But it's only run-of-the-mill if you're trained and have been doing it for years.
I agree, though I would be happy for a descriptive, non game-affecting situation where the player says "Whilst we travel, I steer the broom with my legs whilst playing my lute" or "I fly with no hands". Though I might make them the target of opportunity for a bandit ambush, as riding without hands = serious chance of falling off if they get hit by anything!
For combat, I'd rule minimum of 1 hand needed to fly the broom. using 1 hand is infinitely easier than using none.
Remember folks, apply rules as written to the broom to stop it from being too powerful.
The broom is technically a type of vehicle, it says so in the basic rules chapter 8 in section Speed > mounts and vehicles.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Obviously no one is proficient with the broom, but making checks to control it in "difficult circumstances" (combat, inclement weather, trying to fly indoors or other enclosed areas, etc.) still applies. Make sure the player is making these checks!
I think the broom is meant to be the player action to be travelling on it. It's the only way it can make sense in the item ecosystem vs. all the other flying options (spells, potions, scrolls, carpets, etc.) which cost more because you could be fighting or whatever at the same time as flying.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Could you give the title of the chapter for those us crippled folk?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
Let them know that this is a powerful item as a non-attunement item that is a permanent non-concentration 3rd level spell that doesn't cost a slot, that is the equivalent movement of a dwarf/gnome etc getting a free dash action every round, and because of this it needs some down sides to balance it.
Let them know that to fly they might need to make checks to hold on, and if they fall they fall prone. Maybe they need to use 1 hand at minimum to hold on. Maybe if they fall off since its non-attune enemies will hop on and use it. Maybe since it can hold a passenger enemies can hop on and ride it when it moves. Maybe an enemy caster can hold a catapult to cast on it since it isn't being worn or held if they have to let go to cast a spell or draw a bow causing it to shoot out from under them.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Could you give the title of the chapter for those us crippled folk?
PHB, chapter 5 (equipment), mounts and vehicles section, a few paragraphs down.
Remember folks, apply rules as written to the broom to stop it from being too powerful.
The broom is technically a type of vehicle, it says so in the basic rules chapter 8 in section Speed > mounts and vehicles.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Obviously no one is proficient with the broom, but making checks to control it in "difficult circumstances" (combat, inclement weather, trying to fly indoors or other enclosed areas, etc.) still applies. Make sure the player is making these checks!
Pardon me, but I don’t think the broom actually counts as a mount or a vehicle. The books describe mounts as being a willing creature that’s at least one size class greater than your own, and a broom of flying is neither. So while you certainly could tweak some aspects of mounted combat to apply to broom control (I’d certainly say that rolling a DEX save to stay on the broom whenever forcefully pushed back is fair) I don’t think it’s strictly RAW.
Though I think the one thing that’s often overlooked in regards to flying is this section from the PHB about flying in combat here:
“If a flying creature is knocked prone, has its speed reduced to 0, or is otherwise deprived of the ability to move, the creature falls, unless it has the ability to hover or it is being held aloft by magic, such as the fly spell.“
The item description of the broom of flying explicitly states that the broom’s ability to hover strictly applies to the item itself; the player is merely precariously perched atop of it, not being held aloft. I’d personally argue that if the player on the broom becomes inflicted by any condition or effect that fulfills the above parameters of flying combat hazards (prone, restrained, grappled/shoved, paralyzed, stunned, etc.) then said player automatically falls off the broom and incurs fall damage when applicable.
Oh, man. Yeah, that's a tough one, once you allow player characters to have access to such items.
I personally never allow player characters to have access to any items that makes adventuring that easy.
For example, in my universe, all those things like Broom of Flying, Winged Boots, Decanter of Endless Water, Wand of Secrets, etc. do exist, BUT for NPC's, Foes, etc. as the player characters will NEVER have access to them, for obvious reasons.
To keep things interesting for them, I would strongly deny them that item, as it's so novel and legendary, it will make adventuring too easy, else story telling annoyingly challenging for DM.
A nullify magic field while he is hovering over a pit of acid is one way, Is he shooting while on his broom? that should probably be at disadvantage as he tries to stay balanced, or if he is a magic user make him roll at disadvantage for his spells as he can only cast one handed. That is my ruling for anyone on a flying broom. Also there is always the chance he gets knocked off if attacked or hit.
