Post by Xxsuperheroxx on Feb 28, 2023 22:22:54 GMT -6
Aerial Combat
Most creatures which can fly do so by means of wings, either natural or magical augmented (as in such inherently magical beings as demons and devils, dragons, griffons, etc.) Most winged creatures must be constantly flapping their wings to produce enough thrust to keep their weight in the air. Some creatures are light enough and powerful enough to allow them to actually hover in one place, but most must be constantly moving forward. This means that aerial combat is nearly always going to be a swoop and slash, hit-and-run affair. Grappling of opponents in the air will generally result in both of them plummeting to the ground, unless they are at a high altitude and disengage almost immediately. Even then, it is risky business. Only beings with the ability to hover (gained either through quick and powerful wings or some form of magical flight) will be able to engage in combat that resembles the round-after-round melee system employed in ground battle.
It will therefore be seen that maneuverability is of prime importance in conducting aerial combat. Flying combatants - whether they are eagles or dragons, men mounted on broomsticks, or hippogriffs - must make attack passes at their opponents, wheel about in the air, and attack again. Those which are more maneuverable will be able to change direction and speed in a shorter time than those which are less maneuverable, and thus have some advantage in pursuit and avoidance.
To conduct an aerial battle a DM must know the speed, maneuverability and attack modes of each creature involved.
Speed:
Speed of flight of each creature is listed with the other information in the AD&D MONSTER MANUAL, and it will be noted again in the list of aerial creatures at the end of this section. When conducting aerial combat that takes place entirely in the air, it will be convenient to convert inches per turn to inches (or hexes) per round.
For the sake of standardization, all flying creatures can climb at one-half, and dive at twice the stated movement rate. They will be able to climb one foot for every three feet they move forward, but they may dive up to one foot downward for each foot travelled forward (i.e., at a 45-degree angle. none of the above applies to a creature with class A maneuverability, which can move in any direction they choose.). When diving, all creatures' physical attacks will do double damage to all targets which are not themselves diving. This includes diving attacks at earthbound creatures which come from a height of 30 feet or more. There is no damage penalty for attack while climbing. No creature will be able to climb above 5,000 feet (due to lack of breathable air) as a general rule, but you may alter the ceiling if you wish.
Maneuverability:
Naturally, every type of flying creature maneuvers differently from every other type, but in order to make the game playable and aerial combat possible maneuverability has been broken down into five classes. These vary from A to E, most maneuverable to least maneuverable. Note that the stated amount the creature can turn per round assumes that the creature is moving at full speed. Creatures moving at half speed turn as one class better. Winged creatures cannot move at less than one-half speed and remain airborne (except for class B).
Class A: Creatures can turn 180 degrees per round, and requires 1 segment to reach full air speed. Creatures requires 1 segment to come to a full stop in the air, and can hover in place, Class A creatures have total and almost instantaneous control of their movements in the air. Example: djinn air elementals, aerial servants, couatl.
Class B: Creatures can turn 120 degrees per round, and requires 6 segments to reach full airspeed. Creature requires 5 segments to come to a full stop in the air, and can hover in place. Example: fly spell, sprites, sylphs, giant wasps, Ki-rin
Class C: Creature can turn 90 degrees per round, and requires 1 round to reach full airspeed. Example: carpet or wings of flying, gargoyles, harpies, pegasi, lammasu, shedu.
Class D: Creature can turn 60 degrees per round, and requires 2 rounds to reach full airspeed. Examples: pteranodons, sphinxes, mounted Pegasi.
Class E: Creature can turn 30 degrees per round, and requires 4 rounds to reach full airspeed. Examples: dragons, rocs, wyverns.
Attack Modes As mentioned previously, grappling in the air is usually out of the question. This means that many different creatures will use considerably different combat tactics in the air, and their "natural" methods of attack will often be substantially altered. The following list should help the DM determine how certain creatures will fight in the air. Speed and maneuverability class are also listed. For reasons of space or redundancy, not all flying creatures have been included. Once familiar with the system, the DM should be able to apply to any aerial monster.
Aerial servant: 24", class A. if forced to fight, an aerial servant usually resorts to battering.
Chimera: 18", class E. the chimera is a clumsy flyer, and prefers to use its breath weapon in aerial battles, It can use its claws or attack with one of its hands.
