Piedmon_Sama
2009-10-18, 05:28 PM
This thread is essentially an accumulation of rules and, later on, flavor changes I've had buzzing around in my head for months or sometimes years. Now that 3.5 has ossified following the release of 4e, it's my goal to develop a sort of Platonic Ideal version of everything as I'd like it to be, which I can import parts of into games I run depending on how much my players will put up with. Everything is in a very messy state of progress at the moment; what follows are in some places transcriptions of stuff I wrote in notebooks at a very late hour, others stuff I typed on the spot. In other words, this isn't even a finished first draft. But as I recently have lost my regular computer, and had a chance to use my parents' today, I decided to put these divers notes of mine together on the internet in a place where I'll be able to edit and fix it at my leisure. Also, anyone who has advice or criticism to share is more than welcome (that's another advantage of working on this on the internet). Later on, I'll edit this ugly mess into several more streamlined posts for better readability.
General Flavor & Rule Ideas
-More lethal combat system with quick kills of greater likelihood, and injury a real factor
-Weapon and armor choice more multifaceted than damage dice and AC bonus; sometimes you want an armor-piercing warpick and sometimes a more versatile arming sword; different armors for different situations.
-Much less magic reliance for AC & health
-Dethroning Power Attack/Shock Trooper and Chain-Tripping
-Incouraging mobility and improvisation/terrain use in melee combat
-Make crossbows, pistols and archery as deadly as they were IRL
-Make melee attack not dependant on strength (decrease relevance of stats in general?)
-Reshuffle weapon groups; retain simple/martial/exotic, but base on difficulty to learn (there is no good reason for axes/hammers/picks to be martial weapons except that they're devastatingly effective. Guns being exotic weapons is absurd, IRL simplicity of use was their biggest advantage).
-More feats and skill points for everybody. No class less than 4+Int for skills, all(?) classes gain bonus feats between 3rd and 6th level.
-Make Dwarves and Elves as cool as they should be. Sp-abilities like trackless step for elves and meld into stone for dwarves. E&D may not be standard PC races.
-Ogres, goblinoids and elves should be fay, no worry about their "ecology," when they're native of a magic parallel dimension. Orcs may have a more sci-fi background (divergant evolution?) or Tolkenian ("fallen" elves?) Trolls & Dragons have a magical, not natural origin (Dwarves or giants consumed by greed become dragons, outlaws who eat manflesh become Trolls?) No good giants/titans, giants/titans are shapeshifters and the gods' #1 enemies (Jotunr).
-E6? E10? Reintroduce level limits for "mortals" (humans & standard races) as a "mortal glass ceiling" only chosen ones can break (cf. Berserk). Halting BaB/Saves but adding skill points/feats/class features (for PrCs).
Arms & Armor
Introduction Stuff
These new rules radically alter the way combat works in d20. It is understood and intended that they make combat more dangerous, lethal and chancey than in the more abstract, heroic mode of D&D. These rules are not intended as an effort to "balance" D&D combat, either to make all fighting styles and weapons equal or to give fighters an "edge" against spellcasters. It is an effort to simulate the complicated and changing world of historical martial arts, where weapons and armor evolved to fit societal, cultural and specific needs as opposed to developing in a generalized battlefield vacuum. It is virtually suicide to carry a rapier or smallsword into melee against an enemy in full plate harness wielding a fast and devastating longsword. It would be equally suicidal, in a social sense, to wear that harness and longsword around a city or into a court, whereas the smallsword is a "civil" weapon that can travel anywhere. And of course, while the lumbering clanking clown is not an accurate portrayal of properly used harness, a lightly armored person can do things a person in 50 lb. of metal simply cannot.
Ideally, the new rules should allow you to pick an era from the Ancient, Medieval or Early Modern periods and recreate it with an admittedly generalized fidelity. However, if your players want to play as a Roman Legionnaire, a Warring States-Era Samurai, a flintlock-and-bardiche-wielding Janissary, and a mailed knight of the 12th Century, this is probably not going to work. Presumably a group should pick a generalized era (ancient/early-high-late medieval/renaissance/30 yrs' war) and go with that, limiting certain kinds of equipment as either too primitive, or not invented yet; you might choose to throw away the plate harness, which largely elliminates the specialized war picks and hammers meant to overcome it, as well as advanced weapons like the bardiche and halberd. Or you might go right into that Renaissance/Italian Wars era, in which case a kit of arming sword, kite shield and chainmail is a simply foolish choice.
Heavy Weapon Class:
Heavy Weapons
Heavy Weapons are a class of weapons comprising certain of both OHM and THM-type; except for the Heavy Flail, all are simple weapons. Heavy Weapons are extremely brutal and straightforward, developed mostly as a reaction to protective mail and later, plate armors. Some of these weapons completely ignore any type of armor protection (such as the heavy warpick) while others cut through most of their DR. Even if a heavy weapon cannot punch through plate cleanly, it can dent a harness in such a way as to injure the wearer, even asphyxiating them if the dent impedes the lungs.
These weapons are powerful, but carry considerable drawbacks. They are heavier, slower, and require a fairly wide space to be wielded effectively.
Heavy Weapons:
OHM
-Heavy Mace
-Morningstar
-Warpick
-Warhammer
-Battleaxe
-Waraxe
THM
-Greatclub
-Greataxe
-Maul
-Heavy Flail
A Heavy Weapon cannot be used to make AoOs. A character wielding a heavy weapon one-handed and using a capable shield can make shield bashes as AoOs, however. Any character wielding a two-handed heavy weapon suffers a -8 Melee Initiative penalty; a one-handed weapons incurs a -4 penalty. Both THM and OHM heavy weapons suffer a -2 penalty on parrying.
