Goatball... in 5e? - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

So, I'm currently running a campaign. And next session, my players are going to have to negotiate with a goliath tribe. I'm planning to make the chief challenge the players to a friendly game of goatball, so I'm trying to convert the game to this new edition.

Goatball is a fictional sport for d&d that appeared for the first time in the 3e book Races of Stone. According to the book, it's a sport invented by the goliaths and very popular among them. To play it, you need to have one or two dozens of small platforms randomly distributed on a flat field, which are usually rocks, logs or tree stumps, and a furry, misshapen ball made out of stuffed goat hide, to represent the goat. Two teams of four are placed on adjacent platforms on this field, and a referee places the goat on a platform roughly equidistant from the teams. The teams then leap from platform to platform, each trying to reach the goat first.

The team that reaches the goat first is on offense. It must now "light" the goat, by making three consecutive passes on four different platforms. Meanwhile, the team on defense tries to intercept the goat or push and pull its opponents off the platforms. When the team on offense completes three passes, the goat is now "burning" and whoever is holding it must try to hit an opponent with it. If a player falls off a platform or is hit by a burning goat, it's out of the game and can only return when possession of the goat changes and the teams trade offensive and defensive positions. Possession changes when the goat is sucessfully intercepted or falls to the ground, unless it fell after hitting an opponent. In that case, offense keeps with possession and can try to light the goat again. A team wins a match when all its opponents are out of the game at the same time.

In the begginning of the match, each player rolls initiative and as always, who rolls the biggest initiative goes first. However, to keep the game fair, two players of the same team can't go on sequence. So, after the first player's turn, the next on the order is the adversary who rolled the bigggest initiative, then the ally who rolled the second biggest initiative, and so on. On its turn, each player must move through the platforms and jump from one to another. To avoid slowing down the game, all players have instant sucess at their long jumps, as long as they jump a distance of up to 10 feet (and to allow a running start, each platform will have an area of 15*15 feet).

To pass the goat, a player must make an ability check (STR or DEX), against a dc of 15 - the target's dexterity modifier. The pass' range is 30/60, and only goliaths can add their proficiency bonus to the check. On a sucess, the target of the pass grabs the goat. On a failed check, the goat either falls to the ground or on a space adjacent to the target of the pass.

If an opponent is in the trajectory of the pass or 5' to the target of the pass, the opponent can use its reaction to try to intercept the goat. It must make an ability check (STR or DEX, and only goliaths add proficiency) against the passer's check, and if the pass failed, the opponent has advantage on the roll. If the opponent's check is bigger, it intercepts the pass sucessfully.

A player on defense can try to grapple or shove its adversaries. Grapples and shoves work as usual, but with the following minor changes:

When a player makes a grapple, it can try to grapple a goat while it's held by another player. In this case, the goat is held by both players on a sucess, and on its next turn, the player can make another grappling check to remove the goat from it's opponent.

Due to the small size of the platforms, if a player fails a shove, it loses its balance, and must make a DEX save (dc 10) to avoid falling to the ground. The shove's target can use its reaction to impose disadvantage on the save.

Hitting an opponent with a burning goat is a melee or ranged (30/60) attack roll, using either STR or DEX, against the opponent's AC. As usual, only goliaths can add their proficiency bonus to the roll. If the target of the hit is grappling an opponent, it can use its reaction to use the opponent as a shield. It must make a shove against the grappled opponent, and on a sucess, the opponent becomes the target of the hit.

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#1 TheDraconicSpellcrafter Jul 09, 2015 19:03:28	So, I'm currently running a campaign. And next session, my players are going to have to negotiate with a goliath tribe. I'm planning to make the chief challenge the players to a friendly game of goatball, so I'm trying to convert the game to this new edition. To those who don't know what goatball is, here's a resume: Goatball is a fictional sport for d&d that appeared for the first time in the 3e book Races of Stone. According to the book, it's a sport invented by the goliaths and very popular among them. To play it, you need to have one or two dozens of small platforms randomly distributed on a flat field, which are usually rocks, logs or tree stumps, and a furry, misshapen ball made out of stuffed goat hide, to represent the goat. Two teams of four are placed on adjacent platforms on this field, and a referee places the goat on a platform roughly equidistant from the teams. The teams then leap from platform to platform, each trying to reach the goat first. The team that reaches the goat first is on offense. It must now "light" the goat, by making three consecutive passes on four different platforms. Meanwhile, the team on defense tries to intercept the goat or push and pull its opponents off the platforms. When the team on offense completes three passes, the goat is now "burning" and whoever is holding it must try to hit an opponent with it. If a player falls off a platform or is hit by a burning goat, it's out of the game and can only return when possession of the goat changes and the teams trade offensive and defensive positions. Possession changes when the goat is sucessfully intercepted or falls to the ground, unless it fell after hitting an opponent. In that case, offense keeps with possession and can try to light the goat again. A team wins a match when all its opponents are out of the game at the same time. So, to convert this game to 5e, I've been using the combat rules as the base. In the begginning of the match, each player rolls initiative and as always, who rolls the biggest initiative goes first. However, to keep the game fair, two players of the same team can't go on sequence. So, after the first player's turn, the next on the order is the adversary who rolled the bigggest initiative, then the ally who rolled the second biggest initiative, and so on. On its turn, each player must move through the platforms and jump from one to another. To avoid slowing down the game, all players have instant sucess at their long jumps, as long as they jump a distance of up to 10 feet (and to allow a running start, each platform will have an area of 15*15 feet). To pass the goat, a player must make an ability check (STR or DEX), against a dc of 15 - the target's dexterity modifier. The pass' range is 30/60, and only goliaths can add their proficiency bonus to the check. On a sucess, the target of the pass grabs the goat. On a failed check, the goat either falls to the ground or on a space adjacent to the target of the pass. If an opponent is in the trajectory of the pass or 5' to the target of the pass, the opponent can use its reaction to try to intercept the goat. It must make an ability check (STR or DEX, and only goliaths add proficiency) against the passer's check, and if the pass failed, the opponent has advantage on the roll. If the opponent's check is bigger, it intercepts the pass sucessfully. A player on defense can try to grapple or shove its adversaries. Grapples and shoves work as usual, but with the following minor changes: When a player makes a grapple, it can try to grapple a goat while it's held by another player. In this case, the goat is held by both players on a sucess, and on its next turn, the player can make another grappling check to remove the goat from it's opponent. Due to the small size of the platforms, if a player fails a shove, it loses its balance, and must make a DEX save (dc 10) to avoid falling to the ground. The shove's target can use its reaction to impose disadvantage on the save. Hitting an opponent with a burning goat is a melee or ranged (30/60) attack roll, using either STR or DEX, against the opponent's AC. As usual, only goliaths can add their proficiency bonus to the roll. If the target of the hit is grappling an opponent, it can use its reaction to use the opponent as a shield. It must make a shove against the grappled opponent, and on a sucess, the opponent becomes the target of the hit.
#2 mrpopstar Jul 09, 2015 19:42:39	I would use the combat rules. I would roll initiative individually, for each participant. I would use the rules for jumping as written. I would use the rules for grappling, shoving, shoving aside, and disarming as written. I would call for a Dexterity saving throw to avoid being pegged by a burning goat. I would consider it easy (DC 10) to pass the goat between open allies, but hard (DC 20) to pass the goat if either ally is within 5 feet of an opponent. I would consider it moderate (DC 15) to intercept a failed pass using a reaction. Sounds fun!