Movement
Base Movement
Closely related to time is movement. Clearly your character is able to move. Otherwise adventures would be rather static and boring. But how fast can he move? If a large, green carrion crawler is scuttling after Rath, is the redoubtable dwarf fast enough to escape? Could Rath outrun an irritated but heavily loaded elf? Sooner or later these considerations become important to player characters.
All characters have movement rates that are based on their race.
Base Movement Rates
Base movement, feet indoors, yards outdoors
Base Movement Rate = # of Movement Points /Day or Number of Miles per day
If a single anmial is hitched to a cart, wagon, sledge, or sled, movement points are cut in half
Each additional animal hitched to the load add 1 movement point to the current rate
Example: A sled dog hitched to a sled has a new movement point total of 7 1/2. Adding a second dog increases the movement points to 8 1/2
| Race | Rate |
|---|---|
| Human | 12 |
| Dwarf | 6 |
| Elf | 12 |
| Half-elf | 12 |
| Gnome | 6 |
| Halfling | 6 |
| Asperii | 21, FL 42 (C, D if mounted) |
| Bull, Ox, Yak | 15 |
| Camel | 21 |
| Dog, Domesticated; Sled Dog | 15 |
| Eagle, Giant | 3; FL 48 (MC D, E if mounted) |
| Elephant | 15 |
| Oliphant | 15 |
| Griffon | 12; FL 30, MC C, D if mounted |
| Hippogriff | 18: FL 36 MC C, D if mounted |
| Pony | 12 |
| Horse, Draft | 12 |
| Horse, Heavy War | 15 |
| Horse, Light War | 24 |
| Horse, Medium War | 18 |
| Horse, Riding | 24 |
| Mule | 12 |
| Ki-rin | 24; FL 48, MC B, C if mounted |
| Pegasus | 24; FL 48, MC C, D if mounted |
| Roc | 3; FL 30, MC C, D when mounted |
| Unicorn | 24 |
| Worg/Dire Wolf | 18 |
| Winter Wolf | 18 |
A character can normally walk his movement rate in tens of yards in a single round. An unencumbered human can walk 120 yards (360 feet), slightly more than a football field, in one minute. A dwarf, similarly equipped, can walk 60 yards in the same time. This walk is at a fairly brisk, though not strenuous, pace that can be kept up for long periods of time.
However, a character may have to move slower than this pace. If the character is carrying equipment, he may move slower because of the encumbrance. As the character carries more gear, he gradually slows down until he reaches the point where he can barely move at all.
When a character is moving through a dungeon or similar setting, his movement rate corresponds to tens of feet per round (rather than the tens of yards per round of outside movement). It is assumed that the character is moving more cautiously, paying attention to what he sees and hears while avoiding traps and pitfalls.
Characters can also move faster than the normal walking pace. In the dungeon (or anytime the character is using his dungeon movement rate) the character can automatically increase his movement to that of his normal walking pace. In doing so, however, he suffers a -1 penalty to his chance of being surprised and gives a +1 bonus to others on their chance of being surprised by him (the rapidly moving character is not taking care to conceal the noise of his passage in the echoing confines of the underground). Furthermore the character does not notice traps, secret doors, or other unusual features.
It is also certainly possible for a character to jog or run — an especially useful thing when being chased by creatures tougher than he cares to meet. The simplest method for handling these cases is to roll an initiative die. If the fleeing character wins, he increases the distance between himself his pursuers by 10 times the difference in the two dice. This repeated each turn until the character escapes or is captured. (If this seems unrealistic, remember that fear and adrenaline can do amazing things!)
Dungeon Master Guide
The Player's Handbook gives rules for player character movement on foot. However, feet and walking are not the only ways a character can get around. In the AD&D game world, characters can ride horses, bounce along on camels, sail aboard ships, and even fly winged mounts. Clearly there are many different forms of conveyance, the most common of which are covered here.
In addition, there are hazards and risks that must be considered when traveling. Player characters can get lost in untracked wildernesses, capsize in cascading rapids, or run aground on hidden shoals. Getting around can be a risky business.
