Run!

[AeroDm]

I have a re-occurring mechanic I use for things that should be raw ability checks since I agree that ability checks are boring. I call it "The Mechanic." It feels slightly complex at first (it isn't) but since it is uniform in its use people quickly get used to it.

Roll d20 + ability mod and divide by 5, rounding off any fractions. That is your "step." A competition ends when someone has achieves a number of steps equal to however many end the competition. So, if you decide the race is a 20-step race, each person would take turns rolling d20 + dex. A result of 0-4 is zero, 5-9 is one, 10-14 is two, etc. The first to 20 wins.

The Mechanic has three strengths. First, die rolls still matter, but the stat itself matters much more. A +5 stat mod will average a full step higher than a +0, which basically guarantees success in all but the most extreme situations. Second, it allows you to incorporate other things like Initiative because that decides the order and since "whoever gets there first" determines the outcome, initiative matters. Third, it is entirely adaptable to any number of steps, so you can incorporate as many or as few d20 rolls as you want. The more d20s involved, the more stats matter. Customize at your leisure.

 

[Vespucci]

We just want to know who's faster? Roll the same number of dice you would to find out who's taller.

Reflecting briefly on the physiques of elite athletes, Strength (acceleration) should be a major factor in sprinting, but fades as the distance increases, being overtaken by Constitution. Dexterity is important for all running: in short distance, it charts reaction to the starter's signal, whereas on the long distance (especially on rough tracks) it measures retention of speed.

 

[Jimlock]

DMG II has some interesting stuff....

See pages 57-58 "The chase". I would have copied it but unfortunately my... version... is picture only

 

[Greenfield]

I ran a scenario set at the Olympics in ancient Greece. A PC Barbarian and a Half-Ogre Barbarian were in the race, and both thought they had the 100 yard dash in the bag.

"Ready! Set! Go!", came the call. The PC and the Barbarian Readied their action, to go on the mark. If that's done, then essentially everyone has the same Init roll, and it comes down to Init modifiers.

So the call went up and the pair were off and running. The Barb moved 40, the Half Ogre Barb moved 50, and all the trained runners, who had decided to Hold Action instead of using Ready action got a full round of movement instead of a single move, leaving the hero and the villain in the dust.

The math? Runners with the Feat moved 150 feet in the first round (30 base x 5 for Run). The Barb' would have gone 160 (40 base x4), and the Half Ogre would have gone 200 (50 base x 4). As it was the Barb' moved 40, flat and the Half Ogre moved 50 flat.

The competitive sprinters finished the 100 yard dash in 12 seconds, give or take, and the guys who depended on raw ability instead of tactics finished in 13.5 and 14.62 seconds, respectively.

If the sprint is short enough that CON checks don't come into play, you check Feats and class features for base move, Initiative mods for starting order, and, of course, how they chose to run the race.

 

[Scott DeWar]

I would start with inititive. if tie then go by higher mod. for the actual race movement, the check would be d20 + dex + str mod (opposed). How far to the Inn? 60 x 4 feet for full round movement at fastest movement (?) unless the feat (Run) is used?

if greater then 1 turn, then a dc 10 con check, the closest to 10 is doing the best(?) as a twist on an opposed check, perhaps.

 

[Herremann the Wise]

Some ideas:

What is really happening here?
1 - Each competitor is trying to get up to maximum speed as quickly as possible. 2 - And then they are trying to maintain their best speed for as long as possible.
3- After a certain distance, each competitor reaches a point where to keep running is more a test of will than a test of fortitude.

1 - The sprint.
Initiative determines who goes first which may or may not make a difference - so far so good. However, the rules determine that each character gets up to top speed within the first round. I would have liked to see in the rules a differentiation between running and sprinting but heh. I think both Dex and Str are applicable here.

2 - The run.
This is where the character's constitution, fortitude and strength are applicable. The aim is to maintain top speed for as long as possible. However, it is reasonable to assume that each runner is going to gradually slow down at some stage from their x4 running speed to their x2 regular movement speed.

I think one way of doing this is to halve each runners constitution score (rounding down if necessary) to give you x, the number of rounds between each fortitude check that they need to make. The better a runner's constitution, the less often they need to make a fortitude save.
For the fortitude save, a success means they maintain their speed. A fail means they drop their running speed by 5ft. A fail by 5 or more means they are fatigued, and if already fatigued they become exhausted (and thus automatically drop down to normal movement speed).

The fortitude save starts with DC 5 and goes up by 1 for each check that the character makes.

As such, the aim becomes keeping the best speed for as long as possible. I think a further option could be an optional fortitude test to increase one's speed at any point with failure meaning nothing more than the increase of the fortitude DC. There could also conceivably be a second wind mechanic where at some point, the runner makes a DC 10 Constitution check to reset either one's maximum speed or their fortitude save DC back to DC 5 (or the DC is reduced by whatever the value of the concentration check).

3 - The Wall
The point of all of this is that most adventurers are adventurers for a reason and not marathon runners. They are good, but maintaining a running speed beyond an hour is well and truly beyond them unless they train specifically for it. At some stage, a runner is going to need to start doing will saves to keep going before collapsing in exhaustion (in addition to the regular fortitude saves).

In this way, I think you have a rather convoluted way of determining the winner of a race but one that makes a degree of sense... more or less.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

 

[Water Bob]

I would have liked to see in the rules a differentiation between running and sprinting but heh.

The 3.5 DMG does address this. It suggests using DEX for sprints, and specifically suggests that springs should be more than two rounds long. Then, the rules suggest CON for long distance runs.

 

[frankthedm]

I say the runners should be able to burn their HP for more speed like a rider can burn a mount's HP for more speed. I'm thinking a DC15 will save each round.

Spur Mount
You can spur your mount to greater speed with a move action. A successful Ride check increases the mount’s speed by 10 feet for 1 round but deals 1 point of damage to the creature. You can use this ability every round, but each consecutive round of additional speed deals twice as much damage to the mount as the previous round (2 points, 4 points, 8 points, and so on).

 

[kitcik]

I say the runners should be able to burn their HP for more speed like a rider can burn a mount's HP for more speed. I'm thinking a DC15 will save each round.

Spur Mount
You can spur your mount to greater speed with a move action. A successful Ride check increases the mount’s speed by 10 feet for 1 round but deals 1 point of damage to the creature. You can use this ability every round, but each consecutive round of additional speed deals twice as much damage to the mount as the previous round (2 points, 4 points, 8 points, and so on).

Sounds good for a race situation, but would break the mechanics if allowed outside that context.