[Basic] Skill of the week: Breaking Blow

[johndallman]

Breaking Blow is an IQ/Hard esoteric martial-arts skill, with no default, requiring Trained by a Master. It's only usable with unarmed attacks, and costs 1 FP per use. It's -10 to skill to use instantly, -5 with a turn of concentration, -4 after two turns and so on. There are also penalties for a target made of strong materials. On a success (roll after you hit) you get an armour divisor of 5 against a braced, inanimate, homogeneous target, and it is treated as Fragile (Brittle), which seems to mean (it being inanimate) that if your damage exceeds its HP, it is smashed utterly.

If you're in a cinematic campaign, which is likely if you have TbaM, you aren't restricted to inanimate targets, the AD works against any armour or force field, and homogeneous opponents are treated as Fragile (Brittle). Obviously, using this with Power Blow has the potential to punch through lots of DR, or injure yourself badly if you critically fail the roll. Luck is advisable. The RAW does not say so, but I'd be tempted to rule that the AD(5) means that the target's DR is divided by five for the rules under Hurting yourself (B379).

Naturally, Martial Arts is the first place to look for more details. I've seen real people demonstrating something that looks like Power Blow on TV, and Martial Arts provides Unusual Training (Breaking Blow, only on well-braced objects, out of combat) as an example of using an esoteric skill without TbaM. Martial Arts also offers Breaking Blow with melee weapons, and as a cinematic skill in many styles. Action 3: Furious Fists has it in style and talents, and Chinese Elemental Powers has a couple of abilities that enhance it. Dungeon Fantasy has it for martial artists, Martial Arts: Yrth Fighting Styles has two styles that use it, and interesting rules options for interactions between chi powers and magic, and Fantasy deals with chi-as-magic. Gun-Fu has Breaking Blow (Guns). Power-Ups 3: Talents has several talents that enhance this skill, which are frankly welcome for an IQ/H skill mostly used by DX-based characters, and often used at substantial penalties for lack of time.

I've never used this skill in a game: I recall a time when it would have seemed appropriate, but airship passenger cabin doors are too flimsy to make it necessary.

What have you done with this skill? Is its use confined to NPC little old men, or do PCs get to smash things with it?

[vicky_molokh]

Don't remember ever seeing it in serious action - it takes too big an investment before it becomes useful. In real combat, you essentially must be able to absorb the -10 for instant use (otherwise it's dubious) and you need to still have a decent chance of success, or else it's a waste of FP.

[whswhs]

Breaking Blow seems to be a substitute less for combat skills than for Forced Entry, letting your ancient master of the martial arts or your superhero concentrate for a few seconds and smash through a locked door or the like. I don't think I've ever actually seen a player take it.

Bill Stoddard

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by whswhs

Breaking Blow seems to be a substitute less for combat skills than for Forced Entry, letting your ancient master of the martial arts or your superhero concentrate for a few seconds and smash through a locked door or the like.

Agreed, but it may also be useful as an opening move in a fight, if you can attack by surprise, or against The Big Robot That Isn't Activated Yet, or the like. Using it in the middle of an ongoing fight is hard.

I don't think I've ever actually seen a player take it.

The only time I've had it, it came as part of a Style! wildcard skill.

[Refplace]

I have actually had a player use it in play, and often.
Supers game though so he could soak the penalty and get the armor divisor against bricks or objects like reinforced doors. Even used it for intimidation where he would wreck a villains car or nearby wall.

I dont recall anyone using it combat who could not soak the penalties, though it did see use for Forced Entry type stuff in lower point games.

[Anders]

Better have something to absorb the blow or your hand will be turned into jelly.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Anders

Better have something to absorb the blow or your hand will be turned into jelly.

Isn't that part of the skill already?

[Anders]

I don't know. Maybe it is. It should be.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Anders

I don't know. Maybe it is. It should be.

Okay, I'm a little confused. I read:

Originally Posted by B182

On a failure, your attack gains no special benefits. On a critical failure, you do the damage to your own hand or foot.

As meaning that you only take damage on a critical failure. What am I missing?

[RogerBW]

The only character in my archives with this skill is a soldier I statted up for a Reign of Steel one-shot, who has it as part of the Robot Fighting style. I don't recall it being used.