D&D 3E/3.5 Litany of 3.5 rules questions

[jodyjohnson]

My main concern here would be (and this is something that happend), is the horse makes a double move, then the passenger, who has a later initiative, gets off the horse and takes another double move, thus essentially being able to make two moves in one round, which is clearly not correct.

Clearly. I wouldn't allow the rider to do that either, thus a passenger could not.

From a recent Rules of the Game
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040622a

Ride

Though your steed actually does the moving, much of what you do with the Ride skill counts as move action or as movement (or both) for you.

Since your mount takes you along with it when it moves, a move for your mount also counts as a move for you (you're not propelling yourself, but you still spend time moving). So, for example, if you and your mount move, neither you nor your mount can take a 5-foot step during the same turn.

In many cases, you can do something else while your mount does the moving, such as make ranged attacks, reload a crossbow, cast a spell, or any number of other things that normally would be actions for you. You can use the full attack action to make ranged attacks when your mount takes a move action, and there's no penalty for doing so if your mount does not make a double move. If your mount runs or makes a double move, you suffer a penalty on your ranged attacks, as noted on page 157 in the Player's Handbook (the Mounted Archery feat can reduce those penalties). If your mount moves as a full-round action (as it might if it uses the rule for minimum movement), your ranged attacks are penalized as though the mount took a double move. There's no penalty on your melee attacks for your mount's movement, but if you mount moves before you attack in a turn, you cannot us the full attack action (see page 157 in the Player's Handbook).

Here's an overview of tasks you perform with the Ride skill:

Guide with Knees:Although the skill description doesn't specifically say so, this is not an action at all. You make the check at the beginning of your turn. If you succeed, you don't have to use your hands to control your mount until the beginning of your next turn, when you have to repeat the check to continue guiding your mount with your knees.

Stay in Saddle:This usage does not take an action.

Fight with Warhorse: This usage is a free action.

Cover:This usage does not take an action.

Soft Fall: This usage does not take an action.

Leap: This usage does not take an action, but it is part of the mount's movement.

Spur Mount:This is a move action for you, which you take while your mount moves and carries you along.

Control Mount in Battle: This also is a move action for you, which you take while your mount moves and carries you along. If you fail to control a mount that is not trained for war during a battle, the rules say your turn is over. There is, however, no reason why you can't simply fall off your mount to keep it from galloping away with you. Deliberately falling off your mount is a free action for you. If you decide to fall off, you can make a Ride check to soften the fall (which doesn't take an action).

Fast Mount or Dismount:This is a free action for you and it does not count as movement for you.

Movement 6 is due tomorrow and Skip implied that he would have some clarifications on charging with mounts (hopefully resolving the Charge/Over-run weirdness in a Ride-by Attack). (Charge must be done directly to closest space, Over-run cannot be part of a charge, ride-by continues after the attack which would nearly always be through the target's space and cause an over-run.)

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040618a

The procedure for charging is slightly different when you're using the Ride-By Attack feat (see Part 6).

 

[Hypersmurf]

Movement 6 is due tomorrow and Skip implied that he would have some clarifications on charging with mounts (hopefully resolving the Charge/Over-run weirdness in a Ride-by Attack).

I expect he'll say the same thing he said in a recent Sage Advice; he said he'd house-rule that a Ride-By Attack must move in a straight line not to the nearest space from which you can attack the opponent, but to the nearest space from which you can attack the opponent and continue the line of the charge.

I'm guessing he'll call it a rule this time instead of a house-rule... although I could be wrong. He's labelled a couple of things in RotG articles as Skip's House Rules in the past.

-Hyp.

 

[Abraxas]

Posted by Hypersmurf
In the recent RotG series on movement, Skip invented a DC20 check to tumble 5 feet while prone. He admitted that it wasn't RAW, it just 'felt about right'... and stated that the DC25 doesn't apply because crawling isn't 'normal movement'.

In the Sage Advice article in Dragon 322 he's changed his answer to this slightly to "Crawling isn't "normal movement," but tumbling is the art of moving with acrobatic skill, and there's no reason why a prone tumbler couldn't artfully roll away from a foe." dropping the suggested DC.

 

[jodyjohnson]

Hypersmurf which issue was that? I think 320 is the only one I haven't read lately.

Sounds like the common sense solution. That's pretty much how we handle it.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Hypersmurf which issue was that? I think 320 is the only one I haven't read lately.

It was one of the Wizards online Sage Advice Chats. I can't remember where I saw the transcript, sorry.

"... and there's no reason why a prone tumbler couldn't artfully roll away from a foe."

... aside from "It's not one of the listed uses of the Tumble skill", of course

It does require DM intervention to include such a rule.

-Hyp.

 

[Saeviomagy]

It was one of the Wizards online Sage Advice Chats. I can't remember where I saw the transcript, sorry.



... aside from "It's not one of the listed uses of the Tumble skill", of course

It does require DM intervention to include such a rule.

-Hyp.

Unless of course you admit that crawling while prone is normal movement...

 

[Hypersmurf]

Unless of course you admit that crawling while prone is normal movement...

Crawling is unaffected by your speed.

Crawling provokes an AoO, not because you're leaving a threatened square, but because you're crawling. You provoke an AoO from anyone who threatens the square you're crawling into, as well as anyone who threatens the square you're crawling out of.

It doesn't sound much like normal movement to me.

-Hyp.