They don’t count as always being mounted, so no, not RAW.
But it’s not outrageous to homebrew something around this to make a balanced ruling. Because rule of cool.
Remember though, the anatomy of a centaur isn’t akin to a knight on horseback, that makes wielding a lance effective. I don’t think a centaur would be anymore effective at holding a lance than a human - but obviously charging with one would be easier.
Your centaur could ride a mount, but that just gets a bit National Geographic.
In the Unearthed Arcana version, centaurs could be mounted by a small or medium creature, and since centaurs are medium, you could construct centaur towers-of-power!
It's too bad centaurs lost this trait in the official release.
I probably wouldn't allow a Centaur to use a Lance one-handed.
The whole idea of using it one-handed while mounted--due to the mount taking all the strain associated with movement--is that a rider can focus significantly more strength toward bracing the lance. Their legs are braced in the stirrups, one arm braced with the reigns & saddle horn, and the lance is locked into place by a specific wield method: one hand holding the mid-shaft at the basket-hilt with the rear-shaft braced in the armpit (pressed between pectoral & bicep). This allows the rider to keep the lance in a forward, locked position, and steer their mount in whatever direction needed to impale someone with the lance as they charge by. A Centuar can't accomplish this.
Mounted cavalry with lances aren't running around swinging their lances around like they could with a typical polearm (Spear, Glaive, Halberd, etc). It's a very specific, niche use weapon. That's why it has the Special property.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
centaur are considered larger creatures and have considerably more strength than a human would. They would definitely be able to carry a lance more effectively than a human. I think the problem lies in the impact. A human would fall backward with the impact relieving the force from their frame with backward motion. I would say the centaur would take a little dmg on a lancing charge but should be able to wield it one-handed and charge
I probably wouldn't allow a Centaur to use a Lance one-handed.
The whole idea of using it one-handed while mounted--due to the mount taking all the strain associated with movement--is that a rider can focus significantly more strength toward bracing the lance. Their legs are braced in the stirrups, one arm braced with the reigns & saddle horn, and the lance is locked into place by a specific wield method: one hand holding the mid-shaft at the basket-hilt with the rear-shaft braced in the armpit (pressed between pectoral & bicep). This allows the rider to keep the lance in a forward, locked position, and steer their mount in whatever direction needed to impale someone with the lance as they charge by. A Centuar can't accomplish this.
Mounted cavalry with lances aren't running around swinging their lances around like they could with a typical polearm (Spear, Glaive, Halberd, etc). It's a very specific, niche use weapon. That's why it has the Special property.
There would be the option, though, of simply releasing the lance after impact. This is something that might be done anyway, for quite a few reasons, not the least of which being that the rider is now in melee range where a lance is a lot less useful.
As for a lot of the physics (not just with respect to your answer but those of others too), how far should we be worrying about such things in D&D?
Physically, it's less about the moment of impact (Impulse = Force * delta of Time) with the target, and far more about having stability with the weapon to counteract your own movements--it's all about anchor points.
Think about shooting stance for rifle marksmanship. A proper standing stance & grip provides four anchor points: trigger hand on grip, supporting hand on fore-end (on the guard, or an attached foregrip), stock pressed into your shoulder pocket, and cheek-weld to stock. Properly establishing those four points allows the user to minimize the natural sway while aiming, and the muzzle climb from recoil. You need to have those anchors when shooting from a standing position, or your accuracy & ability to make follow-up shots suffers greatly.
Shooting from prone, kneeling, with a bipod/stand/barrier you don't need to have your supporting hand anchored because you're inherently far more stable in those positions. It's the same for using a lance--while mounted, your legs and off-hand are anchoring you to your mount which significantly reduces the sway from movement, and your lance is anchored to your body by your main-hand and clamping the shaft in your armpit. You need to wield it two-handed if you are not mounted, or you are not stable enough to wield it properly. It's literally a matter of using the weapon correctly! :P
As for how much we should worry about this in D&D? Only to the extent that:
The Lance allows you to use it one-handed, via the Special weapon property, only when mounted
A PC Centaur is not a Centaur; the PC is a medium creature--irrelevant, but some people seem to think size matters (it really doesn't, but might as well point it out)
A PC Centaur does not innately count as being mounted
Ergo, there is zero factual evidence to support the idea of a PC Centaur being able to use a Lance one-handed without being mounted on a separate creature/vehicle.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
There would be the option, though, of simply releasing the lance after impact.
