Size, Space and Reach

Creatures and objects of different sizes occupy different amounts of space. The sizes and the spaces they each take up on a grid are listed in the table below:

Size	Space	Reach (Tall)	Reach (Long)
Tiny	Less than 5 feet	0 feet	0 feet
Small	5 feet	5 feet	5 feet
Medium	5 feet	5 feet	5 feet
Large	10 feet	10 feet	5 feet
Huge	15 feet	15 feet	10 feet
Gargantuan	20 feet or more	20 feet	15 feet

This table also lists the typical reach for creatures of each size, for both tall creatures (most bipeds) and long creatures (most quadrupeds). See reach.

The space entry lists how many feet one side of a creature’s space is, so a Large creature fills a 10-foot-by-10-foot space (4 squares on the grid). A creature’s space is the area in feet that it effectively controls in combat, not an expression of its physical dimensions. A typical Medium creature isn’t 5 feet wide, for example, but it does control a space that wide. If a Medium hobgoblin stands in a 5-foot-wide doorway, other creatures can’t get through unless the hobgoblin lets them.

A creature’s space also reflects the area it needs to fight effectively. For that reason, there’s a limit to the number of creatures that can surround another creature in combat. Assuming Medium combatants, eight creatures can fit in a 5-foot radius around another one.

Because larger creatures take up more space, fewer of them can surround a creature. If four Large creatures crowd around a Medium or smaller one, there’s little room for anyone else. In contrast, as many as twenty Medium creatures can surround a Gargantuan one.

Sometimes part of a creature extends beyond its space, such as if a giant octopus is grabbing you with its tentacles. In that case, the GM will usually allow attacking the extended portion, even if you can’t reach the main creature. A small or larger creature or object takes up at least 1 square on a grid, and creatures of these sizes can’t usually share spaces except in situations like a character riding a mount. Rules for moving through other creatures’ spaces appear below.

Multiple tiny creatures can occupy the same square. At least four can fit in a single square, though the GM might determine that even more can fit. Tiny creatures can occupy a space occupied by a larger creature as well, and if their reach is 0 feet, they must do so in order to attack.

Squeezing into a Smaller Space

A creature can squeeze through a space that is large enough for a creature one size smaller than it. Thus, a Large creature can squeeze through a passage that’s only 5 feet wide. While squeezing through a space, a creature must spend 1 extra foot for every foot it moves there, and it has disadvantage on attack rolls. Attacks vs the creature’s dexterity defence have +1d while it’s in the smaller space.