[RPG] Creating rules for jumping or climbing onto monsters

combatdnd-4ehouse-rulesmonsters

Partly inspired by this thread's discussion about creative role-playing and one answer there referring to stunts, I wanted to adapt a similar concept to the fairly rules-strict D&D 4th Edition.

One of the issues that has often come up in our campaign is jumping onto or climbing onto monsters. For example, when fighting dragons, one of our players has repeatedly expressed a desire to climb onto the dragon's back. However, there are no rules, to my knowledge, for jumping or climbing onto a monster and the rules for mounted combat are limited to willing mounts.

How would you create a set of rules for D&D 4th Edition to cover jumping or climbing onto monsters and holding on to monsters? These rules should cover climbing up giants, leaping onto a dragon's back, or holding on a roc's leg as it flies away.

Best Answer

There is actually a Paragon Path that can help with this. Specifically, its utility power "Ride the Giant Down":

Ride the Giant Down

Daily ✦ Martial
Move Action           Melee 1
Target: One Large or larger creature
Effect: You move into the target’s space, provoking opportunity attacks as normal. Until you leave the target’s space, the target grants combat advantage to you and your allies and takes a –2 penalty to attack rolls, and you grant combat advantage to other enemies. Any attack that damages you also deals half the attack’s damage to the target. When the target moves, you move with it, staying in the same portion of the target’s space.
If the target hits you with a melee attack, it can slide you 1 square to a square adjacent to its space unless you succeed on a saving throw.
Special: if you are trained in Athletics, you don't grant combat advantage to other enemies because of being in the targets space, and you can make a saving throw to negate any pull, push, or slide that would move you out of the targets space.

This is the level 12 utility power from the Giantslayer Paragon Path.

This may not be the fix you are looking for, but I thought I would mention it.

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