damage, you can use your reaction to preform a follow-up attack on that enemy using your weapon without modifiers for damage or a single-target cantrip. Perhaps to balance this, if a creature next to you is receiving a follow-up attack, you can instead spend your reaction to block the follow-up and nullify it completely.

[@mohammadhormozan5596]

that was GOD DAMN BRIIIIIILIANT thank u dungeon coach❤️❤️

[@Draakhart_961]

Great vid, I'm certainly taking notes! There is one point however: I'll disagree a little with the paladin smite with the 'Massive Criticals' rule. Indeed it is convenient timing - but it can be done only by expending a resource for that attack, which a rogue does not, even if its not a guaranteed condition. That is one of the primary benefits of playing paladins before auras kick in, and for what is usually a very MAD class. That aside, I find these rules to be in pretty good taste and fully intend to show my players some of these and test them out.

[@sebastianvogelscheuche751]

Him: Stacking Advantage. Me: WRITE THAT DOWN, WRITE THAT DOWN!!!!!

[@louis1372]

Wenn du das gut findest solltest du dir DC20 vom Dungeon Coach anschauen :)

[@rothenstien3060]

I actually use a few of these in my campaign, but that last one is gonna be in my game from now on.

[@RJ-1580]

Im glad this channel just happened to pop up in my recommended

[@evanwhite5704]

A houserule that I use for criticals is that 1. Weapon attack crits add the maximum of just the weapon’s dice, not any additional dice (so you would get 8 extra damage with a weapon that does 1d8, but you would still double the sneak attack or smite normally). 2. Spell attack crits allow you to reroll any die under half of the max before doubling, but you have to take the new roll (you can reroll 1 on d4, 1-2 on d6, 1-3 on d8, 1-4 on d10, and 1-5 on d12).

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Evan White spell critical rerolls feel great AND is a mechanic already in 5e, so that works great!! Love it!! And the weapon only is awesome too, Guarantees damage but isn’t broken!

[@kazebaret]

Amazing video, already subscribed! As concern movement, I switched years ago to hexagonal maps that nullify diagonal movement, and never looked back!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Luca Bellarosa You switched to Hexes??? I might have to do the same! Seems so much better in hindsight lol! A lot of my maps have that on the back! I’ll be doing it for sure! Thanks man, glad to have ya!

[@tinaprice4948]

@@TheDungeonCoach we use the hex side when we are outside, but for things where squares make the most sense we stick with the squares.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Tina Price I’ve used the same thing for indoor outdoor! Maps just feel more large scale with the hexes... I can’t explain it! Haha

[@Brickzar86]

Love the vids, man, thanks for all of your work. I don't like flanking rules because A. outnumbering a monster (or the monsters outnumbering you) is advantage enough, and B. focus firing to reduce the amount of monsters on the field is already extremely advantageous. Players would ALWAYS have an attack roll bonus against solo boss monsters, making them even harder for a DM to make challenging.

[@VentusNexus]

For critical hits, I doubled damage dice and then doubled their damage modifier. So if you have a +3 Str, it would be a +6 to damage instead of the usual. I have found this works as well, but perhaps isn't as damaging as the damage dice rule you showed in the video. For the flanking rule, I always treated an enemy who had their back to a player as blinded to that player, or invisible. Basically, if they can't see them they are invisible. This also allows rogues to benefit from hiding depending on the monsters field of view. Some monsters I add extra stats to for this reason. A monster with multiple eyes, for example, would only be flank-able if you were underneath them. So trying to hide would be far more difficult without a smoke screen. I also think surprise is an underutilized mechanic and I treat it like an action surge if you can pull it off. Some people think that this could be broken, but most classes have a hard time getting surprise as it is, and stealth or ingenuity is required. Rogues and monks benefit from this adaptation the most, even though they cannot get two sneak attacks on their turn. I think if they can blind someone with smoke bomb and do something clever that deserves to be rewarded. If they want to surprise someone they usually have to roll for it and it can cost an action. If their roll doesn't win, they waste their action. Usually it is some sort of deception based roll, (str, int, dex, cha) matched by the enemy's insight roll (wisdom for int and charisma, str or dex for the others). The str/dex reflects techniques that can be deceptive like faints or dirty tricks. This may grant some extra benefit instead of surprise as well, like blindness for one turn using dirt in the enemy's eyes. For a rogue, being able to sneak attack after throwing dirt or wasting their action if the enemy saw it coming, makes sense. I'm still fleshing this rule out, but I thought it was a good idea.