In addition to regular damage, Heavy Weapons have a chance to knock an opponent to the ground or out of his square on a successful attack. When a character wielding a heavy weapon hits an opponent while Power Attacking (whether the attack inflicts damage or not), the stricken character must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC equal to 10+Damage) or be knocked backwards 5 feet; he must then immediately make a Balance Check (DC 5+Damage dealt) or fall prone. If there is no square behind the stricken character to fall back to and he fails his Fort save, he falls prone in his own square. A character wielding a heavy weapon and Power Attacking can opt not to knock his opponent back.
Alternatively to making his Fortitude save, a stricken character can choose to make a Tumble check (DC 10+Damage). On a successful check, he can move to any of five squares beside or behind him, and is in no danger of falling prone. On a failed check, he falls prone as if he had failed both Fortitude and Balance checks, and his attacker gains an immediate AoO (this is the only time heavy weapons can make an AoO).
If a character wielding a heavy weapon combines his power attack with a charge action, he can attempt to knock his opponent up to two squares back (or still refrain from knocking his opponent back, at the attacker's option).
*Note that a character wielding even a two-handed heavy weapon can take AoOs with unarmed strikes (e.g, kicking).
Armor Values
Every armor kit has 6 pieces that cover the target areas on the injury (d100) table plus gauntlets. each piece gives an equal DR value to its respective body-part and prevents injuries. Certain weapons ignore the DR & injury-stopping attributes of certain armors. Although all armor pieces grant the same DR to the six target-areas of the boy, different armor-pieces can be worn over different body-parts; e.g, you might wear a steel plate cuirass (DR 12) over the torso and chainmail (DR 6) over the arms.
Plate Harness - DR 12 (Heavy Armor)
Boiled Leather - DR 4 (either solid, stiff leather or leather lamellae) (Light Armor)
Chainmail - DR 6 (Light Armor)
Brigandine - DR 6 (either a leather suit over steel plates, or lamellae with steel stitched over the back) (Medium Armor)
Metal Lamellae (scale mail) - DR 5 (Medium Armor)
Splint Plates (DR 6) (Heavy Armor)
Accessories -
Accessories are an important compliment to the basic suit of armor. They provide additional protection to one spot of the body, increaseing DR if that particular spot is hit.
Great Helm - The great helm is a larger helm fitting over a smaller one ("helmet"). It limits vision & hearing severely (-6 to perception) but provides +4 DR to the head, a possibly life-saving difference. The great helm is an ancient piece of wargear, largely replaced by the basinet.
Basinet - The "little basin" comes in many shpaes--pig-faced, stove-topped, etc. Like the great helm it provides +4 DR, reinforcing a steel cap beneath, but includes a visor which can simply be flipped up to elliminate the perception penalty.
Disc-Plate - A common article of eastern warriors, the disc-plate is a large round disc worn over belly and back, reinforcing protection for the torso. Variants include smaller discs hung by chains from the breast or a gorget to the waist (those small circles on the Mighty Thor's shirt are these). Either style grants +2 DR to the torso. Note that plate harness cuirass includes a gorget & plates over either breast, & a belly rounded to deflect blows (like a tank turret) that prevents a stomach/back plate from being used.
Gambeson - Sometimes the only armor a warrior can afford, the gambeson is a humble article that has saved many a man's life, and is particularly good for absorbing arrows into its padded cloth layers. The gambeson can be, in order of expense, a long coat, jacket, surcoat or apron, usually worn over chainmail or light armors. Plate harness includes a gambeson beneath and gains no benefit from a second being worn over. A gambeson adds DR 1 to the parts it covers and alone does not prevent injury. Against arrows or bludgeoning weapons it gives DR 4 and prevents injury.
Shields -
Note that heavy shields cannot be used for a shield bash the turn after parrying, or parry the turn after being used for a shield bash.
Hoplite's Shield/Kite Shield - +0 Parry, heavy
Heater Shield - +2 Parry, light
Buckler - +0 Parry, light, special
Round Shield - +1 parry, light
Scutum - +0 parry, heavy, special
Pavise - special
Buckler Special: May be used wielding 2-handed weapons @-1 atk penalty but can't parry, can alternate bash/parry @ no penalty.
Scutum Special: Provides +4 cover vs ranged attacks
Pavise Special: Can't be used to parry, provides cover bonus up to total vs ranged, +2 cover/+1 ref saves in melee
Combat
Beginning Combat: Initiative and Melee Initiative
As in normal d20, when two or more combatants spot each other, initiative is rolled. Characters then take their actions as per usual, the highest initiative taking a standard + move or full-round action first and going down the order, so-on. But when one character enters melee range with another (whether by charging or normal movement), a special initiative is rolled for each character in that melee.
For example, let's say we have two fighters equipped with arming swords, A and B, and a third fighter armed with a glaive, C. Sighting each other, they roll initiative, with A winning. A charges B: when A enters the square in front of B, the Melee Initiative is rolled. Unlike regular Initiative, which stays fixed throughout a combat, melee initiative only lasts for one round. B wins this time, and attacks A when he enters, forcing A to parry or dodge. Assuming he survives, A then attacks B. Who goes next is determined by the prior Initiative Order. Should it be B, he and A roll a new Melee Initiative, with both striking in the order determined.
On the other hand, if A were to charge C, C's reach weapon lets him strike at A while there is still a square between them, unless A succeeds on a tumble check. If A would rather not attempt to tumble, he cannot dodge while moving through a square but can parry C's AoO. If C were to charge A with his reach-weapon, however, he could strike before A, and no Melee Initiative need be rolled. Reach weapons like halberds and glaives have a solid advantage in this respect; large weapons that are not technically reach, such as a quarterstaff or longsword, confer a +2 bonus to Melee Initiative.