Mounted Overland Movement
Mounted movement cross-country is affected by a number of factors. The two principal ones are the movement rate of the mount and the type of terrain traversed. Under normal conditions, all mounts are able to move a number of miles per day equal to their movement rate. Terrain, such as roads or mountains, can alter this rate.
Advantages of Mounted Movement
When determining overland movement rates, remember that most riders spend as much time walking their mounts as they do riding them. The real advantage of riding is in the extra gear the mount can carry and its usefulness in combat.
Thus, while an unencumbered man can go about the same distance as a heavy warhorse across clear terrain (24 miles as opposed to 30), the man must travel with virtually no gear to move at that rate. Were he to carry an assortment of arms, a suit of chain mail armor, and his personal items, he would find it impossible to keep up with a mounted man similarly encumbered.
Increasing Overland Speed
A mount can be pushed to double its normal daily movement rate, but only at the risk of lameness and exhaustion. Any creature moving overland at double speed (or any fraction thereof) must make a saving throw vs. death.
If the saving throw is successful, the creature is unaffected. If the saving throw is failed, the creature is lame or spent; it can't travel any farther that day. Thereafter, it can move only at its normal movement rate until it is rested for at least one day. For each successive day a horse is ridden at double movement, a -1 penalty is applied to the saving throw.
Overland movement can be increased to triple the normal rate, although the risks to the animal are even greater. When moving at triple the normal rate, a saving throw vs. death must be made with a -3 penalty applied to the die roll. If the saving throw is failed, the creature collapses from exhaustion and dies. If the saving throw succeeds, the creature is merely spent and must be rested—not ridden at all—for 1d3 days.
When a creature goes lame, exhausts itself, or is ridden too hard, there is no way of knowing just when the creature will collapse. Player characters can't be certain of traveling the full double or triple distance. The DM should determine where and when the creature collapses. This can be a random place or at some point the DM thinks is best for the adventure.
Care of Animals
Although player characters should not be forced into the role of grooms, all animals do have some basic needs that must be provided for. However, each animal is different, so the requirements for each are listed separately.
Horses: While strong and fast, horses are not the hardiest creatures for traveling. Horses need around ten pounds of forage and fodder a day. Furthermore, good quality mounts should be fed grain, such as oats. A heavy war horse can't survive the rigors of travel by grazing on grass. Characters who can't provide enough food of high enough quality will watch their horses weaken and die. Horses must also have water every day. This can become particularly difficult in the desert.
During daily travel, horses must be allowed to stop and rest with regular frequency. During these stops the mount should be unsaddled or all packs removed. If this isn't done, little profit is gained from the rest. At night horses should be hobbled or tethered on a long rope so they can graze. If one or two are tied, the others will generally not wander off. Horses need not be shod, unless they walk mostly on hard-surfaced roads or rocky ground. Horseshoes should be replaced about once a month.
Ponies, Donkeys, and Mules: These animals have much the same needs as the horse. One of their main advantages is their ability to survive by grazing. Well accustomed to grass, there is no need to provide them with separate fodder. Their happiness is such that saving throws vs. death made for double movement gain a +2 bonus. This does not apply to triple movement.
The other great advantage of these creatures is their sure-footedness. They can travel through rugged terrain at one less than the normal movement cost. Thus, low mountains cost only three movement points.
Camels: Camels are either suited to sandy deserts (as in the case of the dromedary) or rocky deserts (the bactrian camel). It's worth nothing that dromedaries are ill-suited to rocky deserts, and bactrian camels aren't appropriate mounts in sandy deserts! Dromedary camels reduce the movement cost of sandy desert by 1 point. Bactrian camels have the same effect in rocky deserts.
All camels march better by night, when it is cooler. Dromedary camels are able to withstand a few days of cold weather (the temperature drops drastically in the desert at night and some bactrian camels actually live in freezing and mountainous deserts.
Although camels can manage for long periods of time without water, they must be fed every day. They do not need special fodder so long as grazing is possible. On the average they should have water at least every four days, although they can be trained to do without for longer periods, even up to several months if green grass or leaves are available for grazing. Like horses, camels should be hobbled or tethered to prevent them from wandering off.