Cockatrice: 18", class C. The cockatrice is not a strong, steady flyer, and will not go above 300' unless provoked into one of its screaming fits of rage. In any case, it will never fly for more than 2-5 turns before landing to rest. The cockatrice's power to turn flesh to stone is an awful one, as it often need only hit to destroy its enemies, and those petrified in the air usually fall and shatter!
Couatl: 18". class A. The couatl's favorite tactic is to throw loops around other flying creatures and constrict them so that neither couatl nor prey can fly. Both plummet to the earth, but the couatl turns ethereal just before impact and thus escapes being crushed.
Daemons:
Demons:
Devils: All devil's power of illusion makes them difficult and dangerous aerial opponents.
Dinosaurs:
Djinni: 24", class A. Djinni, like all creatures from the aerial plane, are nearly impossible to catch in the air. When a swooping creature approaches them, they simply move aside. In addition, their ability to create illusions and become invisible ensures that all aerial combat will take place only when and where the djinni desires. They are openly contemptuous of those who need wings to fly, or magical aviators such as magic-users and efreet.
Dragon: 24" or 30", class E. Lack of maneuverability due to large size may seem to put dragons at a disadvantage in the air, but their powerful breath weapons somewhat make up for this. On an attack pass, a dragon can either bite or use its claws - never both. A dragon may choose to breathe on an approach and then pass and slash with fang or claw.
Eagle, Giant: 48", class D. Giant eagles commonly attack with their talons. They share with their smaller cousins the ability to plummet almost to the ground and then suddenly break their fall and pull out or land safely.
Efreeti: 24", class B. As with djinn, efreet use their invisibility and illusion abilities to good effect in aerial combat.
Elemental, air: 36", class A. Air elementals gain +1 to hit and +2 on each die of damage they inflict when fighting in the air. They move in the same manner as djinn.
Gargoyle: 15", class C. Gargoyles will attempt to spear with their horn or slash with their claws (never both).
Griffon: 30", class C. (class D when mounted). A griffon will either slash with its forward talons or bite with its powerful beak.
Harpy: 15", class C. Harpies will use either their leg talons or a weapon in aerial battle. Like eagles, they can plummet strait down and then pull out.
Hippogriff: 36", class C (class D when mounted). Hippogriffs fight in much the same manner as griffons.
Ki-rin: 48", class . Ki-rin will generally attack with their horn to impale.
Lammasu: 24", class C. Lammasu will use their claws if forced to fight. They are hard to hit in the air, as they can dimension door away from an attack path.
Manticore: 18", class e. Manticores are clumsy flyers, but they will not hesitate to fling their tail spikes at opponents who come too close (cf. AERIAL COMBAT, Aerial Missile Fire). They can also employ their front claws.
Men: Men, like monsters, must behave differently in the air than on the ground. Most flying combat involving humans consists of magical or magically-equipped flyers rising above a melee to gain a positional advantage for the purpose of spell- or missile-casting. This actually isn't as easy as most players would like to think it is, as the different forms of magical flight often have requirements which interfere with such actions.
The DM should remember that though the recipient of a fly spell has full control of his or her movement, the height of a recipient of levitation is always under the control of the caster, and if that person is otherwise occupied, no vertical movement is possible (of course, this does not apply to magical devices such as boots of levitation, though everything else in the foregoing section is applicable).
Fly Spell: utilizing a fly spell takes as much concentration as walking, so most spells could be cast while flying, either while hovering or moving slowly (3" or less). There is no penalty for archery while flying (assuming the archers are hovering - if they are moving, see AERIAL COMBAT, Aerial Missile Fire). but there are minuses for slinging or swinging weapons, and these are the same as the penalties for archery while levitating, i.e., -1 to hit, cumulative per successive rounds until -3 is reached. Persons using a fly spell (or magical device which confers that power upon the bearer, such as a ring of flying) will move at maneuverability class B. flying person involved in ground melee attack missile fire much as levitators do. Flying persons involved in combat with other aerial creatures do so in the same manner as any other creature of their maneuverability class.
Pegasus: 48", class C (class D when mounted). In flight, pegasi fight with their hooves.
Peryton: 21", class C. A peryton will attempt to impale with its sharp horns.
Pseudo_dragon: 24", class B. pseudo-dragons rely on their poisonous stingers in aerial combat.
Roc: 30", class E. Rocs generally attack using their huge and powerful talons. Amazingly enough, considering their great size, they can plummet strait down like eagles and then arrest their fall by a sudden unfurling of their wings.
