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Old 04-19-2019, 11:12 PM   #31
JLV
 
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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Originally Posted by HeatDeath View Post
That sounds like an idea I had a couple of posts ago in this thread, but didn't bother writing up: building house rules for TFT based in the martial arts combat system in Kung Fu 2100. :p
I did that years and years ago for my original gaming group (in about 1983 or so, I think). It was awesome! ;-)
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Old 04-20-2019, 11:27 AM   #32
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

Many a Hong Kong film, and the old Kung Fu TV show, has guys catching or deflecting arrows, daggers, thrown axes .. and in the Watchmen comic, Adrian Veidt caught a .38 slug in his hand .. he didnt have any super powers, thats supposed to be high levels of martial arts only. Considering all the much more impossible stuff going on on Cidri, why not make some rule for this? Something for UC guys to try if fired at ..

.. say SR 3/DX to deflect/catch any incoming missile, (from front hexes only) cant be used on more missiles per turn than your level of UC talent (so max 5 missiles at UC V) .. cant try it on a bullet until UC V. Must have nothing in your hands to do this. Counts as a free action. If you catch a throwing weapon you also have the talent for, you can immediately throw it right back, also as a free action. Doesnt work on missile spells or lasers.

Last edited by mark hill; 04-20-2019 at 11:35 AM.
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Old 04-20-2019, 12:12 PM   #33
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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Originally Posted by FireHorse View Post
the really surprising thing is that a successful dagger to the head might not be lethal.
Allow me to introduce you to the famous Phineas Gage.

Gage isn't unique, as Mohammad Tarique demonstrated last year. Or just look at the first page of Google search results for medical reports like these.

An unsuspecting motorcycle passenger was ambushed and impaled on the right side of the head with a 30cm serrated meat carving knife... The patient escaped running with the knife in his head

a 37-year-old right-handed man who was impaled in the head by an angle metal bar at a construction work site... The patient made a good recovery although he has functional deficits related to the injury to his frontal lobes
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Old 04-20-2019, 03:54 PM   #34
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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Originally Posted by hcobb View Post
I setup a scenario where a fencer is supposed to be a big challenge and the players took care of the the problem with one figure defending while the others poured in crossbow fire.

I've modified the fencer by giving him Shield Expertise, but this doesn't help much.

How do you keep big bad fencers or martial artists from getting slaughtered by missile weapons the first turn they're engaged by a defend-only anchor and so have to drop their dodge?

Note that I just want solutions under the rules as written rather than a house rule.
For fencers, by putting them in proper contexts - town streets, where a crossbow means you're either on the guard, or about to be killed by guardsmen with crossbows, muskets, and/or magic anyway if you've got it out and loaded. And often, don't have a lot of range, are liable for collateral damage, and face the possibility of being charged with attempted murder and/or insurrection for use of weapons of war inside the city.

Fencing, historically, was a townsman thing. The techniques for martial swords are rather different (tho' Cut-n-Thrust era was cross-influential). By the time fencing was a popular element, wheel-locks were becoming reliable enough to be threatening, body armor was becoming ceremonial or reduced to mere center-of-mass protection, cavalry was largely transitioning to dragoons (horse-mobile infantry) and musket-cavalry (who largely fired a round or two, then switched to the saber).

Alternately, set it as a genre element that ranged attacks simply do not get made on targets engaged with allies.
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Old 04-21-2019, 09:41 PM   #35
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

Thanks a lot, ak_aramis. Now I have to go watch 1973 version of The Three Musketeers (with Michael York as D'Artagnan), and probably also its 1974 sequel The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge, for approximately the hundred and forty-fourth time.

Which reminds me… why does the U in "four" disappear for "forty"?
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Old 04-22-2019, 04:33 AM   #36
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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Which reminds me… why does the U in "four" disappear for "forty"?
English spelling evolved amid chaos and despair, no doubt due to the influence of the Evil Wizard Lord as a means to oppress the human population.

Before 1600, the OED cities a number of spellings: feuortig, feortiȝ, fuwerti, vourty (they really used a "u" for the "v"), fourty, fourthi, and fourtie. The actual pronunciation probably involved a dipthong, and maybe some regional vowel shifts, on top of the "eh, close enough" attitude toward spelling. But one speculation for the ascendance of "forty" is the King James Version of the Bible, from 1611. It uniformly spells the word "forty" (158 times, zero other spellings).
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Old 04-23-2019, 01:27 AM   #37
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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Originally Posted by FireHorse View Post
Thanks a lot, ak_aramis. Now I have to go watch 1973 version of The Three Musketeers (with Michael York as D'Artagnan), and probably also its 1974 sequel The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge, for approximately the hundred and forty-fourth time.

Which reminds me… why does the U in "four" disappear for "forty"?
In the US, blame Daniel Webster. I've seen it spelled fourty and forty in 1890's US government records...

Edit to add: Enjoy the totally unrealistic but fun films.

Last edited by ak_aramis; 04-23-2019 at 12:12 PM.
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Old 05-29-2019, 10:20 AM   #38
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

Try driving rain - in really wet weather any pre-modern ranged weapon will suffer. Crossbows will suffer from the strings getting wet and stretching as well as the other problems caused by the deluge. Add a crosswind and you're probably better off hitting the guy with a crossbow than shooting him with it.
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Old 06-01-2019, 01:35 PM   #39
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

Historically...

Light Infantry (missile weapons) defeats Other Infantry (melee) because the Melee has to close the gap under fire. Once Other Infantry closes to Shock action, the light infantry is toast.

Setting aside the Wight bit.
In an open arena the unarmored Fencer will loose because he has no cover or concealment to exploit as he closes the gap. Heavy Infantry at least has armor and shield and mutual protection from missiles, but while advancing they become targets for flanking, usually by cavalry.

If being a Wight isn't good enough, add increased maneuverability and speed to that the Fencer can outrun the blocker, using the Defend option to become harder to hit with missiles or use a gimmick (smoke bombs, etc.) to obscure the view of the light infantry to that the fencer can destroy the blocker before moving in on the light infantry.
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Old 08-03-2019, 07:48 PM   #40
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Default Re: Slaughtering Fencers with crossbows

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From the upcoming expansion, The Kung Fu Trip. Very hush hush, don't tell anybody.
TKFT

I love it! LOL
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