[RPG] Is it really possible to hide behind another player character

dnd-5estealth

So I've been DMing a 5e game lvl 1-3 so far. And I have a question about stealth for my rogue. My player has been hiding behind/stealthing behind another PC.

So this is what usually happens. PCs bust into a room, and the enemies see him. The rogue makes a stealth check and hides behind a PC as a bonus action, then attacks from stealth and gets sneak attack. He will do this every round. I do try to do Perception for the NPCs, but they fail. So he basically disappears for the whole encounter.

So then he attacks cause he is fully hidden and gets a sneak attack every time. This seems OP!! I thought you could only hide in full cover. I know the Skulker feat allows a player to hide in partial cover, which I looked up. Hiding behind a PC of medium size only allows partial cover. Please help me! I just wanna make sure I'm doing this right and I hate players who take advantage of a loop hole.

Best Answer

You are correct: generally, you cannot hide behind another PC or creature and make a Stealth check.

However, lightfoot halflings can do so (they make great rogues for this reason), if the creature is one size larger than them (which includes Medium-sized PCs).

The Skulker feat (PHB, p. 170), though, does not allow hiding behind PCs. It allows hiding in "lightly obscured" areas, but no other situations (beyond the normal stealth rules). PCs provide half cover, but no obscurity, so Skulker does not apply.

Also, remember that the rogue needs to use either their action or bonus action to Hide (other characters can only use their action to do so). This means that they can't effectively use Two-Weapon Fighting and hide regularly.

Ultimately, this merely allows the rogue to get her Sneak Attack off every turn. Contrary to what you are thinking, this is not overpowered in any way. This is the rogue working as designed.

At low levels, the rogue can be quite good, especially when you factor in advantage. However, as you level up, the rogue's damage, because it always depends on the single attack, will fall off the table compared to other classes.

So, while this may seem overpowered, rogues are supposed to be able to get advantage fairly easily, and to be able to perform Sneak Attacks on pretty much every turn; this is the only way they can consistently compete for damage, especially as things level up.