Some questions from new GURPS player

[imaytag]

So, my friend is starting up a GURPS campaign and I've got some things I need clarification on.

Mainly, what exactly is an attack, maneuver or technique. Like, is a technique an attack? Mainly I want help understanding how these things work together.

For example, say I successfully defend, then on my turn decide to use a counterattack. Could I: All-out attack (Double), feint for my first attack and rapid strike the second attack into a sweep and a deceptive disarm? If so does the counterattack modifiers apply throughout the whole thing?

Or maybe I dodge an arrow, could I use move and attack to go up to him and then use counterattack?

I appreciate any help you guys can provide.

Tuck

[Dammann]

A technique is a more specialized version of a skill. Some things are harder to do with a given skill, so they are given task difficulty modifiers (TDM) by your GM. A technique is bought during character generation like a skill, to reduce that TDM on a skill you have.

An example might be climbing in the dark. You'd use your climbing skill, but the GM is probably going to assess a TDM due to the darkness. That TDM might be anywhere from -3 to your effective skill to -10, depending on whether the light is poor or you are in total darkness. Suppose you want to build a character with the ability to climb just as well in the dark as he does in good lighting. You can buy a "Climbing in the Darkness" technique to offset the penalty the GM gives. Your GM might decide that even for someone with a lot of skill at climbing in the dark, it is always going to be harder than having good lighting, so the technique might be limited to effective skill plus four. That means that if the TDM he applies is -5, you are only rolling against your skill -1.

Techniques can cover things like kicks (which are typically penalized at -2), so sometimes they do involve an attack, but they might apply to any skill.

[Dammann]

A Maneuver is the thing your character does during his turn in combat. Maneuvers include Attack, All-out Attack, Change Posture, Concentrate, Move, Ready (to get a weapon out or something similar), etc.

[RobKamm]

And to address the other two.

A Maneuver is a short hand way to describe what you are doing on your turn. It might be an attack. Or an All-Out Attack, or something else entrely. An attack is what happens when you take a maneuver that allows you to attack a foe. So, all attacks are part of a Maneuver, but not all Maneuvers are attacks.

As for your example. I'd need to double check my books to be certain (and I'm sure someone will correct me where my memory has failed). However, feinting is a Maneuver not an attack - so, by Basic/RAW, you can't feint as part of an AOA:Double. However, many GMs (including me) allowed it, and Martial Arts made it official so you're okay there. Splitting the second attack with Rapid Strike is possible -- but you're starting to rack up some penalties by then and GM save you if you fail to win the fight that round.

I'm not sure about Counterattack's benefits going for both of the subsequent attacks. I'd have to read up for that. My gut tells me to follow the example of Feint and say that it does.

[Dammann]

I try to capitalize things that have a specific rules meaning in GURPS on the forum. Posters often refer to these words as "terms of art," which just means that whatever the definition outside the context of GURPS, the word has a specific rules-meaning in the game.

So you might maneuver into a better position during a fight, but your character will do so by selecting a Move for his Maneuver.

Characters typically get one Maneuver per Turn. There is not an overall Turn that everyone acts during, there is a Turn for each character, which ends when that character's next Turn begins. So your character's Turn overlaps with my character's Turn. If you select Move and I select Aim, as our Turns roll around, and on your next Turn you select Move and Attack, I am still in the process of Aiming until it is my Turn.

oop
ninja'd

[imaytag]

Thank you both for the detailed responses.

I am still very interested in if Counterattack's bonus carries over for the entire maneuver though. If I take Technique Mastery (Counterattack) I could buy it up to +4 RSL, which would make the feint, sweep, disarm maneuver much more likely to succeed.

In MA70, under Counterattack, all it really says is to roll against Counterattack to hit, then do regular damage. It could be argued that this makes it seem like it was intended to only be used with a single attack. Though it also says that you can use another technique as your Counterattack, adding RSL's as usual. And Combinations are techniques so one could argue that a Counterattack doesn't fundamentally disqualify multiple attacks.

I haven't found anything in the rules to help clarify this and haven't had any luck Googling the problem either. It may seem like a triviality but I just have to know! :P

Also, just to be sure, not all techniques are attacks though many techniques, such as sweep or disarm, ARE attacks even though they do no damage. Is this right?

[Gold & Appel Inc]

Originally Posted by imaytag

Or maybe I dodge an arrow, could I use move and attack to go up to him and then use counterattack?

I don't see why not, assuming you can reach him with a single Move & Attack (because the Counterattack has to be on the turn right after you defend). Figure Counterattack as usual, -4 and any other penalties, then cap at 9 as always unless it's a slam or something.

Originally Posted by imaytag

In MA70, under Counterattack, all it really says is to roll against Counterattack to hit, then do regular damage. It could be argued that this makes it seem like it was intended to only be used with a single attack. Though it also says that you can use another technique as your Counterattack, adding RSL's as usual. And Combinations are techniques so one could argue that a Counterattack doesn't fundamentally disqualify multiple attacks.

It also says, "You can only attempt it on your turn immediately following a successful active defense – and only vs. the foe against whom you
defended." Sounds like it's good for the whole turn to me.

Originally Posted by imaytag

Also, just to be sure, not all techniques are attacks though many techniques, such as sweep or disarm, ARE attacks even though they do no damage. Is this right?

Yep.

[vicky_molokh]

Okay, everyone is mostly saying the same things, and here's how I would try to explain them:

Manoeuvre: a chosen, rather general course of action that normally spans one second. This could mean 'Run somewhere' (Move), 'Enter a balanced combat mode, preparing to perform one or more attacks and, if needed, defences' (Attack), 'Forsake all offence, bracing to defend against any incoming attacks at any cost' (All-Out Defence), etc.

An Attack is a single action within a manoeuvre with the intent of hitting a target (enemy, area etc.) with a weapon of some sort at least once. An attack is normally resolved with a single to-hit roll, though this roll accepts many, many modifiers, and can have very different consequences. You can easily get more than one attack per manoeuvre.

Active Defence. This part is actually important, since it may differ from some other systems you may have encountered. If you are aware of an enemy attack, you are entitled to react to it in a defensive way. This includes moving out of the way (Dodge), deflecting the (usually mêlée) attack with a weapon or limb (Parry), or deflecting/absorbing the blow with one's shield (Block). It always involves a skill or Dodge roll of some sort.
The important bit: even if you attacked multiple times, you're still entitled to some Active Defences. Which of those are or aren't available depend on the chosen Manoeuvre. E.g. All-Out Attack outright prohibits all forms of Active Defences until you choose your next manoeuvre.
You are normally entitled to a single AD against a single attack (there's one case where two are allowed). You may, however, perform multiple ADs in a single turn against several attacks. However, each subsequent defence is typically less effective than the previous one (again, better learn the details and exceptions once you're comfortable with the concepts).

Techniques are specific ways of performing an action, such as Swinging a Sword To The Neck or Kicking mid-jump. They have special effects on damage, side effects, difficulty to defend etc., trading one for another, and usually resulting in an overall more difficult action (penalty to your to-hit roll). You can improve most techniques with points, which is cheaper than buying the whole skill if you only need 2-3 of them. Skill is still cheaper if you want to be good at everything.