Shedu: 24", class C. Shedu will strike with their powerful hooves if they become involved in aerial combat, though their power to become ethereal allows them to avoid this if they so desire.
Sphinx: 24", 30" or 36", class D. the various sphinxes nearly always employ their claws in an aerial battle, though the roar of the androsphinx is also a potent weapon, as it weakens opponents and could make them unable to fly.
Wyvern: 24", class E. On an attack pass, a wyvern will attempt to either bite or sting.
Conducting Combat:
Conducting aerial combat will be much simplified if the DM will remember that most flying monsters simply cannot execute complicated maneuvers like barrel rolls or loop-the-loops. Most can do nothing more than climb, dive and/or turn, and all of these actions are easily simulated and quantified using speed and maneuverability classes.
There are two methods you can use to conduct aerial combat. The first way is simple but less accurate. The second method is more accurate but requires the use of hex paper or a hex map. Though both can be done on paper, the best way to visualize the relative positions of the combatants is to employ miniatures or paper counters. A running record of absolute (or relative) altitude should
be kept, either on a separate sheet or on a small piece of paper under each figure or counter.
The simple method is to move each flyer in the direction they are facing at the beginning of the move, and execute the turn at the end by simply refacing the flyer in its new direction. speed would be in actual inches of movement.
A more accurate method entails the use of hex paper so that actual arc turns can be indicated, and so that these turns may take place at any time during a move.
Turns will actually take place through several hexes (the only exceptions to this are creatures from the elemental planes of air, which can turn on a dime in any direction they wish). A turn need not be executed through consecutive haxes. To illustrate, here are possible variant turns for a class B flyer, which can turn up to 120 degrees in one round.
The order for the first example would read: straight 1, right 60 degrees, straight 3, right 60 degrees, straight 1.
Each flyer can move 1 hex per 3" of speed; thus, a gargoyle, with a speed of 15", could move 5 hexes, while a griffon, with speed 30" could move 10. keep in mind climbing and diving speed alterations.
In both the simple and complex methods. movement should be simultaneous. If there are several, you may wish to have them write out their moves ahead of time (the DM, of course, is not obligated to do this). If two opponents are clearly making for each other, and it is within their ability to intercept but their written orders would cause them to miss, some slight adjustment should be made.
Aerial Missile Fire: For all missile fired in the air, treat short range as medium (-2 to hit) and medium range as long (-5 to hit) as pertains to chance of hitting. Fire at objects at long range will always miss. The above applies to missile fires on flying mounts or using a broom or wing of flying only if they have spent several months in practice. Otherwise, they will not be able to hit at all. The range penalties also apply to missile-firing creatures such as manticores (treat as composite long bow as pertains to range). Note that the above applies only to those who are moving. Those hovering with a fly spell or on a carpet of flying will suffer no penalties. These levitating will be penalized as delineated in earlier subsections Attack Modes, Men: Levitation.
Dragons and similar creatures with breath weapons (such as chimerae) will have a slightly harder time hitting other flying creatures. For this reason, moving aerial targets of flying dragons add +2 to their saving throws.
Damage: Any winged creature which sustains damage greater than 50% of its hit points will be unable to maintain flight and must land. Any winged creature which sustains more than 75% damage will not even be able to control its fall, and will plummet to the ground. This simulates damage to the wings, as in aerial combat, the wings will be a prime point of vulnerability. Feathered wings are not as easy to damage as membranous wings, and in flight should be given an extra hit point value equal to one-half the normal hit points of the creature they support, for the purpose of figuring how much damage need be taken before the creature can no longer fly. Thus, a griffon with 30 hit points would add an additional illusory 15 points in aerial combat, for a flight-damage total of 45, and thus would be able to take 23 points of damage before it would be forced to land. In contrast, a membrane-winged creature like a succubus with 30 hit points would only be able to sustain 15 points of damage before it could no longer fly. Under no conditions are the extra flight-damage points to be added to the monster's actual hit points for the purpose of absorbing damage A flying monster will only be able to sustain the normal amount of damage it usually takes in order to incapacitate or kill it, i.e., if the exemplary griffon above takes 31 points of damage from dragon breath it is dead.
As a final note, remember that heroic aviators who leap into the saddle of their hippogriff and rise to battle without taking a couple of rounds to strap in will tend to fall out in the round of melee, and it is 1-6 hit points of damage for every ten feet they fall (up to a maximum 20-120 points).
