I am DM in a campaign that involves the Ffolk (they are not evil but are being blackmailed into serving a evil cause). I am playing them as wild celtic types, blue war paint and the like, and have a part where the adventures are attacked out in an open grassland by a group of Ffolk (these are called bloodshields) riding on ponies, throwing javelins in a hit and run type attack. but I would also like to include a light, wicker basket type chariot, 2 people, with maybe a bow sniper? Has anyone tried this? Any thoughts on speed and maneuverability and so on?    

Given that "Ffolk" and "bloodshield" are not official things in 5th Edition I have no idea how to help you. 

I also don't know what is meant by a wicker basket chariot. I presume it's just a chariot with lighter materials? Not sure what you're asking for. Just run it, there's nothing says you cannot make a chariot using different materials. There's a reference in DMG for guideline HP and AC of different material types. Beyond this it's just a chariot, there's rules for this: a simple carriage (basically the same as a light chariot) is 30 ft per turn. If you're going really light then this could be 40 ft per turn - like a Fast pace. Is this what you're asking about?

Sorry, really confused what you're asking for.

Ffolk actually are part of official 5e, they live in the Moonshae Islands and are mentioned in The Sword Coast Adventurers guide. They are pretty Celtic sounding, Blood Shields are my invention, just a warrior society of the Ffolk, would have slightly altered stats from the Tribal Warriors in MM, slightly better AC and weapons. The Celts had chariots that were made of wicker, pretty fast but not very sturdy. Where did you see the rules for chariot combat? I must have missed it somehow. 30ft per turn seems pretty slow to me, light wheeled chariot with two horses, I would think it would be faster. In ancient times they could move faster than and rundown infantry. 

But yes to be more specific besides speed I am wondering about 1. Maneuverability, I don't think a chariot could turn that easily. 2. If shooting from, or at, a moving chariot something that would have disadvantage?  3. If the chariot is attacked (the basket) and its destroyed what happens next? 4. What if the chariot rams a person? Some had blades on the wheels as well, but I don't think mine will. 

If someone has had a chariot in an adventure I would love to know, challenges, pointers, and how it worked (unless this is all spelled out and I missed it) I don't like to try to figure this out while playing, it ruins the flow of the game.  

I eould just go with the movement speed of the mounts pulling the chariot.

Chariots are like inverse carts, with a high front, medium sides, and open back, designed for 2-3 people; they also tend to have lightweight material for the front and sides, and minimal weight material for the rest. So you can just use the chariot as listed in the Player's Handbook.

Speed wise, as fast as a riding horse at full run. Which in real life is as much as 55 miles per hour (about 500 feet per turn).
For distance travel, the speed is reduced to 30 miles per hour, for an hour, for a healthy horse (about 300 feet per turn)
Within the game, a riding horse has a speed of 60 feet per turn, with the Horseshoes of Speed, this increases to 90 feet per turn.
If applying Movement + Dash Action + Bonus Action Dash, this can be as high as 270 feet per turn.
So a chariot can handle whatever speed you want/need.

In terms of maneuverability, I could see a chariot being damaged if used on rough terrain during a Dash, and being restricted to (near) level terrain, but no other restrictions than that.

Plus, if the individuals using the chariots have proficiency in them, they could do things too difficult for others.

Thank you very much. That's very helpful. 

So the same as the horses. That makes sense.

Quote from Orphantears >>

Ffolk actually are part of official 5e, they live in the Moonshae Islands and are mentioned in The Sword Coast Adventurers guide. They are pretty Celtic sounding, Blood Shields are my invention, just a warrior society of the Ffolk, would have slightly altered stats from the Tribal Warriors in MM, slightly better AC and weapons. The Celts had chariots that were made of wicker, pretty fast but not very sturdy. Where did you see the rules for chariot combat? I must have missed it somehow. 30ft per turn seems pretty slow to me, light wheeled chariot with two horses, I would think it would be faster. In ancient times they could move faster than and rundown infantry. 

But yes to be more specific besides speed I am wondering about 1. Maneuverability, I don't think a chariot could turn that easily. 2. If shooting from, or at, a moving chariot something that would have disadvantage?  3. If the chariot is attacked (the basket) and its destroyed what happens next? 4. What if the chariot rams a person? Some had blades on the wheels as well, but I don't think mine will. 

If someone has had a chariot in an adventure I would love to know, challenges, pointers, and how it worked (unless this is all spelled out and I missed it) I don't like to try to figure this out while playing, it ruins the flow of the game.  

    

   

 
1. They can’t turn on a dime, but a light chariot is probably more agile than you’d think. I think if I were GMing the encounter, I’d just eyeball it and play it by feel rather than trying to systematize turning rules.

2. If it’s a one-person chariot, disadvantage isn’t enough for trying to shoot from it. I’d actually make operating the chariot an action, so you can move it or you can attack, but not both. There’s this really famous (at least in my field) art piece of Rameses solo-operating a chariot with his leg up on the hitch, steering with his hips, and strangling an enemy soldier with his bow. Stuff like that never actually happened, it’s not feasible. Rameses can only do it in self-gratifying art because the pharaoh is supposed to be a god. Single-occupancy chariots are only reasonable as a means of traveling from point A to point B. With a crew of two, having a dedicated driver and archer is very reasonable and historically attested. I wouldn’t impose disadvantage for this. Nor would I impose disadvantage to shooting AT a chariot. D&D hasn’t got any rules for things being harder to hit if they’ve moved more. Monks and rogues can move 90+ feet in a round with no benefit in terms of being harder to hit. There’s no reason to invent such mechanics for chariots.

3. Really up to you. The horses might bolt, and I’d call for a DEX saving throw to avoid some damage (since this is a more ad hoc situation, I might take how fast it’s been moving into account when deciding how much damage to deal).

4. I would make this a special kind of attack action available to the chariot operator and look at the elk’s charge ability for inspiration.

1. I think that is how I am going to go with this too, trying to come up with complex maneuverability rules sounds like a pain in the ass and probably not worth it. I am going to give a base speed of the horses and leave it at that. 

2. For the reasons you mention I think I am going with a two person chariot, still fairly light, otherwise all you can do is race by impressively and give a wave, or stop and use it as a shooting platform, I agree I am just not seeing fighting and driving, so I will have one person driving, the other shooting a bow and/or throwing javelins (and I believe we have historical examples of these). The encounter is going to be a lesson in hit and run, chariot and 4 individual horses with javelin throwers, not getting close and using the terrain as well as possible. In my made up culture of the Ffolk bloodshields the men fight on foot and the women do all the cavalry stuff. 

3. Makes sense, leap from the wreck. 

4. Cool! Yes like the Elk, that's a great suggestion.