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Jumping is a special kind of movement. There doesn't seem to be special combat rules for jumping, so it behaves the same as walking. Is any special consideration needed when jumping in combat?

These prompts may help you form a response:

  1. Do you have to declare how far you are going to jump?
  2. Can you attack mid jump?
  3. Can you end your turn mid air?
  4. How does jumping over an enemy interact with attack of opportunity?
  5. How does jumping vertically higher than 5ft + an enemies height interact with attack of opportunity?
  6. How do actions such as Disengage or Dash interact with jumping?
  7. Are there any other quirks?

Please note I am asking about RAW only, and I understand the consequences of doing so. No frame challenges please. Assume I want to jump, have considered alternates, and that it is useful to me.

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Not much more than what the PHB details

Jumping comes out of your normal movement distance, so I wouldn't think there are special considerations. But let's do this by the numbers and see, shall we?

  1. Your maximum jump distance is determined by a combination of factors. Off the top of my head, you need to consider the character's Strength modifier, whether it's a horizontal or vertical jump, and whether or not they have a running start. There's no minimum distance, so the only times I can think of distance being a factor are when you're trying to avoid a specific hazard. This can trigger a DC 10 Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) roll from the DM.
  2. You can break up movement and attacks, so yes, you can attack mid-jump. It might break verisimilitude, but by RAW you can even use the Extra Attack feature and land 2-4 attacks in a "jump attack" against a foe.
  3. Only if you have a feature or ability which allows it, such as the levitate spell or a fly speed which lets you hover.
  4. You only trigger opportunity attacks when the normal trigger occurs. Since jumping introduces vertical movement, you need to think three-dimensionally. The 5x5 squares we're used to are now 5x5x5 cubes. So long as you don't jump high enough to be considered at least one cube away, you don't provoke an attack.
  5. I believe I answered this above, but perhaps it needs clarification. A medium creature occupies a 5x5x5 cube. A 6-foot human has a total reach of 9 feet straight up without jumping or factoring in their weapon. You would need to be 10 feet (or 2 cubes) off the ground to provoke an opportunity attack.
  6. They interact normally.
  7. I hinted at it before, but I'll detail it now. During a vertical jump, a character can reach up 1 1/2 times their height. As an example, a 6-foot tall character with 18 Strength (+4 modifier) can, with a running (10+ feet) high jump, leap 7 feet into the air and grab hold of something 16 feet up from where they started. You halve that initial distance without the run, but that still leaves them with 12.5 feet. Boots of Striding and Springing triple this jump distance or height; up to your normal maximum movement. What this means is, with a 10-foot head start, the aforementioned human could jump 20 feet up and grab hold of something 29 feet off the ground.
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  • \$\begingroup\$ Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat. \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Commented Nov 13, 2019 at 6:06

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