![]() ![]() (If the shadow dancer has many non–shadow dancer allies on the field, it may go for the grapple anyway so that they gain advantage on their attack rolls.) Thus, it becomes preferable to go for the sure thing-the necrotic damage-on both the second attack and the third, unless the target looks like someone who only succeeds on Dexterity saves by dumb luck. Even if its second attack hits and the target fails their save, the fact that the shadow dancer didn’t get to apply a rider on the first attack makes it more likely that it won’t get to apply one on the third, even with the advantage of having a restrained target. The value of the grapple option declines significantly relative to the value of the necrotic damage option if either the shadow dancer misses on its first attack or its target makes that save. The best possible outcome for the shadow dancer occurs when it lands hits on every one of its three attacks, its target fails all three Dex saves, and it chooses the grapple option the first time and the necrotic damage option the second and third. Unfortunately for the shadow dancer, its Intelligence and Wisdom aren’t high enough for it to have any criterion for judging a target’s likelihood of escape beyond “looks strong.” The only reason for the shadow dancer to choose the proning option over the necrotic damage option against a restrained target is if the target has a strong chance of escaping from the grapple, so that even if it does, it’s still on the ground and has to spend movement to get up. But the prone condition doesn’t offer anything that the restrained condition doesn’t-in fact, it offers a small measure of protection against ranged attacks. Combining the grappled and prone conditions can be very effective, as the fact that being grappled reduces the target’s speed to 0 makes it impossible for them to get up again. Once the target is already restrained, however, knocking them prone is a bit redundant. ![]() A shadow dancer always chooses the grappling option if it lands a hit on the first attack of its Multiattack. Restraining the target confers advantage on subsequent attack rolls as well as disadvantage on Dex saves, so if the shadow dancer initially uses Spiked Chain to grapple and the target fails their save, its chances of knocking the target prone or dealing the necrotic damage become significantly better. The most effective way to use these options begins with grappling. The first option grapples and restrains the target (a shadow dancer can entrap only one target this way at a time), the second knocks it prone, and the third deals a heap of necrotic damage. Spiked Chain is a melee attack with a 10-foot reach and a few different riders that can be invoked if the target fails a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw. Shadow Jumping to engage is a more desirable tactic when fighting in total darkness, as we’ll see in a moment. Depending on the environment and the positioning of combatants, they can use this trait either to engage in melee or to disengage from it. Shadow Jump is a mobility feature and action economy enhancer that lets shadow dancers teleport from one dark or dimly lit point to another up to 30 feet away. Their two standout features are Shadow Jump and Spiked Chain (which they can use three times as a Multiattack action). Dexterity is their one outstanding ability, which they rely on for both offense and defense, and they’re proficient in Stealth, predisposing them to ambush.Īlthough they’re tough, their stat block is short, not especially complex and mostly passive. They can function in dim light, but bright light hobbles them severely, so they’ll never willingly choose to fight in daylight or comparable illumination. Shadow dancers are shock troops optimized for operations in darkness. Three types are described in Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes: the shadow dancer, gloom weaver and soul monger. If eladrin are the elf-kin with the strongest remaining connection to the Feywild, shadar-kai are those whose nature has been shaped by the grim Shadowfell.
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