VARIANT: PLAYING ON A GRID

If you play out a combat using a square grid and miniatures or other tokens, follow these rules.

Squares.

Each square on the grid represents 5 feet.

Speed.

Rather than moving foot by foot, move square by square on the grid.

This means you use your speed in 5-foot segments.

This is particularly easy if you translate your speed into squares by dividing the speed by 5.

For example, a speed of 30 feet translates into a speed of 6 squares.

If you use a grid often, consider writing your speed in squares on your character sheet.

Entering a Square.

To enter a square, you must have at least 1 square of movement left, even if the square is diagonally adjacent to the square you’re in.

The rule for diagonal movement sacrifices realism for the sake of smooth play.

The Dungeon Master’s Guide provides guidance on using a more realistic approach.

If a square costs extra movement, as a square of difficult terrain does, you must have enough movement left to pay for entering it.

For example, you must have at least 2 squares of movement left to enter a square of difficult terrain.

Corners.

Diagonal movement can’t cross the corner of a wall, large tree, or other terrain feature that fills its space.

Ranges.

To determine the range on a grid between two things—whether creatures or objects—start counting squares from a square adjacent to one of them and stop counting in the space of the other one.

Count by the shortest route.