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Old 09-05-2017, 08:01 PM   #1
faitfull
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Default Spear worth it? fantasy campain

So, my now heavy injured dwarf defender is going to be in the hospital for a long time.... GM said "make a new character dude!"

so... I was looking at the different possible weapons, and was wondering if a winged elf with a good spear and some javalins to throw (posible with a spear thrower) is a good solution. Perhaps a little imbuement for good fun. Meaby start at ST13.

However, we are playing in forgotten realms. TL4 tech, thinking like a TL3 world with magic and HUGE beasts and dragons and such.

My GM was conserned that since weapons like spear and the like use trusting dmg, that I would not be able to fight some of the bigger things.

We currently are at 341points, with 75 disadvantages and 5 quirks. (long campain now)

The last encounter that ended my poor dwarf, we where jumped by 3 trolls with DR7 and a group of trained spear and shield fighters.

We got ourselves a good trashing before my team mates managed to scare them of.
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:08 PM   #2
sir_pudding
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

Spears are great. They do impaling damage. You can take Form Mastery and use the +2 parry from a staff grip. You can slam with them for impaling slam damage. You can sweep with them. They have reach.
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:14 PM   #3
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

I've done the winged elf with spear thing, though I didn't get to play the character long before the game evaporated. Seemed cool, largely for the reasons sir_pudding notes.

Using the form mastery trick also lets you switch up your selected Reach easily, which is nice. I went with a long spear, because when you can fly having more reach seems exceptionally nice, and it's unlikely you'll find yourself stuck at Reach 1. (Reach C could happen, but that's a problem for regular spears too.)
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:27 PM   #4
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

Quote:
Originally Posted by faitfull View Post
So, my now heavy injured dwarf defender is going to be in the hospital for a long time.... GM said "make a new character dude!"
Wait... a fantasy campaign with no magical healing?
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:30 PM   #5
faitfull
 
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

yup, magical healing is a thing.... but when 2 big trolls desides to play "who can rip his legs of first" and then got each of our legs grapled with 4d+2 crushing dmg each turn.... Not healty my friend... need ALOT of magic to heal the trashed bones up again
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:31 PM   #6
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

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Originally Posted by evileeyore View Post
Wait... a fantasy campaign with no magical healing?
Happens with my worlds quite often.
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Old 09-05-2017, 08:32 PM   #7
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

Also if you can get it:
  1. Penetrating Weapon enchantment (Magic, p.63)
  2. Targeted Attack, for body parts that are particularly vulnerable to Impaling damage--the Vitals, for one.
  3. Vital Seeker Enchantment, if you can get it (DF8:49)
  4. Weapon Master, if available, in combination with any combination of Arm ST/Striking ST/other buffs to get to 19 ST (effective), where Thrust goes up to 2d-1 base damage. At least plan on it in the long term.

With (2) & (3), you can attack Vitals at no penalty, possibly even a bonus...meaning you always do it without a strong reason not to (fighting undead).

The biggest reasons not to fight with a spear are the lack of a second defense (extra parry or block), and no DB. This is true of any 2-handed weapon build in GURPS. You can go with 1-handed use, but you lose an important point of damage, and the ability to Form Mastery to parry at +2, and use crushing damage. Also, not a great weapon against those without vitals or other soft bits for you to get bonus damage against: undead, constructs, jellies, etc. Those can happen quite a bit in a fantasy campaign.

And I agree: Fantasy without healing??? What?
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Old 09-05-2017, 09:05 PM   #8
Ulzgoroth
 
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

Vitals is one good aimpoint, but if you're worried about Thrust damage vs enemy armor you might want neck, face, or even eyes.

Less important if you've got a bunch of armor divisor going, though.
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Old 09-05-2017, 09:08 PM   #9
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

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Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth View Post
Vitals is one good aimpoint, but if you're worried about Thrust damage vs enemy armor you might want neck, face, or even eyes.

Less important if you've got a bunch of armor divisor going, though.
At 341 points enough skill to target armor chinks over vitals is definitely worth it. Stack that with even the first level of Penetrating Weapon and you won't generally need to worry about armor.
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Old 09-05-2017, 09:30 PM   #10
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Default Re: Spear worth it? fantasy campain

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kazander View Post
The biggest reasons not to fight with a spear are the lack of a second defense (extra parry or block), and no DB. This is true of any 2-handed weapon build in GURPS. You can go with 1-handed use, but you lose an important point of damage, and the ability to Form Mastery to parry at +2, and use crushing damage. Also, not a great weapon against those without vitals or other soft bits for you to get bonus damage against: undead, constructs, jellies, etc. Those can happen quite a bit in a fantasy campaign.
As 1-H spear uses the same skill as 2-h spear, using a spear that gives the option, and either a shield (if you go primarily 1-handed) or buckler (if you're primarily 2-handed) is a good idea - it gives flexibility of use, allowing you to choose damage (and better parry) vs. the DB of the shield (and shield slam damage, etc. when you need it).

Also, if targetted attack techniques are allowed the Face is worth considering - a huge number of foes are likely to have little or no DR there, and hits force knockdown checks without having to be major wounds.
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