Combining Aim and Evaluate

[Draconix]

Will it unbalance the game to combine aim and evaluate into the same maneuver if a weapon is capable of both melee or ranged, like a javelin, or the attacker has both a ranged and melee weapon in each hand?

[Gollum]

As GM, I wouldn't.

I like that my players think in the game as they would in reality. If they decide to throw their javelin, they will aim (and so, use the aim maneuver). But if they decide to use their javelin as a two handed melee weapon, they will use the evaluate maneuver. And they will do that from the beginning of their decision. Indeed, both maneuvers are a bit different. When you aim, you focus on the best throw to reach your target; when you evaluate, you focus on the foe's guard and its potential openings ...

But it is just my GM's opinion. I don't really see any problem of unbalancing with rules. As long as you don't allow to add the two bonuses! It is either one, or the other, depending on how the character eventually uses his weapon.

[whswhs]

I can see a couple of ways to take this.

Are you planning to hold one javelin, deciding whether to throw it or wield it like a spear? In this case, it seems to me you're doing two things at once: The Aim maneuver is focusing on the position of a remote target; the Evaluate is looking at the combat style of a nearby target. For that divided attention I'd apply the standard -2 penalty, which would cancel out most or all of the benefit you gained.

I might treat having a weapon in each hand similarly. Or there might be extra penalties; I'm not sure exactly what you're visualizing. If you wanted to do both attacks in the same turn you'd have to have Extra Attack, of course.

You could always choose to Aim a single weapon, and then switch to melee attack and sacrifice the Aim bonus, if someone close with you. That seems to me to be the logical combat sequence and to be fair.

[Donny Brook]

Hm. When you're spear-fishing do you Aim or Evaluate? I would lean toward saying that if your weapon gives you an instantaneous choice of whether to make a melee or ranged attack on the same target, you could be allowed to treat one Maneuvre as the other. Must involve no grip changes, and you may not pick hit locations or attack options that were unavailable to the other attack.

[mehrkat]

From my perspective I don't see the realism in combining the two. The process of

aiming a weapon (getting a solid bead on the target) moving your weapons to track them.

is completely different from

evaluating an enemy getting your stance just right for your opponent position your weapon catch the opponents eyes and position yourself perfectly.

I wouldn't allow combining them because they do completely different things.

As for whether you are aiming or evaluating when spear fishing I would say it would depend on whether you are focusing on a fish close to you or far away.