Acrobatic Stunts and Running Long Jumps in Combat

[mysticknight232]

We just started a new LFR campaign and i am playing a Monk that is trained in Acrobatics and Athletics. My thought with him is to be able to tumble or long jump into and out of combat situations while NOT provoking OA's against himself. Not to mention, the Monk at-will Crane's Wing's allow you to make a Long Jump with a +5 bonus to athletics and you're consider running, which is a big help.

My question is two fold. First, what DC do people use to "tumble" into or out of a threatened square using an Acrobatics check while NOT provoking OA's? This weekend my DM ruled it was DC 15 (as the base value in the book) +3 for each opponent beyond the first. So in the specific example, 2 opponents were next to me so i needed to make an Acrobatics check w/ a DC 18 to tumble away and NOT provoke OA.

Second part is the Jumping part. I wanted to use the Crane's Wing's attack first, then use the movement portion to long jump out of reach of my opponent without provoking an OA against myself. My DM ruled this was ok mainly because the DM at the DnD Game Day for the release of the PHB3 said that was allowed. However, when we check the rules, it doesn't say anything about being able to use Long Jump to avoid OA's. Can anybody provide their thoughts on this? The same would be true if i wanted to "jump" into the middle of a throng of people in order to begin attacking them without provoking any OA's against myself.

So i guess i'm just wondering how people interpret or use both skills during combat in regards to getting into and out of range without provoking OAs. I'm sorry this post seems sort of like a mess, but there are a lot of thoughts on this rattling in my head and i wasn't sure the best way to explain my questions. i'm sure more questions will come up as people respond.

Thanks and happy hunting!

 

[DEFCON 1]

By the rules it doesn't matter how you Move out of a threatened square... if you Move, you provoke Opportunity Attacks. This includes Moving, Crawling, Jumping, Flying, etc. The only way to avoid OAs is to Shift (which is not the same as Move), unless you have a power that says you can Move but not provoke. Although I imagine that in those cases, the powers actually say you can Shift certain numbers of squares, rather than Move and not provoke (that way there's no confusion-- Moves provoke, Shifts do not).

Your best bet to be able to go in and out of melee range without provoking OAs is to load up on those Monk disciplines that allow you to Shift multiple squares, because there is no 'tumbling' rule that allows you to move in and out via skill check only. The 4e mechanics were set up to adapt this facet of the Acrobatics skill check to inside the power system instead.

 

[JohnSnow]

Just FYI, both the rogue and ranger also get powers that allow you to shift more than 1 square as part of your action. Acrobatic Strike comes immediately to mind. But there's many others.

In addition, there's also a rogue utility that allows you to shift half your speed. It's called, appropriately enough, Tumble. But it's an encounter power, not an at-will one.

For non-rogues, or the rogue who wants to do it more, there's the skill power Graceful Maneuver, which is identical in effect to Tumble, but 6th-level.

There's more at even higher levels, but that's a start.

 

[mysticknight232]

well, i must admit that this is disappointing and slightly deflating regarding the movement abilities of the Monk. i wasn't really aware that "tumble" was specifically removed from 4e. i'll have to look into the utility power...but that's 5 lvls away >_<.

 

[Kingreaper]

if you want to be able to avoid OAs as a monk, you're going to want to use Five Storms, which lets you shift.

 

[Mr. Teapot]

well, i must admit that this is disappointing and slightly deflating regarding the movement abilities of the Monk. i wasn't really aware that "tumble" was specifically removed from 4e. i'll have to look into the utility power...but that's 5 lvls away >_<.

Monks have dozens of ways of avoiding OAs. It's just that neither Acrobatics or Athletics are included in the list of ways. You'll be plenty able to move around the field unthreatened, so long as you pick powers that include shifting or grant bonuses to defenses versus OA or similar effects.

 

[Amaroq]

Yeah, we had a tumbling Monk in 3.5e, so I can see why you thought it would still be possible, but the mechanics have been changed.

There should still be plenty of ways to shift through, around, etc, with your Monk powers as you level up.

It doesn't have to break your character concept - just think of him as being "not adroit enough to pull it off yet" at Level 1. Do a "Walk" Move, describe it for flavor as "tumbling past", and let the bad guys have their OA's. For now.

 

[Mengu]

Monks can also do bad things to those who take opportunity attacks against them, and have movement techniques that give them bonus against opportunity attacks, or completely ignore them. See powers like Dancing Cobra, Drunken Monkey, and Open the Gates of Battle.

 

[mysticknight232]

Thanks all for the comments. I agree that Monks still have plenty of movement flavor. Open the Gates of Battle is one of my favorite Monk powers at lvl 1 (cause they have so many ). I will definately be adding the Five Storms power to my arsenal as well seeing as shifting 2 squares is pretty potent. I can't wait until he's fully uploaded into the Character Builder next week (fingers crossed).

 

[Saeviomagy]

mysticknight232 - while people are correct in saying that there's no default ruling allowing the use of acrobatics to avoid AoOs, it's also true that the stunt rules have sufficient leeway that your DM can allow it. It's just that none of us can tell you if his DCs are too high or too low.