The lance needs to be held throughout the impact to impart maximum force upon the target, but by the impact would likely break the centaur’s back since they are the horse.
I don't see why an intelligent being, a centaur.. wouldn't be able to find a way to brace a lance with the rest of its body.
They could do this by affixing a leather strap around their withers. This strap would have a pocket attached to it that holds the hilt of the lance. When charging the centaur tucks the end of his lance into the pocket. Now its braced. Honestly, if you had the intelligence of a humanoid and the strength of a horse, you'd probably be able to devise a way to handle a lance far more effectively than a human mounted on a horse.
And lets be real.. centaur class features are not really that compellingly awesome. If a PC in my game wanted to do this, i'd let them. Make it cool they chose such a niche race, remember the fun of your players is the first and foremost concern.
The strap would transfer the impact to the bulkiest part of the centaurs body. It would be more effectively braced than any knight could hope to achieve.
Not RAW, and there might be balance issues to allowing it, but in terms of realism, I'd allow it. The reason a lance can be one-handed mounted is that you can "couch" it. You can't when on foot. Imagine how humorous you would look with a couched lance chasing someone around the room. But a centaur could charge with a couched lance.
I think I'd allow it, but only if they use it like their charge ability - only after moving at least 20 feet.
Back in ad&d, our dm allowed me to homebrew a centaur character as a lance wielding cleric of spear related deity.
A problem was that he really outshone our fighter character due to being able to be the first in combat and having so many more options of what he could do .
I now think that the ultimate cool weapons for a centaur are a bow or sword and shield/spear and shield.
I like the idea of a centaur being a large (effectively big bummed) creature occupying a 5*10 ft space and potentially having a mounted rider who could use a lance.
“A Centuar can't accomplish this.” why not? this is a genuine question. a half horse person has all of the benefits of a horse.
A half-horse person does not have the benefit of being a creature mounted on another creature, which is explicitly what is required.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
so a lance is two handed save if mounted, since a centaur is a horse person do they count as always being mounted?
They don’t count as always being mounted, so no, not RAW.
But it’s not outrageous to homebrew something around this to make a balanced ruling. Because rule of cool.
Remember though, the anatomy of a centaur isn’t akin to a knight on horseback, that makes wielding a lance effective. I don’t think a centaur would be anymore effective at holding a lance than a human - but obviously charging with one would be easier.
Your centaur could ride a mount, but that just gets a bit National Geographic.
RAW, centaurs do not count as being mounted. But I would house rule that they can count as mounted.
In the Unearthed Arcana version, centaurs could be mounted by a small or medium creature, and since centaurs are medium, you could construct centaur towers-of-power!
It's too bad centaurs lost this trait in the official release.
I probably wouldn't allow a Centaur to use a Lance one-handed.
The whole idea of using it one-handed while mounted--due to the mount taking all the strain associated with movement--is that a rider can focus significantly more strength toward bracing the lance. Their legs are braced in the stirrups, one arm braced with the reigns & saddle horn, and the lance is locked into place by a specific wield method: one hand holding the mid-shaft at the basket-hilt with the rear-shaft braced in the armpit (pressed between pectoral & bicep). This allows the rider to keep the lance in a forward, locked position, and steer their mount in whatever direction needed to impale someone with the lance as they charge by. A Centuar can't accomplish this.
Mounted cavalry with lances aren't running around swinging their lances around like they could with a typical polearm (Spear, Glaive, Halberd, etc). It's a very specific, niche use weapon. That's why it has the Special property.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
centaur are considered larger creatures and have considerably more strength than a human would. They would definitely be able to carry a lance more effectively than a human. I think the problem lies in the impact. A human would fall backward with the impact relieving the force from their frame with backward motion. I would say the centaur would take a little dmg on a lancing charge but should be able to wield it one-handed and charge
Physically, it's less about the moment of impact (Impulse = Force * delta of Time) with the target, and far more about having stability with the weapon to counteract your own movements--it's all about anchor points.