Most creatures which can fly do so by means of wings, either natural or magical augmented (as in such inherently magical beings as demons and devils, dragons, griffons, etc.) Most winged creatures must be constantly flapping their wings to produce enough thrust to keep their weight in the air. Some creatures are light enough and powerful enough to allow them to actually hover in one place, but most must be constantly moving forward. This means that aerial combat is nearly always going to be a swoop and slash, hit-and-run affair. Grappling of opponents in the air will generally result in both of them plummeting to the ground, unless they are at a high altitude and disengage almost immediately. Even then, it is risky business. Only beings with the ability to hover (gained either through quick and powerful wings or some form of magical flight) will be able to engage in combat that resembles the round-after-round melee system employed in ground battle.
It will therefore be seen that maneuverability is of prime importance in conducting aerial combat. Flying combatants - whether they are eagles or dragons, men mounted on broomsticks, or hippogriffs - must make attack passes at their opponents, wheel about in the air, and attack again. Those which are more maneuverable will be able to change direction and speed in a shorter time than those which are less maneuverable, and thus have some advantage in pursuit and avoidance.
To conduct an aerial battle a DM must know the speed, maneuverability and attack modes of each creature involved.
Speed:
Speed of flight of each creature is listed with the other information in the AD&D MONSTER MANUAL, and it will be noted again in the list of aerial creatures at the end of this section. When conducting aerial combat that takes place entirely in the air, it will be convenient to convert inches per turn to inches (or hexes) per round.
For the sake of standardization, all flying creatures can climb at one-half, and dive at twice the stated movement rate. They will be able to climb one foot for every three feet they move forward, but they may dive up to one foot downward for each foot travelled forward (i.e., at a 45-degree angle. none of the above applies to a creature with class A maneuverability, which can move in any direction they choose.). When diving, all creatures' physical attacks will do double damage to all targets which are not themselves diving. This includes diving attacks at earthbound creatures which come from a height of 30 feet or more. There is no damage penalty for attack while climbing. No creature will be able to climb above 5,000 feet (due to lack of breathable air) as a general rule, but you may alter the ceiling if you wish.
Maneuverability:
Naturally, every type of flying creature maneuvers differently from every other type, but in order to make the game playable and aerial combat possible maneuverability has been broken down into five classes. These vary from A to E, most maneuverable to least maneuverable. Note that the stated amount the creature can turn per round assumes that the creature is moving at full speed. Creatures moving at half speed turn as one class better. Winged creatures cannot move at less than one-half speed and remain airborne (except for class B).
Class A: Creatures can turn 180 degrees per round, and requires 1 segment to reach full air speed. Creatures requires 1 segment to come to a full stop in the air, and can hover in place, Class A creatures have total and almost instantaneous control of their movements in the air. Example: djinn air elementals, aerial servants, couatl.
Class B: Creatures can turn 120 degrees per round, and requires 6 segments to reach full airspeed. Creature requires 5 segments to come to a full stop in the air, and can hover in place. Example: fly spell, sprites, sylphs, giant wasps, Ki-rin
Class C: Creature can turn 90 degrees per round, and requires 1 round to reach full airspeed. Example: carpet or wings of flying, gargoyles, harpies, pegasi, lammasu, shedu.
Class D: Creature can turn 60 degrees per round, and requires 2 rounds to reach full airspeed. Examples: pteranodons, sphinxes, mounted Pegasi.
Class E: Creature can turn 30 degrees per round, and requires 4 rounds to reach full airspeed. Examples: dragons, rocs, wyverns.
Attack Modes As mentioned previously, grappling in the air is usually out of the question. This means that many different creatures will use considerably different combat tactics in the air, and their "natural" methods of attack will often be substantially altered. The following list should help the DM determine how certain creatures will fight in the air. Speed and maneuverability class are also listed. For reasons of space or redundancy, not all flying creatures have been included. Once familiar with the system, the DM should be able to apply to any aerial monster.
Aerial servant: 24", class A. if forced to fight, an aerial servant usually resorts to battering.
Chimera: 18", class E. the chimera is a clumsy flyer, and prefers to use its breath weapon in aerial battles, It can use its claws or attack with one of its hands.
