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On page 182 of the PHB there are rules describing how far and high characters can jump. However, there is no mention of what type of action jumping is or how much movement it takes to initiate a jump. In the combat chapter of the book there is no action listed that allows a character to attempt any sort of acrobatics or athletics in combat. Which leads me to think if it's even an option. Can you jump in combat and if so what are the restrictions?

In case it's important I was wondering about this when I came across the spell Jump. It simply triples the distance the target can jump and lasts 1 minute. If cast on a martial character with 20 Strength they could jump 60 feet. That kind of mobility could be useful in combat.

V2Blast
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MonkeezOnFire
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3 Answers3

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Per the rules for jumping in the Adventuring chapter (Basic Rules p64, probably the same section you cite):

each foot you clear on the jump costs a foot of movement.

Yes, you can jump in combat as part of your movement; no, you can't jump further than you could move anyway. Rules as written, the Jump spell doesn't extend this distance.

If I were the GM, I would say that the Jump spell makes every three feet you clear cost a single foot of movement, but that would be a house ruling.

wax eagle
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Gregory Avery-Weir
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  • I must have missed that last sentence. RAW, it looks like the spell is restricted to out of combat situations. In hindsight I guess it makes sense a first level spell can't double the movement of a character – MonkeezOnFire Oct 21 '14 at 17:32
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    RAW, it's not restricted to out of combat. It's a valid movement type that you do as part of your movement. If you can move 30 feet in combat, part of that movement can be your jump. – Gregory Avery-Weir Oct 21 '14 at 19:05
  • Restricted was the wrong word to use. I meant that Jump's combat application isn't as useful since you still must obey the speed limit when using it. The spells I really wanted are Expeditious Retreat or Longstrider for increased combat mobility. – MonkeezOnFire Oct 21 '14 at 19:22
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    It does give you the option to avoid difficult terrain and hazards, which can be quite useful, in some cases even more so than just adding to your base speed. – Lucas Leblanc Oct 21 '14 at 21:40
  • Why can't you jump further than your movement? Why wouldn't you end your turn in mid-air? – Strill Oct 23 '14 at 01:34
  • The Long Jump mechanics don't track your height above ground, so when your turn ends you aren't in mid-air in a meaningful way. Assume you didn't have enough time to prepare for a longer jump. – Gregory Avery-Weir Oct 23 '14 at 02:11
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Jump is part of "Move."

Your movement can include jumping, climbing and swimming. These different modes of movement can be combined with walking, or they can constitute your entire move. However, you're moving, you deduct the distance of each part from your speed until it is used up or until you are done moving. (PHB 190)

For distance traveled on Jump, you move your strength score (provided that you move at least 2 squares prior to your jump, otherwise it's half that). This movement still costs the normal amount for each foot of movement:

Either way, each foot you clear on the jump costs a foot of movement.

So if a wizard casts Jump, your jump movement is still limited by your character's speed. However, this allows for a standing jump which means that you could jump 25 or 30' in a single move instead of 15-20'.

wax eagle
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  • That doesn't make sense. It implies that a character who moves 25 feet, and then jumps, will end their turn mid-air. – Strill Oct 23 '14 at 00:30
  • @Strill no, their jump ends after 5'. – wax eagle Oct 23 '14 at 01:12
  • Why would it end? Nothing in the book says that jumps are limited to the span of a single turn. – Strill Oct 23 '14 at 01:33
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    @Strill as a DM, I'd allow it to be extended by taking the Dash action, though I don't believe that's explicitly allowed in the rulebook. But there is also no provision for you remaining aloft between your turns. (though that would make a good question if you wanted to ask it) – wax eagle Oct 23 '14 at 01:43
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    @wax_eagle - According to the wording of the Basic Rules, the Dash action increases your movement this turn by an amount equal to your speed, so I'd say that it is indeed explicitly allowed by RAW. – El Suscriptor Justiciero Jan 06 '15 at 11:33
  • @ElSuscriptorJusticiero well there we go :) – wax eagle Jan 06 '15 at 11:38
  • @Strill what's wrong with ending your turn in mid-air? A player who spends 3 turns moving in a straight line at full speed doesn't move/stop/move/stop/move, they just move at a constant speed over 18 seconds. Likewise, there's nothing nonsensical about ending your turn in mid-air, it just means "this 6-second period in which a bunch of simultaneous actions occur just happens to end at an instant in which Tordek just happens to be in mid-air." Imagine there's a camera taking pictures every 6 seconds: that's the end of each round. – Dan Henderson Apr 21 '16 at 16:10
  • @Strill: It's been years since you asked your question, but the answer is that 5e assumes that all falls occur instantaneously. If there is a situation where you would fall, you fall as soon as it happens. (Xanathar's adds an optional rule that you fall at 500 feet per round, but that's not really relevant to jumping situations.) – V2Blast Oct 02 '18 at 00:11
  • I Think jump is More intended to make a fight more fluid. U could kick someone down a stairs as a monk, jumping at him with bonus attack afterwards, or spider climb at a wall and leap onto a flying wizard and use ur attack action mid air – clockw0rk Jun 09 '20 at 02:15
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Jump Attack

Falling (p. 183 PHB)

A fall from a great height is one of the most common hazards facing an adventurer. At the end of a fall, a creature takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage for every 10 feet it fell, to a maximum of 20d6. The creature lands prone, unless it avoids taking damage from the fall.

What you need: Winged Boots

Each round up equals 60 feet using the Dash Action (assuming 30 ft. of normal movement). For every 10 feet up you travel you deal +1d6 bludgeoning damage when you fall, to a maximum of 20d6 if jumping 200 ft. or more. On a hit the target is knocked prone, unless they take no bludgeoning damage from you falling on them.
Note: It is assumed you begin flying again to halt your movement once you hit your opponent with the attack action (using your movement action for the round you fall).

Minimum Jump: 1 round up + 1 round down (assuming opponent is within 5 ft.) +6d6 damage and the target is knocked prone, unless they take no bludgeoning damage from you falling on them.

Full Jump: 4 rounds up + 1 round down = 5 rounds +20d6 damage and the target is knocked prone, unless they take no bludgeoning damage from you falling on them.

WINGED BOOTS
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)

While you wear these boots, you have a flying speed equal to your walking speed. You can use the boots to fly for up to 4 hours, all at once or in several shorter flights, each one using a minimum of 1 minute from the duration. If you are flying when the duration expires, you descend at a rate of 30 feet per round until you land. The boots regain 2 hours of flying capability for every 12 hours they aren't in use.

Purple Monkey
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Anonymous
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    Welcome to the site! Please take a moment to check out the [tour] and the [help] to get an idea of how things work. In particular, answers here are required to answer the question. Your answer, while interesting and related, doesn't actually answer the question that was asked. – Miniman Sep 01 '15 at 02:15