How are spiked chains carried?

[maddman75]

Well, if I were running a game, I'd declare a fumble anytime a character's to-hit was negative. Making it happen on a 1 seems ludicrous, as a character would then fumble and make a fool of himself once every 20 swings....which is WAAAY too high for somebody who has any idea what he's doing. On the other hand, if you can get a negative attack roll result, you clearly don't know what you're doing, and are at risk for impaling yourself.

My rule is that when you roll a 1 in melee, you provoke an attack of opportunity. QUick, easy, and gets the idea across. Also makes combat more dramatic. For ranged, you might hit someone if they're in your line of fire. DM's call in that case.

 

[FluidDragon]

I'm playing a monk how uses a S.C. I play it that his s.c. only has spikes on the ends and is a solid length of chain. It is used in a manner similar to Rope Darts, Meteor Hammer, Whiping Chain, and Chain. It has a inward facing cresent on each end with a heavy spike on the very end. It is worn wrapped around the waste like a belt under the monks sash. I think the PHB image is dorky, and unusable.

-FD

 

[hong]

I would bet they are always carried in hand, continuously being swung for the momentum to take AOO's with Combat Reflexes.

Just remember to have a tail rotor, or you'll be rotating in the opposite direction to the chain.

 

[Magic Slim]

In Drunken Master II (an EXCELLENT kung-fu flick IMO), near the end, Jackie Chan fights a Chain-wielding bad guy. The chain doesn't seem to be spiked, since he spins it and wraps it around his forearm.

Lobo carries his chain in a similar fashion (but he has a hook at the end of the chain):

The image in the PHB does indeed not represent how the spiked chain is actually described (or rather, how its use is described). You're going to have a hard time hitting 10' away if you have to hold it by an extremity that looks like a grappling hook.


Slim

 

[FluidDragon]

How does the PHB describe the spiked chain. I use the SRD and it lacks a physical description. Only the technical aspects.

 

[Magic Slim]

Actually I was talking about the way it is drawn in the PHB:

Slim

 

[mooby]

I think the Lobo pics, and how he used them in the comics are the best way to look at it.

The spiked chain pic in the players handbook makes it an impossible weapon to carry and use.

 

[Kershek]

Didn't the big hulk bad-guy in one of the Mad Max films use a spiked chain?