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Merudo

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Posts posted by Merudo

  1. 1 hour ago, klecser said:

    I think it is important to always emphasize for role-playing game players that rules are guidelines. They are not definitive solutions to every problem that arises. I'm concerned that rules-heavy games have trained role-players to believe that any situation can/should be arbitrated by unequivocal rules.

    We are not talking about an unusual or rare scenario here: an investigator equipped with a firearm is attacked by a monster. This happens all the time in Call of Cthulhu.

    The fact that the rules are unclear about whether or not the investigator should get a penalty die is disappointing.

    1 hour ago, klecser said:

    I promise anyone that your games will be better if you focus on the fun and the story-telling. 

    To paraphrase Sid Meier, “a good game is a series of interesting decisions”. When there is ambiguity or uncertainty regarding the rules, the results of decisions become more arbitrary (GM fiat) and thus less interesting. Hence, easily remembered, explicit rules are more fun than ambiguous or not defined rules.

  2. On 6/26/2019 at 12:20 PM, Mike M said:

    Ok - yes apply the penalty for firing in melee (the rule assumes you are outside of the melee, but when in melee yourself, firing a gun is going to be with at least one penalty - try aiming while moving and weaving to stop being hit by your attacker). Again, context is king - are you firing as you enter melee (i.e. you haven't entered melee until the monster attacks you), or has the monster attacked you and you are then firing on your turn (definite penalty die if the Keeper even allows you to fire).

     

    Mike, when you are giving your thoughts on the rules, are you sharing your own house rules? Or are you an official authority on the matter?

    I've noticed some of what you said here and on Reddit goes against what is written in the rulebook. For example, you said that a lone gunman firing at a monster that's been attacking them should take a penalty die for "firing into melee". This however goes against example on page 115 of the Keeper's Guide, in which Harvey shoots a dog-like monster without taking a penalty dice for firing into melee, even though the monster previously attacked him with its clawed forelimbs.

    Does this mean the Keeper's Guide is incorrect and in need of an errata? Or are you advocating for house rules different from the official Call of Cthulhu rules?
     

  3. To add to the confusion, the Keeper Screen shows the current text under the "Firearms" section:

    "Target may Dive for Cover (Dodge) but cannot Fight Back unless they are within 1/5 DEX in feet."

    So, it does seem it is possible to Fight Back against Firearms - if the attacker is within 1/5 DEX in feet.

  4. Was there an errata to the chase rules? I remember the pursuers being 1-2 locations behind the fleeing characters - but now all characters are ordered by MOV, with the slowest fleeing character always two locations ahead of the faster pursuer.

  5. On 7/8/2019 at 5:02 PM, tpkthulhu said:

    0. Why? It's very little fun to play battledoors. No one wants to go three rounds with a door because of bad rolls. Make one skill check, make it funny of they roll bad, and get them through the door and into the game. If there's a reason a door is extra strong, make that part of the narrative in a fun way.

    In the next one-off I'll run, my investigators will most likely barricade some doors to stop a rampaging zombie horde (plus a demon). 

    If it makes sense I might give the door HPs, to determine how long the door lasts.

    • Like 2
  6. Do Mythos Monsters & other supernatural creatures take Major Wounds?

    I noticed two monsters make explicit use of Major Wounds (the zombie & the werewolf). What about the rest?

    A critical hit with a shotgun can do 24 damage, which is over the Major Wound limit of most monsters. Should they fall prone, and/or have a chance to become unconscious?

  7. Thank you for your answers, MikeThey are really helpful!

    8 hours ago, Mike M said:

    p103 - deals with melee fights (not firearms) - in melee, firing a gun is problematic (you are unable to take aim and shoot wildly while defending against the opponent's assault against you - because use of a firearm in melee is likely to miss, hit your opponent, or hit yourself - in equal measure).

    If engaged in melee, a firearm is more useful as a cudgel/club to fend off/knock back the attacker, get some space (move away), and then fire on a later round.

    You may fire (and/or be shot at) before entering melee (on your action) - you may gain Point-Blank bonus (see below) in doing so, but once you have engaged in melee, your firearm is far more useful as a lump of heavy metal (you cannot fire it as a 'Fight Back' reaction). You might (if the Keeper allows) disengage from melee (Dodge roll and move back), allowing you to shoot on the next round on your action (this would presume a wild shot with no aiming, imposing a penalty die).

    So if use a firearm and a creature attacks you in melee, you get a penalty dice on your turn for Firing into melee combat?

    That would clear things up - the description of the rule on page 116 makes it sound like you only get the penalty if you shot at a target engaged in melee with a friendly.

