How to deal with: Flying Monsters with Ranged attacks, aka the bane of early game parties
There are many types of monsters that one can fight in your typical d20 fantasy role-playing game, from the big dumb melee monster, to the ranged skirmisher, to the monsters that must always be avoided (Typically always the Rust Monster). In this series, we'll be discussing dealing with some of the more difficult variants of these monsters in some of those d20 fantasy gaming RPGs, starting with a subset of extreme danger, the monster that can both fly and has a ranged attack.
This sub-type of monster is actually a pretty large percentage of the classical monsters people think of, specifically the Manticore, Chimera, Harpy (if armed with a ranged weapon), any Dragon, some demons and devils, and a whole host of others. These monsters pose the greatest threat early on in a party's career, because of one simple and undeniable fact: Your party likely has limited forms of flight/ranged attacks, and the monster doesn't. In both the 5th edition of Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder, Flight is a 3rd level spell , which means your earliest access to it is level 5 if you have a full caster (Wizard/Sorcerer/Class with the same spell progression) capable of casting it. There are other methods, including the wide array of spell in an item pieces of magical gear (Potion, Wand, Stave, Scroll, and then miscellaneous pieces that happen to let you Fly), but those are dependent on your loot and many are one-time use items. You can grab the spell Levitate a spell level earlier than flight, although that only lets you move up and down. You can be of the Arakocra race in 5th edition or a Strix in Pathfinder and have a natural flight speed. Some Pathfinder classes have alternate access to flight but it typically doesn't come online till after level 5. So Level 5 is the sweet spot for some access to Flight, at least 5 minutes per day per casting of the spell. What about ranged attacks?
The main issue with ranged attacks is that first off your group might not have them. Depending on your caster and their spells memorized, they might not have any ranged attack spells that deal damage, and even then it might not be enough to actually kill whatever is attacking your group. Your 5e Wizard has for 2nd level spells that are good at damage dealing
-Acid Arrow (6d4 damage total, so on average 15 if it manages to hit. It will kill a harpy, but wont even reduce a Manticore's HP by a fourth. Even max damage isn't even a third of it's Hit points)
-Flaming Sphere (2d6 per round that it's kept on target, but you can only move it 30 feet and most flying monsters have a higher speed than that.
-Scorching Ray (3 rays each inflicting 2d6 fire damage. If all three hit, that's 21 damage on average, 42 at most. We still aren't killing the Manticore)
Fireball is also an option is the Wizard doesn't want to take Fly, but that's 8d6 damage, or 48 at best. While put together, all of the wizard's spell slots at 5th level on ranged damage spells is likely to take down a Manticore, but you need to hit and get good damage rolls. Ranged damage from the wizard is worse in Pathfinder, where damage spells deal less damage on average than 5th edition DnD spells, and monster Hit points are higher.
Mundane ranged attacks are also highly dependent on group comp. It is probably that your melee fighters have a backup bow for situations like this, the question is if they can use it? Ranged attacks use Dex to-hit, which is typically a stat not heavily invested in for the Fighter, Paladin, or Barbarian. The Rogue will likely have a good to-hit, but suffers from not getting their sneak attack most of the time, as the Pathfinder Rogue will require the creature to have it's Dexterity stat denied to adding to it's AC or another of a myriad and hard to manage conditions, and the creature must be within 30'. The 5th edition rogue is better off, just needing to get advantage on their attack rolls. Then there is the dedicated ranged character, typically a Ranger or Rogue in 5th edition, or a whole host of classes in Pathfinder (I've seen good archery builds made with Inquisitors, Clerics, Paladins, Rogues, Rangers, Monks, Gunslingers, etc.).5th edition is overall better for this tactic as you can add your dexterity to your damage roll, while in Pathfinder without certain builds you can only add your strength to Bow damage rolls and nothing to most other ranged attacks damage rolls. And even then, Mundane ranged characters just are not as likely to show up in groups. Most combat doesn't need them as much as it needs melee characters, so you tend to see those more often, especially in smaller groups. So the answer to what resources a group might have
Going through this, you might be wondering why I've been focusing on level 5, the resources different classes have then, and so on. That's because the first major, commonly encountered and well known monster with a ranged attack comes online around that level. The Manticore, a creature expected to be a challenge for 5th level parties in pathfinder, and 3rd level in DnD 5th edition. I'm going to assume your Game Master doesn't necessarily send it after you at that level in 5th edition, as otherwise that is going to be a tough fight, but not as bad as the Pathfinder Manticore due to numbers differences. Let's compare our two spine-shooting monsters.
The Pathfinder Manticore is a somewhat tough beast, with typically 57 hit points and a decent if not amazing Armor Class of 17. It has saves of +9 Fortitude, +7 Reflex, and +3 Will. It's pretty deadly in ranged combat, capable of making four spike attacks per round at +8 to-hit, which when the Fighter will be somewhere around 22 Armor Class on average is pretty good, more so against the less defensive party members. 1d8+5 damage is not amazing but still pretty good when the Fighter's HP will be about 65 with a 14 Constitution and FCB invested into it. And it has 24 spikes total. It's melee is even more deadly, having a bite and two claw attacks at +10 each, and dealing 1d8+5 and 2d4+5 respectively.
