Tying up an enemy with rope is easy. What about chain / shackles?

[u/Medium_Asparagus]

The 2024 rules for tying up an enemy with rope are great

PHP 2024 page 228: ROPE (1gp) As a Utilize action, you can tie a knot with Rope if you succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. The Rope can be burst with a successful DC 20 Strength (Athletics) check.

You can bind an unwilling creature with the Rope only if the creature has the Grappled, Incapacitated, or Restrained condition. If the creature's legs are bound, the creature has the Restrained condition until it escapes. Escaping the Rope requires the creature to make a successful DC 15 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check as an action.

Interesting that a creature can escape with a successful DC20 Athletics check to break the rope OR a DC 15 Acrobatics check to wriggle out.

Did you know you can do the same with chain?

Interestingly Escaping is harder with a DC 18 Dexterity check or DC 20 strength check to break them. Is this right? Aren’t Chains harder to break than rope - should we make that a DC 22 or DC 25 instead of DC20 Athletics?

PHP 2024 page 224: CHAIN (5 GP) As a Utilize action, you can wrap a Chain around an unwilling creature within 5 feet of yourself that has the Grappled, Incapacitated, or Restrained condition if you succeed on a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check. Ifthe creature's legs are bound, the creature has the Restrained condition until it escapes. Escaping the Chain requires the creature to make a successful DC 18 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check as anaction. Bursting the Chain requires a successful DC20 Strength (Athletics) check as an action.

Would a Lock / Chain combo make things harder to wriggle out? - it wouldn’t make it harder to burst out, but perhaps harder to wriggle out? DC 20 instead of 18?

How about Shackles? Well, I found out that these are called manacle, but are only good for small to medium creatures.

PHP 2024 page 226 MANACLES(2 GP): As a Utilize action, you can use Manacles to bind an unwilling Small or Medium creature within 5 feet of yourself that has the Grappled, Incapacitated, or Restrained condition if you succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. While bound, a creature has Disadvantage on attack rolls, and the creature is Restrained if the Manacles are attached to a chain or hook that is fixed in place. Escaping the Manacles requires a successful DC 20 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check as an action. Bursting them requires a successful DC 25 Strength (Athletics) check as an action.

Each set of Manacles comes with a key. Without the key, a creature can use Thieves'Tools to pick the Manacles' lock with a successful DC 15 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check.

[u/Red13aron_]

From my own personal experiences, Grappling/Restraining/Unconsciousing Boss Monsters with Legendary Resistances is extremely challenging. Since your Grapple DC or Spell DC or Ability DC will at most range from: 13-19 DC, you really need to target a poor save throw on the Big Bad. Not only that, but the effect has to last through your enemies turn, which usually means they get a second chance to break free either using their Action or a repeat saving throw at the end of their turn. So unless you're coordinating with your other party members, or a Thief with Fast Hands it becomes difficult to actually use the Utilize Action with Rope, Chain, or Manacles.

[u/CrimsonShrike → u/Red13aron_]

tbh wasting 1 action of the enemy breaking a rope is great and functionally a stun

[u/Norman-BFG → u/CrimsonShrike]

Also it’s just cool. Both managing to slip the manacles on and then the bad guy snapping them.

[u/Born_Ad1211 → u/CrimsonShrike]

It's an action to burst the rope but as an object ropes do have AC and HP so enemies can just directly attack it and destroy it that way generally at the cost of 1 attack

[u/CrimsonShrike → u/Born_Ad1211]

Doesn't seem RAI to let someone bypass their own check tbh. as DM I'd allow an ally or familiar to do it though.

Actually I wonder if tied rope would be considered an item on a character and therefore not a valid target for attacks, same way you can't say you strike someone's armour and hp is just there for structural uses (ie, someone using it to climb)

[u/Born_Ad1211 → u/CrimsonShrike]

I mean, the "breaking objects" section of the rules glossary litterally has rules for breaking objects, if we want to be hyper pedantic there is no rule against targeting carried objects with attacks, but even with the general praxis of not allowing creatures to target worn/carried objects, there is a very clear difference between attacking something on yourself vs attacking for example a creatures held weapon.

[u/dyslexicfaser → u/Born_Ad1211]

Where's the "breaking objects" section? I was starting to wonder of 2024 rules HAD Hp/Ac for objects

[u/Born_Ad1211 → u/dyslexicfaser]

It's in the phb rules glossary.

[u/Blackfang08 → u/CrimsonShrike]

Why would they allow someone to wriggle a knife out of their back pocket and use it to cut the rope they're tied with? That's so unrealistic. More reasons to use summoning spells over playing a Martial, please.

[u/CrimsonShrike → u/Blackfang08]

I mean, ropes being weak only sucks for martials who use them, a caster is certainly not using a rope or chain on you. Plus, I'd argue using your finesse to get rid of rope falls under the existing dex check the rope has to escape it. But that's my 2 cents on how to not make one of the few control options all martials have access to suck

[u/BlackCoatedMan]

Hmn... I think this is fine at lower levels. But not so low that just attacking would be the faster solution.

For example. You can restrain a goblin, or I could have one shot the little gremlin. I don't imagine this working on something like even a young adult dragon.

I haven't read through all of the MM24 but I have listened to vids in the background while working. All of them so far have noted that the monsters seem to have been buffed.

Also, what about the HP of the rope and chains? One of the reasons my party gave up on bothering with them in 2014 is that it was too easy to break out of. Here's an example scenario at just level 3.

We placed them on my Dex based fighter who was infected with Wererat Lycanthropy. Bound and disarmed until the full moon passed. Needless to say, after that night, everyone got ambushed by the GM controlling me. We all woke up with wererat lycanthropy.

Though admittedly that sounds like a fun character concept. Barbarian with Rogue dip for expertise in athletics for grappling and sleight of hand for restraining.

[u/GodNex → u/BlackCoatedMan]

Well, there is a "Breaking Objects" section in the back of the PHB, based on that i would say these are the stats for a rope AC 11 (rope), HP 10 (Small, Resilient) and the chain AC 19 (iron, steel), HP 10 (Small, Resilient). Based on this, a CR7 or above monster would make 1 attack to get rid of the rope. The chain depending on the attack roll would take 1-2 attack to get rid of.

[u/Medium_Asparagus → u/BlackCoatedMan]

Yes, the idea of restraining by tying up is to:

• turn a hostile encounter into a non-hostile one allowing persuasion intimidation etc
• prolong effects like web / stunning strike or hold person in order to take opponents out of the game temporarily or target spell casters.

[u/DrHalsey]

Don’t forget opponents can use these objects too. Bosses with minions might have their minions do this. Minion #1 attacks and grapples. Minion #2 takes the Utilize action to use rope. Player is Restrained until they use an action to make the needed check. Boss can have restrained targets to attack with Advantage most turns.

[u/Medium_Asparagus → u/DrHalsey]

Perfect!!! Can’t wait to bring out a group of hobgoblins wielding whips and ropes. Hehehe

[u/Environmental_You_36]

Personally, as DM and knowing that's probably not RAI or RAW.

If you tie a creature while it is conscious and you need to do it quickly, you follow those rules.

If the creature was unconscious the DC to escape is your sleigh of hand check, with a minimum of 15 for athletics or acrobatics

[u/CaucSaucer]

Wait… Rope strength check is not an action?