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Tyrannosaurus Rex 5e: Stats, Bite Grapple and Running the Hunt
The tyrannosaurus rex is a CR 8 Huge beast (3,900 XP) with AC 13, 136 hit points, a 50-foot speed and two attacks a turn: a +10 bite for 33 piercing that grabs its target, and a +10 tail for 20. A bitten creature is grappled (escape DC 17) and restrained, so the next bite comes with advantage. That's the whole fight: someone ends up in its jaws, and the party has a round or two to get them out. The 2024 T. rex can grab Large creatures, and its tail reaches 15 feet, hits for 25 and knocks targets prone.
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Tyrannosaurus Rex Stat Block (2014)
Tyrannosaurus Rex
Huge beast, unaligned
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 136 (13d12+52)
Speed 50 ft.
STR
25 (+7)
DEX
10 (+0)
CON
19 (+4)
INT
2 (−4)
WIS
12 (+1)
CHA
9 (−1)
Skills Perception +4
Senses passive Perception 14
Languages —
Challenge 8 (XP 3,900; PB +3)
Actions
Multiattack.The tyrannosaurus makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its tail. It can't make both attacks against the same target.
Bite.Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 33 (4d12 + 7) piercing damage. If the target is a Medium or smaller creature, it is grappled (escape DC 17). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the tyrannosaurus can't bite another target.
Tail.Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 20 (3d8 + 7) bludgeoning damage.
Stat block from the SRD 5.1 (2014 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
Two lines in the Multiattack shape every turn. It "can't make both attacks against the same target," so the bite and tail always go to different creatures. And while it holds someone, it "can't bite another target," so the grabbed character keeps getting bitten until they escape or the T. rex lets go. Only Medium or smaller creatures can be grappled.
The 2024 Tyrannosaurus Rex
Tyrannosaurus Rex
Huge Beast (Dinosaur), Unaligned
Armor Class 13
Initiative +3 (13)
Hit Points 136 (13d12 + 52)
Speed 50 ft.
STR
25 (+7)save +10
DEX
10 (+0)save +0
CON
19 (+4)save +4
INT
2 (−4)save −4
WIS
12 (+1)save +4
CHA
9 (−1)save −1
Skills Perception +4
Senses Passive Perception 14
Languages None
Challenge 8 (XP 3,900; PB +3)
Actions
Multiattack.The tyrannosaurus makes one Bite attack and one Tail attack.
Bite.Melee Attack Roll: +10, reach 10 ft. Hit: 33 (4d12 + 7) Piercing damage. If the target is a Large or smaller creature, it has the Grappled condition (escape DC 17). While Grappled, the target has the Restrained condition and can’t be targeted by the tyrannosaurus’s Tail.
Tail.Melee Attack Roll: +10, reach 15 ft. Hit: 25 (4d8 + 7) Bludgeoning damage. If the target is a Huge or smaller creature, it has the Prone condition.
Stat block from the SRD 5.2.1 (2024 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
The tail can't target the creature it has grappled
AC / HP / CR
13 / 136 / 8
Unchanged
The 2024 bite text doesn't repeat "can't bite another target," but the general grappling rule covers it: a creature grappling with a body part can't use that part on another target until the grapple ends. The jaws stay busy either way. The new reach on the tail means it can swat a character standing 15 feet away and knock them flat, and Large creatures (horses, ogres, the party's mounts) are now on the menu.
How the Tyrannosaurus Rex Fights
Bite the smallest thing in reach. Against AC 16, a +10 attack hits on a 6 or better, 75% of the time. The first bite averages about 25 damage after misses. Once the target is grappled and restrained, the next bite has advantage: 94% to hit, about 31 damage a turn to the same character. A level 7 wizard with 40 to 45 hit points survives one turn in the jaws and probably not two.
Tail whoever comes to help. The tail can't hit the grappled creature, so it goes to whoever is closest to the rescue. In 2014 that's 75% for 20 damage. In 2024 it's 25 damage and the rescuer lands prone. The T. rex deals about 40 to 44 damage a round across two targets.
