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Old 05-20-2018, 07:16 AM   #1
lachimba
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Sydney
Default Grabbing weapons with Basic Set

Without using Technical Grappling


A grabs B's Sword

A can use a regular ST contest to get the sword away.

How does B get the sword back other than winning this contest?

Does B do damage to A with the sword (ala TG to some extent)?
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Old 05-20-2018, 07:30 AM   #2
Mr_Sandman
 
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: L.I., NY
Default Re: Grabbing weapons with Basic Set

It isn't clear to me from the description in the Basic Set, but DFRPG states that once A grab the weapon, B can't use it to attack or defend. I'd probably rule that holds true for GURPS as well. It might not be 100% realistic, but it does fit with heroic fantasy. It gives unarmed fighters at least a desperate chance to grab the weapon away from their foes.

B could parry the original grab attempt and damage A that way, but once A has a hold and they are fighting for control, B would have to attack some other way to damage A.
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Old 05-20-2018, 07:43 AM   #3
Varyon
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Default Re: Grabbing weapons with Basic Set

Going only off of Basic Set, a grappled body part suffers a -4 to DX to use it, so you'd still be able to strike at -4. In such a case, the advantages of grabbing a weapon rather than just the arm or hand are a) with long weapons you can do it from further away than Reach C (see Striking at Weapons in Tactical Combat, B401) and b) if you succeed at disarming you now hold the weapon, rather than it being on the ground.
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Old 05-20-2018, 07:47 AM   #4
Anaraxes
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Default Re: Grabbing weapons with Basic Set

Martial Arts says that failed attempts to disarm (which this isn't!) make a weapon Unready. You might treat a grabbed weapon as not Ready. So, the wielder can't use it to attack while it's being held. And they might need a Ready Maneuver to re-Ready the weapon once they win the Contest of ST to break free of the grab.

I see no reference in either Basic or MA for taking damage from a weapon you've grabbed. MA does mention (in its style section) single knife wielders sometimes using their empty off-hand for grappling, including grabbing the opponent's knife. But it doesn't go on to mention damage, nor do the rules in Basic. Knives and swords are one of the few cases where it might come up. Most weapons you can grab in a relatively safe place. (Or even some swords -- a ricasso, the guard, or maybe the rules just assume you're grabbing the grip or pommel, which is why you get the penalty for targeting a hand rather than a 3-foot-long object.)

* "Disarm" is a separate thing in the rules from "grabbing" a weapon, which is a separate thing from grappling the arm or hand that holds the weapon. A "disarm" is a strike targeting a weapon, while grappling an arm follows the grappling rules. You'd cripple the arm or hand to make your enemy drop his weapon via "grappling" instead of "grabbing".
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basic set, disarm, grab, grappling, martial arts, technical grappling

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