Shield Master Shove for an Attack of Opportunity?

[Lord Kristivas]

Say you use the shove from Shield Master to push the target back 5' feet, rather than prone. As they are shoved backwards, they leave your threatened area. Do you gain an AoO against them at that point?

[Edge of Dreams]

No, forced movement never triggers opportunity attacks. Read the section on opportunity attacks in the combat chapter again. They only trigger when someone chooses to move.

[Lord Kristivas]

No, forced movement never triggers opportunity attacks. Read the section on opportunity attacks in the combat chapter again. They only trigger when someone chooses to move.

Ahh, that makes me a bit sad. If someone chooses to move through my area and out of it, they provoke. During this, they have full control of themselves and their movements. Yet, if someone's shield bashed/pushing attack/eldritch shoved past or away from me, probably stumbling and not completely on guard, they don't.

Either way, thanks. I re-read the section just now and it jumped right out at me.

[cmac]

I actually have carved out an exception to this rule in my games so that anyone can gain an advantage attack from forced movement using shove.

Here's my table rule for the use of shove to gain such advantages.

PC shoves hostile NPC during their turn and follows up with an attack for advantage

This basically only works for classes with multiple attacks. So if a fighter, for example, opens up with a shove and has a second attack he can follow the shove immediately with his second attack. The second attack gains advantage.

My reasoning is if he can shove someone prone and get advantage if he follows up immediately after his opponent is prone, then it makes no sense he can't get the advantage swinging as he pushes the guy back.

PC shoves hostile NPC into threat range of ally PC who follows up with an opportunity attack reaction

This is a table rule that I added so that cooperative fighting between players can be more dynamic. So basically, if a PC shoves or shoves aside a creature into the threat range of one of his ally's, that ally gets an opportunity attack when the NPC enters his threat range (kind of like polearm master). My table's fighter and rogue love to do a combo where the fighter shoves and attacks an npc towards the rogue, who then sneak attacks to put the enemy away. I've even allowed it with ranged attacks and spells, so long as the ranged or caster isn't already being directly engaged (hostile NPC within 5 ft). The ranged attack or spell is usually rolled with Disadvantage, though, for balance issues.

[Louro]

Just as a side note, effects such as fear, command or dominate person DO trigger OAs. It is kinda "forced" movement but the subjects moves using his action and "will".

[Person_Man]

+1 to Louro's comment. It's particularly awesome at low-mid levels when your party are all adjacent to a boss monster, someone casts Command or Dissonant Whispers or whatever, the monster (hopefully) fails its Save, moves away, and provokes 4 Opportunity Attacks. (Though at higher levels this tactic becomes less effective. Individual attacks from non-Rogues comparatively don't deal as much damage, and players start using their Reactions for other things, and eventually enemies start picking up Legendary abilities and/or high Save modifiers).

[Slipperychicken]

Just as a side note, effects such as fear, command or dominate person DO trigger OAs. It is kinda "forced" movement but the subjects moves using his action and "will".

The frightened condition doesn't force movement. It just restricts movement.



The creature can’t willingly move closer to the source of its fear.

So a frightened creature could absolutely remain still, even if it's knees quake with fear.

[Vogonjeltz]

This basically only works for classes with multiple attacks. So if a fighter, for example, opens up with a shove and has a second attack he can follow the shove immediately with his second attack. The second attack gains advantage.

My reasoning is if he can shove someone prone and get advantage if he follows up immediately after his opponent is prone, then it makes no sense he can't get the advantage swinging as he pushes the guy back.

Only shoving someone prone grants an advantage though, shoving someone back is usually best for knocking them off a ledge, out a window, away from a friend.

It also can be more efficient than using the Disengage action for anyone who's likely to win the contest and/or has multiple attacks. (Shove the enemy, move to a new target, and the character still has attacks to make).

[Oscredwin]

Or for shield and staff users with polearm master feat. You get the OA when they move back in to attack you

[ad_hoc]

Ahh, that makes me a bit sad. If someone chooses to move through my area and out of it, they provoke. During this, they have full control of themselves and their movements. Yet, if someone's shield bashed/pushing attack/eldritch shoved past or away from me, probably stumbling and not completely on guard, they don't.

Either way, thanks. I re-read the section just now and it jumped right out at me.

If they are forced by a different effect then it happens too quickly for you to react. They are already gone.

If they are doing it themselves then unless they are on guard by taking the disengage action you get to react by attacking.

I like the narrative of it.

[TheDeadlyShoe]

It also can be more efficient than using the Disengage action for anyone who's likely to win the contest and/or has multiple attacks. (Shove the enemy, move to a new target, and the character still has attacks to make).
This is true, but there really isn't a reason not to shove them prone instead in this case.