pukunui
Legend
Hi all,
In Tomb of Annihilation, it's possible for the characters to gain a magical flying speed via a ritual known as the Dance of the Seven Winds, performed by the aarakocra of Kir Sabal. The sidebar on page 69 states that recipients "gain a magical flying speed of 30 feet (allowing them to fly 4 miles per hour). This benefit lasts for 3 days ..."
The reason given in the book for the aarakocra to bestow this gift upon the PCs is to help them get to Omu. The "forbidden city" is roughly 240 miles away from the monastery of Kir Sabal. At 4 mph, the PCs would need to fly for a total of 60 hours (or 2.5 days) to reach Omu by air.
What I can't figure out is if the PCs can actually do that or not.
According to the rules for sky travel on pp 119-120 of the DMG, "Flying by spell or magic item works the same as travel on foot, as described in the Player's Handbook." This suggests that the PCs would only be able to fly for 8 hours each day before the Forced March rule kicks in, in which case, the PCs would need to risk dying from exhaustion if they wanted to fly all the way to Omu. If they don't want to take that risk, then they can't even fly halfway there. A flying speed of 4 mph basically translates to 3 hexes per day on the Chult map, if the PCs only travel for 8 hours a day.
As an aside, according to the rules for special travel paces on pp 242-243 of the DMG, a normal flying speed of 30 feet would translate to an hourly rate of 3 mph. A rate of 4 mph would be the fast pace speed.
That section also says that characters "bestride a phantom steed, soaring through the air on a carpet of flying, or riding a sailboat or a steam-powered gnomish contraption [don't] travel at a normal rate, since the magic, engine, or wind doesn't tire the way a creature does and the air doesn't contain the types of obstructions found on land." This seems to contradict the bit I quoted above about flying via magic using the same rules as traveling by foot as per the PHB (although, admittedly, it does still say that a daily rate is "typically 8 hours", which could be interpreted as meaning that the Forced March rule still applies, even if you're traveling on a carpet of flying or using a phantom steed).
What it all boils down to, though, is: If you have a magical flying speed, do you need to worry about exhaustion if you travel for more than 8 hours in a day?
Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Jonathan
In Tomb of Annihilation, it's possible for the characters to gain a magical flying speed via a ritual known as the Dance of the Seven Winds, performed by the aarakocra of Kir Sabal. The sidebar on page 69 states that recipients "gain a magical flying speed of 30 feet (allowing them to fly 4 miles per hour). This benefit lasts for 3 days ..."
The reason given in the book for the aarakocra to bestow this gift upon the PCs is to help them get to Omu. The "forbidden city" is roughly 240 miles away from the monastery of Kir Sabal. At 4 mph, the PCs would need to fly for a total of 60 hours (or 2.5 days) to reach Omu by air.
What I can't figure out is if the PCs can actually do that or not.
According to the rules for sky travel on pp 119-120 of the DMG, "Flying by spell or magic item works the same as travel on foot, as described in the Player's Handbook." This suggests that the PCs would only be able to fly for 8 hours each day before the Forced March rule kicks in, in which case, the PCs would need to risk dying from exhaustion if they wanted to fly all the way to Omu. If they don't want to take that risk, then they can't even fly halfway there. A flying speed of 4 mph basically translates to 3 hexes per day on the Chult map, if the PCs only travel for 8 hours a day.
As an aside, according to the rules for special travel paces on pp 242-243 of the DMG, a normal flying speed of 30 feet would translate to an hourly rate of 3 mph. A rate of 4 mph would be the fast pace speed.
That section also says that characters "bestride a phantom steed, soaring through the air on a carpet of flying, or riding a sailboat or a steam-powered gnomish contraption [don't] travel at a normal rate, since the magic, engine, or wind doesn't tire the way a creature does and the air doesn't contain the types of obstructions found on land." This seems to contradict the bit I quoted above about flying via magic using the same rules as traveling by foot as per the PHB (although, admittedly, it does still say that a daily rate is "typically 8 hours", which could be interpreted as meaning that the Forced March rule still applies, even if you're traveling on a carpet of flying or using a phantom steed).
What it all boils down to, though, is: If you have a magical flying speed, do you need to worry about exhaustion if you travel for more than 8 hours in a day?
Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Jonathan
