Minions

MINIONS

Minions are weak foes that allow GMs to create dramatic combat encounters with hordes of enemies without overwhelming the characters. In fact, an encounter with minions makes characters feel heroic, since they can take on a myriad of foes and live to tell the tale.

However, minions still make threatening foes. Killing a minion still requires penetrating their defenses, and characters can’t just shrug off damage from minion attacks. So how do minions make running a horde of enemies quick and easy for the GM?

• Minions are simple to run. Their stat blocks are small and uncomplicated.
• Minions act quickly. They don’t multiattack, roll for damage, or have unique bonus actions or reactions, so their turns aren’t long.
• Minions die fast. A character can kill several minions with a single weapon attack!
• Minions have strength in numbers. Their attacks can be grouped together to make them deadlier and faster to use at the table.

NO DAMAGE ROLLS

Minions don’t roll for damage because their attacks deal a static amount of damage. They also can’t score critical hits.

SHARED TURNS

Typically, all minions of the same stat block act on the same turn. Since they share a turn, the minions can each move into position then each use an action if they wish, instead of each moving and taking an action individually.

MINION TRAIT

Every minion has the Minion trait, which affects the creature in the following ways:

• If the minion takes any damage from an attack or as the result of a failed saving throw, their hit points are reduced to 0.
• If the minion takes damage from another effect, they die if the damage equals or exceeds their hit point maximum, otherwise they take no damage.

OVERKILL ATTACKS

Powerful weapon attacks can kill more than one minion in a single maneuver called an overkill attack.

As already discussed, a weapon attack requires only 1 point of damage to reduce a minion to 0 hit points, regardless of their hit point maximum. However, when a weapon attack’s damage does exceed the target minion’s hit point maximum, the attack becomes an overkill attack and the damage dealt beyond the minion’s hit point maximum becomes overkill damage.

Overkill damage can be applied to a second minion that has the same stat block as the target and is in overkill range (see below). Damage against the second minion is counted as if you made a weapon attack against them; since it only takes 1 point of weapon damage to reduce a minion to 0 hit points, any amount of overkill damage immediately knocks them out. But wait, it gets better—if the initial attack’s overkill damage exceeds the second minion’s hit point maximum, the leftover overkill damage can roll over to a third minion, and so on! In other words, for each time the overkill damage exceeds the new target’s hit point maximum, the attacker can choose an additional minion to reduce to 0 hit points.

For example, when a weapon attack deals 18 damage to a minion with a hit point maximum of 5, the overkill damage is 13. If there are three additional minions of the same stat block in overkill range, they can all three be immediately reduced to 0 hit points, since the overkill damage exceeded the target’s hit point maximum more than twice over.

Overkill attacks can’t be made as part of an opportunity attack.

OVERKILL RANGE

Minions must be within a certain range to qualify for an overkill attack, determined by whether the attack is a melee or ranged attack.

Melee Overkill Attacks. 

When a creature hits a minion with a melee weapon attack, other minions within reach of the attack are in overkill range and can be chosen as additional targets for an overkill attack. The overkill attack can’t target minions outside the weapon attack’s reach.

Lady Ulnock the paladin battles a horde of goblin minions (each with 6 hit points). She hits a goblin minion with her longsword and uses Divine Smite, dealing 8 slashing damage and 11 radiant damage to the target for a total of 19 damage. Since Lady Ulnock dealt 13 points of overkill damage—more than the hit point maximum of two additional minions—she can choose up to three additional goblin minions within 5 feet of her (the reach of her longsword attack) and reduce them to 0 hit points. If there are no other goblin minions within 5 feet of Lady Ulnock, she can’t damage additional minions with this attack.

Ranged Overkill Attacks. 

When a creature hits a minion with a ranged weapon attack, other minions in a line originating from the creature in the direction of the target, to a distance equal to the weapon’s short range, are in overkill range and can be chosen as additional targets for an overkill attack. The overkill attack can’t target minions outside the line or beyond the weapon’s short range.

Perigold Quickfingers the rogue is hidden and takes aim at a group of zombie minions (each with 6 hit points) with his light crossbow (which has a short range of 80 feet). He hits a zombie minion with his crossbow, dealing extra damage thanks to his Sneak Attack, for a total of 14 damage. Since Perigold dealt 8 points of overkill damage—more than the hit point maximum of one additional minion—he can choose up to two additional zombie minions in an 80-foot-long line extending from Perigold in the direction of the target, reducing them to 0 hit points. If there are no other zombie minions in the line, then Perigold can’t damage other minions with this attack.

TARGET RESPONSE EFFECTS

Minions typically attack in groups although they have the ability to attack individually.  If multiple minions are within range of a single target, they make a single shared attack.  (This speeds up combat)

If a group attack triggers a reaction or similar effect that would normally affect a single attacker, such as the fire shield or hellish rebuke spell, the target of the group attack picks one minion that was part of the attack to be affected by the effect.