DM Combat Guide

Note

arguments surrounded like <this> are required, and arguments in [brackets] are optional. Put quotes around arguments that contain spaces.

Note

This guide will move roughly in chronological order, meaning commands near the top should be run first.

Starting Combat

First, combat must be started in a channel. All commands should be posted in the same Discord channel that combat was started in. Combat can be started by using the following command.

!i begin

Avrae will output the summary message and pin it, then a quick reminder on how to add yourself to combat (for a player).

Adding Monsters

After combat is started, you will need to add monsters and combatants. You can add official monsters with this command.

!i madd <monster name> [arguments]
Common arguments include:

  • -n <number of monsters> (ex. -n 5 adds 5 creatures)

  • -name <monster name scheme> (ex. -name "Orc#" -n 2 adds Orc1 and Orc2)

  • -group <group name> (makes all creatures in the group act on the same initiative)

  • -rollhp (rolls for a creature’s HP)

  • -hp <hp> (overrides a creature’s initial HP)

  • -ac <ac> (overrides a creature’s initial AC)

Remember to surround any arguments with spaces in them with quotes!

Adding Other Combatants

If you’re adding a combatant without a sheet, you can add a generic combatant with:

!i add <initiative modifier> <name> [arguments]
Examples of combatants that might need to be added like this are:

  • an object

  • a lair action

  • a homebrew monster that hasn’t been imported using the Bestiary system

Hiding Stats

As a DM, you probably want to hide certain stats from your players. By default, any monsters added with !i madd will have their stats hidden, but you must hide generic combatants’ stats yourself:

!i add <initiative modifier> <name> -h

This will hide HP and AC.

Examples

!i madd "young red dragon"
# adds a Young Red Dragon to combat with stats hidden

!i madd kobold -n 5 -group Kobolds -rollhp
# adds 5 Kobolds, named KO1-KO5, with rolled HP, to a group named Kobolds

!i add 20 "Lair Action" -p
# adds a Lair Action on initiative 20

!i add 0 Longboat -ac 15 -hp 300
# adds an object with 300 HP, an AC of 15, and +0 initiative

Running Combat

Once you have finished setting up combat and your players have joined, this command will go to the next turn in the order and combat will begin.

!i next

On a player’s turn, it’s up to the player to run commands to take their actions. See the Player Combat Guide.

When a monster’s turn comes up, the most common actions to take are attacking or casting a spell.

Attacking

To attack another combatant, use this command:

!i attack <attack name> -t <target name> [arguments]

This uses the attack list of whatever combatant’s turn it is. To see a list of available attacks, run !i attack list.

As many targets as necessary may be provided by adding more -t <target name>, in the case of attacks that target multiple creatures (such as a breath weapon).

Note

If a monster makes an Attack of Opportunity, the syntax is !i aoo <combatant name> <attack name> -t <target name> [arguments].

Alternatively, you may use !ma <monster name> <attack name> -t <target name> [arguments].

To see all valid arguments, refer to the !attack and !ma documentation.

Casting a Spell

To cast a spell, use this command:

!i cast <spell name> [-t <target name>] [arguments]

This uses the spell list of whatever combatant’s turn it is.

As many targets as necessary may be provided by adding more -t <target name>, in the case of spells that target multiple creatures (such as Fireball).

Note

If a monster casts as a reaction, the syntax is !i rc <combatant name> <spell name> [-t <target name>] [arguments].

Alternatively, you may use !mcast <monster name> <spell name> [-t <target name>] [arguments], although this will not track the spell slots for the monster in initiative.

To see all valid arguments, refer to the !cast and !mcast documentation.

Examples

!i attack dagger -t Caitlyn -rr 2
# attacks a player named Caitlyn with a dagger twice

!i attack longbow -t Em adv
# attacks a player named Em with a longbow at advantage

!i attack "fire breath" -t Ara -t Padellis
# makes Ara and Padellis make saves against a breath weapon

!i cast bless -t KO1 -t KO2
# casts Bless on two kobolds, and attaches an effect to automatically add 1d4

!i cast "fire bolt" -t Qal
# casts Fire Bolt at Qal

Ending A Turn

When you’re done with a turn, use this command to move to the next combatant:

!i next

Helper Commands

These commands should help manually change the state of combat.

HP

To modify a combatant’s HP:

!i hp <combatant name> <value>

To set a combatant’s HP:

!i hp <combatant name> set <value>

To set a combatant’s maximum HP:

!i hp <combatant name> max <value>

Examples

!i hp ko1 -5
# deals 5 damage to KO1

!i hp Licia set 100
# sets Licia's HP to 100

!i hp Taren max 44
# sets Taren's max HP to 44

!i hp yo1 +1d4+1
# heals YO1 for 1d4+1 HP

Attributes

To modify an attribute of a combatant:

!i opt <combatant name> <arguments>
Most common arguments:

  • -ac <AC> (sets AC to new value)

  • -resist/immune/vuln <damage type> (gives resistance, immunity, or vulnerability or specified type)

  • -h (toggles whether combatants AC and HP are hidden.)

Effects

Effects can be used to track status effects that last a certain duration and modify a combatant’s attacks, resistances, AC, or other attributes. For a full list of attributes, see !help i effect.

Some attacks and spells, such as Bless, will automatically add appropriate effects to their targets.

To add effects to combatants:

!i effect <target name> <effect name> [arguments]
Most common arguments:

  • -dur <duration> (sets the duration of the effect, in rounds)

  • -b <bonus> (adds a bonus to all of the target’s attack to-hits)

  • -d <damage> (adds bonus damage to all of the target’s attacks)

  • -resist/immune/vuln <type> (sets resistance to a damage type)

To remove Effects from combatants:

!i re <combatant name> [effect name]

Examples

!i effect Jozu Rage -dur 10 -d 2
# adds a Rage effect to Jozu that adds 2 damage to their attacks and lasts 10 rounds

!i effect Flore Bless -dur 10 -b 1d4 -sb 1d4
# adds a Bless effect to Flore that adds 1d4 to their attacks and saves, that lasts 10 rounds

!i effect Padellis "Mage Armor" -ac +3
# adds a Mage Armor effect to Padellis that adds 3 to their AC

!i effect Greg "Fire Shield" -resist fire -dur 1
# adds an effect to Greg that makes him resist fire until next round

Removing from Combat

To remove someone from combat:

!i remove <combatant name>

Ending Combat

To end combat (Avrae will ask if you wish to end combat, reply “yes”):

!i end

After combat ends, Avrae will send the person who ended it a summary of the combat.