Designer Note: So everyone and their mother needs Improved Initiative?
Maybe. Two-handed weapons give a small bonus to melee initiative, reflecting their longer reach than the typical one-handed sword or mace. But, certain two-handed or heavy weapons give no bonus, and in fact confer a penalty to melee initiative. Particularly heavy axes, two-handed clubs, a war-pick or war-hammer, while able to punch through armor, lose you the opportunity of the first strike. If you want one of these for your primary weapon, there's not much point in jockying for Melee Initiative. Or you can wield a reach weapon and try to elliminate Melee Initiative as a factor. And even if Initiative is now a much more critical factor, I'd say I've really done nothing more than dethrone the Power Attack/Shock Trooper/Combat Brute feats; doing ridiculous levels of damage is somewhat redundant in a world where Wound Points replace Hit Points.
Oh God oh God, does a 13 get him? Making attack rolls
Attack Rolls continue to work the same way as before, BaB + Str + a 1d20 roll. There is no longer such a thing as "critical" hits. A roll of 4 or lower, however, is always a miss, and certain natural rolls (just 20 for most weapons, but 19-20 for swords or 18-20) are always hits. Even on a natural 20, DR from armor still applies. Your plucky peasant might get lucky and bean Sir Clanksalot in the face with his stick every so often, but his chances of actually hurting Clanksalot are still almost nil.
Who am I swinging at? Combat Facing
Also critical is the factor of combat facing. Every character inhabits a 5-foot-length square, which touches eight squares around it. A character is always considered to be facing three squares: one dead ahead, one diagonally left and the other right. If a character attacks or is attacked from any of those three squares, he is considered to be "facing" his opponent, and Melee Initiative and attacks/parries are resolved normally. If a character is attacked from either of the two squares directly to his left or right, in that moment he is at something of a disadvantage. His attacker gains a +2 bonus to Melee Initiative and Attack rolls against him, and the character suffers a penalty of -5 to Attack and Parry Rolls. The three squares behind a character are considered his rear. Attempting to attack over his own shoulder afflicts a character with a -10 penalty, while the attacker has the same +2 bonus. The defending character is considered flat-footed against attacks from the rear (unless he has the Uncanny Dodge special ability).
Note that while turning an opponent's flank or striking from behind is often a sure way to a quick kill, it can be extremely difficult to get around an enemy who is prepared: turning up to 360 degrees is a free action; a character who knows a charge is coming from beside or behind can turn to face his attacker even on the attacker's turn, unless the attacker has begun their turn in a square beside or behind the character. On his action, a character can freely turn between opponents if he gets multiple attacks and chooses to disperse them amongst opponents.
A character can, beginning in a square facing his opponent, attempt to move into a square beside or behind the opponent. Exiting a threatened square still incurs an Attack of Opportunity, unless the character can make a Tumble Check vs a flat DC of 15, or the opponent's attack roll (opponent chooses). If the tumble check succeeds and the attacker moves into a square to the opponent's rear, the opponent is considered flat-footed against the attacker's next attack. A character wielding a two-handed weapon or a large shield (kite or hoplite) incurs a -8 penalty to tumble checks. Tumbling while wearing or wielding a tower/pavise shield incurs a -12 penalty, as does wearing/wielding a weapon of one size category larger than the character; for every additional size category the weapon is larger, add another -4.
Movement in Melee
Returning to the example of A, B and C. Say A and B are already in melee, and it is B's action in the regular initiative order. If he were to simply attack A, both combatants would roll a new Melee Initiative. If B choses to move 5 feet to A's side (to flank him across from an ally, perhaps), B can opt to make a tumble check to avoid an AoO, but if he fails the check, A gets an Attack of Opportunity, which B can dodge or parry as normal. If B were to move straight back, leaving the square threatened by A, A would also get an Attack of Opportunity unless B made a full withdrawal action, just like in normal D&D. If A is wielding a heavy weapon (war-pick/war-hammer/greataxe, etc.) then he takes a -5 penalty on his AoOs.
Going back to an alternate round, say A has won the ordinary initiative order. Instead of charging B, he readies an attack-action against whatever enters the area he threatens (considered the three squares A faces). B's Initiative comes up next. He charges A, moving into one of the three squares in front of A. A automatically wins Melee Initiative, unless he is wielding a heavy weapon (such as a greataxe or warpick), or unless B is wielding a two-handed light weapon (like a longsword or spear); in both cases, Melee Initiative is rolled as normal. If B was wielding a reach weapon (a glaive, halberd, voulge, etc.) then he could attack A before even entering the squares A threatens.
Design-Note: This sounds like regular combat, except you've added this Melee Initiative thing. Why?
The Melee-Initiative exists to create a drawback to wielding armor-piercing weapons like war-picks, two-handed axes and two-handed maces. In a combat between two sword-and-board fighters, admittedly, it is somewhat irrelevant. However, because the Wound Points make armor vital to keeping your character alive, the real-life drawbacks of armor-piercing weapons (slowness, overextension) must be reflected to offset their real-life advantages (punching through plate armor). In a sense, bringing a large axe or pick into combat is like going all-in at poker: you're gambling you can settle the fight quickly by piercing the enemy's armor, whereas the longer it drags on the more likely his edge in initiative will let him get you first.
Oh no, I lost init! How do I not get stuck like a pig?