Sitting on a magic broom he will be easier to push off so disadvantage on any contested strength checks. All of a sudden sitting on your broom all the times isn't so helpful.
I agree on a broom notbeing a vehicle - it doesn't say its a vehicle. Calling it a vehicle means you're adding to text. The items in the list of vehicles are vehicles.
But "not a vehicle" is like saying "walking boots" aren't a weapon so you can't kick and damage with it.
The best thing is not to allow player characters have access to it and other legendary items in the first place. It only exists for NPC's, foes, monsters... .
Like Chaotic Evil alignment: its exists for NPC's, foes, monsters, but allowing player characters to be such is a sure way of making game no fun for all other players and tough to DM.
But "not a vehicle" is like saying "walking boots" aren't a weapon so you can't kick and damage with it.
imo, 'walking boots aren't a weapon' is exactly true. Boots are not a weapon per the rules (unless you take it off your foot, but it in your hand, and konk someone in the head with it - then its an improvised weapon).
You're thinking outside the rules (and when you go outside the rules you can say whatever you want) - according to what's written, a broom just isn't a vehicle, like boots just aren't a weapon.
Well, a boot could qualify as an Improvised Weapon, although I think it would take some justification to treat it as anything other than an Unarmed strike when attacking with them.
I think the problem with the broom is that it's clearly something. It doesn't imbue the person riding it with the power of flight... the broom itself does the flying and you're just riding it. It more or less fulfills the real world function of a vehicle, but what is or isn't a vehicle in D&D isn't something with a lot of hard and fast rules. If it does get treated as a vehicle, then mechanically the only way to really do something with that information is to ask whether or not someone is proficient with it. Vehicle proficiencies in general are pretty underused... you don't need to be proficient with Land Vehicles in order to steer a cart. As well with a broom... what would being proficient with "air vehicles" even translate to?
I think because a Broom of Flying is considered an Uncommon magic item there's this sense that it can't possibly be as good as it is. Like... an Uncommon Magic item that, even if you're not using it to fly, still boosts you to a speed of 50 feet. So there's an attempt to try and balance it out some other way... like, logically you would need to have at least one hand on the broom to stay balanced, right? And if you get hit hard enough you should be able to get knocked off of it, right? But the actual item description doesn't say anything about any of that... RAW, as long as you don't break the weight limit, you could just be rocketing through the air swinging a great axe willy nilly and get slapped around by a hill giant.
Honestly, there's no right answer. I think the quick and easy way to work around it is to treat it as a mount. This doesn't totally work... the rules of mounted combat are based on the idea that your mount is a separate living creature that can be targeted by attacks and would have its own saving throws. But it gives you a rough frame work of how something like this might function, and gives you some rules about how you could possibly get knocked off of it.
Think I can agree - DM treats it anyway they want as these are just guidelines, not "rules" (i.e. Dungeon Masters Guide). DM wants it to spit lasers, bullets and lightening all at the same time at the will of the rider...rider always have to have 2 hands on it....boost speeds to 1,000 ft...can teleport rider to other planes....up to DM.
I think key difference between treating boots on someone’s feet as weapons is that this is already covered under the mechanics for Unarmed Strikes. Unless you homebrew some Boots of Greater Ass-Kicking, kick attacks and the damage done by them is always going to be based on the swinging of your leg - not whether or not you’re wearing shoes.
I think because a Broom of Flying is considered an Uncommon magic item there's this sense that it can't possibly be as good as it is. Like... an Uncommon Magic item that, even if you're not using it to fly, still boosts you to a speed of 50 feet. So there's an attempt to try and balance it out some other way... like, logically you would need to have at least one hand on the broom to stay balanced, right? And if you get hit hard enough you should be able to get knocked off of it, right?But the actual item description doesn't say anything about any of that... RAW, as long as you don't break the weight limit, you could just be rocketing through the air swinging a great axe willy nilly and get slapped around by a hill giant.
