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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tom Strickland" data-source="post: 6280860" data-attributes="member: 6753119">Some people have commented that in their campaigns players rarely if  ever played classes or builds that emphasized mounted combat because it  could only infrequently be used effectively. I wanted to mention that I  too have pondered upon the issues of investing in mounted combat skills,  feats, classes, etc., when dungeon-delving would render such moot. [Is  that like the usefulness of "Turn Undead" when undead monsters are  scarce depending upon the campaign setting? Enter: feats that use "Turn  Undead" to power other abilities.]Having been primarily a DM it has been less of an issue because any  creatures I "play" are mostly custom-made and hand-tuned for an  encounter area. That is to say that if I run mounted opponents they  appear in an area where that can be leveraged perhaps to the fullest  extent.However, if I put on a player hat, I then consider points (including  those made by many others over much time) regarding why I might want to  invest in mounted combat and how I might keep it relevant in multiple  tactical settings.Appeal- Mounted combat is appealing for numerous reasons in reality and  fiction. Several movies have demonstrated the power, mobility and  effectiveness of (pre-gun) cavalry units: Braveheart, Gladiator, The  Return of the King (LotR) [Rohirrim charges at Helm's Deep and also  before the gates of Minas Tirith], etc. Some real-world battles in  certain historical periods were at a minimum decisively won by effective  cavalry tactics. - In myths and legends, the idea of the centaur--a blending of man and horse--was told of in interesting ways.- In D&D (focus on 3.x), riding a horse gave you access to  (non-exhaustive list): 2-5x movement of usually 35-50 ft. in a round  while heavily armored and still allowing for one or more PC attacks if  not also a single natural attack by the mount; increased damage due to  momentum; increased damage multipliers due to specialized weapons; feats  that increased the damage and/or multipliers when charging or  performing other special actions; the mount might perform its own  multiple (special and normal) attacks while meleeing; the mount served  as an intentional or inadvertent target which spared the rider; skills  could allow the avoiding of some blows that would have otherwise struck  the mount; the mount might enjoy the benefit of class features or  otherwise be boosted by spells and magic items; etc.Considerations for Cramped Quarters[Note: In further listening to Le Morte d'Arthur there is a scene where  Lancelot is bidden to enter an underground area and battle a dragon--he  did so on foot with his sword.]As I reflect upon hundreds of encounter areas I have DM'd over the  years, less than 5% were forced to be in quarters too tight for large  creatures to fight. A strategic retreat or relocation might have been  necessary, but there were no massive 5' mazes.  Also, I would like to note that in my current campaign a druid with his large bear animal companion has had zero difficulties with his "class feature" in any setting they have enjoyed. Expanding, the challenge of bringing a mount is akin to bringing some types of companions or cohorts, or even just primarily running a PC creature of larger than medium size.Thoughts that come to mind on how to mitigate challenges to mounted combat:- Large mounts can squeeze through medium areas.- Mounts can be swapped in different locales (underground  lizard-riding?!) and many if not all associated benefits applied for a  given build.- Mount and/or rider could be (temporarily) altered by magic in various  ways (size reduction, gaseous form, etc.). [How about a dragon mount at  high levels which might also be able to polymorph for tight quarters conventional  travel?]SummaryI am reminded of movies where horses clattered into indoor settings like  "Lady Hawk". Many of my custom and module-provided underground areas  have spacious encounter areas where nothing whatsoever prevents mounted  combat if a mount is so present.Considering the inspirational entertainment and role-play value of  mounted combat, I would work hard to find (rules-based) "allowable"  means to leverage a mounted-combat character build in most available  settings in "fantasy medieval" campaigns when I was in such a mood![Post Scriptum: Note that on-foot encounters in "knight" settings often  transitioned by agreement to mounted encounters--that is why that  fiction "works". Lawful enemies might frequently agree to such formal  "duels" including being loaned commensurate equipment to make things  more "fair".Post Post Scriptum: I had also wanted to note how interesting it was to me to read of the repeated events in Arthurian legend when knights charged and struck each other with such force that one or both were thrown to the ground--including sometimes the powerful warhorse mounts with them. That is some serious force in game terms. Also note that the real-world Destrier breed is now extinct and it was more massive than large horses we might currently know such as draft and Clydesdales.]</blockquote>

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