There are two ways to evade an attack, assuming your opponent doesn't simply miss (nat. roll of 4 or lower). These are parrying and dodging. Dodging will bring your Defense into play, while parrying lets you roll an attack roll vs your opponent's, stopping his attack if you beat it by 1 or more (i.e, attacker wins ties). Note that the term "Defense" replaces D&D's "Armor Class," because armor no longer contributes to your armor class, but only deflects/absorbs damage. Every character begins life with a Defense of 10. The modifier of their dexterity score is added, as well as their class defense bonus. A flat-footed character loses both dexterity and class bonuses to defense. An "untrained" character (1/2 BaB or 3/4 BaB with no martial weapon proficiency; meaning Sorcerer, Wizard, Commoner, Adept and some Experts) can only take a partial action on their next turn if they dodge or parry an attack.
Making a parry attempt is just like making an attack roll, BaB+Str (or Dex with a finessed weapon), with modifiers for size, weapon proficiency, etc. all counted as usual. Shields, unlike armor, grant a bonus to Defense and also can be used for parrying. Some shields give a bonus to parrying checks. If your shield doesn't give a bonus, there's no inherent advantage to using it to parry as opposed to your weapon, but it still grants some bonus to your passive Defense.
Class Defense Boni
Highest (+6 to +12): 4/4 BaB + Monks/Psychic Warriors
2nd-Highest (+4 to +10) 3/4 BaB + Beguilers?
3rd-Highest (+3 to +9) for Druids
4th-Highest (+2 to +8) for Wizards, Sorcs, Psions, NPC classes
I'm hit, I'm hit! What happens now?
When a character is struck, the character takes damage to their Wound Points (equal to Con score + Character level up to level 10). If a character is reduced to 0 WP, the character is disabled; at -1 or lower, dying, and at -10 dead. If a character takes damage to their WP, they must roll a d100 to determine where the hit has struck, unless the attacker specified a targeted body-part (see Called Shots).
001-015: Left Leg
016-031: Right Leg
032-057: Torso
058-073: Left Arm
074-089: Right Arm
090-100: Head.
The stricken character must succeed on a Fort Save vs DC 10+Damage Dealt or suffer injury to that body part, unless the head is struck in which case no save is allowed.
Effects from injury differ depending on part struck.
Right or Left Leg: 1/2 movement.
Right or Left Arm: -4 atk penalty and/or -4 parry, depending on whether the weapon or shield arm was struck and the character's equipment.
Torso: Cumulative -2 penalty to subsequent Fortitude saves to ignore damage.
Head: Damage to WP is doubled.
-For every wound a character sustains to any part of their body, add a -2 penalty to Fort saves vs Exhaustion/Fatigue.
Instead of turning the Wheel of Fortune, can't I just nail him in the face?
Called Shots target a specific body part (elliminating the need for the d100 roll) at a certain penalty. The penalty varies depending on whether the combatant is trained (3/4 BaB + martial weapon proficiencies) or untrained (2/4 BaB or 3/4 BaB without any martial profeciency).
Vs Untrained:
Left/Right Leg: -2 atk
Left/Right Arm: -2 atk
Torso: -4 atk
Head: -8 atk
Vs Trained:
Left/Right Leg: -4 atk
Left/Right Arm: -4 atk
Torso: -8 atk
Head: -10 atk
Let's say I want to shoot a guy
And why wouldn't you? Shooting people is inherently smarter and less risky than trying to close in with a sharpened bar of iron. Arrows, crossbow bolts, musket balls, etc. can't be parried. An arrow from a longbow, composite bow, crossbow and other powerful weapons can punch through the Light-Class armors: chainmail, leather or scale (the humble gambeson is surprisingly good at stopping arrows, however). Once a highly trained bowman has you in his sights, you can't just dodge it like Daredevil. Ranged combat is a much less sporting affair than melee.
A character making a ranged attack misses on a natural roll of 4 or lower. A character who fires without taking aim makes an ordinary ranged attack roll (BaB+Dex). Taking aim is a full-round action. If a bowman shoots after taking aim, the target retains only shield and cover bonuses to Defense, not dexterity or class. You can, of course, make Called Shots with ranged weapons, but only after spending a full-round action to take aim. Called Shots incur the following penalty at a minimum range of 1/2 the weapon's range increment, out to its full range increment:
Left/Right Leg: -2 atk
Left/Right Arm: -2 atk
Torso: -2 atk
Head: -6 atk.
Within a range of between 10 ft. and 1/2 the weapon's range increment, Called Shots incur no penalty. A called shot to head or torso against a target who is considered flat-footed, when the firer is within this range, is an automatic Coup de Grace: the target must succeed a Fortitude save vs DC 10+Damage Dealt or die, even if the damage inflicted fails to bring him to below WP 0. On a successful save, the target still takes the damage as usual.
At greater than the range increment, the penalty for called shots increases by 2 out to the weapon's maximum range of 10x the range increment.
Designer Note: Miyamoto Musashi vs Private Pyle... at 30 paces.
Yes, this means one of the most lethal situtations a character can ever find themselves in is a trained pistoleer steadying his gun on them at 10-15 feet. It is entirely possible that a feckless rookie could kill the kingdom's greatest swordsman by ambushing him with a crossbow (although I'm softening the hell out of even that by adding level to WP). This is intentional. This is the kind of danger I want. At no level can you stop worrying about the virtually-always fatal results of being shot in the back. At no level will you be enough of a badass to razz the King when he's surrounded by literally a battalion of musketmen pointing their guns at you.
