Jaculis can use their Spring attack while engaging in melee without triggering OAs

[Merudo]

The Jaculi has a special Spring attack:


Spring. The jaculi springs up to 30 feet in a straight line and makes a bite attack against a target within its reach. This attack has advantage if the jaculi springs at least 10 feet. If the attack hits, the bite deals an extra 7 (2d6) piercing damage.

I recently discovered the 10 feet spring can be triggered without OAs while the Jaculi is engaged in melee with a foe. How? The Jaculi goes to a square diagonal to the foe, then jump 10 feet to another square diagonal to that foe before biting that foe.

Here is an illustration:

https://i.imgur.com/ny71dpj.png

This is useful as the Jaculi is one of the most damaging conjured animals in 5e (https://www.reddit.com/r/3d6/comments/blwwcc/a_damage_analysis_of_conjure_animals/).

Note: the 10 feet requirement is only to get advantage; the Jaculi can always do a 0.01 feet Spring to get the extra 2d6 damage.

[MaxWilson]

Giff have something similar: bonus damage when they charge, even if they attack a target they weren't charging toward. It's a strange enough technicality that as a DM I'd seriously consider rewriting the ability to make it work the way you'd expect.

[ShikomeKidoMi]

That's neat, though a little hard to visualize.

I suppose if you want to explain what's happening, the Jaculi could be leaping high in the air and striking as it comes down to one side or jumping behind someone and then hitting them in the back before they can turn around.

[Tanarii]

Pretty clearly missing "toward the target" after "in a straight line".

[Chronos]

Or start from any square, and jump to the opposite side of the target. It doesn't need to be corners. And the target doesn't obstruct it because it's jumping over it.

[Tanarii]

Or start from any square, and jump to the opposite side of the target. It doesn't need to be corners. And the target doesn't obstruct it because it's jumping over it.A jump is hardly a straight line.

Also, wouldn't that require an athletics check or something? Edit: definitely require a Str check, DC determined by DM but probably significant. Jump distance without a check is 7.5ft, or that distance plus clearing up to a 1.875ft obstacle with a DC 10 check.

[Chronos]

But the description says "springs". That's jumping.