Difficult Terrain and Charging (Over the Wall)

[wylantern]

The soldier are young, inexperienced. Some of them will never see home again. The rain pelts them like little knives, and heavy boots turns the ground to mud under their feet. Above their heads, No-man's Land bubbles with occasional artillery explosions and the off-handed machine gun rattle. The whistle sounds once, sharp and clear. They grip their rifles at the foot of the ladders. Waiting... The whistle sounds twice and three times, and they're over the wall like a flash, charging across craters and barbed wire and churned earth strait into the fray and waiting guns..."

Now, with this in mind, why does the game disallow charging over difficult terrain?

Discuss.

 

[wylantern]

I think I posted this in the wrong thread. Oops.

 

[Vegepygmy]

Now, with this in mind, why does the game disallow charging over difficult terrain?

I don't know which thread you meant to post in, but your question has nothing to do "with this in mind."

What is being described there is not Charging as defined by the 3.5 D&D rules. It's just hustling (a double move action). Or maybe Total Defense and a move action.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

I agree with Vegepygmy. (Did you ever notice how the oddest sentences sound perfectly normal on EN World?)

Anyway, FWIW, you can combine charging and jumping. As long as you can clear the difficult terrain (or barrier), it doesn't stop your charge.

 

[frankthedm]

Anyway, FWIW, you can combine charging and jumping. As long as you can clear the difficult terrain (or barrier), it doesn't stop your charge.

Are you sure that is what the rulebooks called for? Unless the Special Edition Faux Leather PHB or Rules Compendium have changed the wording on charging...

You must have a clear path toward the opponent, and nothing can hinder your movement (such as difficult terrain or obstacles). Here’s what it means to have a clear path. First, you must move to the closest space from which you can attack the opponent. (If this space is occupied or otherwise blocked, you can’t charge.) Second, if any line from your starting space to the ending space passes through a square that blocks movement, slows movement, or contains a creature (even an ally), you can’t charge. (Helpless creatures don’t stop a charge.)

Indeed the wording of the splatbook feat Leap Attack also seems to go along with the mere presence of slowing terrain ruins a charge.

Leap Attack​

You can combine a powerful charge and a mighty leap into one devastating attack.​

Prerequisites: Jump 8 ranks, Power Attack.
​

Benefit: You can combine a jump with a charge against an opponent. If you cover at least 10 feet of horizontal distance with your jump, and you end your jump in a square from which you threaten your target, you can double the extra damage dealt by your use of the Power Attack feat. If you use this tactic with a two-handed weapon, you instead triple the extra damage from Power Attack.
​

This attack must follow all the normal rules for using the Jump skill and for making a charge, except that you ignore rough terrain in any squares you jump over.


Now the FAQ does try to claim a character can normally jump over rough terrain as part of a charge, but the faq claims a lot of things. IMO This is one of the times the FAQ has a good idea, but it is also one of the times the FAQ suggests something other than what the rules call for.

​

Can my character make a jumping charge attack, either
with a long jump or a high jump? Do I need the feats Fleet
of Foot or Psionic Charge? If I can make a high jump as
part of a charge, can I use it in conjunction with Battle
Jump?

You can make a long jump as part of a charge. You must
still follow all the normal rules for making a charge, such as
moving in a straight line on the battle grid. This tactic can let
you avoid some of the normal restrictions against charging. If a
square of difficult terrain is between you and your charge
target, you could possibly jump over it with a long jump. (The
fact that your jump means that your movement isn’t a perfectly
straight line doesn’t make the charge illegal—you’re still
moving in a straight line as far as the battle grid is concerned,
and the jump isn’t really changing your direction.)
Making a high jump as part of a charge is trickier. It’s hard
to imagine a significant high jump that doesn’t change your
direction; after all, you’re now moving vertically rather than
laterally. Furthermore, if you have to slow your movement at
any point of the charge, you can’t make the charge. For
instance, if you make a high jump toward a ledge as part of a
charge, then have to pull yourself up to the ledge before
continuing, that’s not a charge, it’s a move or a double move.
It’s the same for the “hop up” maneuver described on page 77
in the PH: Since it counts as 10 feet of movement, you can’t
perform such a maneuver as part of a charge.

Fleet of Foot (found in the PG) and Psionic Charge (from
the XPH) might make performing a high jump as part of a
charge a little easier. Both feats allow a single change in
direction of up to 90 degrees during the charge, which should
be sufficient to allow you to make a high jump as part of a
charge. Neither feat allows you to ignore the restrictions on
slowed movement during a charge.

If you’re capable of making a high jump that brings you at
least 5 feet above an enemy, you could employ the Battle Jump
feat (from Una) without having to start at a higher location. Of
course, that would require a Jump check result of at least 40 for
a Medium opponent, so it’s out of reach of most characters.
You’d also have to make the Jump check from adjacent to your
foe, so it would provoke attacks of opportunity (since you’re
moving upward out of a threatened square). All in all, it sounds
like a pretty tricky maneuver, but cinematically very exciting
indeed.

 

[Vegepygmy]

Are you sure that is what the rulebooks called for? Unless the Special Edition Faux Leather PHB or Rules Compendium have changed the wording on charging...

From the Rules Compendium, page 27:

Jumping during a Charge
You can make a long jump to avoid an obstacle as part of a charge, as long as you continue to meet all other criteria for making a charge before, during, and after the jump.

 

[insanogeddon]

Its a game balance thing.

Perhaps Questionable.

Charging is powerful so its limited. 3.0 to 3.5 they nerfed partial charges as apparently casters had it to hard that warriors could ready partial charges against them in 3.0.

In reality people have ALOT more skills and alot more generic competence despite their apparent lack of hardiness and killing kung fuulery !