Spikes & Line

To be effective, climbing spikes need to be used together with a line. Hammering in a spike takes 1d4 rounds with a small hammer; spikes cannot usually be hammered into very smooth surfaces (or they will not take, etc.), with the exception of an ice wall (where spikes offer the only hope of climbing safely). Hammering spikes into surfaces can usually be heard a long way away—even up to a mile in silent, windless, outdoor conditions.

Usually spikes are used as an insurance policy against falls—if a character hammers in a spike, ropes himself to it, climbs 20 feet above this with the rope tied to his waist, and falls he will only fall 40 feet (20 feet down to the spike and a further 20 feet taking up the slack of the rope). A spike used to arrest a fall in this way has a chance of coming loose, though! This chance is 10% per character supported on the climbing line (15% per character for ice wall ascension).