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If you’re running a large-scale battle with multiple contesting armies or having your party combat a horde of zombies, usingDungeons & Dragons’ mob combat rules is a must. Slowing the turn of play down by rolling d20s for every single enemy on the field is tiresome and takes the fun out of epic confrontations with hundreds of adversaries.
Luckily, mob combat rules in D&D are simple and easy to follow. But, if you have no idea where to start or haven’t run large battles before, it can seem overwhelming. This guide has everything you need to run successful and exhilarating mob combat.
What Is Mob Combat?
In short,mob combat can be used for any battlein a Dungeons & Dragons sessionthat involves more enemies than there are player characterson the field.
Mob combat rulesbreak multiple enemiesinto smaller groupsso that you don’t have to keep track of dozens ofenemies, including their stat blocks, rolls, and conditions.
For example, if you’re running a combat encounter in which a tribe of 30 goblins attacks the party, you could instead have three mobs of ten goblins each attack the party.
Why Is Mob Combat Useful?
By breaking enemies down into groups,you only have to keep track of each group, rather than each individual monsteror creature in the group. Thiskeeps combat moving quickly, and feeling exciting rather than slow.
How To Run Mobs
There are a few general tips worth consideringwhen it comes to running mob combat. These tips are there to help keep the process smooth and easy for DMs and players alike.
How To Roll D20s For Mobs
Another key aspect of running mob combat is learning how to average out d20 tests across mobs rather than rolling for every single monster on the field.
To determine the DC the mob needs to succeed, you canuse this simple equation.
So,for example, let’s say thata mob of goblins is trying to attack a creature with an 18 AC, and based on their stat block, we can see thatgoblins have a +4 to their attack.
That means you would take the 18 needed to hit and subtract the four that the goblins get as an attack bonus, meaningthe roll they would need is 14.
Once you’ve determined the roll needed, you canrefer to the table below(also found in the 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide)to figure out how many goblins succeeded on their roll,depending on the size of the mob.
This number changes slightly based on whether the creatures have advantage or disadvantage on their roll. This is reflected in the table below.
Out of 4
Out of 5
Out of 6
Out of 8
Out of 10
1
1–4
4/4
5/5
6/6
8/8
10/10
2
5–6
—
3
7–8
5/6
7/8
9/10
4
9
3/4
4/5
5
10
6/8
8/10
6
11
7
12
4/6
7/10
8
13
3/5
5/8
14
2/4
6/10
3/6
4/8
15
5/10
16
2/5
2/6
3/8
4/10
17
1/4
18
2/8
3/10
1/5
19
1/6
2/10
1/8
20
14–15
1/10
16–17
How To Run Areas Of Effect For Mobs
For Area of Effect spells, there’s also a simple way to determine how much space the mob occupiesandfigure out whether or not the attack hits them.
For spell saves and other DCs, you can use the above table to determine successes.
The number of targets hit isdetermined by the shape of the Area of Effectas seen in the table below.
If the targets aremore spread out or more clumped together,adjust the number of targets hit byrolling 1d3(subtracting if they’re more spread out and adding if they’re more clumped together).
10-foot
5- to 10-foot
5-foot-radius
15- to 20-foot
15-foot
30-foot-long, 5-foot-wide
25-foot
10-foot-radius
30-foot-long, 10-foot-wide or 60-foot-long, 5-foot-wide
20-foot
90- or 100-foot-long, 5-foot-wide
30-foot
60-foot-long, 10-foot-wide or 120-foot-long, 5-foot-wide
35-foot
15-foot-radius
40-foot
90- or 100-foot-long, 10-foot-wide
45-foot
50-foot
20-foot-radius
120-foot-long, 10-foot-wide
55-foot
60-foot
25-foot-radius
30-foot-radius
It’s important to note that you should alsouse your best judgment as a DMto determine whether or not an Area of Effect hits something.
For Cylinders, Emanations, and Spheres, you can use the Circular column in the table above. Use the size of the Emanation rather than its radius if you do so.
For example,certain environments or creatures might counter a normal Area of Effect spell by preventing it from working, such as high wind or rain.Your call is ultimately law as a DM, so be definitive.