Cockatrice: 18", class C. The cockatrice is not a strong, steady flyer, and will not go above 300' unless provoked into one of its screaming fits of rage. In any case, it will never fly for more than 2-5 turns before landing to rest. The cockatrice's power to turn flesh to stone is an awful one, as it often need only hit to destroy its enemies, and those petrified in the air usually fall and shatter!
Couatl: 18". class A. The couatl's favorite tactic is to throw loops around other flying creatures and constrict them so that neither couatl nor prey can fly. Both plummet to the earth, but the couatl turns ethereal just before impact and thus escapes being crushed.
Daemons:
- Nycadaemon 36", class D. Though heavy, nycadaemons are powerful flyers, and can build up great speed and momentum. They act much like flying battering rams, striking for 2-12 points of damage when they hit (or as much as 3-18 if they hit another flyer head-on, though this will also damage the nycadaemon 1-4 points). A nycadaemon will try to run its prey close to the ground and then close for a grapple. The wings will be used to batter and confuse and slow their fall, as it attempts to bring its opponent down to the ground where leverage and its full physical strength can be brought to bear.
Demons:
- Succubus:18", class C. Succubi prefer not to melee in the air or on the ground, and will use guile, treachery and etherealness whenever possible.
- Type I: 18", class C. These vulture-demons generally slash with their rear talons.
- Type IV: 12", class E. This huge demon will try to bring their foes to the ground, much like nycadaemons.
- Type VI: 15", class D. This huge demon will try to bring their foes to the ground, much like nycadaemons.
Devils: All devil's power of illusion makes them difficult and dangerous aerial opponents.
- Erinyes: 21", class C. Erinyes will slash with their envenomed dagger or use their rope of entanglement to foul opponents' wings and make them fall.
- Horned devil: 18" class D. Horned devils will attempt to impale with their fork and rip with their tails as they pass.
- Pit fiend; 15", class D. These mightiest of devils will usually attempt to force their prey to the ground, where they can leisurely tear them limb from limb. Their clubs and tails are dangerous weapons in the air.
Dinosaurs:
- Pteranodon: 15", class C. These creature' light bone structures makes them unwilling to collide with other creatures in the air, but if necessary they will attempt to spear with their long, pointed beaks. Their preferred method of attack is to drop upon earthbound creatures from above, lift them up to several hundred feet and then allow them to plummet to their deaths.
Djinni: 24", class A. Djinni, like all creatures from the aerial plane, are nearly impossible to catch in the air. When a swooping creature approaches them, they simply move aside. In addition, their ability to create illusions and become invisible ensures that all aerial combat will take place only when and where the djinni desires. They are openly contemptuous of those who need wings to fly, or magical aviators such as magic-users and efreet.
Dragon: 24" or 30", class E. Lack of maneuverability due to large size may seem to put dragons at a disadvantage in the air, but their powerful breath weapons somewhat make up for this. On an attack pass, a dragon can either bite or use its claws - never both. A dragon may choose to breathe on an approach and then pass and slash with fang or claw.
Eagle, Giant: 48", class D. Giant eagles commonly attack with their talons. They share with their smaller cousins the ability to plummet almost to the ground and then suddenly break their fall and pull out or land safely.
Efreeti: 24", class B. As with djinn, efreet use their invisibility and illusion abilities to good effect in aerial combat.
Elemental, air: 36", class A. Air elementals gain +1 to hit and +2 on each die of damage they inflict when fighting in the air. They move in the same manner as djinn.
Gargoyle: 15", class C. Gargoyles will attempt to spear with their horn or slash with their claws (never both).
Griffon: 30", class C. (class D when mounted). A griffon will either slash with its forward talons or bite with its powerful beak.
Harpy: 15", class C. Harpies will use either their leg talons or a weapon in aerial battle. Like eagles, they can plummet strait down and then pull out.
Hippogriff: 36", class C (class D when mounted). Hippogriffs fight in much the same manner as griffons.
Ki-rin: 48", class . Ki-rin will generally attack with their horn to impale.
Lammasu: 24", class C. Lammasu will use their claws if forced to fight. They are hard to hit in the air, as they can dimension door away from an attack path.
Manticore: 18", class e. Manticores are clumsy flyers, but they will not hesitate to fling their tail spikes at opponents who come too close (cf. AERIAL COMBAT, Aerial Missile Fire). They can also employ their front claws.
Men: Men, like monsters, must behave differently in the air than on the ground. Most flying combat involving humans consists of magical or magically-equipped flyers rising above a melee to gain a positional advantage for the purpose of spell- or missile-casting. This actually isn't as easy as most players would like to think it is, as the different forms of magical flight often have requirements which interfere with such actions.
