Fighteringismness

Print PDF Scrap Book ideas about Fighters I can't satisfying congeal into something so posting here for others to chew on.

SO if you are playing a rpg with a range of fighting techniques , schticks , feats , etc an idea more or less ripped from Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is that you learn from using a certain weapon for a length of time. Like you want to learn "flurry", use a dagger for a bit. "Overwatch?" use a spear. I would recommend having every absurd variation of weapon having a technique from it. So fighters would be changing from tulwars to falchions to naval sabres and chasing after obscure outlandish weaponary.

You would need a nice list of abilities to assign to the weapons, unless you would be happy having all a fighters mechanic bonuses be earned from this. Which sounds wack to me.

Like NeoClassicalGeekRivival, 3rd edition , 4th edition  , pathfinder, style power lists. Shit you could just use spells as your guide line. Might be too final fantasy for tastes though.
I mean this whole thing makes little sense. Its just an idea to make fighters be constantly using different weapons.

I'm not a fan of feats/schticks/powers that give a straight bonus to something or that would be hard to distinguish from general class advancement. Like I think a good rule of thumb with feats/schticks/attitude tacos is that could you easily deduce which of these  a character would have in a novel from their description of them in action?

How much time would it take learn something from each weapon?

Well saying every X amount of exp earned with a weapon would be an idea but as the exp table goes crazy as it goes up this would be hard to work. Unless you did it as percentage of exp earned which is fiddly or had a fixed exp per level system.

So this is where I got stuck, I couldn't think of way of tracking the advancement I liked or a list of combat abilities that I felt were up to scratch. I was tinkering around with on for a while, before I realized that I had no current need for them. I might post it up some time, it's mostly stolen and modded from else where

 Which is totally that scenario  where you start making the perfect ruleset for you to play in and you realize you will have to be the d.m and your players are happy with other things anyway so who are you making it for anyway?

 Also my tastes is broadening and changing.
I'm enjoying playing "I barely survive with my meager talents" characters far more than I thought I would.
That's not to stay I don't love Big Red Button characters.
Which is where you have this one thing that you know is going to fuck shit up when activated. I love that.


The other thing I was tinker around with is having fighters being able to choose a fighting style and this determines what stat you use the modifier from to hit with. I then thought it would be cool to have a damage advantage thing for each style but
the conditions for when you get a damage reroll that I have written are too vague.
 There were additionally powers for levels 10 but they were kinda wack so have only included the level 5 power as curiosity
I will come back to this I think.  I really like fighters being able to use stats other than strength to hit with , even / especially when it doesn't always make a lot of sense.

FIGHTING STYLES:
(most effective means you get to roll any damage you do twice and take the best roll). Should come up at least a 3rd of the  time unless the player takes special pains to make it so.

Audacious : when your attack is sudden, and seizing a momentary advantage you are at your most effective. Use your intelligence modifier to hit. At level 5 you may reroll you initiative once a combat per intelligence modifier

Grace: When you have room to move and control the flow of the battle you are at your most effective. Use your dexterity modifer to hit. At level 5 add your dexterity modifer to your move.

Patient: When you have exercised caution , and sized up your opponent first, you are at your most effective. Use your constitution modifier to hit. At level 5 you may ignore any fumbles (just count as miss) a number of times in a combat = constitution


Insightful: When knowledge of your foe guides your blow you are at your most effective. Use your wisdom modifier to hit. At level 5 every time you miss you get +1 to hit on the next attack against that opponent. If you keep missing it stacks up to a maximum of your wisdom modifier.

Brutal: When you give no quarter, and relentlessly press your foe, grim , and inexorable you are at your most effective.
Use your strength modifer to hit. At level 5 increase the die damage size of any weapon you use by one.

Bamboozle: When you confuse, bluff, intimidate , fluster and hustle you foe, using wit over crude strength, this is when you are at your most effective. Use your charisma modifier to hit. At level 5 any intelligent foe that understands you language and fails a savvy check against you has their fumble chance increased by your charisma modifier.



Also that diet stunt die mechanic I posted about could be grafted to this stat based fighting style

SO Brutal means you can add that die to damage and to hit
Audacious means you can add it to initiative (and/or or stat checks for stunts??) and to hit
Grace means you can add it to armour class  (and/or movement rate??) and to hit
Patient means you can reduce one attacks damage and to hit
Insightful means you can add it to hit and use it to bypass damage reduction
Bamboozle: means you add it to hit and the fumble range of one attack of an opponent.


AND THAT WAS THE STORY OF THE LOOSE ENDS.

ALso this blog is riding with Tiamat now, vaguely as reference to this comic but more a reference to Tiamat:
http://the-toast.net/2013/08/05/a-cartoon-about-sports/

Because  I think that comic illustrates stuff about game design and people blithely not understanding why other people play games.