[@Bondanalloy]

getting up from prone - i would probably also add you can use disengage to get up without provoking, OR maybe to make it less powerful, if you're a rogue or monk with cunning action/use a ki point, you can do it

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Exactly! I totally agree. I like when players take a variety of actions. And I LOVE what you said about monks and rogues, would be super cool if you gave them that, would make them feel unique! Next week I talk about class fantasy and your comment is a perfect example!

[@Reno41194]

Awww man, look at that, a video before "stay creative and think outside the box!" I love that KZbin autoplays your videos while I'm working lol

[@dice_fumbler4478]

Hey! I just found this channel! Great stuff.. great advice!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

William Mitchell thanks man! Welcome to the Dungeon Crew! I appreciate it. I love homebrew and trying to help people get creative!

[@ObsceneLobster]

Still on the binge and at this point might try to comment on each video in some constructive way. So far I really like what ideas you’re throwing out. The Advantage “Stacking” is something I always thought would be interesting because it encourages creative thinking. And Creative Thinking is far more fun. The next thing that really stuck out to me was the targeting specific body parts. Reminds me of VATS from Fallout and when I used to play 3.5 with my old friends it was something we used to do. You can aim for a specific point but at a minus because it makes sense. You’re honing in on a point rather than the whole target. With the AoO I very much agree with you. But, I would say instead of only Martials being able to AoO (and don’t get me wrong, I’m really biased towards Martials and will take any bonuses they can get) I feel like it would make more sense that AoO should only happen if you don’t have Disadvantage. Because I mean, if you’re on your back foot you’re not really gonna have the chance to get an opportunity attack out you know? With the Prone rules, I agree as well. In 3.5 Coming up from Prone cost all your movement and Provoked AoO, which was pretty brutal IMO. But in 5E it’s kinda limp. Yours is a really nice compromise. I like it. And your GWM and SS change that you explained sounded familiar for a reason! Because that’s how the Power Attack Feat worked in 3.5. Subtract from your Attack Roll up to your Base Attack Bonus and add that to your damage (double it if you’re using a 2 handed weapon) Personally I definitely prefer that way of doing it for sure. Because early on it’s a really easy thing to cheese out really hard with either Barbarian Reckless attack or if you’re an Elf with Elven Accuracy. (Granted I’m extremely biased against Elven Accuracy but that’s not the point) All together I like what you’re putting down here.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

sahil dhillon wow thank you for being so supportive! I love your comments! It’s so cool that you have such a good perspective from 3.5, an edition I wish I had played back then!! Thanks man!

[@ObsceneLobster]

The Dungeon Coach The Dungeon Coach Happy to converse with you about this stuff! I will say 3.5 has a lot of really interesting aspects to it. Honestly I would recommend looking into it seeing how things worked there if you want inspiration, but there is so much book bloat with 3.5 if’s kind of insane. But there are a lot of really interesting things there. Like one of my favorite feats Monkey Grip which let you weild a weapon one size larger than you normally would be able to. So if you’re a human you could wield a Large long sword in one hand rather than 2. Or double weapons or weapons having different Crit ranges and crit damage. Like the Greatsword had a 19-20 range with x2 crit damage while greataxe had crits only on 20 but had x3 crit damage. There was a lot of Jank in 3.5 but there was a of interesting stuff in there as well that I definitely do miss. Give it a look if you ever get the chance.

[@theoreticaltrap992]

On the topic of “help” what if it was 1d6+helpers proficiency?

[@D.Graves]

I like pretty much all of these. I'll be toying with several at my next session.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

The way I’ve implemented new rules mid campaign is to talk at the beginning of the session about a new rule you want to try, and if everyone likes it then keep it. Repeat for each one at a time. Hope that helps! Glad to have ya!!

