D&D 5E (2014) Just how long is the D&D Pike supposed to be?

[CTurbo]

I've read they can be as long as 25ft!!! That's just crazy. Surely they're not THAT long. That would not make for a very effective weapon. Also, they do not have the disadvantage at 5ft rule that the Lance has.

 

[MonkeyWrench]

It was an effective weapon when there were hundreds of pikes pointing in one direction, supported by ranged weapon fire and cavalry waiting in the wings.

For individual PCs, it's probably not the best weapon to use. I'd treat it as a really long spear, not the 18'-25' weapon of war.

 

[KahlessNestor]

I think it's intended to be more of a longspear than an actual pike. Think of Oberyn Martel in Game of Thrones when he fights the Mountain.

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[Wulffolk]

"Some pikes are longer than others!"

"I see your mother has been telling stories about me again!"

A paraphrased quote stolen from Braveheart.

 

[rgoodbb]

"Some pikes are longer than others!"

"I see your mother has been telling stories about me again!"

A paraphrased quote stolen from Braveheart.

If we're going down that road..

"Don't tell em Pike!"

 

[TheCosmicKid]

As [MENTION=20730]MonkeyWrench[/MENTION] and [MENTION=6801311]KahlessNestor[/MENTION] said, it probably shouldn't be thought of as a proper pike if it's being used for small-unit adventuring combat. I envision it in the 8-10 foot range. (I also halve the weight.)

 

[CTurbo]

Would 12ft be reasonable? How about 15ft?

 

[dropbear8mybaby]

D&D is a very watered down, simplified and therefore highly inaccurate system to represent reality. The pike was an amazing weapon both in armies and in single combat. The notion that it wasn't used in small scale conflicts isn't true. It was even a favoured weapon in duels. Reach is, basically, almost always a significant benefit. You would be crazy to use a rapier against a pike, for instance, unless you were really good with rapier and buckler and your opponent was pretty crap at the pike. And in formation, that reach, especially when forming two lines, was phenomenally effective against armies who didn't have their own pikemen.

But, that's not D&D. Honestly, they should've just called it a spear or, at worst, a long spear.

 

[Demetrios1453]

D&D is a very watered down, simplified and therefore highly inaccurate system to represent reality. The pike was an amazing weapon both in armies and in single combat. The notion that it wasn't used in small scale conflicts isn't true. It was even a favoured weapon in duels. Reach is, basically, almost always a significant benefit. You would be crazy to use a rapier against a pike, for instance, unless you were really good with rapier and buckler and your opponent was pretty crap at the pike. And in formation, that reach, especially when forming two lines, was phenomenally effective against armies who didn't have their own pikemen.

But, that's not D&D. Honestly, they should've just called it a spear or, at worst, a long spear.

I think the Scots at the Battle of Flodden would disagree with you. At least those (very) few who survived after the English got past their pikes and got to work with their bills.

Pikes were made to used in large, highly-trained formations. Once those formations were broken, or (as was the case at Flodden) the formations weren't large enough to form veritable walls of spear tips, the pikes tended to be far less effective, which usually resulted in the massacre of the pikemen unless they dropped their pikes and resorted to smaller weapons.

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[Hriston]

A pike is a spear too long to be thrown, about 10 feet or longer. Also, it'd have to be at least 10 feet to have reach because of the way it's wielded. The lead hand holds the shaft about 2 feet in front of the center of the body while the rear hand holds the butt-end about 4 feet behind that. The point can be thrust forward by quickly moving the rear hand close to the lead hand while allowing the shaft to slide through the lead hand, so 10 feet is about the minimum length you'd need to threaten the space of a creature 10 feet away. Personally, I prefer it to be 12 or 13 feet so the follow-through on the attack clears the target's full space.

On another note, I'd attribute the pike's high weight to it being made from an extremely heavy, hard wood, similar to that from which the Macedonian sarissa was made.