House Rule Mixtape: Featuring Climbing on The Biggerest, Organ Damage and more

Print PDF  (re)MUXTUPE: rules old and new, fixed, remixed or repeated
 1
.SCaling MOnsters With Violent Intents
I keep getting track backs about the climbing on big monsters rules. And I'm like "man those, what was I thinking? Why do I think additionally mechanics are a good idea? Also damage reduction , while stimulatitionistly appropriate , in actual game play I have been hating. Wait what did I just think? "Stimulationistly" buuu.."
Also Monster Johnston makes some of that sense with skeletons and getting bonuses is more fun than avoiding penalties. Also the Zak Smith version that was +1 to hit and damage for every round of climbing. But I think that giving up an attack is worth more than +1 so:
                     PRINCESS CLIMBING ON RULES REVISED:
ignore all that damage reduction noise. You get +1 to hit and +5 to damage for every round you spend climbing up on something. ( up to a maximum of 1 round per 2 hit dice. OR something )The climbed-on can take an attack or move action to make you make a dexterity check (it's trying to flick you off) or a strength check (it's trying to shake you off) if you fail you lose a round of climbing and have to make another check. If you fail that you fall off. Initiating climbing with an attack I guess if the creature is paying attention to you (ie actively targeting you for attacks) or a climb check if it's not.




                    The cool thing about this is it works for small creatures climbing on the players. If that pixie spend 3 rounds climbing up to the fighters face , it will get +15 to damage.


ARMOUR PIERCING: 2
An idea for making the interactions between armour and anti armour weapons more impactful in game. Rolling a critical means also a roll on a injury table..
 Unless
you are using "non-lethal attacks", ie punchs and kicks.

 you are heavily armoured (full chain and better). However Maces , lucern hammers, and horsemans picks ignore this and can inflict injury table results on critical hits.


 HUMAN3: WHAT ARE THEY NOT GOOD AT HUH?
So you want a drawback to being human  so you can make all the race modifers One good Thing , One Bad thing. Humans, They just haven't had time to adapt to all this magic floating around. Their bodies just aren't meant for it. If a human being is subject to 3 ongoing magic effects at once they must con save or develop a random mutation.

[4]
 CHASE MECHANIC  
this is still good.


BOWELCHMY:      (5)
 Buried in a long post with old school hack classes, emerge into the light, strange child;
Bowelchemy : You drink all kinds of bizarre stuff and bizarrer stuff happens, for your body is a laboratory, a temple, a brothel, a kitchen and a battle ground. Anything you drink, other than water, evokes strange reactions.
Water no longer counts as water if it has more than 5% of something added to it, unless that thing has a noticeable effect on biological stuff. So water with a drop of poison would need a roll on the table, but water with a drop of lemon juice would not. A glass of water with a tenth of juice in it would however.

You can open throat scull up to 3 litres in one go. Lets say that's about 20 cups.
 
The normal effects of the liquid do not apply , unless they are instantly dangerous to touch (like the strongest of poisons, molten metals, boiling water or strong acids). 

What happens is you flip a coin to choose if you or the d.m picks a verb. In either case the d.m has to determine what mechanical effect that verb has. Say you pick "fly" , the d.m will most likely let you fly briefly , (roll a d6 to determine how many rounds the duration is), "burn" might make you catch fire, "suddenly" might give you an initiative bonus, or make a random monster attack, suddenly.
IF you drink 2 liquids at once, you pick a verb and the d.m picks a noun. (so "Shining Dogs") If you drink 3 liquids at once , you pick a verb, the d.m picks a noun and a random other player picks an adjective. ("Hurt Ghostly Pudding")
 
        6666 ----->  SHIT, CAN THEY BUY THAT?<---------------
1. no, but they can buy this dangerous unstable version
2.yes, but its stolen and the owner has a fix on its location
3.yeah but that was last seen boarding themselves up in a haunted tower
4.no , but this guy will try and scam them
5.no, but this guy will try and scam them OH WAIT actually yes , it does work, surprise to everyone , the guy running the con will try and get it back
6. Sure , but it will become bonded to you. It breaks , so do you
7.yes , but the seller wants to borrow your body for a week
8. Yes, at the No-Moon market, under the ruined bridge, accessible only with dire patronage
9.No, but this guy reckons they can make one, if funded adequately
10. Yes, but sometimes it does the exact opposite.
11. Yes but it requires dark feedings
12.No , and asking about such a thing has set 1d4 cults/ inquisitions after you.

