Gatorman 5E Tactics

 The Gatorman is detailed in MN:5E, pages 73-74. Additional lore details can be found here.

Another iconic Western Immoren creature, when I think of the Iron Kingdoms, gatormen definitely spring to mind, so I thought it would be interesting to look at the base creature and then have a look at the variants such as the bokor, husk, and soul slave.

It is notable that the wilds of the Iron Kingdoms have an absence of lizardfolk, making gatormen the obvious correlate and themed replacement, but let us consider the differences both in terms of the flavour text and the mechanics as in addition to their Large size, their behaviour varies considerably. Not unexpectedly, gatormen are similar but tougher brutes, with a similar contour to lizardfolk but a higher CON and two more Hit Dice, the latter effect on hit points increased by the higher 1d10 die. 

Gatormen are likewise amphibious with a swimming speed equivalent to their land movement. Given their (limited) darkvision and Stealth combined with their Swamp Camouflage, they prefer to lie in ambush if possible in the dim light or darkness, unlike their lizardfolk cousins.

A gatorman's Multiattack is very specific compared to that of a lizardfolk - one with its bite and one with its glaive. There's no opportunity to mix them up in different combinations and although the two are equivalent in terms of average base damage dished out (but the damage differs from piercing to slashing), the bite is clearly the superior option to try first.

Unlike the Medium-sized lizardfolk, a bite from an 8-foot tall humanoid looming over you chomping down on you makes sense, particularly in light of the grappled and restrained conditions that are applied on a successful attack. A DC of 15 is significant and this synergises well with their Athletics proficiency and helps suggest their default fighting style. Inflicting restrained on an opponent is significant, as it not only gives the gatorman advantage on attacks (and their victim disadvantage on attacking them) but also causes disadvantage on DEX checks, making it very difficult for their victim to escape the bite and subsequent Death Roll with its additional damage and forcing the victim prone.  Note that being prone equates to no major additional benefit to the gatorman (the victim already has movement 0 from being grappled and is at disadvantage to attack from being restrained), it in fact makes it harder for other gatormen to assist unless they close to within 5 ft. of the victim to avoid the disadvantage it adds to attacks further away. 

Being prone does however make it easier to be held underwater even in shallow depth of its native swamps and forcibly drowned, which allows us to apply the seldom-used breath-holding rules for drowning and suffocation - this is significant as the effects of Death Roll offsets the average CON creature to only 30 seconds (3 rounds) of breath, and reduces the time any creature with a higher CON score down by a minute (10 rounds less): 

Drowning in 5E takes the same rules as standard suffocation. A creature may hold its breath for a number of minutes equal to 1 + Constitution Modifier (minimum 30 seconds). After you run out of breath, you survive for a number of rounds equal to Con Modifier (minimum 1). At the next turn, you drop to 0 hit points and are dying. You can’t stabilize or heal until you can breathe again. (PHB, page xx).

Realistically, an average (or less) CON creature grappled by a gatorman and forced underwater is at 0 hp within 4 rounds and making death saves, and potentially *dead* 3 rounds later if the roll badly, unless it can break the grapple at disadvantage, which is no mean feat. Of course, the gatorman can't grapple another creature once successful with a victim, so it initially concentrates attacks on the most vulnerable but dangerous victim it identifies - its average INT and WIS suggest it is able to choose targets and adjust slightly to changing conditions if it would benefit it to change targets.

Visualising how exactly a gatorman then manages to injure their grappled opponent with their glaive may require a bit of imagination perhaps... but the 10 ft. reach certainly allows it to fend off attackers and keep them at bay. Besides, the gatorman can easily keep biting their grappled and prone foe at advantage (and drag it with them as they move at half speed, 15 ft. per round if needed, trying to avoid opportunity attacks by using its glaive) all the while as it is drowning its victim.    

Unless driven by a bokor (shaman, see later post) or an otherwise fanatical war leader, I'd consider that although they are highly territorial and fight to the death to defend their territory and their eggs like lizardfolk, a gatorman is sensible enough to withdraw when they drop to 15 hp (30%), using Disengage to avoid opportunity attacks and then diving underwater to take advantage of their swimming, breath-holding, and Swamp Camouflage to escape and return to seek revenge with its fellows. 

According to the "Swamp" encounter tables in the Borderlands and Beyond PDF, gatormen are usually encountered in groups of 1d4 accompanied by either a husk or a bokor (see next post for details of this gatroman shaman). So let's look at the undead variant next.

Gatorman Husk

This fly-ridden undead variant has the same brute physical ability contour and hit dice of a living gatorman, but the poor mental abilities expected of a mindless undead creature under compulsion, similar to a zombie and therefore behaves similarly following the commands of its controller without question. Unlikely to be found alone, the husk may accompany either a lone bokor or be sent as auxiliaries for living gatormen raiding or patrolling the swamps. 

Husks have similar Large size, swimming speed, darkvision and Swamp Camouflage but lack the Stealth proficiency of their former living selves in exchange for immunity to poison damage and the poisoned condition. Notably, they lose Athletics, their significantly disabling bite, and also Death Roll in undeath and have three new features to factor into their tactics.

The easiest to assess is Belligerent, which allows it to rapidly close against ranged attack wielding opponents using its reaction. Once in melee range, this is less useful as the zombie gatorman lacks any ability to avoid provoking opportunity attacks.

Eruption of Flies (Recharge 5-6) is ranged, albeit short-ranged at 30 ft., and inflicts poison damage unless a successful save to limited multiple opponents, suggesting it is the preferred opening attack even if the husk has closed into melee range, as it then needs to recharge and there's no advantage in saving it up for later. Being able to recharge with a bonus action by taking damage is thematically great but given the 10 hp (20% of initial total) cost, it's an expensive ploy and one more likely to be triggered by a directing spellcaster as part of an overall strategy so let's consider that the husk only uses this a second or subsequent time in combat if it manages to recharge normally, otherwise it uses its claws.

Death Burst is one of those nasty surprises for players, reminiscent of the draconian death attacks from Dragonlance, but while it is thematically great the actual damage inflicted (7 poison damage) particularly given the lowish DC 13 DEX save is a bit underwhelming. However, the detail is important as the burst releases a swarm of insects (MM, p338) to replace it. Although able to soak less damage than the husk on paper, this is offset by its physical damage and other resistances, and the swarm's attack actually inflicts slightly more damage than the husk's original claw attacks. The swarm is assumed to be composed of flies, but other variant insects are worth considering.

Unlike their living counterparts, the undead husk fights until destroyed unless somehow called off by the bokor that created them. If encountered just with its living fellows and the battle turns against them, the gatorman will leave the zombie to distract their opponents as it fights until destroyed.

Summary

These creatures I think are sufficiently different to lizardfolk to give characters used to standard 5E humanoids a pause, but familiar enough to be easy to run for a DM as their strategy and motivations are similar. I'll deal with the spellcasting bokor and its auxiliary, the soul slave in the next post.