[DF,MA] Greatsword-wielding acrobatic skirmisher?

[Bruno]

I've been playing perhaps a bit too much Tera lately, especially on my Amani Slayer. Naturally my mind turns to GURPS and how to make a DF-appropriate character with this sort of combat style.

My first-draft idea was to make a 200-point Swashbuckler using Eric's DF-On-The-Cheap and slap the Barbarian lens on there. Pick Two-Handed Sword as your swashbuckler weapon (instead of one of the normal choices), sink points into Enhanced Dodge instead of Enhanced Parry, and look at spending discretionary points on Acrobatics, Whirlwind Attack, the Cleave powerup, that sort of thing. Optionally, for the "I'm a video-game character with a ridiculous weapon" feeling, buy the Huge Weapons (Size) perk and use an oversized thrusting greatsword instead of a normal one.

Swashbuckler gives you the character template based on swording things murderously while wearing light armor and defending by being light and agile rather than tanky. Barbarian gives you more ST, and it's a template generally associated with big guy with big sword.

I can't help but think I'm Doing This Wrong though - among other things, Barbarian is really more a utility class than a combat class.

The character I actually want to build wants a heavy salting of barbarian/scout outdoorsy skills, but that's basically a lens on the core character concept: fighter in leather with ludicrously big sword doing acrobatic dodges.

Is there something more obvious out of existing bits of DF profession templates or Martial Arts styles that I could be using?

[Bruno]

As a note: I'm not concerned with precisely matching the specific skills from the videogame; it's the rather over-the-top style that I want.

Move and attack, leaping attacks, attack and leaping retreats, whirlwind attack (which is not exactly a great idea in GURPS but dang if it isn't awesome when you pull it off) - I can see a lot of the pieces. I'm just fumbling around trying to hook them together.

[Inveet]

Spoiler:  

Damage(SM+1 Greatsword): 3d+10 cut/1d+7 cr | 1,2 / 2 reach | 0 parry | 14 effective skill

Unarmed Parry(Arm lock): 9
Parry(Signature Wep): 10

:STATS:(76p used)
ST 17 70
|HP 20 6
|BL 58
|Thr 1d+2
|Swing 3d-1
DX 10
IQ 10
|Per 10
|Will 10
HT 10
|FP 10

|BS 5
||Dodge 8
||BM 5


:LANGUAGES:
"Common" (Native)[0]


:ADVANTAGES:(29p used)
Weapon Master(Greatsword)(Rapid Strike -3, +2 per die) 20
Signature Gear 3
Hard to Subdue 3 6

:PERKS:(1p used)
Weapon-Bond(Cheap SM+1 Greatsword) 1

:DISADVANTAGES:(50p gained, cap reached)
Ugly(-2 reaction) -8
Enemies(Equal in power | FoA 9 or less) -10
Overconfidence(Self control 9) -7
Selfless -5
Sense of Duty(Companions) -5
Stubbornness -5
Unluckiness -10

:QUIRKS:(3p gained)
Minor obsession(Glorious death) -1
Likes fighting -1
Congenial(Mild Chummy) -1

:SKILLS:(47p used)
Acrobatics(DX/Hard) DX+0 4
|Acrobatic Stand 5(-1 Pen, all-out for +4) 5
Climbing(DX/Average) DX-1 1
Fast-Draw(DX/Easy|Two-handed Sword) DX+2 4
Melee Weapon(DX/Average|Two-handed sword) DX+4 16
|Feint 4 5
|TA(Greatsword|Neck|-2 penalties) 3
Melee Weapon(DX/Average|Broadsword) DX-1 1
Melee Weapon(DX/Easy|Knife) DX+0 1
Performance(IQ/Average) IQ-1 1
Soldier(IQ/Average) IQ-1 1
Wrestling(DX/Average | +1 ST for grappling DX+0 2
|Arm Lock 2 2

:INVENTORY:
Signature SM+1 Cheap Greatsword(Sw+5/thr+3 cr | 1,2/2 reach | 0 Parry | 16 lbs | 18ST 2H) -1080$
|0,5 CF Fitted

An extremely effective 100/50 point character that I made a while back. It's not excactly what you're asking for, but figured it might be nice to look at another interpretation of an over-the-top greatsword user.

It's worth mentioning that I invested in high pain treshold and enhanced parry at my earliest convenience. With his high parry score and the complimentary luck that we were given, he could stay alive long enough to slaughter anything. 20 hitpoints for doubled healing/recovery rate and hard to subdue + fit/HT later on so he could keep going even if reduced to negative HP.

[Maz]

I am not much of an DF-expert, having played mostly with only a curtsey nod to the DF-templates. But looking it over I think you might actually get a better fit with the Martial Artist template.

Trained By a Master is of course a bit of a waste of points when you already have Weapon Master. but look at the things it opens up for. Super Jump, Damage resistance, Regeneration. Powerblow. Many things very fitting for the type of character your after.