Eh, I would still argue that it’s at least RAI, if not full RAW, that a failed save against falling prone causes someone to fall off the broom. I’d even argue this applies to the Winged Boots too, but that might be a little off topic. Even if it’s not explicitly stated this can happen within the item description, the description makes it clear that it’s attributes only extends to the item - the broom hovers, not the whatever or whoever is on it specifically - which seems like a very important distinction, especially when compared to the descriptions of other items and spells with similar features. To me at least, saying that someone can never be knocked off the broom because it’s not directly listed in the item description is like saying you can’t be knocked off a Floating Disk, or a stool someone has casted Levitate on, if you’re perched on it on it simply because there’s no contingency for that possibility written in the spell description. That reading would also imply that you couldn’t fall off even if you were rendered unconscious. Which, in my humble opinion, is just an absurd conclusion.
But like I said, I’m certainly not opposed to adapting some of the mounted combat rules to apply to the broom and other flying weapons. There’s certainly a lot of potential in using them as the framework for constructing high altitude aerial terrain hazards or flight-to-flight combat.
Remember folks, apply rules as written to the broom to stop it from being too powerful.
The broom is technically a type of vehicle, it says so in the basic rules chapter 8 in section Speed > mounts and vehicles.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Obviously no one is proficient with the broom, but making checks to control it in "difficult circumstances" (combat, inclement weather, trying to fly indoors or other enclosed areas, etc.) still applies. Make sure the player is making these checks!
Pardon me, but I don’t think the broom actually counts as a mount or a vehicle. The books describe mounts as being a willing creature that’s at least one size class greater than your own, and a broom of flying is neither. So while you certainly could tweak some aspects of mounted combat to apply to broom control (I’d certainly say that rolling a DEX save to stay on the broom whenever forcefully pushed back is fair) I don’t think it’s strictly RAW.
Though I think the one thing that’s often overlooked in regards to flying is this section from the PHB about flying in combat here:
“If a flying creature is knocked prone, has its speed reduced to 0, or is otherwise deprived of the ability to move, the creature falls, unless it has the ability to hover or it is being held aloft by magic, such as the fly spell.“
The item description of the broom of flying explicitly states that the broom’s ability to hover strictly applies to the item itself; the player is merely precariously perched atop of it, not being held aloft. I’d personally argue that if the player on the broom becomes inflicted by any condition or effect that fulfills the above parameters of flying combat hazards (prone, restrained, grappled/shoved, paralyzed, stunned, etc.) then said player automatically falls off the broom and incurs fall damage when applicable.
But it explicitly says the broom is a vehicle: like I said, in basic rules>chapter 8>speed>mounts and vehicles> then a few paragraphs down: "Certain special mounts, such as a pegasus or griffon, or special VEHICLES, such as a broom of flying, allow you to travel more swiftly."
So I ended up consulting my PHB because I was positive the broom wasn’t mentioned, and it turns out this is what it says: "Certain special mounts, such as a pegasus or griffon, or special vehicles, such as a carpet of flying, allow you to travel more swiftly." And it says that because in the above paragraph it explains that sea-faring vessels have only one speed setting setting (normal) and don’t follow the same time limitations as foot or land vehicle travel, which means their travel pace is calculated differently. Since even the smallest carpet carrying its maximum capacity is faster than a draft horse pulling a cart, but doesn’t tire the way an animal does, you’re supposed to treat it like a boat in terms of calculating travel speed - no fast or slow paced options, but is a little faster than the normal pace. But outside of that, the DMG tells you not to treat magic items that grant a flight speed like vehicles otherwise, but to use the same travel chart you would use for calculating players’ speed on foot - with all the pros & cons of moving fast or slow pace and the 8 hour travel limit before saves against exhaustion kick in the come with that - the broom included.
BUT I will concede that considering the carpet and the broom share similar language in their respective item descriptions is similar, the broom could be considered a vehicle under those rameters. So that was my mistake. Though even then the broom still doesn’t make for a perfect fit being classified as a vehicle, since its status as a flying hobby horse still means none of the above that applies to the carpet, or any other vehicle, carries over to the broom. At least the carpet gets a point in its favor on that front since it requires an action to move the same way other vehicles do. The broom, however, functionally behaves more like a mount, but mount-based abilities and a good chunk mounted combat rules can’t be applied because of its status as an object. It’s a magic item that shares some similarities with a mount and a vehicle, but not enough to definitively qualify as either.