[@D.Graves]

Thanks for the reply. My campaign reached a natural stopping point, and we moved on to play another game system for a while. (Game of Thrones) Now, that campaign is wrapping up after about 30 sessions, and the players are reminiscing about their old badass characters. They're only 10th level , so there is plenty of time to jump back into it. I think this will be a great time to add some flavor into the game. I'm really intrigued by the multiple advantage and disadvantage concept of using additional modifiers. I also love the changes to the Help action. It seems so weak to just give advantage on a single roll. Help should be just as valid as attacking, etc. Anyway, thanks again. :)

[@TheDungeonCoach]

That is one thing I have not dabbled in enough! Other game systems... i definitely real their rules for inspiration to draw from but never ran/ played in one And that’s awesome man! I’m excited for you! I agree! Help action “Should be just as valid as attacking” Maybe even let them add their proficiency bonus to the damage roll as well!? Make it even more enticing, we’ll see!

[@RulesandRulings]

My rule for critical hits is kind of combination of the two you have here. First you roll double dice, as RAW. Then, -after- you roll, choose one dice of each size (d4, d6, d8, etc) and maximise it. (You could also do 'one of each type' (weapon, smite, sneak attack, etc) but that's more book-keeping. This takes away some of the feel bad moments of rolling lower than normal, but scales pretty consistently across weapon damage, spell damage, sneak attacks and smites.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Dude thats brilliant! I am writing that down for SURE, great idea. Fits spells and attacks the same in a balanced way! Love it

[@akanu21]

Hi, DC - new to your channel. I like your content and approach to making house rules. Regarding the Help Action revision, you might consider dropping the die to a d6, and allowing the helper to add his/her proficiency bonus to the help die - this would make it less swingy and more reliable, as well make it scaled to the helper's power.

[@akanu21]

Haha, I just watched your follow-up video, and you literally made this exact revision. I guess I should have read the 300 comments and watched before making my suggestion :-) Cheers.

[@CheshaGurimu]

Crazy that I already use a lot of these just off my dome.

[@crownlexicon5225]

So, a good way the original standing up from prone was explained to me was that it doesnt take half movement, it takes half your time. A turn is 6 seconds. A monk or barb might be able to move 50' in that 6 seconds, but if it takes half their time to stand up, they can only move half the distance. Same for 30'.

[@benjaminbauer3935]

The adv/dis rule is meant to sweep away the slowness of number crunching. The +2/+5 thing seems like it is heading in the slowing direction. I wonder if you just allow multiple dice advantages but only after the baddie is bloodied or when the baddies minions have been defeated.

[@christianherrera4966]

Just from this video alone I can tell you played 4th edition. We have similar styles. Subbed! Keep up the good content!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Christian Herrera oddly enough I have only ever played 5th!! HUZZA!! But for real, I went back and read other editions to “cherry pick” from what I like and bring it all to 5e! Welcome to the dungeon crew!! 😆👍🏼

[@akashambatwamiller6924]

Stacking Advantage & Disadvantage - I love the concept. That said I would go with advantage +1 for each addition advantage.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Akashambatwa Miller yea mathematically that would probably be more balanced instead of: +2, +5, +10 Maybe +2, +4, +6 for more of a reward than just +1 since it actually takes a LOT to stack in this way. One might feel underwhelming. But again, the more you add the more “guaranteed” it becomes. So I can see it bring +1 too! Love the comment! Thanks!

[@akashambatwamiller6924]

@@TheDungeonCoach - Any Time. I just found your channel late last week. and i love your content. So far it We sync up on a lot of levels as players and DM's, and we watch a lot of the same channels. I look forward to more as well as catching up on some of your older vids.

[@akashambatwamiller6924]

PS 2, + 4, + 6 is a good compromise. can't wait to try it at the table.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Akashambatwa Miller awesome man! I could tell you have a creative Homebrew mind when you analyzed my own Homebrew, but THAT is what it’s all about! Glad to have you here and hope I can keep throwing thought provoking stuff your way!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Akashambatwa Miller Yea I think that is a much more balanced approach with the whole math behind it! Mine is a bit OP lol

[@omarildojavis]

We also use the following rule for both roleplay effect and better balancing: "You can use your concentration to mark a target you can see as a bonus action. You have advantage in your saving throws against all effects coming from the marked target." When players say they will keep an eye on an enemy, it should be easier for them to avoid their attacks and if they take damage and lose their concentration, they have to mark the target again. This decreases the gap (middle to high level) between casters and non-casters and more importantly allows non-spellcasters to make use of their concentration. Moreover, it pairs well with your cumulative advantage rule :)