                         7EVEN
                      all purpose encounter table
1. A typical member of the nearest settlement
2. An atypical member of the nearest settlement
3. Medium sized herbivore(s), the base of a healthy food chain
4. Scavenger
5.Predator
6. Apex Predator
7. The thing that sucks about this area happens (sandstorm, blizzard, knife storm)
8. Something actually good about this area is found


             8              
QUICK CRITICALS:
Roll differently coloured d6. One of them the severity: 1. graze  2-3 gash 4-5 broken 6 gone
 Other one 1 head 2 torso 3 leg (right) 4 leg (left) 5 arm (right) 6 arm (left).

                                 NINEQuick Fumbles: 2 dice , d6 and a d4
1.You                                   1 Drop
2.them (friend)                   2 Flung (at)
3.them (foe)                       3 Target
4. Object (held)                  4  Entangle
5. Object (equipped)            
6. Surroundings                     

Climbing on things and stabbing them in their stupid face

Print PDF Fighting big creatures. What is really cool is people whaling away at a dragons ankles until it explodes an hour later,  occasionally falling over on the spot  because it hit you too much and someone touches you with glowing blue hands and you get back up again.
Okay that was sarcasm and hyperbole. But yeah what do when the players wanna climb on some big ass monster and stab it in its stupid face.

Like examples from media are pretty endless. SO I've been trying to think up a nice general system (more for if the players are like tiny animals trying to kill a dog or goose or something, but that's a whole other thing)
to handle this.

Some general notes about making sub-systems :

a)Climbing on stuff larger than you is absolutely stupid in real life, so lets forget about trying to accurately model that. Instead, what do you need to account (ie people can or can't left up t-rexs? can or can't survive been kicked in the face by t-rexs?) for in your game, as not to max out the acceptable bullshit for fun quota in your game? Model that.

b)you can make up rules for anything on the spot, and trying to have a rule for everything is counter productive because then you have to look said rules up. Unless you have/are a Mentat.
(
In that case, say hello to Agent Dale Cooper for me and tell him to LISTEN TO THE FUCKING GIANT FOR FUCKS SAKE!!
)
So if you are using/considering making a subsystem you gotta think how much does this come up? and is there enough generalities in the situations to make a subsystem around them and is it going to be fun to have one? More or less fun than just ruling based on player skill on the spot?

Say haggling. Let's say you want it to come up a lot in your games because its a Heathens & Hovels setting and you think it adds a touch of authenticity to the whole thing.

And lets say it's not fun (or not fun all the time) for you and the player to ham it up at each other spruiking the miraculous properties of this chicken vs the hunger of their 17 limbless children etc etc.
And you want something that has choices involved, because choices are what make the whole thing fun, rather than roll a charisma check boom it costs this much thing.
THen you should have a subsystem! weeeee.

c)Trying to make a subsystem do all the work for you is futile. As in it's still gonna to need you to make rulings on the spot and players to think up cool things to do that just activating shit on their character sheet. Trying to make it do all the work is MADNESS. As in early grappling rules. As in; trying to work out if its easier or harder to put a centaur or drider in headlock blah blah oh shit its an extensive modifier table. And no-one likes them. NO-ONE.*
So instead treat the subsystem like a general framework ad hoc system to refer back to or build upon as needed, and use the groups interpretation of the circumstances as your guide rather than trying to get the circumstances to fit the subsystem.


Okay that was over-long.

Anyway this subsystem " Scale the Bastard " builds on my homebrewed rules with size coming with built in damage resistance. (and much lower hit points for big creatures)
And by climbing onto the creature you can bypass some or all of that damage resistance depending on much effort you are willing to spend climbing to a good position.

If you do not have damage resistance for large creatures, instead you could use a straight damage bonus for better positions, or improved critical chances or what have you.

For purposes of this subsystem ( " Scale the Bastard" ) the size categories are
Player character size (from halfling to horse)
Large (a really big bear) 5 points of Damage Resistance
Huge (elephants)            10 points of Damage Resistance
Massive (dinosaur)         15 points of Damage Resistance
Colossal (blue whale, super dinosaur) 20 points of Damage Resistance
Titanic (lesser Godzillas) 25 points of Damage Resistance
etc.

We are ignoring tiny creatures because what ever, like they are going to have one or 2 hit points any way. And if you want to use this system for gremlins climbing on people have them do like +5 damage if they can get a chance to get to the face or neck or something.

First things , starting the climb. This is a dex/strength
/climbing check. YOu need to be way too close to the creature first,  so you go last in the initiative (or draw an attack of opportunity or whatever) and if it hits you in the round then you can't make the attempt.
SO distract the creature or sneak up on it or whatever.