- Levitation: Once effected, this spell takes no concentration on the part of the caster except during changes of height, so it is quite useful when a magic-user desires to rise above a melee to acquire an open field of fire for his or her spells. The major drawback is that figures rising out of a battle are automatically assumed to be magic-users and will immediately attack most if not all of their opponents' missile fire. Recipients of the levitation spell who wish to use bows from their elevated position will find that they are not totally stable, and thus shooting is slightly more difficult. Such archers will shoot at -1 "to hit". This is cumulative, subtracting another point from the archer's chance to hit for each successive round of fire until -3 is reached, as the archer becomes increasingly unstable. Continued firing will not lower the archer's chances beyond -3, and any round spent not firing (or fighting) will allow him or her to stabilize and start again at -1. Sling, casting javelins or spears, or actually swinging a weapon (such as a sword) will be at double the minuses "to hit" for archery, i.e., -2,-4,-6. Due to the lack of leverage and something to "push" against, it is impossible to cock a heavy or medium crossbow while levitating (let your players find this out for themselves!). Levitating persons are marvelous targets for flying creatures. They can generally be treated as earthbound targets which are easier to get at, and fight at a disadvantage.
The DM should remember that though the recipient of a fly spell has full control of his or her movement, the height of a recipient of levitation is always under the control of the caster, and if that person is otherwise occupied, no vertical movement is possible (of course, this does not apply to magical devices such as boots of levitation, though everything else in the foregoing section is applicable).
Fly Spell: utilizing a fly spell takes as much concentration as walking, so most spells could be cast while flying, either while hovering or moving slowly (3" or less). There is no penalty for archery while flying (assuming the archers are hovering - if they are moving, see AERIAL COMBAT, Aerial Missile Fire). but there are minuses for slinging or swinging weapons, and these are the same as the penalties for archery while levitating, i.e., -1 to hit, cumulative per successive rounds until -3 is reached. Persons using a fly spell (or magical device which confers that power upon the bearer, such as a ring of flying) will move at maneuverability class B. flying person involved in ground melee attack missile fire much as levitators do. Flying persons involved in combat with other aerial creatures do so in the same manner as any other creature of their maneuverability class.
- Broom of Flying: These devices must be moving at least half speed to function. With practice, they can be controlled by the rider's knees, so an experienced broomsman can melee in the air. However, all spell use is impossible while riding a broom, though some magical devices (such as wands) could be used. Brooms are maneuverability class C.
- Carpet of Flying: Carpets are the most stable of flying devices, and thus the most valuable. though they are class C as pertains to maneuverability, they can hover or move at any speed the controller desires (up to the stated maximum). While hovering or moving slowly they are ideal platforms for spells- or missile-casting (quick motion tends to disrupt magical concentration, even if the spell-user is not the one controlling the carpet). They are not so easily adapted to aerial melee, as passengers will tend to get knocked off the carpet and fall to the ground. Attempts to weave straps or seat belts into a flying carpet will generally destroy its dweomer.
- Wings of Flying: These devices are maneuverability class C and the wearer must be moving at least half speed to maintain flight. Though the wings leave the aviator's hands free for fighting, it is impossible to concentrate enough to cast spells due to the continual bodily motion involved. This does not prohibit the use of some magical devices that duplicate spell effects (rings, wands, etc.). Like an eagle, the wearer of wings of flying can plummet a great distance and still pull out safely if the wings have not been previously damaged.
- Flying Mounts: All flying mounts will move at one maneuverability class worse than normal when mounted. This applies even if the rider is small as a halfling or gnome. The only exceptions to this are E class creatures such as dragons, which are large enough to carry human-sized riders at no penalty. Normal spell use while riding a flying mount is of course impossible (though certain magic devices may be used).
Pegasus: 48", class C (class D when mounted). In flight, pegasi fight with their hooves.
Peryton: 21", class C. A peryton will attempt to impale with its sharp horns.
Pseudo_dragon: 24", class B. pseudo-dragons rely on their poisonous stingers in aerial combat.
Roc: 30", class E. Rocs generally attack using their huge and powerful talons. Amazingly enough, considering their great size, they can plummet strait down like eagles and then arrest their fall by a sudden unfurling of their wings.