Special Actions in Combat: Grappling, Charging, Fighting Defensively/Total Defense, the Coup de Grace, Disarming, Tripping, Feinting, Leap Attacks, Iaijutsu and Psychic Duels
Leap Attack
Anytime a character may declare a charge against an opponent, if he has at least 8 ranks in Jump and the Power Attack feat, he may declare a Leap Attack. On his charge, he makes a Long Jump check (apply normal penalty without a 20 ft running start). If the character succeeds in jumping at least 10 feet in length and lands in a square threatening the target, double any damage from a Power Attack. Unless the target is wielding a Heavy Weapon, the character must succeed on a Tumble Check vs DC 15 or defender's melee attack roll (defender's option), or take an AoO after landing (unless his Leap Attack kills the defending character).
More coming; this list undoubtedly to be expanded.
General Flavor & Rule Ideas
-More lethal combat system with quick kills of greater likelihood, and injury a real factor
-Weapon and armor choice more multifaceted than damage dice and AC bonus; sometimes you want an armor-piercing warpick and sometimes a more versatile arming sword; different armors for different situations.
-Much less magic reliance for AC & health
-Dethroning Power Attack/Shock Trooper and Chain-Tripping
-Incouraging mobility and improvisation/terrain use in melee combat
-Make crossbows, pistols and archery as deadly as they were IRL
-Make melee attack not dependant on strength (decrease relevance of stats in general?)
-Reshuffle weapon groups; retain simple/martial/exotic, but base on difficulty to learn (there is no good reason for axes/hammers/picks to be martial weapons except that they're devastatingly effective. Guns being exotic weapons is absurd, IRL simplicity of use was their biggest advantage).
-More feats and skill points for everybody. No class less than 4+Int for skills, all(?) classes gain bonus feats between 3rd and 6th level.
-Make Dwarves and Elves as cool as they should be. Sp-abilities like trackless step for elves and meld into stone for dwarves. E&D may not be standard PC races.
-Ogres, goblinoids and elves should be fay, no worry about their "ecology," when they're native of a magic parallel dimension. Orcs may have a more sci-fi background (divergant evolution?) or Tolkenian ("fallen" elves?) Trolls & Dragons have a magical, not natural origin (Dwarves or giants consumed by greed become dragons, outlaws who eat manflesh become Trolls?) No good giants/titans, giants/titans are shapeshifters and the gods' #1 enemies (Jotunr).
-E6? E10? Reintroduce level limits for "mortals" (humans & standard races) as a "mortal glass ceiling" only chosen ones can break (cf. Berserk). Halting BaB/Saves but adding skill points/feats/class features (for PrCs).
Arms & Armor
Introduction Stuff
These new rules radically alter the way combat works in d20. It is understood and intended that they make combat more dangerous, lethal and chancey than in the more abstract, heroic mode of D&D. These rules are not intended as an effort to "balance" D&D combat, either to make all fighting styles and weapons equal or to give fighters an "edge" against spellcasters. It is an effort to simulate the complicated and changing world of historical martial arts, where weapons and armor evolved to fit societal, cultural and specific needs as opposed to developing in a generalized battlefield vacuum. It is virtually suicide to carry a rapier or smallsword into melee against an enemy in full plate harness wielding a fast and devastating longsword. It would be equally suicidal, in a social sense, to wear that harness and longsword around a city or into a court, whereas the smallsword is a "civil" weapon that can travel anywhere. And of course, while the lumbering clanking clown is not an accurate portrayal of properly used harness, a lightly armored person can do things a person in 50 lb. of metal simply cannot.
Ideally, the new rules should allow you to pick an era from the Ancient, Medieval or Early Modern periods and recreate it with an admittedly generalized fidelity. However, if your players want to play as a Roman Legionnaire, a Warring States-Era Samurai, a flintlock-and-bardiche-wielding Janissary, and a mailed knight of the 12th Century, this is probably not going to work. Presumably a group should pick a generalized era (ancient/early-high-late medieval/renaissance/30 yrs' war) and go with that, limiting certain kinds of equipment as either too primitive, or not invented yet; you might choose to throw away the plate harness, which largely elliminates the specialized war picks and hammers meant to overcome it, as well as advanced weapons like the bardiche and halberd. Or you might go right into that Renaissance/Italian Wars era, in which case a kit of arming sword, kite shield and chainmail is a simply foolish choice.
Heavy Weapon Class:
Heavy Weapons
Heavy Weapons are a class of weapons comprising certain of both OHM and THM-type; except for the Heavy Flail, all are simple weapons. Heavy Weapons are extremely brutal and straightforward, developed mostly as a reaction to protective mail and later, plate armors. Some of these weapons completely ignore any type of armor protection (such as the heavy warpick) while others cut through most of their DR. Even if a heavy weapon cannot punch through plate cleanly, it can dent a harness in such a way as to injure the wearer, even asphyxiating them if the dent impedes the lungs.
These weapons are powerful, but carry considerable drawbacks. They are heavier, slower, and require a fairly wide space to be wielded effectively.
Heavy Weapons:
OHM
-Heavy Mace
-Morningstar
-Warpick
-Warhammer
-Battleaxe
-Waraxe
THM
-Greatclub
-Greataxe
-Maul
-Heavy Flail
A Heavy Weapon cannot be used to make AoOs. A character wielding a heavy weapon one-handed and using a capable shield can make shield bashes as AoOs, however. Any character wielding a two-handed heavy weapon suffers a -8 Melee Initiative penalty; a one-handed weapons incurs a -4 penalty. Both THM and OHM heavy weapons suffer a -2 penalty on parrying.
In addition to regular damage, Heavy Weapons have a chance to knock an opponent to the ground or out of his square on a successful attack. When a character wielding a heavy weapon hits an opponent while Power Attacking (whether the attack inflicts damage or not), the stricken character must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC equal to 10+Damage) or be knocked backwards 5 feet; he must then immediately make a Balance Check (DC 5+Damage dealt) or fall prone. If there is no square behind the stricken character to fall back to and he fails his Fort save, he falls prone in his own square. A character wielding a heavy weapon and Power Attacking can opt not to knock his opponent back.
