A bizarre flanking question

[Three_Haligonians]

According to the 3.5 PHB, you get the benefit of flanking "if your opponent is threatened by a character or creature friendly to you on the opponent's opposite border or oposite corner."

Can a creature treat itself as a "friendly"? And if it can, does that not mean that a creature with extreme reach (like say.. a Tendriculous..) can flank with itself?



J from Three Haligonians

 

[Hypersmurf]

According to the 3.5 PHB, you get the benefit of flanking "if your opponent is threatened by a character or creature friendly to you on the opponent's opposite border or oposite corner."

Can a creature treat itself as a "friendly"? And if it can, does that not mean that a creature with extreme reach (like say.. a Tendriculous..) can flank with itself?

A creature always attacks 'from' its own space. If there's someone standing between you and the Tendriculos, it can't ignore the cover penalty by attacking you 'from the other side'.

Unless the Tendriculos is 'a creature on your opposite border', it can't flank with itself.

-Hyp.

 

[Three_Haligonians]

Whew..

That's a relief... I had all these nasty visions of creatures with reach all taking many levels in Rogue.

J from Three Haligonians

 

[dvvega]

You should also note that the threatening text does not say character or creature friendly to you (which may include yourself).

So the question really is moot.

If it had instead used the "by an ally" then it could include yourself due to the precedent set with the bard's abilities, group spell casting and so forth.

D

 

[Hypersmurf]

Interestingly, Mike Mearls designed a PrC at one point - the Razorfiend. It had an ability vaguely similar to a Dervish Dance, but if it attacked a creature from two opposing directions in the same round, the second attack counted as flanking...

-Hyp.

 

[PrinceZane]

Aye, since 3.5 does away with the whole facing thing, I don't think it would work.

And speaking of facing, since there is no "behind you" since there isn't any facing, how do you "sneak up" on someone. It's either ambush from the bushes/around a corner or nothing. Seems quite hard to stalk someone w/o shadow jumping or something...

 

[moritheil]

Aye, since 3.5 does away with the whole facing thing, I don't think it would work.

And speaking of facing, since there is no "behind you" since there isn't any facing, how do you "sneak up" on someone. It's either ambush from the bushes/around a corner or nothing. Seems quite hard to stalk someone w/o shadow jumping or something...

That's what failing a spot check means - even though you're looking around in all directions (there is no facing,) you don't see the person sneaking up on you.

The abolition of facing doesn't mean that you have faces on all sides of your head, just that you aren't standing still and staring blankly ahead in one direction all the time.

 

[Infiniti2000]

A more interesting case occurs in the example where a halfling is standing in the very center of an athach's space. Does the athach flank the halfling with itself? It clearly threatens on both (all, actually) sides. Ah, but it says "another" creature. No dice. Interesting thought, though.

 

[Bauglir]

That's what failing a spot check means - even though you're looking around in all directions (there is no facing,) you don't see the person sneaking up on you.

The abolition of facing doesn't mean that you have faces on all sides of your head, just that you aren't standing still and staring blankly ahead in one direction all the time.

Even so, it's impossible to hide without at least some concealment, so how do you sneak up on your victim?

 

[RithTheAwakener]

Well the prey isnt going to be sitting on a revolving pedestal looking in all directions at all times, thats just ridiculous. Ask your DM which direction hes facing, start sneakin towards him, hope he fails his listen check, then shank away!

and if your outside the range of the victims light source, your going to be in darkness (at night) so you have enough concealment to hide.