Storms of Change OOC Parts 1 and 2

[Thels]

I was just wondering... How come everyone is dismounting? Remaining mounted on a trained war mount is pretty much always an advantage. You can move and attack with it as a free action. You could get free move-equivalent actions. You get attack bonuses. Warhorses are essentially weapons with reach (you can threaten without being threatened), and get multiple attacks. Riding dogs get trip attacks. At low levels those attacks can be better than player character attacks, plus you have a pretty good chance of making your own attacks too, even without riding skill. And if you want to make your own attacks, you get attack bonuses...

Anyway, please name and describe your mount when you get a chance.

They might give some bonuses here and there, but Zanock ain't too fond of them. He knows they'll get him to other places faster in the long run, but in a fight, he rather trusts his own 2 legs than those 4 of a horse he never learned to work with.

Also, without Mounted Combat, you cannot have your dog make trip attempts and attack yourself in the same round, just like you can't have the horse attack and yourself attacking in the same round.

I got several characters with a maxed ride skill and mounted combat that would've loved to get a Warhorse at 1st level. Zanock however, couldn't care less. The irony. If the horse doesn't come with a name, Zanock ain't gonna name it, looking at it like a piece of meat that could get him from A to B.

 

[GPEKO]

Also, without Mounted Combat, you cannot have your dog make trip attempts and attack yourself in the same round, just like you can't have the horse attack and yourself attacking in the same round.

Actually it's a DC 10 ride check not Mounted Combat. Sorry for nitpicking

 

[Someone]

Anyway, please name and describe your mount when you get a chance.

Dunathar is a Dwarf! For him, it´s "the four legged thing", or "the horse" if he finally takes the pain to learn it´s name.

 

[Seonaid]

Rowyn named her dog and is making nice with it.

 

[silentspace]

Thanks for explaining why you dismounted, that helps me understand your characters better.

Naming the horse and describing it is for roleplaying only! Call it anything you want! Someone, you're not learning its name, you are naming it! Either "the four legged thing" or "the horse" are perfectly fine names! Zanock might call his horse "It"! "Piece of meat that gets me from point A to point B" might be a little long Its just for fun.

Thels - About mounted combat - you mentioned 2 things, mounted combat and trip attacks.

Mounted Combat helps you negate hits while mounted. To attack while your mount is attacking, its a Ride Check of DC10 like GPEKO pointed out.

As for trip attacks, I play it like this - Riding dogs get a bite attack. If the bite succeeds, they can attempt to trip as a free action, with no AOO. If that's wrong, please let me know. I want to play them right

 

[Someone]

Not only they can trip without AoO, also they can´t be tripped in return if they fail their trip attempt.

 

[Thels]

Then it's gonna be 'piece of meat' .

Oh, yeah, you can make the ride checks, which give you a chance to attack with your mount. I got crap for ride, so I would not make it every round by far, leaving me with some missed attack. Yeah, the horse get's to attack sometimes, but it's attack is way inferior.

The dog can attack and trip free of AOO, but the rider still needs to make the ride check.

And you still need Mounted Combat and a decent ride to give the mount anywhere near a decent defence.

 

[silentspace]

OK. Thanks Someone. Thels - Yep, Zanock's attack is much better! But if you're mounted you still get the attack bonus and maybe some free MEAs! The MEAs are great for firing missile weapons at hobgoblins while staying out of their javelin range, for example And the warhorse's attacks aren't so bad, since you get 2-3 attacks, (standard or full attack), which you can make without even being threatened. Plus your own attack, if you make the DC10 check.

I know you know all this already. Hope I'm not being annoying. I like your IC reason for fighting on your own two feet, I’m not trying to talk you out of it

Edit: Also, no one mentioned it, but riding a warhorse can be very bad if you take damage and fall!

 

[silentspace]

You know the combat pay Glendrake is talking about isn’t for you, it’s for Darien. He is the entrepreneur here, and makes (or loses) any profit. You, the mercenaries, are paid a flat rate. The base pay for a mounted level 1 warrior per the DMG is 4 sp/day. I increased that to 17 sp/day for you, mostly because you are providing your own war animal, but also because you look a bit more capable than your average level 1 warrior, and come with your own equipment. You know the caravan trip is 5 days in total. You are still on your first day. So your fee is 85 sp. That’s doubled to 170 sp because of hazardous duty pay (you’re a caravan guard, not guarding a toy store!). So 20 gp (200 sp) is pretty good.

 

[Greatfrito]

Yeah... oh... stupid logic... and math... and average wages.... oh well, as of right now it's still more than we deserve. Plus a free horse is nothin' to laugh at... them's good eatin'...