Alternatively to making his Fortitude save, a stricken character can choose to make a Tumble check (DC 10+Damage). On a successful check, he can move to any of five squares beside or behind him, and is in no danger of falling prone. On a failed check, he falls prone as if he had failed both Fortitude and Balance checks, and his attacker gains an immediate AoO (this is the only time heavy weapons can make an AoO).
If a character wielding a heavy weapon combines his power attack with a charge action, he can attempt to knock his opponent up to two squares back (or still refrain from knocking his opponent back, at the attacker's option).
*Note that a character wielding even a two-handed heavy weapon can take AoOs with unarmed strikes (e.g, kicking).
Armor Values
Every armor kit has 6 pieces that cover the target areas on the injury (d100) table plus gauntlets. each piece gives an equal DR value to its respective body-part and prevents injuries. Certain weapons ignore the DR & injury-stopping attributes of certain armors. Although all armor pieces grant the same DR to the six target-areas of the boy, different armor-pieces can be worn over different body-parts; e.g, you might wear a steel plate cuirass (DR 12) over the torso and chainmail (DR 6) over the arms.
Plate Harness - DR 12 (Heavy Armor)
Boiled Leather - DR 4 (either solid, stiff leather or leather lamellae) (Light Armor)
Chainmail - DR 6 (Light Armor)
Brigandine - DR 6 (either a leather suit over steel plates, or lamellae with steel stitched over the back) (Medium Armor)
Metal Lamellae (scale mail) - DR 5 (Medium Armor)
Splint Plates (DR 6) (Heavy Armor)
Accessories -
Accessories are an important compliment to the basic suit of armor. They provide additional protection to one spot of the body, increaseing DR if that particular spot is hit.
Great Helm - The great helm is a larger helm fitting over a smaller one ("helmet"). It limits vision & hearing severely (-6 to perception) but provides +4 DR to the head, a possibly life-saving difference. The great helm is an ancient piece of wargear, largely replaced by the basinet.
Basinet - The "little basin" comes in many shpaes--pig-faced, stove-topped, etc. Like the great helm it provides +4 DR, reinforcing a steel cap beneath, but includes a visor which can simply be flipped up to elliminate the perception penalty.
Disc-Plate - A common article of eastern warriors, the disc-plate is a large round disc worn over belly and back, reinforcing protection for the torso. Variants include smaller discs hung by chains from the breast or a gorget to the waist (those small circles on the Mighty Thor's shirt are these). Either style grants +2 DR to the torso. Note that plate harness cuirass includes a gorget & plates over either breast, & a belly rounded to deflect blows (like a tank turret) that prevents a stomach/back plate from being used.
Gambeson - Sometimes the only armor a warrior can afford, the gambeson is a humble article that has saved many a man's life, and is particularly good for absorbing arrows into its padded cloth layers. The gambeson can be, in order of expense, a long coat, jacket, surcoat or apron, usually worn over chainmail or light armors. Plate harness includes a gambeson beneath and gains no benefit from a second being worn over. A gambeson adds DR 1 to the parts it covers and alone does not prevent injury. Against arrows or bludgeoning weapons it gives DR 4 and prevents injury.
Shields -
Note that heavy shields cannot be used for a shield bash the turn after parrying, or parry the turn after being used for a shield bash.
Hoplite's Shield/Kite Shield - +0 Parry, heavy
Heater Shield - +2 Parry, light
Buckler - +0 Parry, light, special
Round Shield - +1 parry, light
Scutum - +0 parry, heavy, special
Pavise - special
Buckler Special: May be used wielding 2-handed weapons @-1 atk penalty but can't parry, can alternate bash/parry @ no penalty.
Scutum Special: Provides +4 cover vs ranged attacks
Pavise Special: Can't be used to parry, provides cover bonus up to total vs ranged, +2 cover/+1 ref saves in melee
Combat
Beginning Combat: Initiative and Melee Initiative
As in normal d20, when two or more combatants spot each other, initiative is rolled. Characters then take their actions as per usual, the highest initiative taking a standard + move or full-round action first and going down the order, so-on. But when one character enters melee range with another (whether by charging or normal movement), a special initiative is rolled for each character in that melee.
For example, let's say we have two fighters equipped with arming swords, A and B, and a third fighter armed with a glaive, C. Sighting each other, they roll initiative, with A winning. A charges B: when A enters the square in front of B, the Melee Initiative is rolled. Unlike regular Initiative, which stays fixed throughout a combat, melee initiative only lasts for one round. B wins this time, and attacks A when he enters, forcing A to parry or dodge. Assuming he survives, A then attacks B. Who goes next is determined by the prior Initiative Order. Should it be B, he and A roll a new Melee Initiative, with both striking in the order determined.
On the other hand, if A were to charge C, C's reach weapon lets him strike at A while there is still a square between them, unless A succeeds on a tumble check. If A would rather not attempt to tumble, he cannot dodge while moving through a square but can parry C's AoO. If C were to charge A with his reach-weapon, however, he could strike before A, and no Melee Initiative need be rolled. Reach weapons like halberds and glaives have a solid advantage in this respect; large weapons that are not technically reach, such as a quarterstaff or longsword, confer a +2 bonus to Melee Initiative.
Designer Note: So everyone and their mother needs Improved Initiative?
