In term of game balance, what repercussions should players expect if DM wouldn't count Grapple and Shove as "an attack"?

Question

This is how Player's Handbook (p. 194) describes what counts as an attack:

If there's ever any question whether something you're doing counts as an attack, the rule is simple: if you're making an attack roll, you're making an attack

There are ambiguous exceptions from this rule though — so-called "special attacks". There are only two of them — Grapple and Shove from the PHB.

As a DM, for the sake of clarity and consistency I want to call Grapple just "an action" or "a contest", not "special melee attack". So instead of

you can use the Attack action to make a special melee attack, a grapple

the text of the house rule (or the errata proposal, if you wish) will be

you can use the Attack action to make an action in combat, a grapple

So does for Shove. This is also consistent with the PHB "Contests in Combat" (emphasis mine):

Battle often involves pitting your prowess against that of your foe. Such a challenge is represented by a contest. This section includes the most common contests that require an action in combat: grappling and shoving a creature. The DM can use these contests as models for improvising others.

So the lowercase "attack" is changed to "action" or "contest". For instance, the next passage in the Grappling description will be "If you're able to make multiple attacks with the Attack action, this contest replaces one of them". The rest of the rules remains unchanged.

I want to figure out what possible impact this will make to the game balance. For instance, will some feats/class features change substantially.

In terms of the game mechanics, what consequences/repercussions this change will have? For sanity's sake let's confine ourselves to the the Player's Handbook.

Answer 1

Things that require or modify melee attacks

• Swashbuckler Rogue's Fancy Footwork
• Echo Knight Fighter’s Unleash Incarnation
• Shadow Monk’s Shadow Step
• Mobile Feat
• Slow
• Kocking Creature’s Out (If you can damage with a Grapple/Shove)
• Marking (optional rule)

---

Things that require or modify attacks

• Aasimar Transformations (If you can damage with a Grapple/Shove)
• Firbolg’s Hidden Step
• Goblin’s Fury of the Small (If you can damage with a Grapple/Shove)
• Barbarian's Rage
• Barbarian’s Reckless Attack
• Forge Cleric’s Saint of Forge and Fire.
• Moon Druid’s Primal Strike (If you can damage with a Grapple/Shove)
• Echo Knight Fighter’s Manifest Echo
• Shadow Monk’s Cloak of Shadow
• Redemption Paladin’s Channel Divinity: Rebuke the Violent.
• Vengeance Paladin’s Soul of Vengeance
• Archfey Warlock’s Misty Escape
• Undying Warlock’s Among the Dead
• Fade Away Feat
• Mounted Combatant Feat.
• Sentinel Feat
• Charmed Condition
• Unseen Attackers
• Invisibility
• Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere (If you can damage with a Grapple/Shove)
• Rope Trick
• Sanctuary

---

These lists are from my own personal list of attack types. They are not necessarily complete (human error exists) and they do not include any options from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything as I have not gotten around to adding those to my personal list

Answer 2

These are only the effects off the top of my head - there are bound to be more

Rage

A Barbarian's rage requires that they attack or they take damage (not just an attacked, the attack has to hit them).

Your rage lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are knocked Unconscious or if Your Turn ends and you haven't attacked a Hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then. You can also end your rage on Your Turn as a Bonus Action.

If a shove doesn't count as an attack, then there is a risk the barbarian would lose his rage if they don't take damage before the next turn

Mobile

The mobile feat says:

When you make a melee attack against a creature, you don't provoke opportunity attacks from that creature for the rest of the turn, whether you hit or not.

Grapple and Shove both count to this RAW but wouldn't if you don't count them as attacks.

There are many other cases I believe making this change would cause more questions than answers.

Answer 3

Few feats and features triggers will change

Basically, Grapple and Shove are melee attacks which can't hit.

That means these requirements can't be satisfied anymore with shove and grapple:

• "when smb. attacks"
• "when smb. makes a melee attack"

On the other hand, the following triggers remain unchanged:

• "when smb. hits with an attack"
• "when smb. hits or misses with an attack"

So what WILL be affected? From the PHB:

Class features

• Barbarian's Rage now cannot be maintained using grapple/shove, because it ends "if you haven't attacked a hostile creature".
• Barbarian's Reckless Attack states "when you make your first attack on your turn, you can decide to attack recklessly". The difference is insubstantial, but if you have multiattack and starts with grapple/shove, you can now wait for an actual attack to decide.

Spells

Making an attack can be the trigger that ends a condition or spell effect:

• Invisibility/Greater Invisibility — rules as written "the spell ends for a target that attacks or casts a spell", so grapple/shove won't end the invisible condition anymore.
• Sanctuary ends when "the warded creature makes an attack". Nothing else in the spell description says a contest with an enemy will end the effect.

Feats

• Mobile — the trigger is "when you make a melee attack against a creature". It works "whether you hit or not" so presumably it could work with "special melee attack" like shove/grapple, but not anymore.
• Sentinel — the third bullet triggers when "a creature within 5 feet of you makes an attack", so it is clear it won't be triggered with shove/grapple