Think about shooting stance for rifle marksmanship. A proper standing stance & grip provides four anchor points: trigger hand on grip, supporting hand on fore-end (on the guard, or an attached foregrip), stock pressed into your shoulder pocket, and cheek-weld to stock. Properly establishing those four points allows the user to minimize the natural sway while aiming, and the muzzle climb from recoil. You need to have those anchors when shooting from a standing position, or your accuracy & ability to make follow-up shots suffers greatly.
Shooting from prone, kneeling, with a bipod/stand/barrier you don't need to have your supporting hand anchored because you're inherently far more stable in those positions. It's the same for using a lance--while mounted, your legs and off-hand are anchoring you to your mount which significantly reduces the sway from movement, and your lance is anchored to your body by your main-hand and clamping the shaft in your armpit. You need to wield it two-handed if you are not mounted, or you are not stable enough to wield it properly. It's literally a matter of using the weapon correctly! :P
As for how much we should worry about this in D&D? Only to the extent that:
Ergo, there is zero factual evidence to support the idea of a PC Centaur being able to use a Lance one-handed without being mounted on a separate creature/vehicle.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
The lance needs to be held throughout the impact to impart maximum force upon the target, but by the impact would likely break the centaur’s back since they are the horse.
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So... Is there a way to make *Tisalia Scythia* like PC, from "Monster Girl Doctor" anime in D&D? or just homebrew it?
Good watch btw! ;-)
Didn't see a homebrew lance item for Centaurs. So, I made one. It may not be balanced. Centaur Lance
Thread necro.....
I don't see why an intelligent being, a centaur.. wouldn't be able to find a way to brace a lance with the rest of its body.
They could do this by affixing a leather strap around their withers. This strap would have a pocket attached to it that holds the hilt of the lance. When charging the centaur tucks the end of his lance into the pocket. Now its braced. Honestly, if you had the intelligence of a humanoid and the strength of a horse, you'd probably be able to devise a way to handle a lance far more effectively than a human mounted on a horse.
And lets be real.. centaur class features are not really that compellingly awesome. If a PC in my game wanted to do this, i'd let them. Make it cool they chose such a niche race, remember the fun of your players is the first and foremost concern.
It isn't about ability, it is about rules. If you want to house rule that they can, by all means do, I would.
The strap would transfer the impact to the bulkiest part of the centaurs body. It would be more effectively braced than any knight could hope to achieve.
Not RAW, and there might be balance issues to allowing it, but in terms of realism, I'd allow it. The reason a lance can be one-handed mounted is that you can "couch" it. You can't when on foot. Imagine how humorous you would look with a couched lance chasing someone around the room. But a centaur could charge with a couched lance.
I think I'd allow it, but only if they use it like their charge ability - only after moving at least 20 feet.
Personally, I'd say letting a centaur use a lance as if mounted is only fair.
First, if you're allowing a centaur in your campaign, you should have expected this subject to come up.
Second, the bipedal characters can get on a mount and use the lance one handed, how does a centaur get on a bloody mount?!
So yeah, it's only fair to allow it, especially if you consider the character can't do something as simple as climbing.
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I'd go with Rule of Cool.
And before anyone repeats old objections, the two-handed thing is only one of the lance's problems.
Back in ad&d, our dm allowed me to homebrew a centaur character as a lance wielding cleric of spear related deity.
A problem was that he really outshone our fighter character due to being able to be the first in combat and having so many more options of what he could do .
I now think that the ultimate cool weapons for a centaur are a bow or sword and shield/spear and shield.
I like the idea of a centaur being a large (effectively big bummed) creature occupying a 5*10 ft space and potentially having a mounted rider who could use a lance.
“A Centuar can't accomplish this.” why not? this is a genuine question. a half horse person has all of the benefits of a horse.
A half-horse person does not have the benefit of being a creature mounted on another creature, which is explicitly what is required.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
I would make a feat to allow a centaur to use a lance as if mounted.
Maybe throw in a +1 to strength to make it fair.