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Yodaman23
2008-09-17, 04:50 PM
I remember an issue of Dragon that had detailed and very good Strangulation rules but I am in college and forgot my stack of Magazines. I have a character who is a regular in all my campaigns called "The Bald Strangler" who is just a crazy old bald man who strangles people for no reason and while he is only a low level character he always gets away and grows with the party.

If you guys can either relay the article onto me or we can homebake good fun strangulation rules that would be nice. Keep in mind that the rules should differ for strangling with bare hands versus rope or garot wire.

I plan on making a strangler class. I'll post it when I am done.

Yodaman23
2008-09-17, 05:08 PM
I think it was you were able to be strangle for a number of rounds equal to your con score and then you would pass out but I forgot the true mechanics of it.

Occasional Sage
2008-09-17, 05:25 PM
I don't have it handy right now, but I fuzzily recall 3.0 rules on this in the expanded unarmed sections of OA. I'll take a peek later and see what I can find.

As a quick idea, since I don't remember how this works at all, what do you think of taking the standard CON-based breath holding rules, and knock off a round every time the strangler holds their grapple, with unconsciousness when the CON limit runs out?

Keld Denar
2008-09-17, 05:37 PM
Well, you can hold your breath for a number of rounds equal to your CON score, then a number of additional rounds so long as you can make the DC10 +1/round cumulative fort save. When you fail the first one, your HP drop to 0, then the next round you die.

Check the PHB rules under suffocation. That's what happens when somene strangles you.

Spiryt
2008-09-17, 05:42 PM
There is a garrote in Song and Silence as far as I know.

kjones
2008-09-17, 06:18 PM
I was going to copy/paste the rules for garroting from 3.0 Song and Silence, but damn, those are some convoluted rules. So just go with suffocation as an option while pinning in a grapple or something like that.

Occasional Sage
2008-09-17, 06:22 PM
Here we are. Note that this feat is 3.0, not 3.5:




Choke Hold (general)
You have learned the correct way to apply pressure to render an opponent unconscious.

Prerequisites: Improved Unarmed Strike, Improved Grapple, Stunning Fist
Benefit: If you pin your opponent while grappling and maintain the pin for 1 full round, at the end of the round your opponent must make a Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 your level + your Wisdom modifier). If the saving throw fails, your opponent falls unconscious for 1d3 rounds.


ETA:
Which I guess means you need to see this, too:




Improved Grapple (general)
You are skilled in martial arts that emphasize holds and throws.

Prerequisite: Improved Unarmed Strike
Benefit: If you hit with an unarmed strike, you deal normal damage and can attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. No initial touch attack is required. You can deal normal damage, without suffering a penalty on a grapple check.
Normal: Characters without this feat make a melee touch attack to grab their opponent and provoke an attack of opportunity when doing so. They also suffer a -4 penalty on their grapple checks when trying to inflict normal damage in a grapple.


EETA:

Thinking about these, and how to model a garrote, I'd say that a garrote requires an armed melee touch attack; using it provokes an attack of opportunity, unless the target is flanked. If the AoO inflicts damage, the garrote attack is canceled. A successful attack begins a grapple and the target is affected as the Choke Hold feat above every round. The attacker cannot convert the grapple to a pin, however, as both hands are on the garrote.

Glimbur
2008-09-17, 10:41 PM
There's a Reaping Mauler PrC in... Complete Warrior, I think. They get a class ability that lets them choke people. They're also apparently a trap for the unwary like too many fighter levels, but that's another story.

Quietus
2008-09-18, 12:02 AM
There's a Reaping Mauler PrC in... Complete Warrior, I think. They get a class ability that lets them choke people. They're also apparently a trap for the unwary like too many fighter levels, but that's another story.

The first of those abilities is basically identical to the above noted OA choke hold feat.

RS14
2008-09-18, 12:09 AM
Check the PHB rules under suffocation. That's what happens when somene strangles you.

Actually, you can strangle someone by compressing the carotid arteries.

overduegalaxy
2008-09-18, 12:13 AM
There's a garrote ring in Dragon Mag Compendium, pg 112, complete with rules on strangulation.

Jastermereel
2008-09-18, 01:05 PM
The first of those abilities is basically identical to the above noted OA choke hold feat.

I don't have it on me but I think the Reaping Mauler's early ability might be weaker. It has the same requirement about the one round pin, and the same effect of 1d3 rounds of unconsciousness, but its save is 10+wis+Mauler level (rather than 1/2 character level). Unless you take the class really early, this third level ability is outclassed by its semi-generic OA counterpart.

On the other hand, at level 5 the Mauler gets the ability to kill with the same save after a 3 round pin.

I don't have the book on me though so I could be off.

Keld Denar
2008-09-18, 01:16 PM
On the other hand, at level 5 the Mauler gets the ability to kill with the same save after a 3 round pin.


Yet another reason why RM is a weak class. Why spend 5 levels on an inferior class who's capstone can be replicated by the simple application of a party member inserting a sharpened piece of metal through the throat of the grappled victem. I'm sure that save vs death would be much higher, and only require one round of grapple...

Interesting idea, poor execution (get it? Bah dah CRASH!)

Tsotha-lanti
2008-09-18, 02:21 PM
Yet another reason why RM is a weak class. Why spend 5 levels on an inferior class who's capstone can be replicated by the simple application of a party member inserting a sharpened piece of metal through the throat of the grappled victem. I'm sure that save vs death would be much higher, and only require one round of grapple...

What mechanic is this, precisely? You can't coup de grace a pinned opponent. (Of course, if you've got a rogue ally, they can take all the freeby sneak attacks at the grappled or pinned enemy that they want.)

Sstoopidtallkid
2008-09-18, 02:26 PM
What mechanic is this, precisely? You can't coup de grace a pinned opponent. (Of course, if you've got a rogue ally, they can take all the freeby sneak attacks at the grappled or pinned enemy that they want.)Pinned Opponent=-4 AC+Flatfooted. A summoned Badger should be able to kill him in 3 rounds of that.

Prometheus
2008-09-18, 03:25 PM
There is also Crisis of Breath (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/crisisofBreath.htm) to draw inspiration from. Perhaps replace the standard action with succeed on a grapple check and than change the Fortitude DC.

Sstoopidtallkid
2008-09-18, 03:30 PM
Keeping someone from talking(hand over mouth) requires pinning. Hand holding throat seems about the same situation. If it was up to me, I'd rule it like the rules for drowning, with the addendum that if they break the pin, they can take a breath, and recover 2 rounds of air. That's completely different from RAW, I'm sure, but it seems logical and straightforward(which is how I know it's not RAW). :smallwink: