Can I use improved trip even with a weapon, say a sword or a lance?

[dehro]

also.. can I use a regular lance the way a tournament lance would be used, to spitroast my enemy charging him on horseback?

[Celestia]

You can only make trip attempts with weaponsthat specifically allow such, like a guisarme or a spiked chain.

As for your second question, you can, however, use a lance like that. When making a mounted charge, a lance deals double damage.

[Necroticplague]

1. No. You can only trip either unarmed, or using a tripping weapon.
2. That’s why lances do double damage on a mounted charge.

[Kurald Galain]

1. In Pathfinder you can trip with any weapon; in 3.5 only with weapons with the 'trip' quality.
2. If by 'spitroast' you mean doing much more damage, then yes.

[AnimeTheCat]

If you have Improved Trip, BAB +2, and Str 15 you can take Knock Down which would allow you to trip every time you deal 10+ damage with any attack (including a sword or a lance) which is neat because it carries the effect of a free attack following a successful trip attempt.

[dehro]

we are limited to core books and dragon lance setting manual.
I also made a boobie in that I meant to say Longspear, not lance

so.. can I use the longspear as a lance, or is it only the lance that can be used in that (jousting) fashion?

[Zaq]

Weapons do what they say they do.

You can talk to the GM about treating a longspear as a lance, but you could also just use a lance.

[dehro]

Weapons do what they say they do.

You can talk to the GM about treating a longspear as a lance, but you could also just use a lance.

yeah.. but I can use the longspear also when I'm on foot.. the lance doesn't seem geared in that direction (at least, not in my mind, it doesn't seem to be that way according to the rules, as far as I can tell).
I'd rather not lug around a whole bunch of stuff when I can't use it.

[Necroticplague]

yeah.. but I can use the longspear also when I'm on foot.. the lance doesn't seem geared in that direction (at least, not in my mind, it doesn't seem to be that way according to the rules, as far as I can tell).
I'd rather not lug around a whole bunch of stuff when I can't use it.

There's nothing stopping you from using a lance while on foot. It becomes two-handed instead of one-handed, and lacks the charging bonus, but it still works perfectly fine. Unless you find yourself having to brace against a charge with great frequency, there's very little difference between a lance and a longspear while on foot. Both are 1d8 piercing two-handed reach weapons with a x3 crit modifier.

[AnimeTheCat]

There's nothing stopping you from using a lance while on foot. It becomes two-handed instead of one-handed, and lacks the charging bonus, but it still works perfectly fine. Unless you find yourself having to brace against a charge with great frequency, there's very little difference between a lance and a longspear while on foot. Both are 1d8 piercing two-handed reach weapons with a x3 crit modifier.

Piggybacking on this, a lance does not necessarily have to look like the ones used in jousting. A lighter weight, thinner, more manageable lance (that looks like a longspear) would probably do you and your character just fine.

[radthemad4]

yeah.. but I can use the longspear also when I'm on foot.. the lance doesn't seem geared in that direction (at least, not in my mind, it doesn't seem to be that way according to the rules, as far as I can tell).
I'd rather not lug around a whole bunch of stuff when I can't use it.

You can leave it in your horse's saddlebags (I'm guessing it'd just be held in there and be sticking out, not contained) and only equip it when you're riding it if you don't want to carry it around, though like the others said, you could also use the lance while on foot.

[dehro]

heh.. I've started to kit out the character... so far I've bought him a halbert and a flail for tripping, a sword, a lance a dagger and a longbow...

I think that if the horse doesn't run off with my gear (again), I'll be able to focus on having precisely the wrong weapon in hands at the wrong time.

[DEMON]

You can leave it in your horse's saddlebags (I'm guessing it'd just be held in there and be sticking out, not contained) and only equip it when you're riding it if you don't want to carry it around, though like the others said, you could also use the lance while on foot.

Anyone, who's seen how the Old Shatterhand stored his 2 rifles on the Hatatitla, should be familiar with the way you store an oversized weapon on your horse (hint: it does stick out).

[dehro]

Wow...That's a trip down memory lane...

[Kurald Galain]

Anyone, who's seen how the Old Shatterhand stored his 2 rifles on the Hatatitla, should be familiar with the way you store an oversized weapon on your horse (hint: it does stick out).

The who store his what on the where?

[dehro]

Hatatitla was Old Shatterhand's horse. Old Shatterhand had two rifles and would store one in his saddle bags.
Old Shatterhand being one of the 2 protagonists of the books written by Karl May, whilst the other one was the archetypal noble savage, Winnetou, chief of the Apache nation.
I read these books some 25 years ago, so this was a nice callback.

[DEMON]

The who store his what on the where?

I was wondering how many people here would get that reference. Though surely you know what a rifle is, right? That's the answer to the "what" part of your question

Hatatitla was Old Shatterhand's horse. Old Shatterhand had two rifles and would store one in his saddle bags.
Old Shatterhand being one of the 2 protagonists of the books written by Karl May, whilst the other one was the archetypal noble savage, Winnetou, chief of the Apache nation.
I read these books some 25 years ago, so this was a nice callback.

Couldn't have explained it better myself. The fact that the OP got the reference, makes this even better.

[Necroticplague]

I was wondering how many people here would get that reference. Though surely you know what a rifle is, right? That's the answer to the "what" part of your question

To be fair, 'rifle' is a term that includes anything from handguns to Schwerer Gustav, so isn't horribly specific.

[Mars Ultor]

If you have Improved Trip, BAB +2, and Str 15 you can take Knock Down which would allow you to trip every time you deal 10+ damage with any attack (including a sword or a lance) which is neat because it carries the effect of a free attack following a successful trip attempt.

Improved Trip lets you make an attack after a successful trip as if you had not used your attack for the trip attempt. If you made an attack using the Knock Down feat your attack was used to cause damage, then you got a free trip attempt as a result of the feat. Once your opponent is down you don't get an additional attack since you've already used your attack to cause the initial damage.

[DEMON]

To be fair, 'rifle' is a term that includes anything from handguns to Schwerer Gustav, so isn't horribly specific.

Huh? Are you sure about that? I'm not a native speaker, but it's my understanding that while a gun, or a firearm is a more general term, a rifle is... well, a rifle.