Combat ala HackMaster Basic

[fewilcox]

To start off, GURPS Basic Set Characters 3e was the very first roleplaying book we ever purchased and GURPS 4e remains our favorite roleplaying system. But we're also fans of HackMaster (the only class-based game we like) and were really excited about its fifth edition which currently exists only in a very basic form: HackMaster Basic (HMB).

The one thing I like best about HMB is that nearly everything is resolved using opposed rolls... even combat. In combat, each player rolls a d20 and adds all relevant modifiers. The higher roll wins and both players can crit or fumble which can result in extra attacks as they parry and riposte back and forth.

I'd really like to do something similar in GURPS but am at a loss as to how. The best idea I've had so far is to use Quick Contests but I don't know enough about probability to figure out if that will work (despite being an engineering major, I barely passed sadistics in college) and can't figure out how to use Combat Reflexes, Enhanced Dodge, etc with such a system.

I should also mention that we play our games as fairly cinematic so reducing the lethality of combat would be a feature and not a bug.

[weby]

Easy, as defences are basically 3+skill/2, if you want to use opposed rolls just use the full skill without the +3.

Dodge: Attacker weapon skill vs defender basic speed*2 +2/level of enchanted dodge.

Parry: Attacker weapon skill vs defender weapon skill. +2/level of enchanted parry. -8/extra parry(reduced normally by fencing weapons and weapon master and such).

Block: Attacker weapon skill vs defender shield skill. +2/level of enchanted block. -10/extra block.

Note that this would make combat more deadly, not less.

[tg_ambro]

Originally Posted by fewilcox

. . .(despite being an engineering major, I barely passed sadistics in college) and can't figure out how to use Combat Reflexes, Enhanced Dodge, etc with such a system. . .

Now thay sounds like my kind of class!

[fewilcox]

Originally Posted by weby

Note that this would make combat more deadly, not less.

That looked good right up until that but is also pretty much what I had come up with so I think we're on the same wavelength.

[fewilcox]

Originally Posted by tg_ambro

Now thay sounds like my kind of class!

It's kind of sad, really. The two best math teachers I ever had both worked at CCC&TI and I contrived to have one of them for every math class I took on my way to my AS in Pre-engineering, but I still couldn't understand statistics. As good as I am in other areas of math and science, I just don't seem to be wired for statistics... which kind of sucks as a gamer. 8o)

[DukeofDellot]

Personally, I'd just get very used to Deceptive Attacks (Page B369) as they make attacks feel a little more "Contested" than normal. They're very important to the system... despite the short description.

In GURPS combat both the attacker and defender can crit (and critically fail) already, and for fun I've considered making defenders choose whether or not they wanted to defend before the attacker rolls their attack... a critically failed defense against a failed attack means the attack actually hit!

Also taking a note from D20 (actually D20 Star Wars) I've also toyed with giving the Players Ablative DR (Page B46) to "represent Near Misses and character's ability to roll with punches"... ... erm... extra 'HP' for hack and slash gaming. It would make combat lengthier and more forgiving, in theory, but with the oddity that you don't have the effects of taking damage that you do from loosing actual HP (unless house-ruled further).

But that's just me messing with simple mods, my players are too role-play orient sometimes...

[fewilcox]

Originally Posted by DukeofDellot

Personally, I'd just get very used to Deceptive Attacks (Page B369) as they make attacks feel a little more "Contested" than normal. They're very important to the system... despite the short description.

In GURPS combat both the attacker and defender can crit (and critically fail) already, and for fun I've considered making defenders choose whether or not they wanted to defend before the attacker rolls their attack... a critically failed defense against a failed attack means the attack actually hit!

Also taking a note from D20 (actually D20 Star Wars) I've also toyed with giving the Players Ablative DR (Page B46) to "represent Near Misses and character's ability to roll with punches"... ... erm... extra 'HP' for hack and slash gaming. It would make combat lengthier and more forgiving, in theory, but with the oddity that you don't have the effects of taking damage that you do from loosing actual HP (unless house-ruled further).

But that's just me messing with simple mods, my players are too role-play orient sometimes...

Ooohh. I really like the ablative DR idea. Thanks.

[Exeter]

You could give everyone an automatic Dodge when hit, adding penalties for the second and further hits in a round (say -2 per hit beyond the first hit). Assuming reasonable levels of Dodge, this seems like it'd work sort of like True20/Mutants and Masterminds' "damage save" mechanic, and it's definitely an opposed-roll type of mechanic in spirit, even if not in name.