Polearms weapons designed to unhorse people

[Jacob Saltband]

Could you use a polearm, that was designed to unhorse someone, to pull a flying creature from the air?

[Kazaan]

I wouldn't think so because a standard polearm (ie. a pike) doesn't "pull" someone off a horse so much as "push" them off. Now, since Trip weapons can be used to perform reposition maneuvers, if you had a trip weapon with reach you could, potentially, drag someone out of the air using the weapon's trip special. Furthermore, a weapon like the Mancatcher can be used to make grapple a target and it also has reach. So long as it's for the appropriate sized target, you could catch someone flying 10' in the air directly above you or 5' above a space adjacent to you. Aside from that, the only other option is to make a called shot to the target's wing (or a sunder attack on their jetpack, depending on the circumstances) to hinder their ability to maintain flight.

[Story Archer]

Jacob Saltband wrote:

Could you use a polearm, that was designed to unhorse someone, to pull a flying creature from the air?

Any of the many polearms designed with a hook or spike on it I would think you could do so with - I'd rule it like a trip attempt but you would get none of the bonuses to trip that you might otherwise have through feats or whatnot.

[Bearlock]

Story Archer wrote:

Jacob Saltband wrote:

Could you use a polearm, that was designed to unhorse someone, to pull a flying creature from the air?

Any of the many polearms designed with a hook or spike on it I would think you could do so with - I'd rule it like a trip attempt but you would get none of the bonuses to trip that you might otherwise have through feats or whatnot.

Don't quote me on this, but I think that's what the hook on the back of the halberd was for, in real life. In game mechanics I would agree with Story Archer, anything that can trip you could attempt to use to pull someone off a horse or down to the ground. I might also allow it on anything that is braced, like a longspear, so long as you target the rider and not the mount obviously.

EDIT: clarification, after reading Kazaan's post properly, he has it figured out. Pikes or longspears that are braced I would allow for removing riders from mounts, but not necessarily for stopping flying creatures.

[Jacob Saltband]

Story Archer wrote:

Jacob Saltband wrote:

Could you use a polearm, that was designed to unhorse someone, to pull a flying creature from the air?

Any of the many polearms designed with a hook or spike on it I would think you could do so with - I'd rule it like a trip attempt but you would get none of the bonuses to trip that you might otherwise have through feats or whatnot.

So you'd rule that if a creature is within your weapon reach and you have a trip weapon you should be able to "trip" a flying creature. I agree that it should at least be a possibility.

Has this possibility ever been looked at before? Is there any kind of offical ruling?

[Kazaan]

By RAW, anything that's flying is inherently immune to "tripping". But reposition should be an option as should special-case long-range grapples.

[Starbuck_II]

Kazaan wrote:

By RAW, anything that's flying is inherently immune to "tripping". But reposition should be an option as should special-case long-range grapples.

Yeah, one of the silly changes in PF, trip in 3.5 used to work on Flying (It stalled them so they fell)

[Albatoonoe]

Also, any weapon with the "trip" quality (like many polearms) also are good at reposition or dragging. Either of those would probably be what you are looking for.

[Doomed Hero]

Just use a Lasso or a Net. Eat the NWP penalty, they're touch attacks.

Then just hand the rope to your party barbarian, or tie it around a tree.

Masterclass tactic- Attach a Feathertoken to the knot of the lasso so that when it pulls tight it breaks and becomes an Anchor.

[3.5 Loyalist]

Starbuck_II wrote:

Kazaan wrote:

By RAW, anything that's flying is inherently immune to "tripping". But reposition should be an option as should special-case long-range grapples.

Yeah, one of the silly changes in PF, trip in 3.5 used to work on Flying (It stalled them so they fell)

Still makes sense to me, drag them down!