Is there a rule for falling speed?

[Aberzanzorax]

In 3e, ideally, but if not, anywhere (2e, 4e, etc)...is there a rule for how far you fall in a round?

 

[the Jester]

I recall a falling rate of 1000' per round in the 1e Wilderness Survival Guide, but a (very) cursory scan didn't find confirmation.

N.B. This was with a one-minute melee round.

 

[Raven Crowking]

I would go with 32 feet per second per second, so that in a typical 6-second round, you fall 32 feet in second one, 64 feet in second 2, 96 feet in second three, 128 feet in second 4, 160 feet in second five, and 196 feet in the sixth second, and so on as rounds progress, until you reach terminal velocity (EDIT: at about 250 feet per second for a human being).

In the first round of falling, therefore, a character can drop up to 676 feet. Air drag may slow him somewhat. Feather fall would be really handy!

EDIT: Once terminal velocity is reached (228 feet in second 7, terminal velocity in second 8), a character would fall 1,500 feet every six seconds, or 15,000 feet over the course of a minute.

If your pit is deeper than that, he's in real trouble!


RC

 

[Asmor]

For the Tl;DR crowd,

Based on Raven Crowking's physics lesson , I'd go with 1500 feet (300 squares) per round, but half that for the first round (750 feet/150 squares).

 

[Nagol]

RC is mostly right, but he forgot to halve the amount.

d = AT^2
    -------
       2

distance traveled = 0.5 * acceleration * duration * duration

a = 32 ft ( ~10 m ) / second / second

duration is on seconds

In the first second you fall 32 * 1 * 1 / 2 == 16 feet.

In the first round (6 seconds) you fall 32 * 6 * 6 /2 == 576 ft minus a bit for drag.

 

[Raven Crowking]

I stand....well, sit.....corrected.


RC

 

[kmdietri]

Try thse two links, there some pretty good stuff in them.

Rules of the Game: All About Movement (Part Four)

Rules of the Game: All About Movement (Part Five)

 

[OnlineDM]

In 4e, for what it's worth, it's 500 feet per round:

High-Altitude Falls: Some encounters take place very high above the ground. In such an encounter, it is possible for a creature to spend more than one round falling to the ground. As a rule of thumb, a creature falls up to 500 feet during its first turn of falling. If it is still falling at the start of its turn, it can take actions on that turn as normal, then falls up to 500 feet at the end of the turn. If none of those actions expressly halts a fall, the creature falls up to 500 feet at the end of the turn. This sequence continues until the creature lands.

I love the euphemistic use of the word "lands" at the end of the paragraph, especially since this is from the glossary entry on Crashing.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

AH! The "official answer"!

From: Rules of the Game: All About Movement (Part Five)

A nonflyer (or flyer falling through the air) freefalls rather than stalls. A creature in freefall drops 500 feet the first round and 1,000 feet each round thereafter. While in freefall, a creature can attempt a single action each round. It must make a Dexterity or Strength check (creature's choice, DC 15) to avoid dropping any item it tries to use. Spellcasting is possible, but doing so requires a Concentration check (DC 15 + spell level) and if the spell has a material component, the creature must first check to see if it drops the component.

 

[Plane Sailing]

Presumably that 'official answer' doesn't apply to the Featherfall spell, the whole point of which being that you can cast it quickly and safely while falling!