10-06-2019, 04:15 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Poland
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[DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
I've just read through DF Monsters 4: Dragons, and I'm a bit lost about how the dragons' breath attacks should be targeted, or why so.
Firstly, clouds are supposed to appear directly in front of the dragon, so I assumed there's no attack roll, the area is always fixed in front of the figure on a hex map… But later on, under Tactics it's mentioned that the dragon could surround itself in it's breath. So is it targetable or not? Should there be a roll? Secondly, it states that cones target a hex in front of the dragon, for +4. After reading this post earlier (and noticing the table "Attacking an Area" on p. B414 doesn't mention cones) I've thought if you take the +4, you only hit the ground, and your cone ends there. So, how is it? What if I want to hit an adventurer that doesn't stand directly before the dragon, by one hex to the right, at 7 yards distance?
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10-06-2019, 05:18 PM | #2 | ||
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
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10-07-2019, 03:10 AM | #3 | ||
Join Date: Aug 2009
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
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To be fair, I think it's more a criticism than a question, that the book neither specifies attack roll, nor specifically says "it's an exception, don't roll", while taking quite some word count to say that no breath ever has a cooldown, for example. Quote:
1. Being able to scatter doesn't affect how it's aimed/targeted, just what happens when you miss. (And strangely, if the dragon misses and rolls a 4 for scatter, it breaths it's cone directly behind, I guess). 2. By RAW, there are two different area attacks: round shaped "area-effect", and "cones". The "Attacking an Area" table only specifies "area-effect" (and explosions), without "cones", and not "all area attacks". By rules as intended, I'm lost. I understood Kromm's forum quote as "you really can't get the +4, target the creature you want to attack", but the wording in Monsters 4 seems not to care. Question is: is it an overall interpretation, or "it's DF and those are dragons" interpretation.
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10-07-2019, 04:26 AM | #4 |
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
There should be a perk for being able to swivel your head so you can see right backwards (but no more than 90 degrees at a time). Call it "serpentine neck." I could see some dragons having it, depending on how they're built.
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10-07-2019, 03:02 PM | #5 | ||
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
What? Where does this notion come from?
I don't have 360 Vision but I can "face" my own hexes whatever that means to you. As well it can certainly 'look down' and breathe it's area cloud under itself to 'billow' out around itself. Quote:
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* And pray he doesn't alter them further. /hisssss-pah, hisssss-pah |
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10-07-2019, 05:01 PM | #6 |
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Berkeley, CA
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
B389 probably, though weirdly enough defending from weird angles is in part controlled by double-jointed (see B390-391). I would probably allow a double-jointed multi-hex creature to turn only its head without moving its body (this is generally not as useful as the standard rules for how this works, which is that the dragon takes a step and a facing change, and his entire body whips around).
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10-07-2019, 05:35 PM | #7 | |
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
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And I certainly would not describe a horse's neck as "serpentine". And a 'cat-like' dragon? I might not even charge it Move points to spin in place as a part of an attack. |
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10-08-2019, 03:10 PM | #8 |
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
Well, I worded it poorly (influenced by the description of Thrice in DFM4). It cannot attack into it's back hexes, if it abides by ranged weapon rules (p. B389). "If", being quite an important aspect.
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10-08-2019, 05:07 PM | #9 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Wellington, NZ
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Re: [DF Monsters 4: Dragons] Targeting breath attacks
A horse's neck might not be as flexible as a snake, but they can turn their heads around to groom some of their body and backs with their teeth, so they're pretty flexible. Fortunately they generally can't bend tightly enough to bite their riders (so instead they scrape them off using low-hanging branches...).
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breath, cone, dungeon fantasy |
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