Horseback/foot chase rules?

[Pat Payne]

Maybe I'm just blind, but where in the PH/CKG are rules for chases, either on foot, or horseback or both? My players got themselves into a bit of a problem last session (got captured by the Scarlet Brotherhood when one of the party members had an unfortunate bout of honesty concerning the party's true objective -- a lost Suel temple that the SB wants all to themselves ) and are about to break out of their cell armed with nothing but broken furniture. If all goes well, I'm hoping for an "Indiana Jones" style chase encounter, but can't find how to run them anywhere in the book.

Thanks!

[alcyone]

I don't think there are any chase/pursuit rules as such. If there is a chance of getting caught, you can simply use the SIEGE system. In order to do that, you must decide why they can't get away.

Speed: If mounted pursuers are chasing those on foot, then raw speed probably will cause the pursuers to win. Unless:
- Those on foot can hold out longer (CON)
- Those on foot can cover their tracks (Track check for pursuers, modified by things the characters actively do, perhaps making their own checks)
- Those on foot can manage a specific type of terrain or obstacle better (DEX, WIS, or INT)
- Those on foot can somehow become faster (CKG p. 98, or magic, forced march, etc.)
- Those on foot take the chase somewhere impossible to the pursuer (air, water, out of phase, planes)
And so on, you can probably think of many more examples. Note that horses aren't always faster, and in certain types of terrain, they are downright fragile.

If you want to make an interesting chase where several rolls are necessary for the purpose of tension, imagine several cases of the above and require actual ingenuity on the part of the characters to force these rolls.


General movement rate conversions are in the CKG, p. 96.

Other D&D systems have chase systems, but the beauty of using SIEGE is it's already a core mechanic and uses a combination of the players chosen primes and rolled bonuses and their own creativity.

[Arduin]

Nor will you probably ever find such detailed rules in C&C. The CK should use the Siege Engine to play it out. Pages 122-125 in the PHB tells you how to resolve these actions.

[Omote]

As CK, I'd ask myself:
-Who is faster (Base speed)?
-Who has the better CON score to keep up the pace?
-Give a bonus to PRIME CON?
-As Arduin suggests, have the parties make a CON siege check. In this instance you can rule that whomever beat the check by a greater number wins the chase.

Just some ideas.

~O

[serleran]

I would segment it, for the first round, and then base it on speed with a factor of endurance.

Divide speed by 10. This determine the number of feet you move in a second.

Use 1d10 for initiative.

You do not move until your initiative, but you only move for 11 - initiative seconds; this requires reversing initiative to lower is better so bonuses become subtractions.


Example ---

Horse base speed of 60; gets initiative of 6.
Dwarf base speed of 30; gets initiative of 3.

On initiative count 3 - 10, dwarf moves 3 feet, for a total of 24 feet.
Horse moves on 6, and again on 7 - 10, but 6 feet at a time; total is 30.

So, for a while, it looks like the dwarf will win. However, after the first round, the horse is only 6 feet away, but will soon be much further away as its double movement (compared to the dwarf) is higher.

In cases where speed is roughly the same or there is no clear idea of what (who) should win, you could resolve each round as above.


But I am probably over thinking.

[TheMetal1]

I use the Pathfinder Chase Deck for those things.

http://paizo.com/products/btpy8yst?Game ... Cards-Deck

Each card will have a skill, ability, or savings throw with a Difficulty rating in accordance with the Pathfinder rules. But I simply convert on the fly. Here are a couple of examples:


Watch your Step: Dexterity SIEGE Check
It should Hold: Save vs. Traps (Dexterity SIEGE Check with higher CL)



Leap Over: Dexterity SIEGE Check.
Clamber Over: Climb SIEGE Check or Strength SIEGE Check for those who don't have the Climb ability.

It plays fast and is a good side game to deal with this stuff and will set you back about $10. Spycraft RPG has Chase rules as well, which you can look at (along with various other decks for social situations they may still be a free download)