It might just best for a DM to choose a handful of rules from all three categories - mount, vehicle, flying - that they feel are most applicable and just remember to be consistent with them, and be sure to let the players know that’s how they’re going to handle the broom if they currently have or want the item. Failed saves against being knocked prone or reducing your movement to zero IMO put the broom on about the same level as losing concentration on fly mid-air combat-wise. Implementing some of the forced movement/forced dismounting rules from mounted combat would mean the riders would have to make additional saves against falling off on top of the initial saves against the conditions, but might also end up getting advantage against those second saves if they’re able to purchase a saddle for it. More than two players being on it at the same time should mean said players have disadvantage on attacks and DEX saves while everyone else has advantage against them regardless of what you classify the broom as, since the broom is only 3ft long. And there’s really no good reason why a player shouldn’t fall off the broom if they fall unconscious, which considering the potential fall damage that would occur before even the first death save, is not an enviable position to be in. Et cetera et cetera.
I agree, though I would be happy for a descriptive, non game-affecting situation where the player says "Whilst we travel, I steer the broom with my legs whilst playing my lute" or "I fly with no hands". Though I might make them the target of opportunity for a bandit ambush, as riding without hands = serious chance of falling off if they get hit by anything!
For combat, I'd rule minimum of 1 hand needed to fly the broom. using 1 hand is infinitely easier than using none.
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Remember folks, apply rules as written to the broom to stop it from being too powerful.
The broom is technically a type of vehicle, it says so in the basic rules chapter 8 in section Speed > mounts and vehicles.
Being a vehicle, this applies: "Vehicle Proficiency. If you have proficiency with a certain kind of vehicle (land or water), you can add your proficiency bonus to any check you make to control that kind of vehicle in difficult circumstances."
Obviously no one is proficient with the broom, but making checks to control it in "difficult circumstances" (combat, inclement weather, trying to fly indoors or other enclosed areas, etc.) still applies. Make sure the player is making these checks!
I think the broom is meant to be the player action to be travelling on it. It's the only way it can make sense in the item ecosystem vs. all the other flying options (spells, potions, scrolls, carpets, etc.) which cost more because you could be fighting or whatever at the same time as flying.
Could you give the title of the chapter for those us crippled folk?
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Talk to the player
Let them know that this is a powerful item as a non-attunement item that is a permanent non-concentration 3rd level spell that doesn't cost a slot, that is the equivalent movement of a dwarf/gnome etc getting a free dash action every round, and because of this it needs some down sides to balance it.
Let them know that to fly they might need to make checks to hold on, and if they fall they fall prone. Maybe they need to use 1 hand at minimum to hold on. Maybe if they fall off since its non-attune enemies will hop on and use it. Maybe since it can hold a passenger enemies can hop on and ride it when it moves. Maybe an enemy caster can hold a catapult to cast on it since it isn't being worn or held if they have to let go to cast a spell or draw a bow causing it to shoot out from under them.
PHB, chapter 5 (equipment), mounts and vehicles section, a few paragraphs down.
Pardon me, but I don’t think the broom actually counts as a mount or a vehicle. The books describe mounts as being a willing creature that’s at least one size class greater than your own, and a broom of flying is neither. So while you certainly could tweak some aspects of mounted combat to apply to broom control (I’d certainly say that rolling a DEX save to stay on the broom whenever forcefully pushed back is fair) I don’t think it’s strictly RAW.
Though I think the one thing that’s often overlooked in regards to flying is this section from the PHB about flying in combat here:
“If a flying creature is knocked prone, has its speed reduced to 0, or is otherwise deprived of the ability to move, the creature falls, unless it has the ability to hover or it is being held aloft by magic, such as the fly spell.“
The item description of the broom of flying explicitly states that the broom’s ability to hover strictly applies to the item itself; the player is merely precariously perched atop of it, not being held aloft. I’d personally argue that if the player on the broom becomes inflicted by any condition or effect that fulfills the above parameters of flying combat hazards (prone, restrained, grappled/shoved, paralyzed, stunned, etc.) then said player automatically falls off the broom and incurs fall damage when applicable.
