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Had a situation where a medium sized character was next to a medium sized monster and in melee with it. A charging character with a reach weapon does a charge up to the monster and ends up right behind the first character and attacks the monster with the reach weapon.
The character does not pass through any squares restricting the charge.
Can a character charge up behind an ally and attack the monster beyond?
RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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Had a situation where a medium sized character was next to a medium sized monster and in melee with it. A charging character with a reach weapon does a charge up to the monster and ends up right behind the first character and attacks the monster with the reach weapon.
The character does not pass through any squares restricting the charge.
Can a character charge up behind an ally and attack the monster beyond?
I don't see any good reason why not. If he's not moving through any occupied squares or rough terrain, he should be able to complete the charge normally.
Movement During a Charge: You must move before your attack, not after. You must move at least 10 feet (2 squares) and may move up to double your speed directly toward the designated opponent. If you move a distance equal to your speed or less, you can also draw a weapon during a charge attack if your base attack bonus is at least +1.
You must have a clear path toward the opponent, and nothing can hinder your movement (such as difficult terrain or obstacles). You must move to the closest space from which you can attack the opponent. If this space is occupied or otherwise blocked, you can't charge. If any line from your starting space to the ending space passes through a square that blocks movement, slows movement, or contains a creature (even an ally), you can't charge.
Note the bolded text. So long as the square behind the ally is the closest square the charging character can attack the enemy from, it should be perfectly legal.
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| 1 person marked this as FAQ candidate. |
It seems legitimate. The opponent would get cover against the reach weapon. That certainly shouldn't prevent a defender bracing a reach weapon against a charge, nor should a 5-foot-wide inanimate obstacle prevent a lancer hitting someone behind it, so denying a charge attack in this case seems like special pleading.
Totally legit, as far as I can see.
It's not like reach weapons are incredibly great, I wouldn't protest one of the few advantages on balance terms. A literal reading go the rules, AND a common sense interpretation of what reach weapons do, seems to support this as valid.
it may seem that way to you because you are used to 5' reach characters charging.
0' reach characters end their charge in the target's square.
10' reach characters end their charge with one square between theirs and the target.
what you describe (in your 2nd sentence) just doesn't match the mechanics of charge,
besides the actual rules of charge stating the end square is as I describe above (the first square you threaten them),
there is no mechanism in charge for you to move after attacking, which would be necessary for a 10' reach character to end their movement 'in base contact' with the enemy (=adjacent).
i believe that even 5' reach characters may end up with similar cover penalties if there are objects in their/the enemy's squares which provide such penalties... such penalties in no way prevent charge from working (beyond being attack penalties).
If a character is wielding a polearm AND has armor spikes, can he choose to charge someone with his armor spikes rather than his reach weapon? Why or why not? ;P
hm, Charge says:
I think it works, 'a clear path toward the opponent' is not broken by the opponent themself, by definition. The creature in that square is not blocking a line TO that square, and being in that square is not blocking it for you, either. And I would note the last line, that Helpless creatures don't stop a charge (for anybody). That's because Helpless characters can be in the same square as other same-size creatures. I would say that the rule that you can move thru creatures 3+ sizes smaller/larger means that you can Charge thru such creatures as well. Basically, if you read the one line 'if this square is occupied' in isolation there can be a problem per RAW, but EVERYTHING else in the paragraph, including the rest of that sentence itself, points to the square being blocked/impeded for movement (or staying in that square, with allies) as the real paradigm for Charge... I guess it's worth hitting FAQ for though, Per RAW 0' reach characters could have a problem if a GM is a stickler for that one part of the sentence that says you can't Charge if the square is occupied.
If a character is wielding a polearm AND has armor spikes, can he choose to charge someone with his armor spikes rather than his reach weapon? Why or why not? ;P
nope, if the character refuses to free action adjust grip on the polearm so that they are not threatening with it during the charge (or declare they aren't threatening with a natural reach weapon), later readjusting the grip so that they are threatening with it after the charge, they can't charge using the armor spike threat radius. and they are hit with a blast of infernal hellfire too.
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I thought everyone agreed that it doesn't cost an action to adjust a grip for a normal character? There was like a 900-post thread about it. :-)
Anyway I'd say its clearly up to the character to choose which weapon he uses in a charge. If he has 3 weapons available, he might have 3 different ways to charge.