Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Ankheg 10-31-04, 11:32 AM	Allright, my first question is, my character uses a guisarme, which allows him to trip enemies. With a rather difficult check, can i still try to trip people on his mount? My second question is, because a guisarme is much like a lance, can it function on a mount so (except for the damage type)? My final question is on a mount, can I attack adjacent foes because it is higher up so the distance from an adjacent foe is smaller, making it seem to fit?
MetalGemini 10-31-04, 01:09 PM	Allright, my first question is, my character uses a guisarme, which allows him to trip enemies. With a rather difficult check, can i still try to trip people on his mount? You can try to pull the rider from the mount with a trip attempt. I believe the rider makes a Ride check instead of a Str/Dex check vs. your trip. My second question is, because a guisarme is much like a lance, can it function on a mount so (except for the damage type)? Yes, it still works. But it won't do extra damage on a charge, like a lance. My final question is on a mount, can I attack adjacent foes because it is higher up so the distance from an adjacent foe is smaller, making it seem to fit? Nope. Unless your horse is 10+ft tall, the difference isn't enough to change anything.
Ankheg 10-31-04, 01:18 PM	Sorry, i worded my first question wrong, i meant to say when I am on top of the horse, can i trip people below me?
Kevlimin Soulaxe 10-31-04, 01:33 PM	Yes. There are no rules that even remotely suggest you can't.
Inigo Carmine 10-31-04, 02:53 PM	Answer 1: Yes you can trip people when you're mounted. It will not be harder to do. In fact, I think the counter trip (if you fail) you have a choice of using str, dex or ride check, so it could potentially be harder to pull you from the mount. Answer 2: A guisarme functions like a guisarme even when mounted. Noting like a lance. It's still a 2-handed reach weapon and it doesn't do double damage on a charge. If you want a lance-like weapon when mounted, get a lance. It does have the benefit of higher normal damage, slashing damage (less commonly resisted), and it is a trip weapon. Answer 3: Yes. When on a large sized mount (which takes up 4 spaces) you choose which square you want to attack from. 12* 34 You take spaces 1-4, your enemy is the *, which is adjacent to you. You simply choose to attack from square 1 (or 3) and you can hit him with a reach weapon. The downside to this is that you also...take up all 4 spaces. Meaning its easier for enemies to hit you, since they need only be able to hit one of your squares (you can potentially be surrounded by many more enemies, and its harder to use cover effectively.
Insane Pixie 10-31-04, 03:16 PM	Actually, since there aren't any rules on using a lance-like reach weapon for lance-like attacks while riding, it's up to your DM.
Grox 10-31-04, 03:16 PM	You can try to pull the rider from the mount with a trip attempt. I believe the rider makes a Ride check instead of a Str/Dex check vs. your trip. BTW, you should NEVER, ever, try this. Unless your DM is willing to stat everyone who rides into combat against you at less than half your level, OR as a complete idiot (the kind who chooses to be a cavalryman with a low Ride skill), you will almost ALWAYS fail this check. Your Trip check is simply a Str check, with no allowance for bab, right? The IT feat will give you a +4, but AFAIK anyway, that's it. Say you somehow get a 22 Strength as well, you're basically maxing out at +10. Opportunities to increase it beyond this are few and far between, especially in comparison to the relatively plentiful skill points gained every level by the rider. Even a lowly commoner could take Skill Focus: Ride and stand a good chance at beating an equal-level fighter in a contest like this! This isn't going to be like El Cid in the movies tearing the bad guys off their horses with his bare hands, trust me. Even if you DO manage to get the guy off his horse, he gets a fairly easy check, DC 15, of the Ride or Jump skill (HIS choice!) to take NO damage from the fall. And if you fail the check, as you likely will, he gets a chance to trip YOU in return. Bad, bad idea. You're much better off readying an action to try and sunder or disarm the rider (if your character is good at that sort of thing) --- your character at least has a potential for a check modifier just as high as your opponent's. Or just ready an action to attack the mount when the rider comes by you. The rider is almost certain to have the Mounted Combat feat and attempt to negate your hit with his Ride check, but at least your attack roll is subject to countless potential buffs (as opposed to a measly Trip check), and far more likely to be comparable to the opponent's Ride modifier. If you have a weapon that you can use the readied action to "set" against the rider's charge, if you hit you even stand a small chance of killing the horse in a single hit! Even tripping the MOUNT, long shot though it is, is usually a better bet than trying to use a Trip check to pull the rider off the horse. Countless threads have been started about how powerful tripping is in 3.5. I admit it can be a very useful tactic, even useful enough for a wise fighter to build his character around. But NOT against mounted opponents. Against those, I'd take setting a halberd or longspear against their charges any day.
tarkin 10-31-04, 03:47 PM	1) Yes you can try to to trip someone off their mount, but it is so ridiculoulsy hard that it is never worth it. 2) All weaponcs can function on a mount. A Guisarme is not anything like a lance and gets no special abilities when used mounted, but like any other weapon, it can work while mounted. 3) Yes, officially, on a mount you can attack adjacent foes. Mounted reach weapons are extra powerfull. Some DM's are known to House Rule against this, considering it an abuse.