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Omar Chaim woah!!! That... is SUPER COOL and I’ve never head off that! I love the “martial concentration”

[@CollectorCraving]

Add an aditional d4 damage as team work damage on top of the other stuff you mentioned when using the help mechanic

[@MsGinahidesout]

these are great! my only issue is that I have hard enough time running combat in general! let alone trying to memorize a lot of Homebrew rules. although I suppose I'd get used to them eventually. for critical hits I still like doing Max damage. it's easy and always feels powerful!

[@marvinschroeder9439]

one thing about ur help action: its fine if the players do it, but only until every1 gets magic Initiate for summon familiar to give them the help action. than its really OP. to the Crit-Part => for big Crit just double the Result with all the modifiers. so for 1d8+5 which is ist 9.5 average (4.5+5) it would be 19 dmg (4.5+4.5+5+5). In that way u always get good Crits, especialy with GMW or SS =D , my players love that rule and ofc it works for the enemies as well =D

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Marvin Schroeder I don’t know what I’ve never heard of doubling EVERYTHING! kinda like it!! And yea I’d say familiars have lowered dice or just have normal help actions 👌🏼

[@CCartman69]

These are pretty tactically helpful moves, and I do use a couple already, however I prefer theatre of the mind combat rather than minitaures or beads. Do you have any advice or videos about doing those kinds of combats well?

[@CyberDagger003]

Funny thing, your idea of stacking advantage and that advantage being either an extra roll or a +2, that's exactly how a mecha RPG called Battle Century G does it.

[@madmadame1508]

These videos are great, I'm about three in. Would you be able to make a Google Doc for your Homebrew rules?

[@jacobcarter4036]

I have used a home brew critical from day one of playing. I use maximum damage for critical strikes with one additional die. Its strong but its always awesome when someone crits and they are never disappointed

[@kurong1930]

I like the concept of the help action adding a d10, especially to damage in combat. As I was thinking about it, it occurred to me a way to elevate this a little would be to add their relevant skill modifier to it as well. My thought was that if they are taking their action to help in or out of combat, it would suck to roll a 1 when traditional help of advantage lets you roll twice and potentially avoid a nat 1 (if you utilize nat 1 stuff). Adding a +5 to it, or whatever the modifier is, might really make it feel like you’re helping them out, which makes a lot of sense out of combat as you are using your personal skills and proficiencies to aid them in a task. At this point maybe reduce to d6 might help balance though. Thoughts?

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Joe Gulley dude I LOVE that idea! Let them add their skill modifier to their team mates (watch my “DC” video for more on that) but then you can still roll the D10 for damage maybe Ooooo or Your MINIMUM you can grant an ally is your skill modifier!?!? THAT feels good... I really like that, takes away from the 1 thing, idk that’s pretty cool man!

[@kurong1930]

@@TheDungeonCoach I think I might try this in a new campaign I am starting up next month. The 1d6+modifier seems cool, for instance if your a ranger and you assist by laying down cover fire you would use your dex modifier, so 1d6+2 (for instance) gives you a range of 3-8, and allows you to help more as your character grows and increases their skills and proficiency.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Joe Gulley exactly!! Great addition to that Homebrew rule!

[@tommoses1372]

Very glad I subscribed to this channel. Really love how you’re handling Great weapon master and sharpshooter. I really enjoy watching characters progress outside of numerical leveling. Nice homebrew!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Tom Moses I agree about character progress SO MUCH! glad to have you here too!!

[@ArvelDreth]

Adding facing with the flanking would be really hard to keep track of unless you were using an actual grid with miniatures. I think the +2/+5/+10 stacking rule is fine on its own because since every attack is supposed to be essentially simultaneous, having to try and dodge 3 attacks at once should still be harder even if one of the attacks is technically coming from the front. Especially if you're just using theater of the mind rather than miniatures. As for the massive crits, I also double the flat damage. So great weapon master, Str/Dex etc all doubles as well. Crits in 5e are rarer than in previous editions and I really like amping up their significance.

