12-31-2014, 12:03 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Nov 2011
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Improving the Tonfa
The GURPS tonfa seems rather unimpressive. It has a number of cost saving features that could cause a character to end up using one but it doesn't have anything that would push someone to design around it in the first place. Removing the tonfa skill as part of a melee weapon reorganization is nice but doesn't solve the underlying problem.
Is there a realistic benefit that we can give the tonfa to make it more attractive? |
12-31-2014, 12:17 PM | #2 |
Join Date: Jul 2007
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
They always struck me as versatile weapons for people in closer range combat. Not the king of anything, but good for a number of purposes. Also, less threatening than a blade or mace, so there are sometimes social advantages. IMC (non-DF Fantasy), tonfas are used by "town guard" in places that have cultural exposure to the weapon and don't want to use army troops for the purpose. I also allow the Grip Mastery perk to switch between use modes for weapons, ie between a punching and swinging grip, using the separate skills, for a tonfa. This augments their versatility.
There are better weapons for tripping, snagging and disarming. There are better weapons for killing at reach 1 and reach C. There are even better less threatening weapons. However, the tonfa is a decent choice for each of these categories. I think it's a poor primary weapon, but a great backup for an adventurer (as opposed to a soldier). |
12-31-2014, 12:21 PM | #3 |
Join Date: Jul 2008
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
The Tonfa's most interesting feature is probably how it interacts with unarmed combat skills for parrying.
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12-31-2014, 12:34 PM | #4 |
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Maitland, NSW, Australia
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
FWIW it is supposed to be unimpressive. It is a handle from a mill used by a people who were forbidden to use real weapons.
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12-31-2014, 12:38 PM | #5 |
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: France
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
The modern tonfa seems less impressive than an mace, yes. But the tonkwas, the Okinawan tonfas, were very, very dangerous.
But Okinawan tonkwas were very dangerous weapons. Maybe one of the most lethal in kobudo. Which always teach to use two tonkwas at the same time (one in each hand). It makes them even more dangerous: the foe can't know from which side the attack will come. |
12-31-2014, 12:59 PM | #6 |
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
Any character designed around using a tonfa is probably going to be in a society where he can't access better weapons and/or be using a cinematic version of the tonfa.
For the first, you're probably talking about something like Social Stigma, low Status, etc. For the latter, you might want to have the tonfa usable in both grips (and even when swinging) with Karate (possibly a Perk) and either let it benefit from both the Karate damage bonus and the Weapon Master damage bonus (a rules exemption probably worth at least [5], arguably more) or make Striking ST (Only when striking with a tonfa) fairly cheap. Let them have the Ninja modifier (DF12, p.13), and have Parrying with a reverse-grip Tonfa be at +1 normally, possibly +3 or higher against a foe who doesn't know you have a tonfa. Spinning the tonfa might allow it to Block as a DB 1 or 2 shield (particularly against light projectiles). Allow characters to use the handle with Hook, and also as a climbing aid. Having a tonfa protect the hand (and forearm, if in reverse grip) passively like a katar or similar weapon might also be worthwhile. |
12-31-2014, 01:30 PM | #7 | |||||
Join Date: Nov 2011
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
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While real tonfa may be a fine weapon the GURPS tonfa really isn't. Any wooden weapon a PC uses is normally going to be made out of quality wood whether it's a tonfa or bokken and any long object made out of hard wood is something that can kill someone. Likewise any one handed weapon can be used as a pair and tonfa don't get any bonus regarding this. The GURPS tonfa is dangerous in an objective sense but compared to other weapons it suffers. If the PCs are a group of kobujutsuka the tonfa is probably going to be used less than other weapons and it's going to be even less common if they have a greater variety of weapons and styles to choose from. Quote:
Last edited by Sindri; 12-31-2014 at 01:39 PM. |
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12-31-2014, 01:51 PM | #8 | |
Join Date: Jul 2008
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
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Also, the obvious reason to be tonfaguy that the rules almost can't help but support is that a tonfa is the weapon you have access to...for instance if you're in a police force where they're carried.
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12-31-2014, 01:58 PM | #9 | |
Join Date: Nov 2011
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
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That's part of the problem really. If it's just a bad choice on the weapons list that's a shame especially if one of the players likes tonfa but it's not a big problem. However it's frustrating for a PC to have to put up with gear that is mechanically bad though if they are a member of that police force. It's much more pleasant for the PC if their assigned gear has some kind of niche of superiority even if it's overall worse than other choices. Last edited by Sindri; 12-31-2014 at 02:03 PM. |
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12-31-2014, 02:07 PM | #10 |
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Maitland, NSW, Australia
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Re: Improving the Tonfa
The whole point of the Police tonfa/baton is that it isn't very effective at killing people. Police carry them because they are less lethal than their sidearm. These days the taser meets that criteria.
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house rules, low-tech, martial arts, tonfa, weapons. |
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