    And wouldn't the Point-Blank Bonus offsets the disadvantage of firing into melee, too? Or do you not get that bonus dice when firing into melee?

    8 hours ago, Mike M said:

    Half Damage Bonus - halve the roll (1D4 becomes 1D2, 1D6 becomes 1D3). In CoC, you always round down. For negative DB, -1 becomes 0 (there are no fractions) - or just keep it the same (it makes little difference).

    I have a similar question regarding the Pipe Bomb.

    The Pipe Bomb does 1d10 damage within 3 yards, half that damage within 6 yards, and a quarter of that within 9 yards.

    Does this mean the Pipe Bomb does 1d5 within 6 yards and 1d2 within 9 yards? Or do I roll the dice and divide the damage manually?

    EDIT: I also found this Q&A with you for more details!

  8. On 8/11/2018 at 8:11 AM, klecser said:

    Relevant rules are on page 104 and 113 Keeper's Handbook.  At 1/5 Dex in feet you can attempt a fighting maneuver on your turn to attempt to disarm.

    Note that Fighting Maneuver and Fight Back are different.  Fight Back is only an option when the attacker is using a melee skill. Fighting maneuvers only happen on your turn.  Against Firearms, Diving for Cover is your only "reaction" option on the attacker's turn.

    Getting shot at can suck in CoC. 

    Some more discussion, perhaps not directly at your specific question, but worth reading for this general area:

    https://www.yog-sothoth.com/forums/topic/30382-fighting-back-with-firearms/

    What about page 108 of the Keeper's Handbook?
     

    Quote

    A character may not choose the option of fighting back against a ranged (missile) or thrown weapon attack unless he or she is already within close physical proximity to the attacker (within a fifth of their DEX in feet).


    Doesn't this imply you can fight back against firearms if the shooter is within 1/5 of your DEX in feet?

  9. The Keeper's Guide, page 125 list the values of some armor.

    Interestingly, the U.S. helmet provides 5 points of armor, and the Military Body Armor provides 12 points of armor.

    Does this mean that someone wearing both would get 17 points of armor?

    With so much armor it seems most Mythos Creatures could only scratch the investigators. Or am I reading the rules wrong?

     

  10. I appreciate the concept of Build in CoC7 (combination of Size & Strength) as it makes sense for maneuvers: in general, a strong and heavy person will be harder to push than a similarly strong yet skinny person.

    However, it makes no sense for the Build of a creature to affect how easily it is to shoot it.

    According to the manual, if the target is Build -2 or smaller, one penalty die needs to be applied to the shooting skill. If the target is Build 4 or more, one bonus die is applied instead.

    This is absolutely illogical. If two targets are of identical size, it shouldn't be easier to shoot one just because it has more Strength. As it is, a strong dwarf is easier to shoot than a weakling dwarf of the exact same size!

    Typically this weird quirk of CoC7 has admittedly low impact on play, as Strength & Size tend to correlate & investigators generally can't be of Size -2 or 4+. However, the rule fails spectacularly when dealing with small creatures of supernatural strength (think Chucky from Child's Play), in which case said creature may have Build 0, even though it is quite small!

    Hence, I decided to change the rules to the following:

    "When shooting at a creature with a size of 32 or less, a penalty die is applied. When shooting at a creature with a size 143 or more, a bonus die is applied."

    The modified rule should produce the same result as the official rule when Strength and Size are the same, but may give different results if Strength and Size are very different. This should make it more intuitive for your Keeper to add murdering dolls to your game.

    You're welcome.

    • Like 1
  11. Is there any adventure or supplement out there that provides rules for winter sports (skiing, snowmobile, snowshoes, etc)?

    I'm going to be running an adventure taking place during a snow storm and I was wondering what rules I could adopt.

    I know "Cold Warning" has a Driving Mishap Table for driving under snowy roads & a Frostbite Table, but beside that I don't really know any scenario that provides rules for dealing with ice and snow.

  12. 5 hours ago, klecser said:

    I think you solve your own concern.  :)  And I think it is worth noting that the intention of the CON check is to determine if an unplanned chase should happen, in case it has the potential to bog down a game.  The CON mechanic does not prevent a Keeper from saying:  a Chase is part of the natural story-telling of this section and it is happening. Is that railroading? Maybe.  Telling a story is a balance of player agency (very important) and aspects of the narrative that just make sense.

    My main concern is that it's almost impossible to have a well-balanced chase with such a swingy Speed Roll (CON roll). For example, if a Move 8 PC chases a Move 8 cultist, you could end up with the cultist having three times as many actions per turn as the PC, or the PC having three times as many actions as the cultist...

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