Dogs: Particularly tough breeds can be used to pull sleds and sledges. Some are suited to cold weather and will withstand a great deal of hardship. They require at least a pound of meat a day, so characters should pack dried meat for the dogs. If necessary, one dog can be killed to feed the others, but this is not recommended. Beyond the needs of feeding, sled dogs tend to care for themselves fairly well, although the characters may have to keep certain animals separated to prevent fighting.
Elephants: As can be expected, elephants eat a prodigious amount of fodder every day. In thickly forested areas, this can be supplied without reducing the beasts' already slow speed. Elephants can also be found in sparsely forested plains, though. Here, if left to graze for itself, the beast will move at ¼ its normal movement rate. Except for the carrying capacity of the beast, the characters might as well walk at these speeds! Elephants should bathe (or be bathed) every day and will avail themselves of dust baths to keep biting flies away.
It should also come as no surprise that elephants can't negotiate cliffs. They can bound down steep slopes—indeed, it is the only time they go fast—but only at great peril to themselves and their riders. If the beast fails a saving throw vs. breath weapon (used for general tests of dexterity), it stumbles, falls, and rolls the rest of the way down the slope. The fall may kill or severely injure the elephant; the choice is left to the DM. Elephants are affected only by the deepest mud, so the movement penalty for mud is ignored.
Yaks: Yaks are suited to the cold regions of high mountains. While slow, they are sturdy, unaffected by the cold. Their sure footing allows them to reduce all mountain movement rates by one. They can survive by grazing on a meagre amount of grass. Yaks also provide meat and milk for travelers. They live in cool regions and cannot survive long in warmer climates since they are prone to collapse from heat exhaustion.
Terrain Effects on Movement
* Faster movement is possible.
| Condition | Move Rate Reduced by: |
|---|---|
| Darkness | 1/3* |
| Heavy brush or forest | 2/3 |
| Ice or slippery footing | 1/3* |
| Rugged or rocky ground | 1/2 |
| Soft sand or snow, knee-deep | 1/3 |
| Water or snow, waist-deep | 1/2 |
| Water or snow, shoulder-deep | 2/3 |
Terrain Costs for Overland Movement
| Terrain Type | Movement Cost |
|---|---|
| Barren, wasteland | 2 |
| Clear, farmland | 1/2 |
| Desert, rocky | 2 |
| Desert, sand | 3 |
| Forest, heavy | 4 |
| Forest, light | 2 |
| Forest, medium | 3 |
| Glacier | 2 |
| Hills, rolling | 2 |
| Hills, steep (foothills) | 4 |
| Jungle, heavy | 8 |
| Jungle, medium | 6 |
| Marsh, swamp | 8 |
| Moor | 4 |
| Mountains, high | 8 |
| Mountains, low | 4 |
| Mountains, medium | 6 |
| Road, Track, Trail | 1/2 |
| Untraveled plains, grassland, heath | 1 |
| Scrub, brushland | 2 |
| Tundra | 3 |
Terrain Modifiers
*These assume the player characters find a route around the obstacle. Alternatively, the DM
can require the characters to scale or span the obstacle, playing out this encounter.
**These extremes must be in excess of the norm expected of the character or creature. Thus, a
camel is relatively unaffected by the scorching heat of a desert and a yak barely notices the cold
of high mountains.