Order matters with the 2024 tail. A prone creature more than 5 feet away gives attackers disadvantage. If the T. rex tails a character at 10 feet first and then bites them, the bite has disadvantage. Bite first, tail a second target, and the prone effect sets up next round instead.
Chase. Fifty feet of speed beats almost everyone. A T. rex that grabs a Medium character can carry it at full speed, because the prey is two sizes smaller, so retreating into the trees with a mouthful is a real option when the party hurts it.
It's an animal. Intelligence 2. It doesn't fight to the death for no reason. Below about a third of its hit points, a hungry predator with its prey in its mouth walks away.
How Many Tyrannosaurs for a Level 7 Party?
One T. rex is 3,900 XP. For four characters:
Party level
Encounter
2024 budget result
2014 guidelines
5
1 T. rex
High
Hard
6
1 T. rex
Moderate
Hard
7
1 T. rex
Moderate
Medium
9
2 T. rexes
Moderate
Deadly
The 2014 column follows the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide guidelines (used by our encounter calculator). At level 5 one T. rex can kill a character in two rounds. At level 9, a pair plays harder than the 2024 Moderate label suggests: two jaws can hold two characters at once.
How Players Beat a Tyrannosaurus Rex
•Escape the grapple early. Escaping uses an action and a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check against DC 17. A fighter with +7 Athletics succeeds on a 10 or better, 55% of the time. A wizard with +2 Acrobatics needs a 15, only 30%. The grappled condition also ends if the T. rex is incapacitated, or if the grappled creature is moved out of its reach. In 2014 the rules name Thunderwave as one way to do that.
•Target its mind. Intelligence 2 and Charisma -1 are terrible saves. Dominate Beast uses Wisdom (+1 in 2014, +4 in 2024) and the T. rex has advantage while the party fights it, so cast it early.
•Use the terrain. A Huge creature can't follow anyone into a 5-foot cave mouth or a stone building. Doors and tunnels are a hard counter.
•Spread out (2014). Bite and tail can't hit the same target. Characters who stand apart force the T. rex to split its damage.
Turning Into a T. Rex: Polymorph and Wild Shape
Polymorph turns a creature into a beast with a CR no higher than the target's level, so a level 8 or higher ally can become a T. rex. In 2014 the target takes the T. rex's 136 hit points. In 2024 it keeps its own and gains 136 temporary hit points. Either way, a fighter turned T. rex bites for 33 and grapples.
Wild Shape can't reach it. The SRD druid's limit is CR 1 in both editions (Circle of the Moon raises that, but it isn't in either SRD). Animal Shapes is limited to Large or smaller beasts, so a Huge T. rex isn't an option.
Tyrannosaurus Rex Encounter Ideas
The river crossing. The ford is 60 feet wide and waist-deep. Halfway across, the T. rex comes out of the reeds. Every character in the water moves at half speed. The far bank has a stone ruin with a door too small for it.
The tame one. A warlord keeps a T. rex in a pit and drops prisoners in. The party's job is to rescue a prisoner before the feeding. Dominate Beast, a lot of meat, or a fight in a 40-foot pit.
The other predator. The T. rex isn't hunting the party. It's hunting the allosaurus pack that has been stalking them for two days. The party can run, hide, or use one monster against the other.
Frequently Asked Questions
What CR is a Tyrannosaurus Rex in 5e?
The tyrannosaurus rex is CR 8 and worth 3,900 XP in both the 2014 and 2024 rules.
How do you escape a T. rex bite in 5e?
Use your action to make a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check against DC 17. While grappled you are also restrained, so attacks against you have advantage and your own attacks have disadvantage.
Can a T. rex swallow you in 5e?
No. Neither SRD stat block has a swallow attack. It grapples and restrains with its bite, then keeps biting.
Can a druid Wild Shape into a T. rex?
Not under SRD rules. The SRD druid's Wild Shape tops out at CR 1 in both editions, and the T. rex is CR 8. Polymorph on a level 8 or higher creature can do it.
How much damage does a T. rex do per turn?
If both attacks hit, 53 damage in 2014 (33 bite + 20 tail) and 58 in 2024 (33 + 25). Against AC 16 that averages about 40 to 44 a turn after misses.
Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.
This page includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Loreify is not affiliated with Wizards of the Coast.