PDA

View Full Version : Sundering Tentacles



laughing.fox
2007-12-27, 12:46 AM
I'm going to make a gang of level 12 characters fight a kraken. If the kraken is grappling a character with a single tentacle (at -20 using improved grab), does that tentacle still get to make an opposed attack roll at full bonus to resist a sunder attempt? It seems like it should be easier to sunder when it's holding someone.

Solo
2007-12-27, 12:53 AM
Evidence from the Japanese animation industry would lead me to believe that tentacles are very difficult to sever/sunder.

In addition you do not want to end up being grappled by tentacles, ever.

Cuddly
2007-12-27, 12:54 AM
As far as I know, you can't sunder natural weapons. This leads to the problem of sundering people's arms, dragon's heads, etc.

Citizen Joe
2007-12-27, 12:57 AM
Almost all the rules for sundering tentacles/limbs are described in the actual monster description.

Epic_Wizard
2007-12-27, 01:57 AM
Okay a thought just struck me as I was reading this. Use the add hock rule that you can "Sunder" things used to makes attacks such as a slam attack. You can not sunder an unarmed attack because basically as longs as you are alive you can beat someone with SOME part of your body. This means that you could sunder the Kraken's tentacle but it doesn't really loose the tentacle it just looses the use of attacks made with that tentacle. This prevents inconveniences causes by Cure vs Regeneration spells since in this instance either will fix the problem.

As to your actual question I would just apply penalties to the tentacle as if it were in a grapple but without the ability of creatures like a Kraken to not lose AC while in a grapple. There was actually some discussion about this a few days ago here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3673092#post3673092) but specifically I am talking about my post in the matter



...

As far as limb severage goes this passage from the SRD may help:

[QUOTE=SRD 3.5]A hydra can be killed either by severing all its heads or by slaying its body. To sever a head, an opponent must make a successful sunder attempt with a slashing weapon. (The player should declare where the attack is aimed before making the attack roll.) Making a sunder attempt provokes an attack of opportunity unless the foe has the Improved Sunder feat. An opponent can strike at a hydra’s heads from any position in which he could strike at the hydra itself, because the hydra’s head writhe and whip about in combat. An opponent can ready an action to attempt to sunder a hydra’s head when the creature bites at him. Each of a hydra’s heads has hit points equal to the creature’s full normal hit point total, divided by its original number of heads. Losing a head deals damage to the body equal to half the head’s full normal hit points. A natural reflex seals the neck shut to prevent further blood loss. A hydra can no longer attack with a severed head but takes no other penalties.

http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/35/sovelior_sage/monstersHtoI.html#hydra

In this case I would treat the attack roll as a sunder attempt VS the target's full AC (minus any penalties for being flat footed ect...) plus any bonuses or penalties for an object that is 1-2 size categories smaller than the target with any target that is more than 2 size categories smaller than the weapon being used not presenting a large enough target to be accurately hit.

Oh yeah and slashing weapons only obviously. You could use bludgeoning maybe but you would only break the arm then,

which is the precursor to this line of thought.

You would probably follow the rules for sundering a weapon in the case of a limb that is used to attack or the rules for "Sundering a Carried or Worn Object" for any other limb:


Sunder (http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/35/sovelior_sage/specialAttacks.html#sunder)ing a Carried or Worn Object: You don’t use an opposed attack roll to damage a carried or worn object. Instead, just make an attack roll against the object’s AC. A carried or worn object’s AC is equal to 10 + its size modifier + the Dexterity modifier of the carrying or wearing character. Attacking a carried or worn object provokes an attack of opportunity just as attacking a held object does. To attempt to snatch away an item worn by a defender rather than damage it, see Disarm. You can’t sunder armor worn by another character.

For your Kraken encounter if your characters are going to be in a situation where the Tentacles are the only thing that they really CAN attack then just use the rules for a Hydra except I would reduce the amount of damage that it does to the creature (or not your call but remember a Hydra has fast healing and a Kraken doesn't) and of course the tentacles don't grow back.

RTGoodman
2007-12-27, 02:14 AM
Or, you know, just use the rules about sundering tentacles and arms from the Kraken's actual description (http://systemreferencedocuments.org/35/sovelior_sage/monstersKtoL.html#kraken) in the SRD. :smallbiggrin:


An opponent can make sunder attempts against a kraken’s tentacles or arms as if they were weapons. A kraken’s tentacles have 20 hit points, and its arms have 10 hit points. If a kraken is currently grappling a target with one tentacle or arm, it usually uses another limb to make its attack of opportunity against the sunder attempt. Severing a kraken’s tentacle or arm deals damage to the kraken equal to half the limb’s full normal hit points. A kraken usually withdraws from combat if it loses both tentacles or three of its arms. A kraken regrows severed limbs in 1d10+10 days.

From this, it seems like it does get it's full bonus on the opposed roll. You have to realize, of course, that the tentacles and arms are still gigantic, and even though it's holding something at one end, it still has the whole rest of the muscled limb to see if the sunder is even effective.