[@christianherrlein5320]

One rule i just thought of that would make sense is if a player takes the takle/grapple action they can spend 10ft of movement as a dash, but only if they are trying to grapple. So like while chasing someone they can use that 10ft of movement and move 20 so long as they actually succeed on the grapple if they dont then they lose 10ft movement their next turn so instead of 30 normal they can only move 20

[@jasonp9508]

For crits, just double ALL OF IT. Easy math. Problem solved. BTW, just discovered your channel. Really love it. Some great ideas I will start using NEXT SESSION! Perfect delivery. Subscribed right away. I've been playing D&D since 1984. 5E now. Skipped 4E cuz sux. Keep up the great content!!

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Jason P wow! Thank you so much!! And yea I love me some big crits!! Haha Wow! That’s so cool, all I’ve played is 5E, but I’ve heard horror stories about 4 lol

[@jasonp9508]

@@TheDungeonCoach IMO, 5E is a great system. Elegant simplicity and effortless variety, filled with flavor. Brought me back to the game after years being away. It's the version I decided to teach my kids (my nerdlings). They love it.

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Jason P AHHHHH I cant wait to teach my son... but he’s 5 weeks old... soooo I got some time! Haha I totally agree though

[@heartlessjustice1813]

I like your advantage rule, my DM friend plays with this one which still grants a bonus but doesn't seem over powered... with each additional advantage you gain a +1... this is especially good when helping with skill checks... So 3 players collaborating to follow tracks or make there way through some terrain would be Advantage +1... and if other players decide to help out more it only adds a +1 for the extra help...

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Heartless Justice nice! Since making the video and trying new stuff out I now use +2 for every additional, it feels better than a measly ol +1 but not too OP! But hey if you give em anything that’s better than “o they don’t stack” lol good stuff!

[@heartlessjustice1813]

@@TheDungeonCoach I like that option as well... I'll see if my group prefers that option... {probably will who doesn't want more bonuses}

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Heartless Justice those sneaky players lol! So true!

[@heartlessjustice1813]

@@TheDungeonCoach And I was right... they so jumped at the chance to get better bonuses...

[@TheDungeonCoach]

Heartless Justice so predictable!!! Lol

[@jonasboel2473]

I play with advantage stacking, but after my players cast conjure woodland creatures, and had 8 help actions, + the Kobold rouge with aim and pack tactics, for a +20 to hit, i capped it to only one advantage *per player*. they still get to help each other, but it doesn't get out of hand. Additionally i don't find prone to be underwhelming, I have seen entire builds built around it, such as a Shield master that would use his main attack to grapple someone, then use his bonus action to shove them prone, and then use the rest of his attacks at advantage, as well as giving all of his allies advantage, while preventing said opponent from standing up again.

[@metalmattchew]

The crit roll for damage is how one of my groups do that. Max damage on what can be rolled, plus what you roll plus the modifier

[@varionwolf6936]

for the opportunity attacks I think it wouldn't change who can do it that much. I would say for ranged and casting to make the opportunity attack having the crossbow expert or the war caster feat would allow for it which is how I do it normally or the ranged fighter would have disadvantage and the caster can't anyways

[@Invader_Rin13]

Just found this channel as I am looking to expand and improve combat for my games. I'm somewhat of a new DM (DMing for about a year now) and I found combat to take longer than I feel it should or not as engaging. So I've been looking around for some homebrew rules to add to my game. I'm liking a lot of these and I'm for sure going to use some of them. I would like to know more about Targeted Attacks. You might know this by now, but in the DM's Guide there's a section where they introduce additional/optional rules for combat and your Targeted Attacks sound similar to the injuries option listed there. So I'm curious how would you determine when a threshold is met when a player is tying to cut off an enemies wings or legs? How much of damage would you say would be appropriate until they permanently damage a creature; half the creature's health, 1/3 of the health, or would it be better if it was more like how many successful hits can they attack that same area before they cripple it? I'm also curious about the Massive Crit damage, as I've seen this one before, but I'm too afraid that an enemy could destroy a player very quickly because they have multiple dies rolls compared to the player; 3d8, 3d12, 6d6 plus whatever their bonuses are. How do handle crits from enemy creatures with multiple damage die?