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Medium creatures have a speed of 30 feet.
Point Blank Shot and Sneak Attack both work within 30 feet.
Channel Energy has a 30-foot radius.
Most spells with multiple targets specify "no two further than 30 feet away".
Why is 30 feet the most common distance for all these effects? Was it decided that most combat takes place in rooms not significantly larger than 30x30? Did the folks in beta conclude that your average kitchen table didn't accomodate fight scenes any more spread out than that, so the rules were written to encourage staying within that range? Or do all these effects want the limit of their range to be how far you could get to in a move action-- in which case why don't these effects work differently if your move speed isn't 30 feet?
Does anyone here ever feel like 30 feet isn't far enough, or too far? How wide is your group's average "combat arena"?
Gaming grids have a tendency to skew your perception of distances. Thirty feet is a lot bigger than those 6 squares would have you think, especially if you have minis in all of them.
I think some of the things you touched on are accurate enough; as good of reasons as any. But things like sneak attack are going to be difficult to achieve outside of 30 feet. "Point-blank" as a term actually came into usage with cannons and involves a lot more calculations that I would have expected when I looked into it. Maximum point blank range for all manner of firearms these days is measured in yards (75 yds is the lowest MPBR I could find for a firearm, which implies there's a lower end to that).
A strong bow may not make up for the explosive strength of modern gunpowder, but I'd say the MPBR for a bow of any kind is greater than 10 yards. Point blank shot also applies to thrown weapons, though, so...
Interesting little bit of info I dug up researching this. Interesting thread too.
All of those have reasonable limits that they will work on. I wouldn't be surprised if someone calculated 30' for the movement, and based the others off of that for several reasons. One, it makes all of those potentially nasty abilities a bit more dangerous by requiring you to be close enough to find yourself in melee if you don't drop your foe, forcing you to use them tactically instead of simply spamming them. Two, there are already enough numbers to memorize in this game; why add more when you have a perfectly good number already present? Three, most people are able to agree it's a fairly reasonable number for those things to work at; maybe not perfect, but reasonable. No point in opening a can of worms by trying to pick something else, and have to constantly defend it.
The movement rate is partially based n how fast real people move.
And most spells are 20ft radius, with a few 10s thrown in here and there. I think it's more coincidence than anything else.
The movement rate is partially based n how fast real people move.
And most spells are 20ft radius, with a few 10s thrown in here and there. I think it's more coincidence than anything else.
partially true, although having talked with my friends about this particular subject. I know my stride was close but ended up being something closer to 36ft walking at a decent pace within those 6 seconds (a round). anecdotes aside, don't look too hard at the movements especially miles traveled per day, they will unravel badly.
Also for AoE spells i think that was more to gauge their power. a 10' radius can affect up to 12 medium creatures, and a 20' radius can affect up to 40 medium creatures. Who knows though.
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partially true, although having talked with my friends about this particular subject. I know my stride was close but ended up being something closer to 36ft walking at a decent pace within those 6 seconds (a round). anecdotes aside, don't look too hard at the movements especially miles traveled per day, they will unravel badly.
Really? What is your problem with walking for 24 miles/day with a light load on a good surface for a trained person? 25 miles/day was the marching speed of the Roman Army.
... Really? What is your problem with walking for 24 miles/day with a light load on a good surface for a trained person? 25 miles/day was the marching speed of the Roman Army.
The legions trained really hard to be able to manage that consistently. Most people even in good shape (which I no longer am) can't get anywhere near that.
iirc, the book assumes that for just about anyone.
I'm wouldn't say it is totally unreasonable. But most people couldn't manage it.
Most folks in fantasy worlds would live in a manner that kept them pretty physically fit enough to have that be an appropriate speed, even the rich. There will always be those that can't, but at some point, you have to go with simplicity over reality.
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But it was an Army. Noticeably slower than a single man or a small group.
In my mother youth walking 10 miles to sell fresh eggs to the market and then making then again to return home, all in one day, was done regularly and considered normal.
Sure, the rules don't make allowances for the infirm, elder and so on, but that is GM territory to adjudicate, if needed. The adventures are generally supposed to be well trained, even when they have a low constitution.
25 miles/day was the marching speed of the Roman Army.
While I am no historian, I believe the quoted distance for the roman army's marching speed takes into account the fact that they almost exclusively foraged for supplies and built fortifications every night before camp. Fantasy heroes can probably do a bit better assuming they bring food along, and I've never seen a party bother to do anything APPROACHING fortifying a normal campsite. But honestly it's close enough to use as a rule of thumb.
In my mother youth walking 10 miles to sell fresh eggs to the market and then making then again to return home, all in one day, was done regularly and considered normal.
That's probably why the overland movement rules allow for hustling.