Fly Speed = Land Speed and the Boots of Skating?

[RUMBLETiGER]

Boots of Skating from Magic Item Compendium p.78.
"These boots allow you to slide along the ground as if on smooth ice."
Grant a +10 land speed on level ground, you lose the speed when going uphill, gain +20 land speed when going downhill.

Expanded Psionics Handbook Power Skate does similar, granting a +15 land speed on level ground, lose bonus uphill, +30 downhill.

So, any spells/invocations/magic items that grant a fly speed equal to land speed, would these boots/this Power cause you to ascend slower, fly level quicker, and descend very quickly?

Or, since you're not actually dealing with friction + gravity, would these effects be ignored?

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I would rule that they have no effect on flying speed as they are basically a means of sliding. While it does increase your speed that's not the mechanic.

 

[kitcik]

But why would your fly speed ever equal your land speed?

A: because a magic spell made it so.

So, if the magic says you are as fast in the air as you are on land, and you happen to be really fast on land because you have magic skates, then... why not?

I think it would work.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

But why would your fly speed ever equal your land speed?

A: because a magic spell made it so.

So, if the magic says you are as fast in the air as you are on land, and you happen to be really fast on land because you have magic skates, then... why not?

I think it would work.

It's a case of RAI vs RAW. Why do you go faster going down? Because of sliding along the ground. Do you slide faster through the air going down in a power dive? RAW says "yes", RAI says "that's silly."

 

[Riley37]

Grant a +10 land speed on level ground, you lose the speed when going uphill, gain +20 land speed when going downhill.

So if something gives you flight speed equal to your land speed and you're wearing these boots, then you gain +10 flight speed when flying *on level ground*. Not *over* level ground; *on* level ground. (This will look a bit like waterskiing.)

Honestly, the issue here is a mismatch in rules granularity. Why should anything ever give anyone a flight speed equal to their land speed? Why should an elf fly faster than a dwarf? How do the elf's longer legs affect the elf's flight speed? If the character is running on air, then the speed equivalency makes sense - and then they're not travelling *on* ground (level or otherwise).

Fix the flight effect, and the problem vanishes.

 

[Riley37]

Do you slide faster through the air going down in a power dive? RAW says "yes", RAI says "that's silly."

Aviation also says yes, breaking the tie. Have you ever piloted an airplane? You can more or less trade height for speed. Just don't run out of height in the process!

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

Thanks for the reply, but this was so long ago, I no longer remember the situation I wanted the answer for.
Hope this helps somebody else in the future though!