Oh, man. Yeah, that's a tough one, once you allow player characters to have access to such items.
I personally never allow player characters to have access to any items that makes adventuring that easy.
For example, in my universe, all those things like Broom of Flying, Winged Boots, Decanter of Endless Water, Wand of Secrets, etc. do exist, BUT for NPC's, Foes, etc. as the player characters will NEVER have access to them, for obvious reasons.
To keep things interesting for them, I would strongly deny them that item, as it's so novel and legendary, it will make adventuring too easy, else story telling annoyingly challenging for DM.
Good luck.
A nullify magic field while he is hovering over a pit of acid is one way, Is he shooting while on his broom? that should probably be at disadvantage as he tries to stay balanced, or if he is a magic user make him roll at disadvantage for his spells as he can only cast one handed. That is my ruling for anyone on a flying broom. Also there is always the chance he gets knocked off if attacked or hit.
Sitting on a magic broom he will be easier to push off so disadvantage on any contested strength checks. All of a sudden sitting on your broom all the times isn't so helpful.
I agree on a broom not being a vehicle - it doesn't say its a vehicle. Calling it a vehicle means you're adding to text. The items in the list of vehicles are vehicles.
Guide to the Five Factions (PWYW)
Deck of Decks
But "not a vehicle" is like saying "walking boots" aren't a weapon so you can't kick and damage with it.
The best thing is not to allow player characters have access to it and other legendary items in the first place. It only exists for NPC's, foes, monsters... .
Like Chaotic Evil alignment: its exists for NPC's, foes, monsters, but allowing player characters to be such is a sure way of making game no fun for all other players and tough to DM.
Just my thoughts.
imo, 'walking boots aren't a weapon' is exactly true. Boots are not a weapon per the rules (unless you take it off your foot, but it in your hand, and konk someone in the head with it - then its an improvised weapon).
You're thinking outside the rules (and when you go outside the rules you can say whatever you want) - according to what's written, a broom just isn't a vehicle, like boots just aren't a weapon.
Guide to the Five Factions (PWYW)
Deck of Decks
Well, a boot could qualify as an Improvised Weapon, although I think it would take some justification to treat it as anything other than an Unarmed strike when attacking with them.
I think the problem with the broom is that it's clearly something. It doesn't imbue the person riding it with the power of flight... the broom itself does the flying and you're just riding it. It more or less fulfills the real world function of a vehicle, but what is or isn't a vehicle in D&D isn't something with a lot of hard and fast rules. If it does get treated as a vehicle, then mechanically the only way to really do something with that information is to ask whether or not someone is proficient with it. Vehicle proficiencies in general are pretty underused... you don't need to be proficient with Land Vehicles in order to steer a cart. As well with a broom... what would being proficient with "air vehicles" even translate to?
I think because a Broom of Flying is considered an Uncommon magic item there's this sense that it can't possibly be as good as it is. Like... an Uncommon Magic item that, even if you're not using it to fly, still boosts you to a speed of 50 feet. So there's an attempt to try and balance it out some other way... like, logically you would need to have at least one hand on the broom to stay balanced, right? And if you get hit hard enough you should be able to get knocked off of it, right? But the actual item description doesn't say anything about any of that... RAW, as long as you don't break the weight limit, you could just be rocketing through the air swinging a great axe willy nilly and get slapped around by a hill giant.
Honestly, there's no right answer. I think the quick and easy way to work around it is to treat it as a mount. This doesn't totally work... the rules of mounted combat are based on the idea that your mount is a separate living creature that can be targeted by attacks and would have its own saving throws. But it gives you a rough frame work of how something like this might function, and gives you some rules about how you could possibly get knocked off of it.
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Think I can agree - DM treats it anyway they want as these are just guidelines, not "rules" (i.e. Dungeon Masters Guide). DM wants it to spit lasers, bullets and lightening all at the same time at the will of the rider...rider always have to have 2 hands on it....boost speeds to 1,000 ft...can teleport rider to other planes....up to DM.
