Emirikol combat and skills

[subplotkudzu]

ladegard Loaned me his copy of Skull & Bones, a piracy sourcebook for d20. It's interesting for some of its fencing ideas and damn handy for the firearms, but I won't be using much other than the guns directly. What I am doing is taking some of the fencing ideas and translating them to the skill system.



Why skills? I'm already giving some of the classes more skill points, and I don't want to add a whole pile of feats into the game - there are enough of those already, and the PCs only get a limited number of them. Skills, on the other hand, anyone can try, or can spend points into. My goal is to have each of these be about as useful as the existing Bluff and Tumble combat functions of Feint and Defensive Tumble. I'm also including everything else that skills can do in combat, like using Ride to get an elevation bonus to the attack for being on horseback, just so the players can see their options.

The names in italics are taken from S&B, which are apparently also the terms from the Spanish fencing style.

Balance Afirmase: Characters with 5+ ranks in Balance can face a foe sideways, weapon extended, using Balance to present as narrow a profile as possible. This gives a +2 dodge bonus to AC vs. one foe, but you lose your Dex bonus to AC vs. all other foes.

Bluff Feint: with a Bluff check (opposed by Sense Motive) you can take a miscellaneous standard action (i.e., lose your attacks) feint an attacks and deny your target his Dex bonus to AC on your next attack. This includes opening them up for a Surprise Strike.

Climb Elevation: If you have elevation on your opponent, you gain a +1 to hit. Climbing onto short, man-made objects as part of your movement has a DC 10 for a chair, 13 for a 3' high table and 15 for a 5' high bar, and if the height is less than 5' this will count as your 5' step and not draw an attack of opportunity.

Concentration Casting on the Defensive: DC 15+ spell level check to avoid an attack of opportunity when spellcasting in a fight.

Escape Artist Escape Grapple: it won't do to be held down by one foe and knifed by another.

Intimidate Stare Down: with an Intimidate check at DC 15 +foe's HD + any bonuses against fear you can break a foe's confidence as a miscellaneous standard action (i.e., you lose your attacks). Such foes are Shaken (-2 Morale penalty on attack & damage rolls and saving throws) on their next turn. This can only be done once per foe per combat.

Jump The Jump skill can be used to make a Charge attack even if you lack the room required. An outcome of 20 on a standing jump allows a Charge with just a 5' between you and your foe, gaining +2 to hit, a -2 on your AC until your next round, x2 damage from set spears and no drawing an Attack of Opportunity.
If you roll a 14 or higher on the roll you still move into the next square and can attack, but it's a normal 5' step with no modifiers.
With an outcome of 25+ you can combine the Charge with an Overrun or Bull's Rush, ending in the target's square, or beyond..

Perform Cloak Deceits: you have 5+ ranks in perform and two of your chosen performances are Cloak and Dance, you have mastered the use of the cloak (or similar piece of cloth) for both dancing and combat. Attacking with a Cloak is a ranged touch attack with a maximum range of 10', no range penalties and it provokes an attack of opportunity. A successful hit leaves the foe entangled, suffering a -2 to attack and -4 to effective Dex (which, among other things, gives a -2 AC, but this is not considered losing his Dex bonus to AC for Sneak Attacks, however). Freeing yourself from a cloak is an Escape Artist DC 10 roll as a standard action.

Pick Pocket Dagger Flick: With a DC 20 Pick Pockets roll you can toss a dagger, dart or shuriken with your off-hand without the standard off-hand penalty. The synergy bonus from Bluff does not apply to this check - it is a matter of pure dexterity. Rogues and Bards will often hold a dagger in their off hand even if they aren't using two-weapon fighting, just to have the option available.

Ride Mounted Elevation: melee attacks against foes on the ground gain a +1 to hit due to elevation.

Sense Motive Tacto when first engaging an opponent in melee, a Sense Motive check (DC 15 or foe's Bluff skill +10) will reveal your opponents BAB, Strength Score or Dexterity Score. With a DC of 25 (or the foe's Bluff skill +20) you gain a +2 circumstance bonus on your next attack against that foe.

Spellcraft Counterspell: If you identify a spell as its being cast (DC 15), either the same spell, an opposite spell (light to counter darkness) or any spell of a higher level than the target spell can be used to counter it.

Spot Armor Chink: as a miscellaneous standard action you can make a spot check with a DC of 18+ foe's Armor Bonus. If successful you have located the weakest spots in the foe's armor, and it only provides half of its standard Armor bonus against your attacks (Padded armor provides no protection, leather is reduced to +1 AC). You must be able to see the opponent's armor, so this does not work on armor hidden under clothing.

Tumble Defensive Tumble: with 5+ ranks in tumble your 'Defensive Fighting' provides a +3 to AC, and 'Total Defense' gives a +6.

Comments

[mneme]

Perform(Dance) and Perform(Cloak) aren't separate skills in 3.0, I take it?

Cloaks: Eh. Actual cloak technique is much more interesting:

You can parry with the cloak -- using it much like a flexible, buckler.
You can use the cloak to aid an attack -- either displacing/binding your opponent's weapon to make an opening, disguising the approach of your weapon by obscuring it with the cloak, or some combination of each.
Finally, you can throw the cloak -- either forcing your opponent to dodge and hopefully give you an opening, or obscuring their vision and movement and giving you an easy attack. But doing so deprives you of your cloak.

Cloak does feel more like an exotic weapons proficiency, though.

Josh, who's spent a fair amount of time fencing with cloaks.

[brianrogers.livejournal.com]

Perform(Dance) and Perform(Cloak) aren't separate skills in 3.0, I take it?

Nope - there's one Perform skill, and each rank you have in it gives you one more style of performance (an instrument, singing, dancing, etc). Even that is more complicated than I'd like (I'm all for a single Perform skill), but there's no way I'd ask for Ranks in each each performance style.

Cloak does feel more like an exotic weapons proficiency, though.

I'm already planning to include Cloak on the armor list, which is where it is in the S&B equipment list, but the cloak deceptions (which has the one I listed, plus disguising an attack) are only available to a single prestige class, which I didn't agree with.

I was hoping to give each of the physical skills some sort of combat aspect and cloak was the best I could do for Perform, but you might be right that it's better off putting it in the game as an Exotic Weapon Proficiency.

I wonder if any of the players have any thoughts. Or ideas for what might be a combat option for Perform that would work better if I did move Cloak to an EWP?

[mneme]

Hmm. Re Perform, the most obvious uses would be, perhaps, over-similar to feinting -- perhaps a defensive feint?

Looking over 3.5 feints...feinting should really be an attack action, not a standard action (this might not be an issue in 3.0, since the action system was slightly differeent IIRC), and...-8 on feints against animals? Tell that to a bullfighter.

[brianrogers.livejournal.com]

Well, I did add the Improved Feint feat (which by my reckoning makes it a move equivalent action, so a fighter can feint, make his primary attack and then make a secondary, non feinted attack if he has one).

Maybe some bonus to AC to avoid an AoO? Not to standard AC (that Balance gives) or to fighting Defensively or avoiding them all together (like Tuumble gives or lets you attempt) but something like a reduced form or Evasion?