But i don't know, there might be a better way yet. Moving outside of strict template-adherence would make it easier. But I guess that's besides the point? ;)

---

Btw. a potential problem with this type of character is that all the added ST really encourages you to put on more armour as you can keep at No Encumbrance and still add much more DR. This is a problem as it breaks with the "lightly armoured" niche of the character.
A potential solution is to take gigantism to get you to the very unfortunate SM+1. This should make sure you can't armour up and at the same time save a bit of points on ST and HP AND allow you to wield AN EVEN BIGGER SWORD! That last bit is very important, so it had to be in caps. *nods*.

[Inveet]

Originally Posted by Maz

Btw. a potential problem with this type of character is that all the added ST really encourages you to put on more armour as you can keep at No Encumbrance and still add much more DR. This is a problem as it breaks with the "lightly armoured" niche of the character.
A potential solution is to take gigantism to get you to the very unfortunate SM+1. This should make sure you can't armour up and at the same time save a bit of points on ST and HP AND allow you to wield AN EVEN BIGGER SWORD! That last bit is very important, so it had to be in caps. *nods*.

Even with 18 ST(The requirement to wield a SM+1 Greatsword without penalty) you will only be able to carry 49 lbs of gear before becoming encumbered. Scale armor for example, weighs 35 lbs alone. So without getting any encumberence I'd still say the character wears "light" armor.

A SM+2 weapon has a ST requirement of 30, and has less convenient reach. So I'd stick to SM+1, which is quite doable without having a size modifier. Without gigantism the sword will be bigger compared to you, anyway.

[Gnome]

Originally Posted by Bruno

...and look at spending discretionary points on Acrobatics, Whirlwind Attack, the Cleave powerup, that sort of thing.

What's the Cleave powerup?

[mlangsdorf]

I'd just go with straight Swashbuckler, convince your GM (or yourself) to let you use Two-Handed Sword as an acceptable choice, and spend your 60 discretionary points on more ST and the other stuff you mentioned.

I don't see any problem with that - the archetypes represent common themes of DF, but they're not all inclusive.

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Gnome

What's the Cleave powerup?

"Cleaving Strike", it's a technique based on All Out Attack and Rapid Strike, letting you attack up to three enemies as long as you keep knocking down or knocking back (or dismembering) foes in the sweep. First foe you hit that manages to actually stop your weapon stops the cleave.

It is totally boss for high-cinema fighters with giant bladed weapons.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Bruno

"Cleaving Strike", it's a technique based on All Out Attack and Rapid Strike, letting you attack up to three enemies as long as you keep knocking down or knocking back (or dismembering) foes in the sweep. First foe you hit that manages to actually stop your weapon stops the cleave.

It is totally boss for high-cinema fighters with giant bladed weapons.

Not being certain whether I have the appropriate DF sourcebook, can you remind me if it functions as AoA in that it disallows an Active Defence?

If so, that seems to make it a less useful Whirlwind Attack and not at all analoguous to the Cleave feat in D&D, which would be better modelled by a limited Extra Attack.

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Maz

I am not much of an DF-expert, having played mostly with only a curtsey nod to the DF-templates. But looking it over I think you might actually get a better fit with the Martial Artist template.

That's some good points. I'll have a look at it and see what I can chip off or tack on there. My biggest concern is that the Martial Artist template is strained to the breaking point at 250 points but lensing it onto Swashbuckler might work?

I'd certainly end up with ludicrously easy Rapid Strikes with both TBaM and WM... Which would mean that cranking up weapon skill wouldn't be as necessary, which in turn changes the way the feel comes out. Hm. Might be desirable, might not. I will meditate.

Originally Posted by Maz

But i don't know, there might be a better way yet. Moving outside of strict template-adherence would make it easier. But I guess that's besides the point? ;)

I'm not against creating new templates, especially as part of abstract theory-crafting. I'd like to find out I can cobble it together from existing pieces with few parts sticking out but that may or may not be the case.

Originally Posted by Maz

A potential solution is to take gigantism to get you to the very unfortunate SM+1. This should make sure you can't armour up and at the same time save a bit of points on ST and HP AND allow you to wield AN EVEN BIGGER SWORD! That last bit is very important, so it had to be in caps. *nods*.

Another solution is to talk to the GM about sticking mostly with Striking ST and HP (to represent being a big guy if that's your trope) - lots of Striking ST is not normally a Swashbuckler thing beyond about 2 levels (layer Catfolk to strain that a little further without getting off-template).

Originally Posted by mlangsdorf

I'd just go with straight Swashbuckler, convince your GM (or yourself) to let you use Two-Handed Sword as an acceptable choice, and spend your 60 discretionary points on more ST and the other stuff you mentioned.

I don't see any problem with that - the archetypes represent common themes of DF, but they're not all inclusive.

Yeah, it's just partly an interesting design challenge ;)

The Barbarian lens, as I look into it more, allows dipping more Striking ST of the Barbarian template, and the Huge Weapons perk is a legit powerup for them from DF11, along with those extra HP, and DR (Tough Skin) to strain the "lightly armored" point as far as possible. But that's after buying the lens, which means you're getting further and further into other CP reserves on the character.

This character desperately needs a Zweihander.