Knight Questions

[The_If]

I was thumbing through the PHB2 for the first time, and the Knight has really caught my eye. I just don't quite understand small parts of it.

The description of Test Of Mettle says:

Creatures that fail this save are forced to attack you
with their ranged or melee attacks in preference over other
available targets.

but it also says

An opponent compelled to act in this manner is not thrown
into a mindless rage and does not have to move to attack you
in melee if doing so would provoke attacks of opportunity
against him.

So, which is it? Are they forced to attack me, or do they get to do whatever they want?


On the knight's code:

A knight never deals lethal damage against a helpless foe.
You can strike such a foe, but only with attacks that deal
nonlethal damage.

I can't tell what they mean by helpless. Obviously unconscious is helpless, but what else triggers this?

[El Mahdi]

Welcome to ENWorld!

Originally Posted by The_If

I was thumbing through the PHB2 for the first time, and the Knight has really caught my eye. I just don't quite understand small parts of it.

The description of Test Of Mettle says:...

but it also says...

So, which is it? Are they forced to attack me, or do they get to do whatever they want?

This was basically an early, 3.5E version, of the "Marked" concept in 4E. It means that the opponent is now focused on attacking you in a very single minded manner (will ignore other opponents, namely your allies, in favor of attacking you exclusively). However, it does not place them in a rage or otherwise cause them to lose all common sense or sense of self preservation. They will not walk into an Attack of Opportunity just to get at you. They will take a route that leads them to you without foolishly putting themselves in danger. One of the reasons for this is so that you can't manipulate the battlefield to cause extra damage to them by forcing them into an AoO. You have to do the work of killing the opponent.

Originally Posted by The_If

On the knight's code:

I can't tell what they mean by helpless. Obviously unconscious is helpless, but what else triggers this?

Essentially, this just means that you can't Coup de' Grace an opponent or other such type actions. As far as specific triggers, other than unconscious, I don't know if there are any. Basically, you can't attack anyone that does not have the ability to attack you. Some Examples:

• an unarmed opponent (unless you know they can fight unarmed, ala the Monk, or you know they have magical means of attack, ala Sorcerer/Wizard/etc.).
• an opponent stuck in a trap (mechanical trap, web, entangling plants, etc.) with no ability to defend themself or fight back
• a Feebleminded opponent
• a Paralyzed opponent

However, your best bet is to ask your DM exactly what they feel "Helpless" means, and go with that.

[Flatus Maximus]

Originally Posted by The_If

So, which is it? Are they forced to attack me, or do they get to do whatever they want?

Well, the "...if doing so would provoke attacks of opportunities..." seems to indicate that they will try to come after you intelligently, as opposed to mindlessly charging straight towards you. So, if they would provoke, they might tumble, circle about, pull out a ranged weapon, etc. What exactly they will do is highly dependent on the actual conditions in play. The target's Int/Wis should come into play here.

Originally Posted by The_If

I can't tell what they mean by helpless. Obviously unconscious is helpless, but what else triggers this?

"Helpless" is actually defined in the PHB: paralyzed, held, bound, sleeping, unconscious, or otherwise completely at an opponent's mercy. Depending on how the player wants to roleplay it, you could also include disarmed -- basically any situation in which it isn't a "fair" fight.

Edit: El Mahdi beat me to the punch!

[El Mahdi]

Originally Posted by Flatus Maximus

"Helpless" is actually defined in the PHB: paralyzed, held, bound, sleeping, unconscious, or otherwise completely at an opponent's mercy. Depending on how the player wants to roleplay it, you could also include disarmed -- basically any situation in which it isn't a "fair" fight.

Edit: El Mahdi beat me to the punch!

Yeah, but you actually looked up the definition, I just did it off the top of my head. Official definition always wins.

[The_If]

Thanks. I think I have a firm footing on it now.

And stop arguing about "Who is more awesome". It's like comparing Superman and Batman, you're both so awesome everyone else is left in the dust.