Shedu: 24", class C. Shedu will strike with their powerful hooves if they become involved in aerial combat, though their power to become ethereal allows them to avoid this if they so desire.
Sphinx: 24", 30" or 36", class D. the various sphinxes nearly always employ their claws in an aerial battle, though the roar of the androsphinx is also a potent weapon, as it weakens opponents and could make them unable to fly.
Wyvern: 24", class E. On an attack pass, a wyvern will attempt to either bite or sting.
Conducting Combat:
Conducting aerial combat will be much simplified if the DM will remember that most flying monsters simply cannot execute complicated maneuvers like barrel rolls or loop-the-loops. Most can do nothing more than climb, dive and/or turn, and all of these actions are easily simulated and quantified using speed and maneuverability classes.
There are two methods you can use to conduct aerial combat. The first way is simple but less accurate. The second method is more accurate but requires the use of hex paper or a hex map. Though both can be done on paper, the best way to visualize the relative positions of the combatants is to employ miniatures or paper counters. A running record of absolute (or relative) altitude should
be kept, either on a separate sheet or on a small piece of paper under each figure or counter.
The simple method is to move each flyer in the direction they are facing at the beginning of the move, and execute the turn at the end by simply refacing the flyer in its new direction. speed would be in actual inches of movement.
A more accurate method entails the use of hex paper so that actual arc turns can be indicated, and so that these turns may take place at any time during a move.
Turns will actually take place through several hexes (the only exceptions to this are creatures from the elemental planes of air, which can turn on a dime in any direction they wish). A turn need not be executed through consecutive haxes. To illustrate, here are possible variant turns for a class B flyer, which can turn up to 120 degrees in one round.
The order for the first example would read: straight 1, right 60 degrees, straight 3, right 60 degrees, straight 1.
Each flyer can move 1 hex per 3" of speed; thus, a gargoyle, with a speed of 15", could move 5 hexes, while a griffon, with speed 30" could move 10. keep in mind climbing and diving speed alterations.
In both the simple and complex methods. movement should be simultaneous. If there are several, you may wish to have them write out their moves ahead of time (the DM, of course, is not obligated to do this). If two opponents are clearly making for each other, and it is within their ability to intercept but their written orders would cause them to miss, some slight adjustment should be made.
Aerial Missile Fire: For all missile fired in the air, treat short range as medium (-2 to hit) and medium range as long (-5 to hit) as pertains to chance of hitting. Fire at objects at long range will always miss. The above applies to missile fires on flying mounts or using a broom or wing of flying only if they have spent several months in practice. Otherwise, they will not be able to hit at all. The range penalties also apply to missile-firing creatures such as manticores (treat as composite long bow as pertains to range). Note that the above applies only to those who are moving. Those hovering with a fly spell or on a carpet of flying will suffer no penalties. These levitating will be penalized as delineated in earlier subsections Attack Modes, Men: Levitation.
Dragons and similar creatures with breath weapons (such as chimerae) will have a slightly harder time hitting other flying creatures. For this reason, moving aerial targets of flying dragons add +2 to their saving throws.
Damage: Any winged creature which sustains damage greater than 50% of its hit points will be unable to maintain flight and must land. Any winged creature which sustains more than 75% damage will not even be able to control its fall, and will plummet to the ground. This simulates damage to the wings, as in aerial combat, the wings will be a prime point of vulnerability. Feathered wings are not as easy to damage as membranous wings, and in flight should be given an extra hit point value equal to one-half the normal hit points of the creature they support, for the purpose of figuring how much damage need be taken before the creature can no longer fly. Thus, a griffon with 30 hit points would add an additional illusory 15 points in aerial combat, for a flight-damage total of 45, and thus would be able to take 23 points of damage before it would be forced to land. In contrast, a membrane-winged creature like a succubus with 30 hit points would only be able to sustain 15 points of damage before it could no longer fly. Under no conditions are the extra flight-damage points to be added to the monster's actual hit points for the purpose of absorbing damage A flying monster will only be able to sustain the normal amount of damage it usually takes in order to incapacitate or kill it, i.e., if the exemplary griffon above takes 31 points of damage from dragon breath it is dead.
As a final note, remember that heroic aviators who leap into the saddle of their hippogriff and rise to battle without taking a couple of rounds to strap in will tend to fall out in the round of melee, and it is 1-6 hit points of damage for every ten feet they fall (up to a maximum 20-120 points).