Maybe. Two-handed weapons give a small bonus to melee initiative, reflecting their longer reach than the typical one-handed sword or mace. But, certain two-handed or heavy weapons give no bonus, and in fact confer a penalty to melee initiative. Particularly heavy axes, two-handed clubs, a war-pick or war-hammer, while able to punch through armor, lose you the opportunity of the first strike. If you want one of these for your primary weapon, there's not much point in jockying for Melee Initiative. Or you can wield a reach weapon and try to elliminate Melee Initiative as a factor. And even if Initiative is now a much more critical factor, I'd say I've really done nothing more than dethrone the Power Attack/Shock Trooper/Combat Brute feats; doing ridiculous levels of damage is somewhat redundant in a world where Wound Points replace Hit Points.
Oh God oh God, does a 13 get him? Making attack rolls
Attack Rolls continue to work the same way as before, BaB + Str + a 1d20 roll. There is no longer such a thing as "critical" hits. A roll of 4 or lower, however, is always a miss, and certain natural rolls (just 20 for most weapons, but 19-20 for swords or 18-20) are always hits. Even on a natural 20, DR from armor still applies. Your plucky peasant might get lucky and bean Sir Clanksalot in the face with his stick every so often, but his chances of actually hurting Clanksalot are still almost nil.
Who am I swinging at? Combat Facing
Also critical is the factor of combat facing. Every character inhabits a 5-foot-length square, which touches eight squares around it. A character is always considered to be facing three squares: one dead ahead, one diagonally left and the other right. If a character attacks or is attacked from any of those three squares, he is considered to be "facing" his opponent, and Melee Initiative and attacks/parries are resolved normally. If a character is attacked from either of the two squares directly to his left or right, in that moment he is at something of a disadvantage. His attacker gains a +2 bonus to Melee Initiative and Attack rolls against him, and the character suffers a penalty of -5 to Attack and Parry Rolls. The three squares behind a character are considered his rear. Attempting to attack over his own shoulder afflicts a character with a -10 penalty, while the attacker has the same +2 bonus. The defending character is considered flat-footed against attacks from the rear (unless he has the Uncanny Dodge special ability).
Note that while turning an opponent's flank or striking from behind is often a sure way to a quick kill, it can be extremely difficult to get around an enemy who is prepared: turning up to 360 degrees is a free action; a character who knows a charge is coming from beside or behind can turn to face his attacker even on the attacker's turn, unless the attacker has begun their turn in a square beside or behind the character. On his action, a character can freely turn between opponents if he gets multiple attacks and chooses to disperse them amongst opponents.
A character can, beginning in a square facing his opponent, attempt to move into a square beside or behind the opponent. Exiting a threatened square still incurs an Attack of Opportunity, unless the character can make a Tumble Check vs a flat DC of 15, or the opponent's attack roll (opponent chooses). If the tumble check succeeds and the attacker moves into a square to the opponent's rear, the opponent is considered flat-footed against the attacker's next attack. A character wielding a two-handed weapon or a large shield (kite or hoplite) incurs a -8 penalty to tumble checks. Tumbling while wearing or wielding a tower/pavise shield incurs a -12 penalty, as does wearing/wielding a weapon of one size category larger than the character; for every additional size category the weapon is larger, add another -4.
Movement in Melee
Returning to the example of A, B and C. Say A and B are already in melee, and it is B's action in the regular initiative order. If he were to simply attack A, both combatants would roll a new Melee Initiative. If B choses to move 5 feet to A's side (to flank him across from an ally, perhaps), B can opt to make a tumble check to avoid an AoO, but if he fails the check, A gets an Attack of Opportunity, which B can dodge or parry as normal. If B were to move straight back, leaving the square threatened by A, A would also get an Attack of Opportunity unless B made a full withdrawal action, just like in normal D&D. If A is wielding a heavy weapon (war-pick/war-hammer/greataxe, etc.) then he takes a -5 penalty on his AoOs.
Going back to an alternate round, say A has won the ordinary initiative order. Instead of charging B, he readies an attack-action against whatever enters the area he threatens (considered the three squares A faces). B's Initiative comes up next. He charges A, moving into one of the three squares in front of A. A automatically wins Melee Initiative, unless he is wielding a heavy weapon (such as a greataxe or warpick), or unless B is wielding a two-handed light weapon (like a longsword or spear); in both cases, Melee Initiative is rolled as normal. If B was wielding a reach weapon (a glaive, halberd, voulge, etc.) then he could attack A before even entering the squares A threatens.
Design-Note: This sounds like regular combat, except you've added this Melee Initiative thing. Why?
The Melee-Initiative exists to create a drawback to wielding armor-piercing weapons like war-picks, two-handed axes and two-handed maces. In a combat between two sword-and-board fighters, admittedly, it is somewhat irrelevant. However, because the Wound Points make armor vital to keeping your character alive, the real-life drawbacks of armor-piercing weapons (slowness, overextension) must be reflected to offset their real-life advantages (punching through plate armor). In a sense, bringing a large axe or pick into combat is like going all-in at poker: you're gambling you can settle the fight quickly by piercing the enemy's armor, whereas the longer it drags on the more likely his edge in initiative will let him get you first.
Oh no, I lost init! How do I not get stuck like a pig?
There are two ways to evade an attack, assuming your opponent doesn't simply miss (nat. roll of 4 or lower). These are parrying and dodging. Dodging will bring your Defense into play, while parrying lets you roll an attack roll vs your opponent's, stopping his attack if you beat it by 1 or more (i.e, attacker wins ties). Note that the term "Defense" replaces D&D's "Armor Class," because armor no longer contributes to your armor class, but only deflects/absorbs damage. Every character begins life with a Defense of 10. The modifier of their dexterity score is added, as well as their class defense bonus. A flat-footed character loses both dexterity and class bonuses to defense. An "untrained" character (1/2 BaB or 3/4 BaB with no martial weapon proficiency; meaning Sorcerer, Wizard, Commoner, Adept and some Experts) can only take a partial action on their next turn if they dodge or parry an attack.
