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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Water Bob" data-source="post: 6063641" data-attributes="member: 92305">OK, I've got it. And, what I've "found" is actually already in the rules--it's just hidden a bit.Here's a Chase method that only uses official rules. I landed upon the idea after thinking about what I really wanted out of a Chase system, a good reading of the game's movement rules, and looking at Pathfinder's Chase system.The key to the issue is mentioned in the Tactical Movement rules. Obstacles are mentioned. If you think about it, an obstacle can be almost anything. We normally think of an obstacle as a downed log that must be jumped, or something similar. Well, an obstacle for a pursuer chasing his prey is that he's trying to close distance. The prey's obstacle is that he's trying to lengthen the distance between him and whomever is chasing him. Closing or Lengthening distance is an obstacle in a chase that must be overcome.So, that's it. That's already in the rules. No House Rules needed. No fussy set of extra rules needed (as with the Chase system in d20 Spycraft or in Hot Pursuit/Hot Pursuit on Foot). Just give the players an obstacle throw to close or open distance as you would any other movement obstacle.Let me explain how I would use the rules, as-is, to run Chases.A SIMPLE, MALLEABLE SET OF CHASE RULESFirst off, when a chase begins (as others have said), it's probably best not to run it on a tactical grid. The distances, even in a foot chase, get vast very quickly. Many times, your characters are off the map, if using a 5' grid, after the first six second chase round, or so.I think the six second round is a good timeframe for chase rounds, but customize that as needed. For example, if the chase involves participants on horses across flat desert terrain, maybe one minute chase rounds would be more appropriate. Look at the game's movement modes (Tactical, Local, or Overland) and go with what best suits the conditions of your chase.Speed ratings will be adjusted, per the game rules, for terrain and any aspects of the enviornment that would trigger the hampered movement rules.Then, to run the chase, simply throw obstacles at the participants each round as needed. If you want, give your players choices, like this: You're running from the town's guards. Your arms are pumping, and your heartbeat is in your ears. You see a fallen tree in front of you, half buried in the dirt. It's about three foot high and about the same wide. You've got a choice. You can Jump the log and keep running, at the risk of falling to the ground if you fail the jump. Or, you can run around the end of the tree, allowing your pursuers to gain 30 feet on you. What do you want to do?METHODYou can just pull stuff out of the air, ad-libbing the race as you go, describing to the players what you see in your mind: The alley is crowded with people. You're shoudering your way past them, trying to not to lose sight of your quarry, the thief that pickpocketed your coin. At the start of each Chase Round, you must roll a Spot check vs. the thief Hide, with failure meaning that you've lost the thief in the crowd. Just now, though, you see three wooden boxes stacked near the side of a building to your left. You can attempt to Climb those boxes, getting to the roof tops. From up there, you'll get a +5 bonus on your Spot check to keep the thief in sight. But, the thief will automatically increase distance by 50 feet for each Climb attempt you make. Thus, if you make the Climb on your first try, the thief automatically increases distance by 50 feet. If you fail your Climb but succeed on your second try next round, the thief will have increased distance by 100 feet, and so on. If the thief increases distance by 150 feet, he will be automatically lost in the crowd having evaded you.Your other choice is to keep pushing your way through the crowd in pursuit of the thief. You'll make an Opposed DEX check with the thief. If you beat the thief by 5 points, then you decrease distance to him by 25 feet. If he beats you by 5 points, then he incrases distance by 25 feet. Otherwise, the distance between you and the thief stays the same as the chase progresses that round down the narrow, crowded street. Remember, though, that this option does not provide a bonus to your Spot check to keep the thief in sight--a check you make at the beginning of each round.And, when it feels right to tell the players that the scenery is changed, do it, along with the chase conditions: The narrow street empties into a wide courtyard. Many people mill around, but the area is much more open so that the Spot check is no longer needed. You automatically see the thief at the beginning of each round....If you're not comfortable with the loose-n-fast, play-it-as-it-comes style, then take a cue from Pathfinder. If you want to pre-plan chase routes or write up a stack of them for use in impromptu chases, take a few index cards and lay them down on the table. Take a marker (a penny, a miniature, a bottled-water cap) and place it on one of the cards. Each card will represent a unit of distance in the chase (say, how about 50 foot each--change as needed to suit conditions). If the thief is 100 feet in front of the PC, then place the PC on the first chase card and the thief on the third one. Counting the cards (representing 50 foot each), the thief is 100 feet in front of the chaser.On each card, write down an obstacle or choice of obstacles for the participant to overcome on the round a character lands on that card.Then, just run your race.</blockquote>

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