Movement & Combat in a Round

[Bauglir]

thanks everyone for the clarifications so far...now here's one that's slightly more complex

similar situation, the party has listened at a door and heard Orcs grumbling and arguing with each other in the large chamber beyond--they burst through the unlocked door, surprising the Orcs

2nd level fighter is carrying a lantern, has the feat of Quick Draw--he wants to burst through the door, set the lantern down, close with the Orcs 30' away, Quick Draw his Bastard Sword, and attack the nearest Orc, all in the surprise round--and he wants the three other fighter types to do this, and the others to follow just inside the 5' wide door from the standard 10' dungeon corridor, step to the side, and fire readied missile weapons from side angles, avoiding hitting the melee-meting-out PCs and allied NPCs in the middle of the room, 30' away--all in the surprise round

seems to me the lantern setting down quick draw rush and slash and the missile firing behind them seem a little untenable--all in a 6 second surprise round--its not these are 10th level Monks

Except for opening the door, it's doable for the first fighter. (doesn't even require quick-draw)
* Drop the lantern (free action)
* Standard-action-charge the orc 30ft away, drawing your weapon as you move
* Attack once

The other fighters couldn't do the same thing though (well - one of them could, with a reach weapon) as the first fighter is now in the way. The ranged attackers also couldn't move then attack using only a standard action. They would have to move into position, then attack on their next turn (at least they could make full attacks)

I'd suggest one of your ranged attackers use their surprise action to initally open the door then step aside (5ft step), allowing the others to charge in as planned. They could then move into the room and attack on their next turn.

 

[Thanee]

* Standard-action-charge the orc 30ft away, drawing your weapon as you move.

Only with Quick Draw (you cannot draw a weapon while you charge).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Bauglir]

Only with Quick Draw (you cannot draw a weapon while you charge).

Bye
Thanee

Ah yes that's true. We've been house-ruling that one the other way for quite some time

 

[Doug McCrae]

Great analysis, Thanee. Nice ascii pics too.

 

[Thanee]

Thanks!

Bye
Thanee

 

[taliesin15]

Thanee: the fighter (one of the PCs) always announces that he holds the lantern very close to the ground, say with his arm all the way dropped, so its always just a few inches from the ground--don't you think this is a bit untenable, doesn't it seem like he'd have to be crouching all the way through the dungeon, like Marty Feldman as Igor in Young Frankstein?

 

[Thanee]

Yep, that would make him look rather silly.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Delemental]

Thanee: the fighter (one of the PCs) always announces that he holds the lantern very close to the ground, say with his arm all the way dropped, so its always just a few inches from the ground--don't you think this is a bit untenable, doesn't it seem like he'd have to be crouching all the way through the dungeon, like Marty Feldman as Igor in Young Frankstein?

I'm not Thanee, but...

Yes, it does sound untenable. Has this player ever actually demonstrated physically how he does this? It does seem like he goes through dungeons in a Neanderthal-like fashion.

At the very least, it would seem that this leaves the fighter vulnerable to attacks from above (light source held too low to see ceiling, and constant slouch doesn't make looking up easy). Time for more giant spider attacks!

At best, if he insists on doing this, I'd give him a Reflex save to avoid breaking the lantern when he drops it. I don't know about you, but I can hold something a few inches off the ground and still break it if I set it down in a hurry.

"Manipulating an Item" is defined in the RAW as a Move action. "Drop an Item" is defined as a Free action. I would call setting down a lantern in such a way that it doesn't get damaged a manipulation. After all, dungeon floors aren't perfectly flat and smooth; the stones are uneven, covered with moss and water and slime, and littered with the bones of past adventurers that were trying to squeeze too many actions into a combat round.

 

[doghead]

Thanee: the fighter (one of the PCs) always announces that he holds the lantern very close to the ground, say with his arm all the way dropped, so its always just a few inches from the ground--don't you think this is a bit untenable, doesn't it seem like he'd have to be crouching all the way through the dungeon, like Marty Feldman as Igor in Young Frankstein?

*sigh*

 

[Sheng Long Gradilla]

A 5-foot step is a free action, which can only be taken once per round, and also which can only be taken as long as it is the only movement taken that round.

No. Taking a 5-foot step is a "No Action". Look at the table for actions in Combat. The 5-foor step is not in the Free Actions, but in the No Actions.

Also, for those confused with the 5-foot step thing, a quote from the SRD:

Take 5-Foot Step
You can move 5 feet in any round when you don't perform any other kind of movement. Taking this 5-foot step never provokes an attack of opportunity. You can't take more than one 5-foot step in a round, and you can't take a 5-foot step in the same round when you move any distance.
You can take a 5-foot step before, during, or after your other actions in the round.
You can only take a 5-foot-step if your movement isn't hampered by difficult terrain or darkness. Any creature with a speed of 5 feet or less can't take a 5-foot step, since moving even 5 feet requires a move action for such a slow creature.
You may not take a 5-foot step using a form of movement for which you do not have a listed speed.