Making a parry attempt is just like making an attack roll, BaB+Str (or Dex with a finessed weapon), with modifiers for size, weapon proficiency, etc. all counted as usual. Shields, unlike armor, grant a bonus to Defense and also can be used for parrying. Some shields give a bonus to parrying checks. If your shield doesn't give a bonus, there's no inherent advantage to using it to parry as opposed to your weapon, but it still grants some bonus to your passive Defense.
Class Defense Boni
Highest (+6 to +12): 4/4 BaB + Monks/Psychic Warriors
2nd-Highest (+4 to +10) 3/4 BaB + Beguilers?
3rd-Highest (+3 to +9) for Druids
4th-Highest (+2 to +8) for Wizards, Sorcs, Psions, NPC classes
I'm hit, I'm hit! What happens now?
When a character is struck, the character takes damage to their Wound Points (equal to Con score + Character level up to level 10). If a character is reduced to 0 WP, the character is disabled; at -1 or lower, dying, and at -10 dead. If a character takes damage to their WP, they must roll a d100 to determine where the hit has struck, unless the attacker specified a targeted body-part (see Called Shots).
001-015: Left Leg
016-031: Right Leg
032-057: Torso
058-073: Left Arm
074-089: Right Arm
090-100: Head.
The stricken character must succeed on a Fort Save vs DC 10+Damage Dealt or suffer injury to that body part, unless the head is struck in which case no save is allowed.
Effects from injury differ depending on part struck.
Right or Left Leg: 1/2 movement.
Right or Left Arm: -4 atk penalty and/or -4 parry, depending on whether the weapon or shield arm was struck and the character's equipment.
Torso: Cumulative -2 penalty to subsequent Fortitude saves to ignore damage.
Head: Damage to WP is doubled.
-For every wound a character sustains to any part of their body, add a -2 penalty to Fort saves vs Exhaustion/Fatigue.
Instead of turning the Wheel of Fortune, can't I just nail him in the face?
Called Shots target a specific body part (elliminating the need for the d100 roll) at a certain penalty. The penalty varies depending on whether the combatant is trained (3/4 BaB + martial weapon proficiencies) or untrained (2/4 BaB or 3/4 BaB without any martial profeciency).
Vs Untrained:
Left/Right Leg: -2 atk
Left/Right Arm: -2 atk
Torso: -4 atk
Head: -8 atk
Vs Trained:
Left/Right Leg: -4 atk
Left/Right Arm: -4 atk
Torso: -8 atk
Head: -10 atk
Let's say I want to shoot a guy
And why wouldn't you? Shooting people is inherently smarter and less risky than trying to close in with a sharpened bar of iron. Arrows, crossbow bolts, musket balls, etc. can't be parried. An arrow from a longbow, composite bow, crossbow and other powerful weapons can punch through the Light-Class armors: chainmail, leather or scale (the humble gambeson is surprisingly good at stopping arrows, however). Once a highly trained bowman has you in his sights, you can't just dodge it like Daredevil. Ranged combat is a much less sporting affair than melee.
A character making a ranged attack misses on a natural roll of 4 or lower. A character who fires without taking aim makes an ordinary ranged attack roll (BaB+Dex). Taking aim is a full-round action. If a bowman shoots after taking aim, the target retains only shield and cover bonuses to Defense, not dexterity or class. You can, of course, make Called Shots with ranged weapons, but only after spending a full-round action to take aim. Called Shots incur the following penalty at a minimum range of 1/2 the weapon's range increment, out to its full range increment:
Left/Right Leg: -2 atk
Left/Right Arm: -2 atk
Torso: -2 atk
Head: -6 atk.
Within a range of between 10 ft. and 1/2 the weapon's range increment, Called Shots incur no penalty. A called shot to head or torso against a target who is considered flat-footed, when the firer is within this range, is an automatic Coup de Grace: the target must succeed a Fortitude save vs DC 10+Damage Dealt or die, even if the damage inflicted fails to bring him to below WP 0. On a successful save, the target still takes the damage as usual.
At greater than the range increment, the penalty for called shots increases by 2 out to the weapon's maximum range of 10x the range increment.
Designer Note: Miyamoto Musashi vs Private Pyle... at 30 paces.
Yes, this means one of the most lethal situtations a character can ever find themselves in is a trained pistoleer steadying his gun on them at 10-15 feet. It is entirely possible that a feckless rookie could kill the kingdom's greatest swordsman by ambushing him with a crossbow (although I'm softening the hell out of even that by adding level to WP). This is intentional. This is the kind of danger I want. At no level can you stop worrying about the virtually-always fatal results of being shot in the back. At no level will you be enough of a badass to razz the King when he's surrounded by literally a battalion of musketmen pointing their guns at you.
Special Actions in Combat: Grappling, Charging, Fighting Defensively/Total Defense, the Coup de Grace, Disarming, Tripping, Feinting, Leap Attacks, Iaijutsu and Psychic Duels
Leap Attack
Anytime a character may declare a charge against an opponent, if he has at least 8 ranks in Jump and the Power Attack feat, he may declare a Leap Attack. On his charge, he makes a Long Jump check (apply normal penalty without a 20 ft running start). If the character succeeds in jumping at least 10 feet in length and lands in a square threatening the target, double any damage from a Power Attack. Unless the target is wielding a Heavy Weapon, the character must succeed on a Tumble Check vs DC 15 or defender's melee attack roll (defender's option), or take an AoO after landing (unless his Leap Attack kills the defending character).
More coming; this list undoubtedly to be expanded.