Acrobatics

Acrobatics (Str; Armor Check Penalty)

Determines a player's jumping height and the ability to perform aerial maneuvers. Rank one is the natural jumping distance for the player. The DC for the jump is variable on the conditions of the jump as well as the environment surrounding.

Your Jump check is modified by your speed. If your speed is 30 feet then no modifier based on speed applies to the check. If your speed is less than 30 feet, you take a -6 penalty for every 10 feet of speed less than 30 feet. If your speed is greater than 30 feet, you gain a +4 bonus for every 10 feet beyond 30 feet. When making the jump check you are required to move at least 20 feet before making the jump otherwise the DC for the jump check is doubled.

The distance moved by jumping is counted towards the total movement you can make in a round, if you exceed your total movement for the round you are halted mid-air and continue your jump at the start of the next round. The continued movement counts as a move action at the start of your next turn and must be completed first.

Long jump

A long jump is a horizontal jump, made across a gap like a chasm or stream. At the midpoint of the jump, you attain a vertical height equal to one-quarter of the horizontal distance. The DC for the jump is equal to twice the distance jumped (in feet).

If your check succeeds, you land on your feet at the far end. If you fail the check by 5 or more, you don’t clear the distance, but you can make a DC 15 Reflex save to grab the far edge of the gap. You end your movement grasping the far edge. If that leaves you dangling over a chasm or gap, getting up requires a move action and a climb check to make it up the ledge.

High jump

A high jump is a vertical leap made to reach a ledge high above or to grasp something overhead. The DC is equal to 4 times the distance to be cleared.

If you jumped up to grab something, a successful check indicates that you reached the desired height. If you wish to pull yourself up, you can do so with a move action and a Climb check. If you fail the Jump check, you do not reach the height, and you land on your feet in the same spot from which you jumped. As with a long jump, the DC is doubled if you do not get a running start of at least 20 feet.

High Jump DCs

Obviously, the difficulty of reaching a given height varies according to the size of the character or creature. The maximum vertical reach (height the creature can reach without jumping) for an average creature of a given size is shown on the table below. (As a Medium creature, a typical human can reach 8 feet without jumping.)

Quadrupedal creatures don’t have the same vertical reach as a bipedal creature; treat them as being one size category smaller. Hop Up

You can jump up onto an object as tall as your waist, such as a table or small boulder, with a DC 10 Jump check. Doing so counts as 10 feet of movement, so if your speed is 30 feet, you could move 20 feet, then hop up onto a counter. You do not need to get a running start to hop up, so the DC is not doubled if you do not get a running start.

Jumping Down

If you intentionally jump from a height, you take less damage than you would if you just fell. The DC to jump down from a height is 15. You do not have to get a running start to jump down, so the DC is not doubled if you do not get a running start.

If you succeed on the check, you take falling damage as if you had dropped 10 fewer feet than you actually did.

Special

Effects that increase your movement also increase your jumping distance, since your check is modified by your speed.

If you have the Run feat, you get a +4 bonus on Jump checks for any jumps made after a running start.

A halfling has a +2 racial bonus on Jump checks because halflings are agile and athletic.

If you have the Acrobatic feat, you get a +2 bonus on Jump checks (seems pointless eh?)

Trained vs Untrained
If you have at least 2 ranks in acrobatics then you are considered "trained" and when you successfully make a jump check it is assumed that you land on your feet. If you have 1 rank in acrobatics then you are considered "untrained" and you must exceed the DC of the jump by 5 or more, if you do not then you fall prone.

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This material is adapted from the Hypertext d20 SRDTM.

The Hypertext d20 SRDTM is owned and created by Jans Carton.

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