Build around Jumping

[klofft]

I have a player who is making a rogue who happens to have prodigious leaping abilities through a combination of simple skill ranks and a few skill tricks. He's wondering if he should waste some feats on things like Leap of the Heavens (no running start required for a "running jump").

Is there any real strength to the "jumping guy" build, especially in combat? Obviously, there is the benefit of maneuvering around difficult terrain, but is jump good for anything in combat really? I don't want to steer him towards a concept that has decent flavor but a cost in feats that is ultimately not on par with the other characters.

Thoughts? Thanks.
C

 

[BKS]

The Tiger Claw discipline for Swordsage and Warblade from Tome of Battle has several maneuvers where a high Jump skill helps to do more damage. If you are willing to have him take a few levels in one of these classes (Swordsage is the more "rogue-like" of the two), specializing further in Jump may make sense.

 

[Starbuck_II]

I have a player who is making a rogue who happens to have prodigious leaping abilities through a combination of simple skill ranks and a few skill tricks. He's wondering if he should waste some feats on things like Leap of the Heavens (no running start required for a "running jump").

You could take Leap of Heavens or 4 level or Ninja give that and +4 untyped bonus to jump.

Is there any real strength to the "jumping guy" build, especially in combat? Obviously, there is the benefit of maneuvering around difficult terrain, but is jump good for anything in combat really? I don't want to steer him towards a concept that has decent flavor but a cost in feats that is ultimately not on par with the other characters.

Thoughts? Thanks.
C

Jump = higher ground bonus (+1 hit).

Leap Attack requires jump.

ToB has a couple GTiger Claw manuevers giving bonuses if jump skill high enough (some are skill check vs. AC, etc).

 

[Arkhandus]

Well, he can still pick up some Tiger Claw maneuvers and stances by just taking a few copies of the Martial Study and Martial Stance feats.

For example, at 3rd-level he could take Martial Study (Wolf Fang Strike), then at 6th he could take Martial Study (Sudden Leap), and at 9th Martial Study (Claw at the Moon). At 12th he could take Martial Stance (Leaping Dragon Stance). Or...just 3rd, 6th, or 9th-level Martial Study (Claw at the Moon), 12th-level Martial Stance (Leaping Dragon Stance), 15th-level Martial Study (Death from Above), and 18th-level Martial Study (Soaring Raptor Strike). Soaring Raptor Strike could be gained at 12th-level instead, but Leaping Dragon Stance increases jumping distances and allows standing jumps to be treated as running jumps, so it might be more useful to him (or not).

Martial Study can only be taken up to 3 times, while initiator level with it is only 1/2 character level for non-martial-adepts, and the initiator level/maneuvers known prerequisites for most of the maneuvers are why I suggest one of these two patterns.


Other than this stuff, you could just recommend he take Leap of the Heavens (PHB 2) and Leap Attack (in one of the Complete books, I think Complete Warrior).

 

[Runestar]

There is a prc of some sort in complete champion? which lets you substitute a diplomacy check with another skill check. So if your rogue can crank his jump check high enough, he can use that to charm entire legions of followers.

 

[Imp]

There is a prc of some sort in complete champion? which lets you substitute a diplomacy check with another skill check. So if your rogue can crank his jump check high enough, he can use that to charm entire legions of followers.

That's great, now I have an image of Caesar bunny-hopping FPS-style at the head of his armies as they advance on the Gallic hordes. Thank you, thank you very much.

 

[Wednesday Boy]

The Agile Athlete feat lets you use your Dex mod for Jump and Climb checks instead of Str. That might be beneficial since the character is a Rogue.

And Complete Warrior has the Raptor School tactical feat that lets you make a Jump check to do extra damage when you Charge or jump down on a foe and attack them.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

The Agile Athlete feat lets you use your Dex mod for Jump and Climb checks instead of Str. That might be beneficial since the character is a Rogue.

It's a waste of a feat if you have access to Magic Item Compendium. It has an item called Boots of Agile Leaping that a) let you use dex instead of str on jump checks and b) if you have 5+ balance ranks, you can stand from prone as a swift action and incur no aoo for it. All this for only 600 gp!!!! At that price, I usually just pay +50% to tack it on to striding and springing or whatever other footwear I was getting already. Even then, it's only 900 gp.

And Complete Warrior has the Raptor School tactical feat that lets you make a Jump check to do extra damage when you Charge or jump down on a foe and attack them.

There's also a feat called Battle Jump in Unapproachable East, if the OP has that book. Swordsage or Warblade with Tiger Claw maneuvers is the best kind of character for jumping, though.

 

[Corsair]

That's great, now I have an image of Caesar bunny-hopping FPS-style at the head of his armies as they advance on the Gallic hordes. Thank you, thank you very much.

Someone made a "Jumplomancer" on the WotC CO boards based on that premise. It had somelike like a +2-300 jump, and turned hostile crowds fanatical in a single bound.

 

[ja.phoenix777]

Well, I don't know what books are allowed, but if you're okay to use MoI, I'd take a 2 level dip in Totemist; it gives you a bonus to jumping, and (when bound to your totem chakra) lets you jump to make 4 claw attacks in mid-air, each at your full attack bonus.

Plus, natural weapons count as light weapons, so that's good for Rogues.

And you get 2 extra melds, with which you could get, say, the Blink Shirt for short-range teleport, and Kruthik Claws for bonuses to Hide and Move Silently!