FIrst combat and a question or two.

[Kaleb7]

So we ran through a quick combat demo last night, 4 characters (the ones I posted in the NPC thread) vs one minotaur... Surely an easy fight

- Do not nickel & dime a minotaur with damage. One character threw a knife, and managed to inflict 2 points of damage. This set the 'berserk' condition for the minotaur and 'bad things' began to happen.

- The only real spellcaster had 'Agony' queued to go off in the next round, however since the minotaur was berserk and immune to immobilization and the like, I ruled Agony would have no impact. (Correct?)

- Our minor noble had cast Sorceror's Armor on himself. However as we was attempting to dodge into range where he could use his broadsword (to get by the Great Axe), I rolled a crit for the minotaur... Who was berserk... (On the plus side there was no need to consult the major wounds table as his armor and spell absorbed 4 out of 28hp of damage and he had 9 total. )

- The two handed weapon fighter we had was also on the receiving side of a crit, managed to crit with a parry, but the minotaur managed to smash through his warhammer and inflict some damage. (Thus teaching us that multiple weapons and weapon skills are vital...)

- By this time the spellcaster and the knife thrower from earlier had begun working on shuffling away quietly, leaving our now disarmed fighter to the tender mercy of a raging minotaur.

So one thing we were unclear about with regards to parry:

- Each successive parry we incur a %30 penalty.

- If I am using two weapons, or a sword and a shield, can I alternate? (ie if I parry once with a shield, I would be at -%30 for shield parry, but full percentage for parrying with the weapon in my other hand.)

[frogspawner]

How very unpleasant.... Nice! (Sorry, can't help with the rules, but thanks for sharing).

[NickMiddleton]

I think you made the right call regarding Agony vs the Minotaur's berserk condition. Albeit, the description of that, plus its 2D6 damage bonus are pretty strong indicators that no fight with one was going to be "easy".

...

So one thing we were unclear about with regards to parry:

- Each successive parry we incur a %30 penalty.

- If I am using two weapons, or a sword and a shield, can I alternate? (ie if I parry once with a shield, I would be at -%30 for shield parry, but full percentage for parrying with the weapon in my other hand.)

You can alternate what you parry with - but the penalty is cumulative per defence taken in the round, NOT against each specific item. So if you have parried with one object, the next defence is at -30, whether its a parry with the same object, an object in the other hand or a dodge...

Cheers,

Nick

[1000buffalo]

You can alternate what you parry with - but the penalty is cumulative per defence taken in the round, NOT against each specific item. So if you have parried with one object, the next defence is at -30, whether its a parry with the same object, an object in the other hand or a dodge...

For clarity, the following defense in the same round (the third) would be a -60, right?

[soltakss]

Minotaurs are fun, especially when 1 or 2 points get through.

Good call with the Agony spell- we've always played that a berserk minotaur is immune to all mind-affecting/emotion-affecting spells or effects and shrug off any pain.

[NickMiddleton]

For clarity, the following defense in the same round (the third) would be a -60, right?

Correct.

Cheers,

Nick

[Kaleb7]

Another couple of questions that just came up last night when we were taking the pregen characters in the download section for a 'test drive' vs 5 orcs.

- Do missile weapons use the attack matrix? (ie an arrow hits with a critical, does it do double damage, bypass armor, etc...)

- If you parry with your hunting bow, what skill should that default to?

The fight was surprisingly close, and had I used the orcs as skirmishers (throwing their spears as they moved towards the party) things might have turned out

quite poorly for them. (As it was the Minor Noble took a festering gut wound early in the fight, leaving it to the suddenly outnumbered axe wielding fighter and wildly dodging hunter to eke out a victory.)

(One of the PCs causing a Major Wound to an Orc thus impairing his legendary Orcish good looks was pretty funny though...)

[BMonroe]

- Do missile weapons use the attack matrix? (ie an arrow hits with a critical, does it do double damage, bypass armor, etc...)

Yes.

- If you parry with your hunting bow, what skill should that default to?

Ha! I've seen that happen before. Good question. I'd give it the same base chance as something like a staff or short spear. If the player uses it successfully, don't forget to give them an experience check! It might encourage them to do it more often, thus ruining their bow, and allowing your orcs to close with them faster.

[SDLeary]

Another couple of questions that just came up last night when we were taking the pregen characters in the download section for a 'test drive' vs 5 orcs.

- Do missile weapons use the attack matrix? (ie an arrow hits with a critical, does it do double damage, bypass armor, etc...)

Yes. Missile weapons have use the same Attack matrix, and have the same effects as any other impaling weapon.

- If you parry with your hunting bow, what skill should that default to?

I would say the base chance with the bow, or perhaps even 1/2 base as its something that you really do not want to do unless its your ONLY option. If the bow was damaged in any such attack, I would rule that it had a chance to break upon the next stringing or use. I would impose a higher chance of breakage if it was used to parry a sword.

The fight was surprisingly close, and had I used the orcs as skirmishers (throwing their spears as they moved towards the party) things might have turned out quite poorly for them. (As it was the Minor Noble took a festering gut wound early in the fight, leaving it to the suddenly outnumbered axe wielding fighter and wildly dodging hunter to eke out a victory.)

(One of the PCs causing a Major Wound to an Orc thus impairing his legendary Orcish good looks was pretty funny though...)

