Time to learn new spells

[Lord Pendragon]

I've never ridden a horse so excuse my ignorance to the possibility. Being someone that has, do you think my ideas for skill checks would work? Would the DC's need to be increased? In this case, I'd hate to shoot down someone's creative idea to utilize his character's downtime.

On a horse, I simply wouldn't allow it. If the horse is doing anything but walking, you're going to A. need to synch your body movements with the horse's or be really sore, and B. end up with a mess of scribbles and jerky lines. I just don't think it's feasible at all.

If you take MerakSpielman's excellent advice and get a wagon, though, I'd probably allow it. Medieval wagons were pretty bumpy too (no shocks and hard wooden wheels,) but at least you wouldn't have to worry about actively riding and could use a writing desk or something to steady your hand as much as possible.

 

[Master Psion]

A thought... what if the horse had Freedom of Movement cast on it? The bumpiness from the horse trotting across the terrain would be alleviated, I'm assuming. If that was the case, it might be possible. Then just use my idea for concentration checks?

 

[Lord Pendragon]

A thought... what if the horse had Freedom of Movement cast on it? The bumpiness from the horse trotting across the terrain would be alleviated, I'm assuming. If that was the case, it might be possible. Then just use my idea for concentration checks?

Freedom of Movement has no bearing on the nature of riding a horse. Though it would prevent your horse from being paralyzed by marauding kobold sorcerers.

The problem is in the way a horse gallops, not really the terrain so much. Even on a completely flat surface, a horse galloping is not a flat ride. It can be a smooth ride, if you're a good rider and actively riding, but you can't scribe spells into your spellbook while you're actively riding.

At the end of the day, I think getting a wagon is your best bet. Then again, since you are the DM, you can always hand-wave away this bit of reality if you'd like. There's no wrong way to play the game, after all, and there are certainly enough pieces of the game that depart from reality as it is.

 

[Master Psion]

The only thing I was considering is that FoM allows for normal movement in any terrain. It just seemed like a possibility that it may smooth out the ride some. Again, I'm ignorant to the effects of riding a horse.

 

[Norfleet]

I don't think this is reasonably possible on a horse. You'd have to constantly make ride checks, and given the distraction of simultaneously attempting to write magical scribblings, I'd say this qualifies as a distraction and you shouldn't be able to take 10 on your ride check.

Wizards don't really HAVE the ride skill, so I doubt your wizard has any real aptitude for this. He's going to fall off. Falling off your horse definitely constitutes an interruption of your study. Now were tied to the horse and hauled around like luggage, you could try this, since falling off would become impossible. However, this is not a very comfortable position to be riding a horse in, and I would apply the same penalties as if the character had attempted to sleep in heavy armor the next day afterwards.

If you were riding a wagon or cart, on the other hand, I would say that this represents no problem whatsoever. Most of the time will be spent studying the scroll, which is more or less completely unaffected by the possibility of bumpiness, and it's not hard to scrawl carefully and (il)legibly in a book even with a fair amount of bumpiness.

Of course, I also have atrocious handwriting that most people consider illegible. Wizards, presumably, write similarly, otherwise you wouldn't need to make a spellcraft check just to understand someone else's scrawlings. They must write kinda like modern doctors anyway.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

Of course, I also have atrocious handwriting that most people consider illegible. Wizards, presumably, write similarly, otherwise you wouldn't need to make a spellcraft check just to understand someone else's scrawlings. They must write kinda like modern doctors anyway.

On a side note, I'd always thought of it as similar to mathematical formulas. As if each wizard had invented his own form of math. First he has to figure out how the previous wizard's formulae work, then he has to translate that into his own formulae to actually cast.

/hijack

 

[IndyPendant]

I would rule wagon=yes. Horse=no. And only for scribing spells, and maybe some *very* limited item crafting. General magic item creation? Well, to use an extreme example, could you imagine an apothecary being used during travel?

 

[DiFier]

Lets see

Reading: On a horse: No/sorta. In a wagon: yes
Scribing scrolls: On a horse: No. In a wagon: No.
Creating magic items: On a horse: No. In a wagon: No.

Here's why. you're gonna fall off the horse or drop what you are trying to read if you are trying to read while riding a horse. Oh yeah and look out for that branch oh and the horse has to weave to get around that rock. I have to agree with Lord Pendragon unless the horse is just sorta meandering through a field this will end in disater. I might allow it but with checks. in the wagon you can read fine.

Scribing scrolls in a wagon (let alone a horse) there are bumps and shifts that you will not see coming cause you are paying attention to the scrolls and not to where you are going. you're gonna spill your ink, your gonna write illegible words that you cannot read later. making magic items No no no. Maybe in a wagon that is set up for making magic items (other than scrolls) and when it's stopped, the horse has been taken off, the floor has been leveled and the chaulks have been wedged under the wheels.

 

[WCrawford]

Lets see

Reading: On a horse: No/sorta. In a wagon: yes
Scribing scrolls: On a horse: No. In a wagon: No.
Creating magic items: On a horse: No. In a wagon: No.

Here's why. you're gonna fall off the horse or drop what you are trying to read if you are trying to read while riding a horse. Oh yeah and look out for that branch oh and the horse has to weave to get around that rock. I have to agree with Lord Pendragon unless the horse is just sorta meandering through a field this will end in disater. I might allow it but with checks. in the wagon you can read fine.

Scribing scrolls in a wagon (let alone a horse) there are bumps and shifts that you will not see coming cause you are paying attention to the scrolls and not to where you are going. you're gonna spill your ink, your gonna write illegible words that you cannot read later. making magic items No no no. Maybe in a wagon that is set up for making magic items (other than scrolls) and when it's stopped, the horse has been taken off, the floor has been leveled and the chaulks have been wedged under the wheels.

What about scribing scrolls during an ocean voyage? Or other types of magic item creation?

 

[Ahrimon]

Just ride your Tenser's FD. Have your horse pull you. That should be a nice smooth ride. And you even have room to put a little lap-table.

"Incoming!" *Ducks under the nearest cover*

Ahrimon