I think key difference between treating boots on someone’s feet as weapons is that this is already covered under the mechanics for Unarmed Strikes. Unless you homebrew some Boots of Greater Ass-Kicking, kick attacks and the damage done by them is always going to be based on the swinging of your leg - not whether or not you’re wearing shoes.
Eh, I would still argue that it’s at least RAI, if not full RAW, that a failed save against falling prone causes someone to fall off the broom.
I’d even argue this applies to the Winged Boots too, but that might be a little off topic.Even if it’s not explicitly stated this can happen within the item description, the description makes it clear that it’s attributes only extends to the item - the broom hovers, not the whatever or whoever is on it specifically - which seems like a very important distinction, especially when compared to the descriptions of other items and spells with similar features. To me at least, saying that someone can never be knocked off the broom because it’s not directly listed in the item description is like saying you can’t be knocked off a Floating Disk, or a stool someone has casted Levitate on, if you’re perched on it on it simply because there’s no contingency for that possibility written in the spell description. That reading would also imply that you couldn’t fall off even if you were rendered unconscious. Which, in my humble opinion, is just an absurd conclusion.But like I said, I’m certainly not opposed to adapting some of the mounted combat rules to apply to the broom and other flying weapons. There’s certainly a lot of potential in using them as the framework for constructing high altitude aerial terrain hazards or flight-to-flight combat.
But it explicitly says the broom is a vehicle: like I said, in basic rules>chapter 8>speed>mounts and vehicles> then a few paragraphs down: "Certain special mounts, such as a pegasus or griffon, or special VEHICLES, such as a broom of flying, allow you to travel more swiftly."
So I ended up consulting my PHB because I was positive the broom wasn’t mentioned, and it turns out this is what it says: "Certain special mounts, such as a pegasus or griffon, or special vehicles, such as a carpet of flying, allow you to travel more swiftly." And it says that because in the above paragraph it explains that sea-faring vessels have only one speed setting setting (normal) and don’t follow the same time limitations as foot or land vehicle travel, which means their travel pace is calculated differently. Since even the smallest carpet carrying its maximum capacity is faster than a draft horse pulling a cart, but doesn’t tire the way an animal does, you’re supposed to treat it like a boat in terms of calculating travel speed - no fast or slow paced options, but is a little faster than the normal pace. But outside of that, the DMG tells you not to treat magic items that grant a flight speed like vehicles otherwise, but to use the same travel chart you would use for calculating players’ speed on foot - with all the pros & cons of moving fast or slow pace and the 8 hour travel limit before saves against exhaustion kick in the come with that - the broom included.
BUT I will concede that considering the carpet and the broom share similar language in their respective item descriptions is similar, the broom could be considered a vehicle under those rameters. So that was my mistake. Though even then the broom still doesn’t make for a perfect fit being classified as a vehicle, since its status as a flying hobby horse still means none of the above that applies to the carpet, or any other vehicle, carries over to the broom. At least the carpet gets a point in its favor on that front since it requires an action to move the same way other vehicles do. The broom, however, functionally behaves more like a mount, but mount-based abilities and a good chunk mounted combat rules can’t be applied because of its status as an object. It’s a magic item that shares some similarities with a mount and a vehicle, but not enough to definitively qualify as either.
It might just best for a DM to choose a handful of rules from all three categories - mount, vehicle, flying - that they feel are most applicable and just remember to be consistent with them, and be sure to let the players know that’s how they’re going to handle the broom if they currently have or want the item. Failed saves against being knocked prone or reducing your movement to zero IMO put the broom on about the same level as losing concentration on fly mid-air combat-wise. Implementing some of the forced movement/forced dismounting rules from mounted combat would mean the riders would have to make additional saves against falling off on top of the initial saves against the conditions, but might also end up getting advantage against those second saves if they’re able to purchase a saddle for it. More than two players being on it at the same time should mean said players have disadvantage on attacks and DEX saves while everyone else has advantage against them regardless of what you classify the broom as, since the broom is only 3ft long. And there’s really no good reason why a player shouldn’t fall off the broom if they fall unconscious, which considering the potential fall damage that would occur before even the first death save, is not an enviable position to be in. Et cetera et cetera.
It doesn't take a hand
Or maybe, the magic of the broom takes care of it