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Normally, who stands higher, who get on higher ground bonus.
However, if A is a Gargantuan creature (tall) who stands on the ground, B is a meduim fly in 5ft. high, B get the on higher ground bonus while A doesn't ? It seems unreasonable.
If I am GM, I will say they both get on higher ground bonus, because when calculating attack, Large or larger creature can choose any one square it occupies as its attack start; when calculating be attacked, the attacker can choose any one square the taller occupies as its attack target. The taller can attack from the higher cubic square, while the meduim can attack the lower square (the foot of the taller), so they both get on higher ground bonus.
I haven't come across concrete definition(s) of what, exactly, qualifies as "higher ground"... is it literally just being elevated above the target, size differences don't give higher ground bonuses so why would flight/spider climb... there seems to be an idea of the opponent fighting gravity to advance... it's all BS, if you ask me.
Archers on a wall do not get higher ground bonuses because they are ranged, but archers on a wall is a very good example of why higher ground may provide an advantage. Lol.
A 10' tall creature fighting a 5' tall creature, but the 5' tall creature is standing on a 5' ledge... they are eye-to-eye, equal height, but the 5' creature is technically on higher ground. Lol.
What if it's a 15' tall creature, lording above the 5' creature on the 5' ledge? The 5' tall creature is still on higher ground, but is shorter than the 15' tall creature. Lol.
It's not even worth slowing down combat to even try figure out who, or what, has the "higher ground"... the map is flat, and combat takes long enoung already. Any time you expand combat into three dimensions, things get weird... flight and underwater combats should be handled as rules-free as possible, just to get through it. You're doing what to whom? Screw it, I don't care, sure.
But if you want me to pause combat to argue about petty height differences for a stupid +1 bonus... no, just no.
It obviously refers to being on the lower ground, you see because PF1e was published after revenge of the sith, where obiwan said "I have the high ground.", but anakin jumped over him and still got cut to pieces like darth maul, so you should actually give the +1 to people with the low ground. [/s]
I would say just check if a creature's base is higher than the other creature's top, and there isn't anything to imply flying creatures don't get high ground advantage in melee. Ironically though, being mounted automatically grants high-ground advantage against anyone on the ground, despite your squares supposedly being all of the mount's squares.
It's spelled out for mounted combat. If your mount is larger than your target, you have higher ground.
I wouldn't worry about it unless the character is completely above the other one. In situations where that's possible, the character usually has enough control over their elevation to move to higher ground explicitly.
That said, I usually see higher ground used as a way for the DM to fudge rolls.
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Remembering and forgetting incidental bonuses such as flanking, high ground, the spells the battle cleric bbeg already cast, and so on is the chocolate and butter of gm fudge.
If I was fighting something really big, I'd probably want to be a bit higher so I could hit something other than its toes. So I'd give the bonus if the attacker's feet were appreciably higher than its opponents', regardless of total height.
Although I might draw the opposite conclusion if the opponent is smaller. You'd have trouble hitting a mouse on the floor when standing on a table.
Supplementary question: can a flyer be on "higher ground"?
Fliers have nothing occluding them from the higher ground rules, and fighting even from 5ft above is a solid strategy.
Also, if you were fighting a mouse on the floor while you are standing on a table, you likely would be dealing with cover to hit the mouse provided by your table, so that is already covered, independent of the height rule.
If I was fighting something really big, I'd probably want to be a bit higher so I could hit something other than its toes. So I'd give the bonus if the attacker's feet were appreciably higher than its opponents', regardless of total height.
Although I might draw the opposite conclusion if the opponent is smaller. You'd have trouble hitting a mouse on the floor when standing on a table.
Supplementary question: can a flyer be on "higher ground"?
By definition, the answer to your supplementary question is, no...
The lack of further explanation as to the details of what, exactly, "on higher ground" actually means, leaves us with only the literal meaning on the text provided. And, to take the words provided in their most literal sense, one must be on ground to benefit from being on higher ground. The description provided for the bonus, all three words of it, do not mention elevation, height, or size... you can find mention of size providing the "on higher ground" bonus in the mounted combat rules, but it would be a stretch to assume size always triggers the bonus.
And, even IF size did trigger the bonus, it still wouldn't affect creature in flight... in fact, the mounted combat rules bring more questions... like what if the target is smaller than the mount, but "on higher ground"... or flying?
Honestly, the bonus isn't worth the BS.
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there isn't anything to imply flying creatures don't get high ground advantage in melee.
Actually, there is circumstantial evidence that prove flying creature can get higher ground bonus.
You allow gravity to add extra force to your charges.Benefit: Whenever you charge an opponent from higher ground, or from above while flying, you gain a +5 bonus on attack rolls in place of the bonuses from charging and being on higher ground.
Death from Above in place of the bonuses from charging and being on higher ground, so the designer implies the attacker in higher cubic square do get higher bonus.
...circumstantial evidence...
I'd allow it. Still brings with it more questions than the bonus is worth, though.
If the +1 bonus is going to make or break the fight, you've already lost... cutting it too close to reasonably guarantee victory... the odds already aren't in your favor.
Sure, every little bit helps. I absolutely design high ground bonuses into well-laid ambushes/defenses... meander into any of my random Kobold/Mite/Pugwampi den(s) and see for yourself... f!ck around and find out. Lol.
I just don't bother calculating it on the fly, mid-combat, most of the time. Sure, there are places of elevated/sloped terrain drawn on the map. And yes, I have had enemies/NPC's purposefully maneuver to said higher ground for said higher ground bonus, even spontaneously in the middle of an encounter... but, at that point, I am more just proud of myself for remembering, at all, or satified by how I moved them tactically using all the available terrain... I'll just use my infinite GM powers to hit when/if I absolutely must. Lol.
And the players will so often times announce such ridiculously high attack figures that I literally do not even care how they got that number. Murderhobo munchkin madness is unstoppable, just roll with it. Does the Inquisitor/Zen Archer on the flying carpet really NEED a higher ground bonus? Did they already factor it in, just assuming the flying carpet counted as higher ground? Did the Rogue factor in a higher ground bonus when they jumped from the aforementioned flying carpet onto a dragon flying below? See? I. Just. Don't. Care. They usually hit, and it's usually awesome [for them]. Lol. And it's awesome for me, too, because players get excited/invested when their creative BS is rewarded.
Adding the high ground bonus to flying/spider climb/swimming creatures in cubic squares above their target makes intuitive sense, to me. It would be interesting to see how combat manager programs calculate when to add the high ground bonus... if they do at all.
there isn't anything to imply flying creatures don't get high ground advantage in melee.Actually, there is circumstantial evidence that prove flying creature can get higher ground bonus.
You allow gravity to add extra force to your charges.Benefit: Whenever you charge an opponent from higher ground, or from above while flying, you gain a +5 bonus on attack rolls in place of the bonuses from charging and being on higher ground.
Death from Above in place of the bonuses from charging and being on higher ground, so the designer implies the attacker in higher cubic square do get higher bonus.
Double negative there bud, "there isn't anything that says they don't get..." But at least we agree.
Ah, I thought you thought I was saying they don't get the bonus.