Spring Attack doubt

[Egres]

SPRING ATTACK [GENERAL]

Prerequisites: Dex 13, Dodge, Mobility, base attack bonus +4.

Benefit: When using the attack action with a melee weapon, you can move both before and after the attack, provided that your total distance moved is not greater than your speed. Moving in this way does not provoke an attack of opportunity from the defender you attack, though it might provoke attacks of opportunity from other creatures, if appropriate. You can’t use this feat if you are wearing heavy armor.

Ok.

Let's suppose we have a human Ftr and, 45 ft far, two ogres, each adjacent to the other.

The Ftr moves towards them, and we know he can choose which ogre attack at the end of his movement. (between the end of his movement and the attack could happen something that could change his mind, like a ready action from one of his allies or such)

Then?

What ogre can make an AoO against him if we don't know what ogre he will attack?

Does this mean that he provokes an AoO from both, since there's no defender yet?

 

[Infiniti2000]

A couple of issues.

1. A human fighter cannot normally move 50ft in a single move action.
2. He must select the opponent before he moves.
3. Once he started the spring attack, he cannot convert it to a double move.

 

[DanMcS]

SPRING ATTACK [GENERAL]

Prerequisites: Dex 13, Dodge, Mobility, base attack bonus +4.

Benefit: When using the attack action with a melee weapon, you can move both before and after the attack, provided that your total distance moved is not greater than your speed. Moving in this way does not provoke an attack of opportunity from the defender you attack, though it might provoke attacks of opportunity from other creatures, if appropriate. You can’t use this feat if you are wearing heavy armor.

Ok.

Let's suppose we have a human Ftr and, 45 ft far, two ogres, each adjacent to the other.

The Ftr moves towards them, and we know he can choose which ogre attack at the end of his movement. (between the end of his movement and the attack could happen something that could change his mind, like a ready action from one of his allies or such)

Then?

What ogre can make an AoO against him if we don't know what ogre he will attack?

Does this mean that he provokes an AoO from both, since there's no defender yet?

Both of them can attack him, because he's not spring attacking- 45 feet is farther than his speed.

If he was 15' from them, that would be the situation you probably meant. He decides before he goes which one he is attacking, because spring attack is done when you are attacking. You decide what creature you're attacking before you make that attack, obviously. If that has to change later due to events outside your control, spring attack doesn't retroactively make it so AoOs didn't happen or anything

So he decides he's attacking ogre A.
Springs in. Ogre A doesn't get an AoO, ogre B does.
The fighter gets 5' closer.
The fighter's buddy, the rogue, behind ogre A, has a readied action to attack A as soon as A is flanked. He does so now. Ogre A is eliminated.
The fighter can change his attack to ogre B now, and then spring the rest of the way back out. Ogre B is his target at this point, so it doesn't get another AoO, but it wouldn't anyway because it's all part of the same movement, and ogres rarely have combat reflexes in any case.

So that round, Spring Attack didn't yield any benefit, AoO-wise, but it did let him move before and after his attack, which is nice.

 

[SteelDraco]

In such a situation, I would make him choose which one to attack as soon as it became necessary (ie, when he moves into their threat range and starts provoking AoOs). If he refused to make that choice, since he was waiting for a readied action, then I would suggest he delay, or simply not allow him to gain the benefits of Spring Attack for that action.

Incidentally, I assume there's some kind of speed-enhancing stuff going on here. Normally, a human fighter can only move at total of 30' in a round in which he Spring Attacks - it's a single move, not a double.

 

[Infiniti2000]

So he decides he's attacking ogre A.
Springs in. Ogre A doesn't get an AoO, ogre B does. ...

I doubt Ogre B would get an AoO because presumably the attacker would move around to the side, avoiding B's threatened area. That's an assumption, though. Egres, can you provide more clarification, please?

 

[Egres]

A couple of issues.

1. A human fighter cannot normally move 50ft in a single move action.

Bah...

I badly converted from the metric system.

I meant 15 ft, sorry.

(45 ft was a silly mistake, cause 15 ft in metric conversion is about 4,5 meters)

[*]He must select the opponent before he moves.

Because it's an attack action?

I doubt Ogre B would get an AoO because presumably the attacker would move around to the side, avoiding B's threatened area.

Nope.

The Ftr moves directly toward them.

Let's try again:

Ftr starts, and decides that his target is Ogre A.

Ftr enters the ogres' threatened area.

As he enters, the ready action of one of his allies triggers, and Ogre A dies.

Does Ogre B get an AoO?

 

[dcollins]

Yes. Also, the fighter cannot attack Ogre B (because his action was to attack Ogre A). This has to be considered a special mechanic of Spring Attack.

As an added personal note, as DM I don't allow "move action, observe, think about it, next action". I generally require my players to simply state what they're doing on their turn, in its entirety. Otherwise it bogs down into a chess game, which I find really irritating (only have one player that really tries this, though).

Note that "you can decide on your next attack after the result of a first one" is language that only appears under the Full Attack rules.

 

[Egres]

Yes. Also, the fighter cannot attack Ogre B (because his action was to attack Ogre A). This has to be considered a special mechanic of Spring Attack.

I could agree, but can you support your PoV with something?

 

[Corsair]

I could agree, but can you support your PoV with something?

Lets use another example:

Creature has fast healing. We want to kill it asap. I ready an action to fireball it as soon as I see my fellow wizard about to magic missile it.

Fellow Wizard casts magic missile, targetting Creature.

I cast fireball. fireball kills Creature.

Can Fellow Wizard now decide to target something else with his magic missile?

 

[frankthedm]

What ogre can make an AoO against him if we don't know what ogre he will attack?

Does this mean that he provokes an AoO from both, since there's no defender yet?

Both can whack the snot out of him until he wisens up and choses his foe before going in.