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Old 03-06-2017, 10:09 PM   #1
whswhs
 
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Default buckling Martian swashes: two questions

I have, currently, three players signed up for my first Inland Empire campaign, meeting this weekend for Session 0. It's going to be set on a version of Percival Lowell's Mars (the one used by H.G. Wells, Edgar Rice Burroughs, C.S. Lewis, and Robert Heinlein, elegized by Roger Zelazny, and recently pastiched by S.M. Stirling), and it's going to be steampunk, the first actual steampunk campaign I've run since I wrote the book. I'll be using a slightly modified Dying Mars from GURPS Mars, which has the Martians at TL4, but with relics of advanced tech.

So I have two questions:

Most of the Martian races are over 6' tall, and First Race and Upland Martians average 7', which is SM +1. That lets them treat reach C melee weapons as reach 1. How does that affect fencing skills? In particular, can they use a knife as if it were a smallsword? Does this involve either racial access to a skill adaptation perk, or a fencing class skill for blades shorter than a smallsword?

One of the plausible relic technologies in this setting seems to be using titanium to make body armor and melee weapons. Is titanium a plausible material for fencing type weapons, or would it be inferior to high-quality steel? If it's desirable, what benefits should it grant?

Informed speculation is welcome on either point. Thanks!
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Old 03-06-2017, 10:31 PM   #2
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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Originally Posted by whswhs View Post
That lets them treat reach C melee weapons as reach 1. How does that affect fencing skills? In particular, can they use a knife as if it were a smallsword? Does this involve either racial access to a skill adaptation perk, or a fencing class skill for blades shorter than a smallsword?
Mechanics-wise, there is no difference between using a knife with Main-Gauche skill, which is a normal use of the skill and doesn't require any kind of Skill Adaptation, and using it with Smallsword.

So I wouldn't charge a point or even change the skill that they are using from Main-Gauche. If you want to reflect a stylistic difference, just have them use a Smallsword-based martial art style with the main skill replaced by Main-Gauche.
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Old 03-06-2017, 10:50 PM   #3
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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Mechanics-wise, there is no difference between using a knife with Main-Gauche skill, which is a normal use of the skill and doesn't require any kind of Skill Adaptation, and using it with Smallsword.
Per the Basic Set, Main-Gauche applies to "Any weapon normally wielded with Knife or Jitte/Sai skill (see below), used in the “off” hand. With this skill, you may ignore the penalty for using the “off” hand on defense (attacks are still at -4) and the -1 for parrying with a knife."

However, per Martial Arts, I see that "It’s permissible to use Main-Gauche with your master hand to receive the benefits of a fencing parry while wielding a knife. Armed this way, you can also attack at your full Main-Gauche level."

Is that what you're thinking of? It does sound as if it's what I was asking about.

How would the greater Martian reach affect this, if at all? Is the benefit of greater reach subsumed under being able to ignore the -1 to knife parries? Or are there separate benefits to having Reach 1?
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Old 03-06-2017, 10:56 PM   #4
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

Icelander covered the fencing, I'll tackle question 2...

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Originally Posted by whswhs View Post
One of the plausible relic technologies in this setting seems to be using titanium to make body armor and melee weapons. Is titanium a plausible material for fencing type weapons, or would it be inferior to high-quality steel? If it's desirable, what benefits should it grant?
Titanium doesn't hold as good an edge as steel, but it is highly corrosion resistant, lightweight, and can take a decent point (though again, it dulls faster than steel).

Titanium-aluminum alloys (or titanium-vanadium) are more common than "pure" titanium in knife making (specialty knives) and are almost as good at keeping an edge as steel. Generally see usage in SCUBA kits or chem labs.

Personally I'd treat as steel, just lighter. The lower quality edge really is below the scale GURPS works at.
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Old 03-06-2017, 11:20 PM   #5
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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Personally I'd treat as steel, just lighter. The lower quality edge really is below the scale GURPS works at.
What kind of difference does the reduced weight make in fencing? If any, that is?
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Old 03-06-2017, 11:30 PM   #6
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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What kind of difference does the reduced weight make in fencing? If any, that is?
Less encumbering so you can carry more spare knives, but also they're disadvantaged compared to heavier knives when being parried by or used to parry other weapons.
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Old 03-06-2017, 11:54 PM   #7
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

GURPS High-Tech says that a titanium blade should have 75% of the weight of a steel blade. Does that affect the required ST to use it?
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Old 03-07-2017, 12:07 AM   #8
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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GURPS High-Tech says that a titanium blade should have 75% of the weight of a steel blade. Does that affect the required ST to use it?
Well plastic weapons in the Basic Set don't say that reducing the weight changes the minimum ST, but I think the weapon design rules in Low Tech do factor weight into it?
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Old 03-07-2017, 12:29 AM   #9
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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What kind of difference does the reduced weight make in fencing? If any, that is?
In my experience? None*.

Aside from the rules of parrying heavier blades. Okay, maybe a -1 on swing damage to sabers? Maybe?


* Note I've used 'light' and 'heavy' saber (different manufacturers, the weight was maybe a pound in difference all told), I'm no great fencer, but I never noticed much difference. And a friend whom is a trained fencer used to fence with weighted blades (made three times as heavy for training) and he wasn't any slower or faster with either. Though he did tire out faster when actively sparing with the heavier blades.

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Old 03-07-2017, 12:33 AM   #10
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Default Re: buckling Martian swashes: two questions

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Is that what you're thinking of? It does sound as if it's what I was asking about.
Yup, yup.

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Originally Posted by whswhs View Post
How would the greater Martian reach affect this, if at all? Is the benefit of greater reach subsumed under being able to ignore the -1 to knife parries? Or are there separate benefits to having Reach 1?
Well, there's having Reach 1.

I don't think it would change their fighting style much stylistically. Tall Martian vs. Tall Martian, both parties still have the same Reach and the same length of blade. And the basic style is probably developed fighting others of the same species.

Against other species, well, the game-mechanical implications are the same as when using a Long Knife. If your opponent only has Reach C attacks, keep your distance.
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