[LT] Two Armor questions

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Ze'Manel Cunha

Meh, if your angle with a sword is off you'll also end up glancing off, I'm fine with letting that type of thing fall under the granularity of the damage dice.

That 1 you just rolled for damage?
Yeah, that's a glancing blow, you were just off on that hit. Works fine.

On the other hand, it is significantly easier to teach people to use cutting or crushing weapons than for them to develop the technique to use a thrusting weapon competently.

If one were redoing the difficulty scales in GURPS, I think that one would have to account for that. Thrusting is probably a Technique, not a basic use of a weapon. On the other hand, simply hitting something with a blunt object or even a sharp one does not default to skill 5 for an average person. It is far easier.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Icelander

If one were redoing the difficulty scales in GURPS, I think that one would have to account for that. Thrusting is probably a Technique, not a basic use of a weapon. On the other hand, simply hitting something with a blunt object or even a sharp one does not default to skill 5 for an average person. It is far easier.

So thrusting with a spear, i.e. using a spear is a technique of... what exactly?

[Ze'Manel Cunha]

Originally Posted by Phoenix_Dragon

That's a rather significant buff to pick damage.

To be fair, picks are an awfully effective weapon, the picture I linked to above shows what happens when you swing a pick at a IIIa rated MICH, that means punching through DR 12+ with a Hooligan Tool, and I'm not some big bubba, I'm just some random guy.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Asta Kask

So thrusting with a spear, i.e. using a spear is a technique of... what exactly?

Probably Polearm skill.

There are too many skills in melee weapons anyway. Distinguish them by Techniques and Perks instead. A two-handed axe is a polearm and if it's got a spear-head, it's a spear. Sure, balance differs, but then again, it differs a lot more between a pata and a rapier, but both are used with Broadsword. Hell, even an unbalanced cleaver is used with Broadsword. So why make these distinctions with weapons that go in both hands?

[gjc8]

Originally Posted by Icelander

On the other hand, simply hitting something with a blunt object or even a sharp one does not default to skill 5 for an average person. It is far easier.

Is "simply hitting something" just an ordinary Attack, or is it All-Out/Telegraphic?

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Phoenix_Dragon

That's a rather significant buff to pick damage.

No it isn't; other than a change in randomness, 1d (x1/2 DR, x2 after DR) and 2d (x1 DR, x1 after DR) are identical.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by gjc8

Is "simply hitting something" just an ordinary Attack, or is it All-Out/Telegraphic?

You don't have to give up your option of stepping back when hitting something. Even without training, a normal human can manage to whack a human-sized target pretty easily. It's significantly easier when the target is unaware, but that doesn't mean that it ought to be nearly impossible when it is not.

It's using a weapon with full Parry, doing full damage and being able to perform all the complex techniques under the skill that requires a lot of training.

I think that an option to use a weapon at DX at reduced effectiveness and only with the simplest attack mode would make sense.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Anthony

No it isn't; other than a change in randomness, 1d (x1/2 DR, x2 after DR) and 2d (x1 DR, x1 after DR) are identical.

Except for limb, vitals and skull hits, where it is a doubling in effectiveness.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Ze'Manel Cunha

Meh, if your angle with a sword is off you'll also end up glancing off

Same with a pick. The pick has an extra failure mechanic.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Except for limb, vitals and skull hits, where it is a doubling in effectiveness.

Ah, point. Mm. I don't actually have a problem with increased effect on vitals and skull hits, though arguably the wound modifier should be different for different attack types anyway.