***This cost is negated by the presence of a bridge or ford.
| Situation | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Chasm* | +3 |
| Cliff* | +3 |
| Duststorm, sandstorm | x3 |
| Freezing cold** | +1 |
| Gale-force winds | +2 |
| Heavy fog | +1 |
| Ice storm | +2 |
| Mud | x2 |
| Rain, heavy | x2 |
| Rain, light | +1 |
| Rain, torrential | x3 |
| Ravine | +½ |
| Ridge | +1 |
| River*** | +1 |
| Scorching heat** | +1 |
| Snow, blizzard | x4 |
| Snow, normal | x2 |
| Stream*** | +1/2 |
Overland Terrain Costs for Pathfinders (Ranger)
| Terrain Type | Movement Cost |
|---|---|
| Barren, wasteland | 1 |
| Clear, farmland | 1/2 |
| Desert, rocky | 1 |
| Desert, sand | 2 |
| Forest, light | 1 |
| Forest, medium | 2 |
| Forest, heavy | 3 |
| Glacier | 1 |
| Hills, rolling | 1 |
| Hills, steep (foothills) | 3 |
| Jungle, medium | 4 |
| Jungle, heavy | 6 |
| Marsh, swamp | 6 |
| Moor | 3 |
| Mountains, low | 3 |
| Mountains, medium | 4 |
| Mountains, high | 6 |
| Plains, grassland, heath | 1 |
| Scrub, brushland | 1 |
| Tundra | 2 |
Vehicles
While animals are useful for getting around in the wilderness, they are seriously limited by the size of the load they can carry. Peasants and merchants often use wagons and carts for trade in civilized areas. Chariots are favored by the wealthy and in times of war, but are not normally used for long-distance travel. Sledges and dog sleds are handy in snow and ice-bound regions. Player characters may find all these vehicles necessary during the course of their adventures.
Carts are small two-wheeled affairs. They can be pulled by one or two animals, but no more than this. Wagons are four-wheeled and can hitch anywhere from two to 12 (or even more!).
The movement rate of a horse or other animal is automatically reduced by half when hitched. Additional animals do not increase the speed. However, the standard load the beast can carry is tripled. The weight of the cart or wagon and driver is not considered for this, only the cargo. Each additional animal adds its tripled capacity to the total load hauled. Thus, a wagon pulled by eight draft horses could carry 6,420 lbs., or slightly over three tons worth of cargo (260 x 3 x 8). Of course, traveling will be slow—only 12 miles a day on a level road.
Chariots are intended more for speed, comfort, and their usefulness in warfare, than for their ability to haul loads. Chariots can hitch one to four horses (or other creatures), but no more than this. A horse can pull its normal load (the weight of the chariot not included) at its normal movement rate.
Each additional horse in the hitch either increases the cargo limit by the horse's standard load or increases the movement rate by a factor of 1. The chariot can't have more movement points than the creatures pulling it would normally have. A chariot pulled by four medium war horses could have a movement rate of 15 or pull 880 lbs., enough for four large or armored men. It could also have some combination of the two (movement rate of 13 and a cargo of 660 in the above example).
Terrain and Vehicles
The greatest limitation on all these vehicles is terrain. Wagons, carts, and chariots are restricted to level or open ground unless traveling on a road or the best trails. While a wagon can cross a mountain range by staying to the open valleys and passes, it just can't make good progress in a thick forest. This problem generally restricts wagons to travel between settlements, where roads and paths are common.
Sledges and dog sleds can be used only in snow-covered or ice-coated lands. Sledges (pulled by horses or the like) are roughly equivalent to carts. No more than two horses can be hooked to a sledge. Horse-drawn sledges are effective only on hard-packed snows and ice and can ignore the penalties for these. Deep snow merely causes the horse to flounder and the runners of the sledge to sink, so no benefit is gained in these conditions.
Dog sleds are normally pulled by seven to 11 dogs. When hitched, a sled dog's movement is reduced by 1/2. However, each additional dog adds one movement factor to the sledge, up to the maximum of movement of the animal. Thus a dog sled with seven dogs would have a movement of 13 1/2. Each dog can pull 80 lbs., not including the weight of the sledge. Due to their lighter weight and the sledge design, dog sleds can cross all types of snow and ice without penalty.
Terrain Effects on Movement (Optional Rule)
Terrain, or the nature of the ground, has little effect on short-term movement. A character running pell-mell across a meadow can do about the same speed in the desert, or on a sandy beach. Only the most extreme terrain hinders short term movement.
These extreme conditions are listed given on Terrain Effects on Movement rable as reductions of movement rate. The reduction applies to all movement for a single round. When a character is in two different types of terrain during the same round, use the worst (i.e., most difficult) adjustment.
