Multiple Attacks

[Redstone]

I want to make sure I am understanding the rules correctly:

As I understand the rules, the only way to get multiple attacks in a round is if your skill with that weapon is 101 or greater. So, lets say you have a skill of 82 with Pistol - energy, and you use a Blaster (base 15%), you have a combined skill of 97 and get one attack per round. If you pick up a Laser pistol (base 20%) you have a combined skill of 102 and can attack twice per round if you want to split up your percentage (ie 52% and 50%).

Now, lets say your thief has a combined skill of 80 with a dagger. He sneaks up successfully on a guard and makes his rear attack. According to the spot rules, this makes his attack an 'easy' attack, so he doubles his skill with that weapon, making it 160. Can he now make multiple attacks, if he wants to split his percentage?

[Al.]

I want to make sure I am understanding the rules correctly:

When you do, let the rest of us know will you

As I understand the rules, the only way to get multiple attacks in a round is if your skill with that weapon is 101 or greater.

I believe that this is correct for hand-to-hand fighting

So, lets say you have a skill of 82 with Pistol - energy, and you use a Blaster (base 15%), you have a combined skill of 97 and get one attack per round. If you pick up a Laser pistol (base 20%) you have a combined skill of 102 and can attack twice per round if you want to split up your percentage (ie 52% and 50%).

That sort of depends on how one does book keeping. I write down total skill (i.e. base and the skill points added) so I wouldn't add the base to it. As such I wouldn't have noticed the change in base when changing weapon. I'm pretty sure that using a different weapon with the same skill one doesn't bother modifying for base skill.

In theory this would mean that all us munchkin powergamers should build up Laspistol skill (to get maximum skill) and then switch to using Blasters (to get maximum damage).

If'n one thought it was important enough then weapons could have skill modifiers (i.e. Laser Pistol +5%) to indicate relative ease of use.

I've always forced players to split skill as evenly as possible and with a MINIMUM of 50% for each attack when making multiple attacks.

Now, lets say your thief has a combined skill of 80 with a dagger. He sneaks up successfully on a guard and makes his rear attack. According to the spot rules, this makes his attack an 'easy' attack, so he doubles his skill with that weapon, making it 160. Can he now make multiple attacks, if he wants to split his percentage?

I believe that one is only allowed multiple attacks against DIFFERENT targets in the same round.

This may not quite make sense to you. I rationalise it by remembering that an 'attack' in BRP has ALWAYS been a combination of moves not just a single thrust with one's blade (fnah fnah) so that one roll is simulating your cowardly, despicable backstabber's flurry of stabs. With such a high effective skill Mr C. Custard of course has a much better chance of a Special or Critical

All of the above may well be nonsense

Al

Edited August 26, 2009 by Al.

[Jason D]

As I understand the rules, the only way to get multiple attacks in a round is if your skill with that weapon is 101 or greater.

There's also volley fire, burst fire, etc.

So, lets say you have a skill of 82 with Pistol - energy, and you use a Blaster (base 15%), you have a combined skill of 97 and get one attack per round. If you pick up a Laser pistol (base 20%) you have a combined skill of 102 and can attack twice per round if you want to split up your percentage (ie 52% and 50%).

Usually the base chance is figured into your skill ranking, not as a floating bonus. The rules should be more clear on that, I suppose.

Given my druthers, I'd have switched all weapons over to bonuses rather than base skills.

Now, lets say your thief has a combined skill of 80 with a dagger. He sneaks up successfully on a guard and makes his rear attack. According to the spot rules, this makes his attack an 'easy' attack, so he doubles his skill with that weapon, making it 160. Can he now make multiple attacks, if he wants to split his percentage?

No. His modified chance is 160%, not his skill ranking. Similiarly, if a character has skill of 101% and has a Difficult chance to hit something (halving his or her skill), he or she is still able to split attacks, but will be splitting the a 51% (101%/2, rounded up).

[Charles Green]

Remember also that combat rounds are 12 seconds long, and that each roll of the dice might actually cover more than a single shot in game terms.

[Redstone]

There's also volley fire, burst fire, etc.

Usually the base chance is figured into your skill ranking, not as a floating bonus. The rules should be more clear on that, I suppose.

Given my druthers, I'd have switched all weapons over to bonuses rather than base skills.

No. His modified chance is 160%, not his skill ranking. Similiarly, if a character has skill of 101% and has a Difficult chance to hit something (halving his or her skill), he or she is still able to split attacks, but will be splitting the a 51% (101%/2, rounded up).

Thanks Jason for clearing up the easy/difficult issue. That makes sense to me.

However, I am a little confused by your comment about the base chance being figured into your skill ranking. Is that not how it is supposed to work? You spend your points to buy a skill in a specific class of weapon, such as pistol-energy, and then you add the base chance to it?

I also have a question about rates of fire. For example, a light pistol has an Attack per round rating of 3. Does that mean anyone can fire 3 shots in a round? Or is that only if you have a skill rating of at least 150? And if that is the case, if you have a melee weapon with an Attk/rd of 1, are you limited to 1 attack per round, regardless of your skill?

After your comment about the volley fire, I went back and reread the rule, and I am still confused. If you use volley fire, are you still limited to the Attk/rd as stated in the equipment list? Or are you only limited by your DEX Rank? In other words, if your DEX rank starts at 18 could you fire 4 times as a difficult skill check (DEX ranks 18,13,8,3)?

[cjbowser]

However, I am a little confused by your comment about the base chance being figured into your skill ranking. Is that not how it is supposed to work? You spend your points to buy a skill in a specific class of weapon, such as pistol-energy, and then you add the base chance to it?

I track the weapons skill separately, using the granular rules described on page 258. Players can have different skill levels in different, but similar weapons which are tracked separately and accumulate experience separately.

Think of it this way...

Blaster has a 15% base.

Laser has a 20% base.

At character creation, you decide to put 100 points into those two skills, split 50/50

Blaster becomes 65%

Laser becomes 70%

Later in the game, you use the laser and get an experience check. You succeed at the check and gain 6 points.

Blaster stays at 65%

Laser becomes 76%

If I used Weapon Classes, which it looks like you're doing, I'd decide on a base skill for Pistols, Energy and add skill points to that instead of whatever is listed for each individual pistol. Then, regardless of whichever type of Energy Pistol my character picked up, he'd have the same rating.

[Amra]

I track the weapons skill separately, using the granular rules described on page 258. Players can have different skill levels in different, but similar weapons which are tracked separately and accumulate experience separately.

Think of it this way...

Blaster has a 15% base.

Laser has a 20% base.

At character creation, you decide to put 100 points into those two skills, split 50/50

Blaster becomes 65%

Laser becomes 70%

Later in the game, you use the laser and get an experience check. You succeed at the check and gain 6 points.

Blaster stays at 65%

Laser becomes 76%

If I used Weapon Classes, which it looks like you're doing, I'd decide on a base skill for Pistols, Energy and add skill points to that instead of whatever is listed for each individual pistol. Then, regardless of whichever type of Energy Pistol my character picked up, he'd have the same rating.

This is how I would do it too.