So a lightfoot halfling rogue can hide when they are obscured by a creature larger than them. And rogues get a bonus action they can use to hide at 2nd level.
Let's say the rogue starts hidden behind an ally. He pops out to do a ranged attack, pops back behind the ally, then uses a bonus action to hide... rinse and repeat over and over again. Is this the way it works? Can a lightfoot halfling rogue keep hiding behind the same ally over and over again to get advantage or is it enough for the bad guys to know the halfling is behind the other character to know where he is even if they can't see him and therefore the rogue is not hidden?
Yes. Except for the 'pops out' part, if he 'pops out' and no longer has cover he loses his hiding - he should probably stay behind the ally. Even if his ally blocks the attack due to the positioning of the enemy, giving a +2 to the opponents defense to get 2 d20 rolls is worth it.
The only rule that prevents hiding is "You can't hide from a creatuer that can see you," (page 177 PHB) Knowing where someone is doesn't mean they are not hidden from you - they can't see the halfling fire the weapon so they don't know when to expect it, hence the advantage. Compare the rules on an invisible attacker who is not hidden - you know where he is but he still has advantage because you don't know exactly what he's doing.
There is a massive thread on stealth, hiding, lightfoots and so on. The rules are rather vague on multiple fronts. Your table will need to make a judgment call on it. Personally I will be swapping the lightfoot ability with the wood elf one... and just avoid the argument completely.
Shouldent be able to get advantage more than the first time. Even if he hides the baddys know he is behind the human and in that sence they are not suprised when he puts his head up, hence no advantage.
Durwan wrote:
I see it more as getting lost in the shuffle of combat so in general I'd give them the benefit of hiding if successful on the stealth roll, he might have to do it at disadvantage dependingon circumstance. Also, the Rogue doesn't need advantage for sneak attack that's just one parameter. If there is an enemy of the creature that the rogue is attacking within 5 ft then the rogue can use the sneak attack anyway.
I played a lightfoot halfling rogue at Gencon and he got to 3rd level there. What you say is correct but it's even better than that.
The rogue hides behind his party member, steps out to take his shot and then ATTEMPTS to hide again. If your stealth roll is better than the target PP, you get the extra sneak dice. You also automatically get the sneak dice if another party member is adjacent to the enemy.
Neptune0923 wrote:
Seems crazy to me.
Dnd got 360 degree vision in a fight so its hard to be suprised as long as you know someone is in the room. Even if he is in the shadows he wil be seen when getting out of it as long as the enemy knows he is in ther esomewhere. Ofccource if the enemy treads into the shaddow thats different...
I would say he gets the damage once when the enemy dont know he is there, when they do know he is in the room they are ready for whatever he can dish out and he wil not get advantage!
Mearls did tweet a suggestion along the lines that hiding midcombat ought to be at disad.
Knowing where someone is and knowing when he's about to attack are 2 different things. If someone is invisible and hasn't yet taken an action to hide - you know where he is but can't see him. If someone hides and there's only one possible square they can hide in (because it's the only square that's dark, or it's a lightfoot behind an ally) you can't see them, but you know where they are.
In both cases the same rules apply. You get disadvantage on attack rolls against a target you can't see and enemies you can't see have advantage on you.
That's how it works RAW, and by basic sense (just because you know where they are doesn't mean you know when, exactly, they are going to stab a blade in your gut because you can't read their body language.) - if you want to rule otherwise at your tables that is your perogative as a DM, however these are the most clear stealth rules I've seen out of any D&D edition.
Mearls did tweet a suggestion along the lines that hiding midcombat ought to be at disad.
I see the naturally stealthy trait as something best geared towards being elusive; highlighting avoidance.
The idea isn't to obtain advantage for ranged sneak attacks, it's to scurry around between the legs of larger-sized opponents (also a halfling trait), obtain sneak attacks amidst the melee (coordinating with allies adjacent to the enemy), and remain a difficult target (unseen with cover).