Once you are on it , congratulations! You are hanging of its side , clinging to it's ankle or whatever. This is called a 1st position. Attacking from here means you get to shave 5 points of that damage resistance! If it's a large creature, that probably  means you are now sitting on its shoulders stabbing it in the face. It's damage resistance is zero, and there is no where left to climb.
If it's a huge creature, you are most likely hanging off its side, and while you get a better shot at its kidneys or gaps in the scales, it still has 5 points of damage resistance left.
So you keep climbing and (if successful) you reach its head (a second position) and can stab it with no damage resistance what so ever!

Basically each time you spend a round climbing you move up a position and shave off 5 points of damage resistances. So while something large (a kodiak bear or ubergorilla) has only one position , a lesser Godzilla has 5.

This is very general and very abstract and is meant only as guide. If the  beast the character is fighting has weak knees, let them get them advantage only half way up (and they say they are going for the knees). If the characters jump onto it from a 3rd storey building, wahey let them start at the 4th position or whatever.

If they are going for its eyes or something, assume you can trade damage for maiming. So instead of doing damage the creature is now blind. Shouldn't blinding do hitpoint damage? YEs but hitpoints maaan they are more like "hit points" and shut up.

Okay so every round you are on the creature you can do one of these things:

Attack! Attack that thing! Show it who's the biggest slice of cheese in the dales!:
You attack bypasses its damage resistance for 5 points per point of position. If it tries to get rid of you , you are at -4 to the resulting stat check though.

Advance! hand over hand up its filth encrusted shaggy hide!:
At the end of this round you increase your position by one

Scramble! It can't catch you, you are an audacious wind! Har HAA!: Like advancing but you are not trying to get anywhere in particular, just scrambling all over it so it can't get a fix on where you are .

This gives you +2 bonus to any stat checks to remain on if the creature tries and scrape you off or rolling on you, and you may use your dex instead of strength if it tries to shake you off.

Hold ON! For dear , sweet,  capricious life, hold on!: You have found a particular firm matted clump of hair or scaly ridge and have braced your self. You can attack (bypassing any damage resistance as per your position) as well as do this but either at -4 to the attack roll or -4 to any stat check to remain on or some other arrangement of that 4 point penalty. You also get -4 to the dex check to avoid taking damage from a roll or a scrape.

MEANWHILE the beast can try and dislodge you ! yes you impudent flea!
This is generally instead of it being able to attack someone else.

Shaking you off: means that you have to make strength check or fall off! Falling damage as per normal.
If you fumble that strength check it means you are flung off! Double the distance you were at before the flinging to determine how much fall damage you take, and roll a scatter diagram to determine direction.
 If you are falling off (not flung off) you can make a dex check and grab on a couple of positions lower (1d3 maybe? Or base it on how much they succeed the dex check by).

Swatting at you: it tries to attack you as per normal. BUT you get a bonus to your a.c of +1 per position , or +2 per position if you are taking the scramble action. Ha ha! It can choose to do damage as normal or do half damage and make you do a strength or dex check or fall off. If gets a natural 20 you are flung off. If it fumbles or misses by 5 or more , it inflicts damage on itself, bypassing  damage resistance as per your current position.

Scraping: it either scrapes itself against a nearby wall or scratches itself like a dog with it's hind leg.
You need to make a dex check (with +2 if you took the scramble action, -4 if you took the attack or hold on action) or take 1d4 per total positions the creature has (ie 1d4 for large, 5d4 for titanic) and then make a strength check (with bonuses if you are holding on) or fall off

Rolling: the creature proceed to roll over and over trying to squish you like the pest you are. This takes a round to begin (giving you effectively one free round) but each round it maintains you can either choose to make a dex check (failure results in a 1d10 damage per total positions of the creature, ie 1d10 for large, 5d10 for titanic) or drop down a position. If you are on position 1 you are now on the ground. The creature may be limited by the terrain in how far it can roll and can't do anything else while rolling. Is prone if that matters for something the size of a building.
If you make attack actions while on it you are nuts but get to add half of any crushing damage you take to the damage you do.




I feel a well constructed table could of made that so much more clear, but my attempts to do so were sadly lacking. IF you know your players are going up against a MASSIVE BASTARD you could make yourself a map of said MASSIVE BASTARD with the different damage resistances for different areas and situational modifiers/mini challenges for hanging onto to its poo dreads vs clambering up its scaly legs. Also giving the players the chance to research vulnerable areas on the creature or spots that it cannot reach you if you are so placed.
Like I said earlier use these rules as guideline , modify heavily for circumstance and player plan and make sure there's a firm understanding between you and your players about what the bullshit quota is.

Think the creature taking the roll action might be the best for it all the time, so maybe that needs be limited by having enough room or something,

EDIT:
sleek snake panther version here:
http://dndwithpornstars.blogspot.co.nz/?zx=47577a72ce0ffd02