Nice! Sounds like it was a fun session!

SDLeary

[SDLeary]

Damn! Missed it by THAT much!

SDLeary

[Kaleb7]

That would make sense

Yes. Missile weapons have use the same Attack matrix, and have the same effects as any other impaling weapon.

What effect does an impaling weapon have? I didn't see anything in the RAW.

[SDLeary]

That would make sense

What effect does an impaling weapon have? I didn't see anything in the RAW.

Sorry, old term. An Impale would be a Special Success with a thrusting weapon. Like all other weapons in Magic World, it will do double damage. See the sidebar on p.63: Levels of Success and Failure.

In older versions of BRP, weapons such as Spears, Arrows, thrusting Swords, etc. would remain embedded unless actively pulled. The act of withdrawing the weapon from the would would generally cause extra damage. The larger weapons sticking out of a wound, such as spears, could effectively immobilize the opponent if they didn't want to move around and damage themselves further.

SDLeary

[rleduc]

Whenever I start playing with a new group I always warn them that I will call Specials Impales -- it is just the way I am.

[BMonroe]

I am well-known among my players for constantly mixing up which version of Specials, Crits and Fumbles we're using in a given BRP game. CoC, the BGB, and MW are all slightly different, so I often muddle myself.

[Kaleb7]

So what is thebasic rule of thumb for skill ranges for NPCs in MW/BRP? For example would a %40 in a given skill be fairly advanced/middle of the road/trainee... ?

I'm in the process of statting out some characters for an 'interlude' from our usual Savage Worlds based Game of Thrones campaign. We are going to be following a pair of gold cloaks, a servant of Varys and a Wisdom from the alchemists guild that have occasionally annoyed the party on a late night raid in King's Landing using Magic World so I am going to need to stat-up a bit of street-scum opposition for them.

[vagabond]

Correct.

Cheers,

Nick

Ah - I still want to thank Ben for including this simplification (and clarification) of multiple defensive actions per round being decremented each time regardless of which action is used. The original rule was so confusing and led to interesting (and obviously) incorrect results.

Ian

[MrJealousy]

So what is thebasic rule of thumb for skill ranges for NPCs in MW/BRP? For example would a %40 in a given skill be fairly advanced/middle of the road/trainee... ?

I would approximately advise...

trainee, basic skill to 40%

middling, 40% to 60%

advanced, 50% to 75%

master, 75% +

[vagabond]

The BGB has the following:

05% or less: Novice. A characters with a skill rating this low is a complete

amateur, and has little hope of succeeding even at Easy tasks. At this low level of

competency, your should roll each time you wish for your character to attempt

this skill, regardless of whether in a stress-filled situation or routine under ideal

circumstances.

05–25%: Neophyte: A character with ratings in this range is either a beginner or

has a small amount of knowledge of the subject at hand. The phrase ‘knows

enough to be dangerous’ applies well here, your character will get lucky enough

to succeed once in a while, and may become overconfident as a result. You

should have to roll whenever your character attempts this skill, even if the task is

Easy.

25–50%: Amateur. Ratings in this range indicate a little talent, some rudimentary

training, or hobby–level dabbling in a skill. Your character is barely qualified,

and is usually entrusted with Easy or unimportant tasks. A high school

education could impart ratings at the low end of this range. At this level of

competency, in non-stressful situations your character can perform routine

activities relating to the skill without needing to roll.

50–75%: Professional. A 50% rating in a skill allows your character to make a

living using that skill. At the professional skill rating, your character does not

need not worry about failing at Easy tasks, and is experienced or proficient

enough to serve as a leader or manager of others. A 50% rating is roughly equal

to a bachelor’s degree in a specific discipline. Most skills cannot be raised above

75% through education or training alone: your character must advance further

through practical use. At this skill rating, most of the time your character can

perform routine or even complex activities relating to the skill, and you are only

required to roll when there is an element of risk, or when the chance of failure is

dramatic.

75–90%: Expert. Skills in this range indicate advanced expertise in a given field:

your character has a reasonable chance to succeed even at Difficult tasks. Few

people ever attain such mastery of a given skill, and those that do are respected

and relied upon for their expertise. Skills in this rage correspond to an advanced

degree (Masters or PhD), or many years of experience. Most average characters

cannot begin play with any skill higher than 75%. With this skill rating, your

character should be able to perform complex and difficult actions relating to this

skill under routine circumstances.

90% or higher: Master. Only a handful of true geniuses attain this level of

mastery. Only the most difficult tasks are beyond their abilities, and their

expertise has likely made these masters famous or legendary, either within their

field or in the world at large. When your character has this rating in the skill, in

routine situations he or she is able to perform ‘miracles’, and you will rarely need

to roll the dice except at most difficult of tasks or in dire situations. If the optional

Sanity rules are being used in a campaign, attaining a 90% rating in a skill

restores 2D6 SAN points, representing the self–confidence and discipline

associated mastering a skill. If your character begins with this skill rating or

higher, there is no corresponding SAN gain.

[MrJealousy]

Huh! Where's the fun in resorting to the book eh? It just proves that my memory isn't as good as... what was I talking about?

[Kaleb7]

Huh! Where's the fun in resorting to the book eh? It just proves that my memory isn't as good as... what was I talking about?

Heh, well I've just STARTED reading the BGB for the first time, I should be done in August sometime.