Custom Rule Question

[Lloyd Dupont]

I am writing my custom scifi setting along with my own custom rules, so far so good...

I am currently editing the weapon table and combat section. I did change combat effects a bit as well... but this is not the topic at hand...

I am also thinking to tweak and differentiate parry/evade as follow:
- Evade evade all damage but give you a disadvantage on your next attack and also automatically fail closing distance movement.
- Whereas parry only parry a given amount of damage (depending in the parry device), but has no further special effect.

Now I wonder.. In the old times parry used to work like that I believe, but then the mechanic was changed into parry all damage. I wonder what was the problem that lead to that change?
I suspect that it was just evade being too good by comparison, was it?

Which is no longer the case with my tweaks....

 

Also... any place I can the parry values that were used before?
Never mind, it's just max weapon damage, save for shield of course...

Edited November 3, 2020 by Lloyd Dupont

[Atgxtg]

The history of it goes back to RuneQuest.

 

Originally there way no dodge or evade, instead characters had a defense score, which was subtracted from the opponent's attack skill. Back then Parry would stop a certain amount of damage, based upon the parrying weapon of shield. Shields would typically stop about 12 points per attack, and weapons could stop of to their hit points but would break once thier hit points ran out. Special and Crtical successes would stop more and/or avoid weapon damage. 

The Stormbringer came out. It added a new Dodge skill, which could be used to avoid an attack, but at the cost of other actions. In addtuion Strombringer altered parries so that they stopped all damage, and mostly eliminated weapon breakage.

Then Runequest 3 came out and changed dodge so that it could be done in place of an attack or parry, and replaced the weapon hit points with armor points, making most weapons a bit more durable than they used to be, while still potentially breaking.

Since that time the rules have been tweaked a bit with other games, depending upon the choice of the various authors, and their preferences. The changes mostly came down to how people felt about tracking weapon damage and if they preferred the RuneQuest game mechanics to the more simplified ones presented in Stormbinger, Worlds of Wonder, or some such. Each version has it's own merits and drawbacks. 

 

Oh, and to be a bit more realistic for a moment, the typical RQ parry is really more of a block than a parry. That is,  it sticks an object in the path of the attack to soak damage, rather than trying to deflect the attack and create an opening for a counter attack. Usually an actual parry is better, but harder to pull off, while blocking is pretty easy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Lloyd Dupont]

Thanks for the history lesson...  

With that insight I think I can give a go to my idea without much worry...

As for damage reduction values: I decided to use the weapon damage as a guideline, minus a little if I deemed the weapon not very good at parrying...

Edited November 3, 2020 by Lloyd Dupont

[g33k]

Here's an additional notion for you, @Lloyd Dupont - give (the better of) STR-bonus or DEX-bonus on blocking/parrying damage.  Strong people throw HARD blocks, deft people throw subtle, effective parries.

FWIW

Edited November 3, 2020 by g33k

[Atgxtg]

44 minutes ago, Lloyd Dupont said:

Thanks for the history lesson...  

I always favored the RQ3 AP ratings for blocking. They seemed to be the best of the pack. But then I've also played with the idea of making blocking and parrying two different things. 

44 minutes ago, Lloyd Dupont said:

With that insight I think I can give a go to my idea without much worry...

As for damage reduction values: I decided to use the weapon damage as a guideline, minus a little if I deemed the weapon not very good at parrying...

I'd strongly suggest factoring in success level (or whatever variation of it you use) into the equation, and going with a  fixed value rather than a die roll. Otherwise parrying becomes too unreliable. It's similar to how the random armor method isn't all that great- a wide linear distribution, with the average damage being about half of the fixed value leads to armor not being much of a factor.

If an average parry can't stop an average attack, then people will look to some other defense. 

 

[Lloyd Dupont]

7 hours ago, Atgxtg said:

I'd strongly suggest factoring in success level (or whatever variation of it you use) into the equation, and going with a  fixed value rather than a die roll. Otherwise parrying becomes too unreliable. It's similar to how the random armor method isn't all that great- a wide linear distribution, with the average damage being about half of the fixed value leads to armor not being much of a factor.

If an average parry can't stop an average attack, then people will look to some other defense. 

don't you worry, with damage reduction value of 8 for a broad sword or 6 for a mace (or even 20 for an energy sword, if it's your thing!), I think we fine!
and I am going, as suggested, to add a parry bonus as a function of damage bonus. Me think along the lines of: D4 => 3, nD6 => n x4 

 

Fun fact I realised that in the right environment, i.e. outdoor and heart of city, or in a spaceship, a tech level 15+ fighter can "teleport at will" (directing the urban teleport network with his brain implant), and with the efficacy of level 15 energy field, one might see a resurgence of (energy) sword fighting!  
I probably give them a "skill" chance of success each round, due to network congestion.

Anyway, this will be a (bad) surprise for my players, should they chose to attack some Psilon fighter ship, their tech is not there yet! 😛 

Edited November 4, 2020 by Lloyd Dupont