Ideas for New Conditions

[Dr. Cliché]

Something I became aware of when I started trying to homebrew a lot of monsters is that the available selection of conditions in 5e is quite slim, and many of them are pretty similar in effect.

I'm looking for more possible conditions, ideally ones not as crippling as those in the PHB, which I can use for monsters and maybe even theme some around.

Does anyone have any ideas or even homebrew conditions from their own games?

[Crucius]

I'm a big fan of Dazed:

You cannot take reactions. On your turn you may only take an action or a bonus action, not both.

Stunned and paralyzed is just too much; a total fun-killer. I now always use this when a monster has the ability to incapacitate. You can also add movement as one of the options, if you want to make it even more crippling. Alternatively you could allow your players to still take reactions if you want to keep their attention outside of their turn.

Edit: note that this is only effective against (optimized) player characters, and not against monsters necessarily. The players can't gauge if a monster has bonus actions, and a lot of them don't so let them stun monsters, just don't let monsters stun them back ;)

[Dr. Cliché]

I'm a big fan of Dazed:

You cannot take reactions. On your turn you may only take an action or a bonus action, not both.

Oh, that's exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for. Thank you.



Stunned and paralyzed is just too much; a total fun-killer.

Yeah, this is my issue with a lot of PHB conditions. Even 'lesser' effects like Restrained are really crippling. :smallconfused:

[Trask]

I've come up with a few that I've used on and off for various off-the-cuff style situations

"Helpless" for those situations where a creature is restrained with no chance of succeeding on the check, the creature cannot take actions and any attack made within 5 feet is a critical hit. Basically incapacitated but with different fluff and mechanics.

"Slowed" for situations where something is dramatically preventing normal movement, nearly submerged in sticky mud, being stuck on a giant web, a bunch of (3 or more) medium creatures dogpiling a huge creature and succeeding on grapple checks. You can take an action OR move, not both.

And the last one which isnt a technically a condition but its pretty similar to one. I use it to simulate getting beat up with more than just HP loss. I usually restrict it to the result of unarmed damage, like kicking or punching. Basically for every 10 points of unarmed damage you take (not including things like natural claws or bites) make a DC 8 con save. DC increases by 2 for each save after the first. Resets entirely on a short rest. If you fail the save, you get a level of exhaustion. This one is a little wonky and unrealistic, but it does feel right in the moment when you want to beat up someone in more than just reducing them to unconsciousness.

[x3n0n]

Does anyone have any ideas or even homebrew conditions from their own games?

"Nauseated": disadvantage on ability checks, but not attacks.

[Willie the Duck]

Flustered: you have disadvantage on melee attacks only.
Teary-eyed: you have disadvantage on ranged attacks only.
Butter-fingered: If you use what is in your hands before your next initiative, you must make a DC11 Dex save or drop it.
Flinchy (fear-like effect): If opponent takes a move action towards you and makes a melee attack before your next initiative, you must make a DC11 Wis save or use your reaction to move 10 away as they advance (you provoke OA from other opponents, but not this one, as it is considered to be happening as they advance)
Foot asleep: lose 5' from your movement
Asymbolic: you cannot read, write, use scrolls, or figure out traps or puzzles using symbolic representation.
AintNoCoward: You cannot move in the direction away from your opponents.
Tunnel-vision: You do not natively see what is going on outside of a 130-degree arc (this suggests an implied direction in which you are facing), and you would have to take an action to look around (to see normal stuff, not what would already be only revealed by an action-perception check).
Visor-vision: As tunnel-vision, but the arc is above and below a certain angle (dangerous in areas with pits).
Lightly poisoned: Disadvantage on ability checks, but not attack rolls (or the reverse).

[Vogie]

Overwhelmed: -2 on attacks, saving throws, and ability checks
Anchored: You cannot move more than X ft from a specific spot
Internal Bleeding: physical damage you take is necrotic instead
Sliding: Damage taken will force you to be pushed 5ft away from the damage source.
Head Ringing: Disadvantage on saves and checks using Int, Cha, and Wis

[Cass]

A gripe I have about conditions in 5e is how martials seem to be penalized way more than casters because of the overwhelming amount of "disadvantage on attacks" and spells causing saving throws being unaffected by it.
I started using the afflictions that giffyglyph presents in his Darker Dungeons but added a few myself:
Anxious Unable to perform Somatic component for casting spells
Choking Unable to perform Verbal component for casting spells (this is quite terrifying because of how many spells have V component)
Distressed Unable to concentrate
Coward At the start of your turn, if you received damage since your previous turn, you must use your movement to move in the opposite direction of the source that dealt the most damage

[thoroughlyS]

Agreed. Casters get off scot-free even on things that could realistically be said to affect components. Like restrained and deafened could impact somatic and verbal components, respectively.

But I guess that is kind of balanced by the fact that save effects are commonly all-or-nothing and have a lower chance of success because of how saves are handled.