In comparison, the 5th edition Manticore is slightly worse off, but it is intended for a lower level party. The Armor Class goes down to 14, but Hit Points actually go up to 68. All the attacks go down to +5 to hit, with the spikes only dealing 1d8+3 damage, but a 3rd level 5th edition fighter will typically have an Armor Class of 18 and an Hit Point pool of 36. A good volley of spikes can nail them pretty hard, and the Wizard can be worse off if they don't have defensive spells running.
This is probably the earliest monster with a ranged attack you are likely to encounter, and in 5th edition especially it can be a massive pain to deal with as your methods of flight will be whatever magic items you have, and attacks will be whatever ranged weapons you have and spells your casters prepared. My advice? Hide. Seriously, do so. The Manticore has only a limited number of spikes, 24 in total, so having the more squishy members of the group, or the ones that don't have good ranged attacks, hide out of it's line of sight reduces the amount of damage it can deal to you. Anyone actively engaging it at ranged should find some form of cover as well. This tactics works very well for most ranged flying monsters, as their ranged attacks typically have limited uses per day, especially if they are using spells. Most breath attacks are also short ranged and need a number of rounds to recharge to use, although if your Dungeon Master is being especially difficult it might withdraw completely out of range while the breath attack recharges. If it becomes clear the ranged flying monster is never going to land, hide completely and wait for it to leave. If you do have Flight, really consider if you want to use it first before casting it. A lot of flying monsters (Chimera, Dragons, Manticores) are even deadlier in melee, and only a single character fighting them in melee at once is very likely to fall to attrition without decent support. If you can engage it in melee on the ground at any point, do so however. Then the entire party can participate, and as deadly as they are in melee, they can be more deadly in the air if you can't have the entire party engage them.
Advice for a GM: Despite the dangers of using these creatures against your party, they can make for really fun encounters for your party, and tense ones as well. Especially dragons because hey, everyone wants to right a dragon. But before you sick one of these creatures on your party, consider the following
-Do they have methods of flight? Preferably for multiple characters, not just one.
-Do they have meaningful ranged attacks? The fighter and rogue having longbows is capable of engaging but unlikely to deal much damage or reliably hit all the time.
-Do they have easy access to cover/places to hide from the creature? Fighting a ranged flying monster is much different in a city than on the open road.
-Do they have methods to force the creature to land? You can color spray a Manticore and stun it, and that'll knock it right out of the sky.
If your group has none of these, consider giving them some or just...landing the flying creature and letting them fight it on the ground. It's certainly dumb tactics and might feel like a cheap win, but most flying creatures are under the CR value they really should be anyway, and being constantly strafed by flying creatures they can't meaningfully engage is not an encounter they are likely to enjoy.
This sub-type of monster is actually a pretty large percentage of the classical monsters people think of, specifically the Manticore, Chimera, Harpy (if armed with a ranged weapon), any Dragon, some demons and devils, and a whole host of others. These monsters pose the greatest threat early on in a party's career, because of one simple and undeniable fact: Your party likely has limited forms of flight/ranged attacks, and the monster doesn't. In both the 5th edition of Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder, Flight is a 3rd level spell , which means your earliest access to it is level 5 if you have a full caster (Wizard/Sorcerer/Class with the same spell progression) capable of casting it. There are other methods, including the wide array of spell in an item pieces of magical gear (Potion, Wand, Stave, Scroll, and then miscellaneous pieces that happen to let you Fly), but those are dependent on your loot and many are one-time use items. You can grab the spell Levitate a spell level earlier than flight, although that only lets you move up and down. You can be of the Arakocra race in 5th edition or a Strix in Pathfinder and have a natural flight speed. Some Pathfinder classes have alternate access to flight but it typically doesn't come online till after level 5. So Level 5 is the sweet spot for some access to Flight, at least 5 minutes per day per casting of the spell. What about ranged attacks?
The main issue with ranged attacks is that first off your group might not have them. Depending on your caster and their spells memorized, they might not have any ranged attack spells that deal damage, and even then it might not be enough to actually kill whatever is attacking your group. Your 5e Wizard has for 2nd level spells that are good at damage dealing
-Acid Arrow (6d4 damage total, so on average 15 if it manages to hit. It will kill a harpy, but wont even reduce a Manticore's HP by a fourth. Even max damage isn't even a third of it's Hit points)
-Flaming Sphere (2d6 per round that it's kept on target, but you can only move it 30 feet and most flying monsters have a higher speed than that.
-Scorching Ray (3 rays each inflicting 2d6 fire damage. If all three hit, that's 21 damage on average, 42 at most. We still aren't killing the Manticore)
Fireball is also an option is the Wizard doesn't want to take Fly, but that's 8d6 damage, or 48 at best. While put together, all of the wizard's spell slots at 5th level on ranged damage spells is likely to take down a Manticore, but you need to hit and get good damage rolls. Ranged damage from the wizard is worse in Pathfinder, where damage spells deal less damage on average than 5th edition DnD spells, and monster Hit points are higher.
