The first thing that pops to mind for many people when talking about D&D is its role-playing system, puzzle-solving, and of course, combat. And in D&D, that also includes the opportunity attack.
The fighting can seem pretty easy for newcomers, even though it hides many secrets in its grid-based combat system that requires many strategies and careful positioning and movement.
One such secret is the opportunity attack. D&D opportunity attack is a mechanic that allows anyone, the player character (PC) or non-player characters (NPC), to perform a free attack on a running opponent.
In today’s article, I will go into detail about what opportunity attack is exactly in D&D 5e and how you can use it to your advantage while also avoiding getting hit by one.
Note: Previous versions had an “attacks of opportunity” mechanic, which isn’t the same as the new opportunity attack.
What is an Opportunity Attack, and When Can it Be Triggered?
An opportunity attack is an attack that anyone can perform using their reaction when the opponent fighting them leaves the threatened area.
So, if you are fighting a troll warrior and wish to escape his range to help your ally that is far away, you will trigger his opportunity attack.
Now, it’s important to remember that you only trigger his opportunity attack if you leave the threatened area, which is 5 feet around him. If you move inside the threatened area (imagine running in circles around the troll), you won’t trigger the opportunity attack.
You could say that the moment you leave the square around the enemy monster is when the opportunity attack will occur. So you didn’t leave just yet but got attacked while trying to escape.
The same is true for monsters trying to walk away from you.
Additional Details You Should Know
As is true with many D&D features and rules, the opportunity attack is an action widely used in tons of situations, so it would be best if we clarify some ambiguities before you encounter them:
- First of all, you will only be able to take the opportunity to attack with your reaction for a melee attack (whether it’s a sword or your bare hands). So both bows and arrows and spells are out.
- In case you want to exit the enemy’s threatened area safely, you can do that with the disengage action that prevents the triggering of an opportunity attack. But keep in mind that disengage is an action, and you wouldn’t be able to attack, cast spells, etc. after you perform a disengage.
- Only a willing move will trigger an opportunity attack. For example, if you are being knocked back by a spell, or if a secret door opens up beneath you and you fall in, the opportunity attack doesn’t get triggered.
- Be mindful of your enemies’ attack range. Most enemies have an attack range of 5 feet, and once you try to leave those 5 feet to be 10 feet away from them, the opportunity attack occurs. However, an enemy such as Hill Giant has an attack range of 10 feet, meaning that an opportunity attack will happen only when you try to cross from 10 feet to 15 feet range.
In the end, many class or race-based features will enable your character to do a special kind of opportunity attack or perform an opportunity attack that isn’t available to other races and classes, and I encourage you to research them.
All in all, the D&D opportunity attack is an exciting activity that isn’t the main focus of many players who are just starting out their D&D adventures. Still, it indeed is a pretty important one.
Knowing about its proper use will allow you to save your character from dangerous situations and help you inflict maximum damage on nearby enemies.
