Star Wars (RCR): deflect (attack) broken?

[Ossian]

Hello folks! I posted this in a VERY old 3d, so here is the brand new one.

Now, I have a problem with Deflect (ATTACK) in the Revised Core Rulebook (RCR). It states that you can send back a blaster bolt that misses you by 5 points or less, with a -4 penality.

Now, this is IMPOSSIBLE whenever mooks and thugs are attacking you, especially if you are a high level character, which is weird, since you are supposed to be better at doing lightsaber defense (attack and defense).

Example:
Master Windu is crossing the battle arena of Geonosis, surrounded by a scores of low level droids.
At the cost of a Move Action in his next round, he decides to move twice and just deflect (attack, -3) up to 9 (1/2 his level) blaster shot directed at him that miss him by 5 or less. In this way, he's pretty much moving AND attacking. He does not use Deflect (defense + 3) since that would make it even more impossible to miss him by a marging of just 5 points.
Master Windu, being the well know "Walking death BAMF" has a defense score of 25 (13 for his outstanding coolness and class and +2 for DEX). Having had to face Jango Fett and (you never know) possibly even his more lordly counterpart in dueling just, Count Dooku, a few rounds earlier, he might have well enhanced his DEX by, let's say, 6 points. So he's got DEX 20 now (+5), which gives him a new defense score of 28. The average battle droind, unless is using some unit combined fire, has an attack score of just +0.
So unless he rolls a natural 20, he'll never ever hit mace. On the other hand, a 20 is always a hit, and you can't deflect or redirect a natural hit (even if it is not a confirmed critical). So, how's mace supposed to redirect the clumsy balster shots aimed at him?

And more over, how's he going to get simply hit by a non mutilating critical? Double 20 (1 for the natural hit and the other as a crit confirmation) is an amputation (as stated in the Hero's Guide). So if I am a total thickskull with a blaster I can either amputate Master Windu's leg or miss him altogether?

Uh, that is a bit extreme, but has happened before, even with a simple 6th level Force Adpet 1/Jedi Guardian5. I'd post this on the WOTC forum, but now over there is ALL saga edition, and I am fine with the RCR, so any help from you folks would be terrific!

Ossian.

[Closet_Skeleton]

Although the Wizards forums are all Saga threads, whenever I see a RCR thread pop up it does get answers before it gets burried under more Saga stuff.

Just describe him as deflecting blaster bolts. Even if you don't use the deflect mechanic it doesn't mean deflection isn't happening.

Also, is there any rule that says you can't deflect attacks that miss?

[Ossian]

You can deflect shots as part of you "defense" as a jedi (just cinematic), as an active defense (Jedi Deflect Defense special quality, +1 to +4 bonus to defense score) or even redirect them at those that fired at you, but ONLY if they miss you by 5 or less points. This hit roll is at -4 (but it gets better) and the damage is the same of the weapon that fired at you (say, a 3d8 blaster rifle)

I most definitely use a description of the jedis deflecting bolts, but the rule for the Deflect (attack) is a bit confusing. Anyway, I'll give it a try on the Wizards' forum , though I have not seen that many RCR threads in the past months (probably 1 or 2...)

Ossian

[Jasdoif]

I can see three potential explanations behind this.

One, maybe attack rolls that miss by 6 or more are simply too far off to redirect properly.

Two, it prevents mooks from being a liability for a bigger bad buy (like in your example, Mace could simply send his allotment of attack deflections into Jango, and do a lot more damage then he could have hoped to have done by himself).

Three, it prevents high-level Jedi from voluntarily turning themselves to blaster reflection stations (seriously, ten level 1 NPCs with blaster rifles shooting at a Jedi Guardian 20. That's 30d8 total, all redirected at the Jedi's attack bonus -1. All for a move action.)

[Ossian]

I am more for the third option. A jedi of high enough evel would have the Extended Deflect (atk and def), allowing him to defend/send back blaster bolts that are aimed at adiacent targets, normally an ally, like Qui Gonn deflectin the bolts aimed at the still relatively low-level Kenobi on the trade federation ship.

As for Jango and Windu, you can hit a target only with the shots he fires at you, not someone elses, so with three attacks (full attacks) from Jango, that's all that mace could send him back before getting into melee and making 1 attack of opportunity to sunder the pistol and then 1 regular attack at his highest BAB (which probably scored a critical hit).

Option 3, on the other hand, seems quite convincing. High level jedis would probably get way too much firepower at the simple cost of a move action.

Thanks Jasdoif!

O.

[Holocron Coder]

I think there was an errata ruling on the subject, though I can't quote a source. Essentially it was about the nature of the deflect vs a "20 auto-hit". The errata was that the deflection overruled the auto-hit of the 20.

Imagine it as the weapon is fired, it will hit, but the Jedi moves the lightsaber into the path before it strikes.

I could possibly be wrong, but it makes sense to me