Darkness and Ice
The movement adjustments given for both darkness and ice assume reasonable safety for the characters. At these speeds characters will have no more than normal chances of slipping or falling. However, characters can move at faster than safe speeds under these conditions.
If characters choose to move more quickly (up to their normal movement rate), they must roll a Dexterity check each round. If the check is passed, nothing happens. If the check is failed, the character has tripped over some unseen obstacle or sprawled out from an unexpected slide.
In perfect darkness the character can't be certain that he is walking in the right direction unless he has spells or other assistance. Assuming the character is on his own, the DM can choose what happens or he can determine randomly by rolling 1d12. On a 1-4 the character maintains the desired course. On a 5-8 he veers to the right and on a 9-12 he goes to the left. The consequences of such course changes depends entirely on the DM and his map.
Terrain Modifiers In Overland Movement
Overland movement is much more affected by terrain than single-round movement. Thus, a wide variety of terrain types slow or, on very rare occasions, increases the character's rate of movement.
Overland movement is measured in miles. It is possible for characters to cross several different types of terrain in a single day. To say that characters must take the worst terrain modifier for all movement is ridiculous. Imagine telling players they have to travel at the mountain movement rate when they are crossing the plains just because they spent their first hour in the mountains!
Furthermore, in round movement the DM can see where a character will be at the end of the round and what terrain he had to cross to get there. In overland movement, it is very hard to predict all the different terrain types characters will enter during the course of a day.
The Terrain Effects on Overland Movement table lists the effects of different terrain. These are listed as points of movement spent per mile of travel through that terrain type. When a character or creature moves through the listed terrain, that number is subtracted from the total movement available to the character or creature that day.
Roads and Trails
The main purpose of roads and trails is to provide a clear route for wagons, carts, and other forms of heavy transport. It is impossible for such vehicles to cross any terrain that has a movement point cost greater than 1 unless they are following a road or trail. In addition, roads and trails normally go somewhere, so it is hard (but not impossible) for characters to get lost while following them.
Trails are by far the most common cleared track found in AD&D game worlds. Often little more than narrow game trails, they are the natural result of traffic moving from one point to another. Though not roads (in that they are not maintained), they tend to be fairly open pathways. Still, characters may have to see to the removal of fallen trees and stones or the clearing of brush—all things that can be accomplished by the occasional traveler.
Trails normally follow the path of least resistance, avoiding difficult obstacles such as chasms, cliffs, and unfordable rivers. While this may increase the distance characters must travel, it usually results in an overall saving of time and effort.
When traveling along a trail, the movement point cost is half normal for the terrain type traversed by the trail. Following a trail through the heavy forest, for example (movement cost of four), costs only 2 movement points per mile. An unencumbered man on foot would be able to march 12 miles through such terrain without exerting himself. Trails through settled farmland offer no improvement, since these areas are easy to travel through already.
Roads are costly to build and maintain, so they were very rare in the Middle Ages (the general time period of the AD&D game). Only the largest and best organized empires can undertake such ambitious construction programs.
In areas of level or rolling ground, such as forests and plains, roads reduce the movement cost to one-half point per mile. In areas of mountainous ground, roads are no better than trails and reduce movement costs accordingly. A road traveling through high mountains is only four movement points per mile.
Terrain Obstacles and Hindrances
The movement point costs given above assume the best of conditions even in the worst of terrain. The mountains are assumed to be free of cliffs; the woods have no high-banked streams; rains haven't turned the plains to mud; the tundra hasn't been blanketed in snow. However, poor traveling conditions do occur, and when they do travel is slowed. Table 75 lists common obstacles and situations that slow movement. The modifiers for these are listed as either additional movement point costs or multipliers.
When additional movement costs are listed, these are added to the cost of the surrounding terrain. Thus, crossing a ridge in the high mountains costs nine movement points for that mile instead of the normal eight.
Multipliers increase the movement cost by the amount listed. Snow, for example, doubles the cost of crossing the plains. Indeed, severe weather or torrential rains—can actually bring all travel to a halt.
[Dungeon Master Guide]
[Complete Ranger's Handbook]
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