Mundane ranged attacks are also highly dependent on group comp. It is probably that your melee fighters have a backup bow for situations like this, the question is if they can use it? Ranged attacks use Dex to-hit, which is typically a stat not heavily invested in for the Fighter, Paladin, or Barbarian. The Rogue will likely have a good to-hit, but suffers from not getting their sneak attack most of the time, as the Pathfinder Rogue will require the creature to have it's Dexterity stat denied to adding to it's AC or another of a myriad and hard to manage conditions, and the creature must be within 30'. The 5th edition rogue is better off, just needing to get advantage on their attack rolls. Then there is the dedicated ranged character, typically a Ranger or Rogue in 5th edition, or a whole host of classes in Pathfinder (I've seen good archery builds made with Inquisitors, Clerics, Paladins, Rogues, Rangers, Monks, Gunslingers, etc.).5th edition is overall better for this tactic as you can add your dexterity to your damage roll, while in Pathfinder without certain builds you can only add your strength to Bow damage rolls and nothing to most other ranged attacks damage rolls. And even then, Mundane ranged characters just are not as likely to show up in groups. Most combat doesn't need them as much as it needs melee characters, so you tend to see those more often, especially in smaller groups. So the answer to what resources a group might have
Going through this, you might be wondering why I've been focusing on level 5, the resources different classes have then, and so on. That's because the first major, commonly encountered and well known monster with a ranged attack comes online around that level. The Manticore, a creature expected to be a challenge for 5th level parties in pathfinder, and 3rd level in DnD 5th edition. I'm going to assume your Game Master doesn't necessarily send it after you at that level in 5th edition, as otherwise that is going to be a tough fight, but not as bad as the Pathfinder Manticore due to numbers differences. Let's compare our two spine-shooting monsters.
The Pathfinder Manticore is a somewhat tough beast, with typically 57 hit points and a decent if not amazing Armor Class of 17. It has saves of +9 Fortitude, +7 Reflex, and +3 Will. It's pretty deadly in ranged combat, capable of making four spike attacks per round at +8 to-hit, which when the Fighter will be somewhere around 22 Armor Class on average is pretty good, more so against the less defensive party members. 1d8+5 damage is not amazing but still pretty good when the Fighter's HP will be about 65 with a 14 Constitution and FCB invested into it. And it has 24 spikes total. It's melee is even more deadly, having a bite and two claw attacks at +10 each, and dealing 1d8+5 and 2d4+5 respectively.
In comparison, the 5th edition Manticore is slightly worse off, but it is intended for a lower level party. The Armor Class goes down to 14, but Hit Points actually go up to 68. All the attacks go down to +5 to hit, with the spikes only dealing 1d8+3 damage, but a 3rd level 5th edition fighter will typically have an Armor Class of 18 and an Hit Point pool of 36. A good volley of spikes can nail them pretty hard, and the Wizard can be worse off if they don't have defensive spells running.
This is probably the earliest monster with a ranged attack you are likely to encounter, and in 5th edition especially it can be a massive pain to deal with as your methods of flight will be whatever magic items you have, and attacks will be whatever ranged weapons you have and spells your casters prepared. My advice? Hide. Seriously, do so. The Manticore has only a limited number of spikes, 24 in total, so having the more squishy members of the group, or the ones that don't have good ranged attacks, hide out of it's line of sight reduces the amount of damage it can deal to you. Anyone actively engaging it at ranged should find some form of cover as well. This tactics works very well for most ranged flying monsters, as their ranged attacks typically have limited uses per day, especially if they are using spells. Most breath attacks are also short ranged and need a number of rounds to recharge to use, although if your Dungeon Master is being especially difficult it might withdraw completely out of range while the breath attack recharges. If it becomes clear the ranged flying monster is never going to land, hide completely and wait for it to leave. If you do have Flight, really consider if you want to use it first before casting it. A lot of flying monsters (Chimera, Dragons, Manticores) are even deadlier in melee, and only a single character fighting them in melee at once is very likely to fall to attrition without decent support. If you can engage it in melee on the ground at any point, do so however. Then the entire party can participate, and as deadly as they are in melee, they can be more deadly in the air if you can't have the entire party engage them.
Advice for a GM: Despite the dangers of using these creatures against your party, they can make for really fun encounters for your party, and tense ones as well. Especially dragons because hey, everyone wants to right a dragon. But before you sick one of these creatures on your party, consider the following
-Do they have methods of flight? Preferably for multiple characters, not just one.
-Do they have meaningful ranged attacks? The fighter and rogue having longbows is capable of engaging but unlikely to deal much damage or reliably hit all the time.
-Do they have easy access to cover/places to hide from the creature? Fighting a ranged flying monster is much different in a city than on the open road.
-Do they have methods to force the creature to land? You can color spray a Manticore and stun it, and that'll knock it right out of the sky.
If your group has none of these, consider giving them some or just...landing the flying creature and letting them fight it on the ground. It's certainly dumb tactics and might feel like a cheap win, but most flying creatures are under the CR value they really should be anyway, and being constantly strafed by flying creatures they can't meaningfully engage is not an encounter they are likely to enjoy.
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