Velocity of incoming attack?

[Kromm]

There's super-realistic and then there's what gamers who don't hack rules on forums are willing to tolerate at the table. :) If I were simply Making Stuff Up without a single thought to complexity (as for a computer game), I'd probably do something like this:

Active defenses could affect melee (striking or grappling) attacks and thrown weapons only. All would benefit from shield Defense Bonus (DB) in some way. There would be three choices:

Blocks would be stops attempted with bare hands, weapons, shields, etc. They would get a bonus for the size of whatever you're blocking with – larger than current shield DB (maybe DB+2) for shields, and equal to something like maximum Reach+1 for fists, weapons, etc. If successful, the attack would hit and damage whatever you blocked with: your forearm (which might be protected by armor DR), blade, buckler, etc. Obviously, weapon and shield tables would need to show plausible DR, HP, and HT scores!

Parries would be deflections attempted with bare hands, weapons, shields, etc. They would work a lot like they do now. The differences would be that they would be harder than blocks (only regular shield DB, if any) but wouldn't damage what you're parrying with. Disparities in weapon size and power should make a difference, but the current weapon-breakage rules wouldn't be used. Instead, a successful parry would be treated as reducing the incoming attack by dice and adds in some way based on the user's ST and the mass of what he's parrying with. Tables would have to show this "parrying power" (e.g., "2×swing + 1d").

Dodges would be deliberate attempts to ensure a complete miss – no damage to anyone, no limit on damage avoided. They would work much as now, but would be limited in number, not infinitely repeatable. Some skills, probably including all unarmed skills and Acrobatics (this would be instead of the current Acrobatic Dodge!), would allow a dodge at 3 + skill/2; otherwise, you'd be working from Basic Speed+3.

Successive blocks or parries with the same hand would incur a cumulative penalty (for the sake of argument, -4), but would not affect defenses with other hands or dodges. Successive dodges would incur such a cumulative penalty as well (same -4), and would add a smaller cumulative penalty (say, -1) to all future blocks and parries.

Defensive action would be an option you could choose to take or not take on any given turn in order to avoid ranged attacks – including thrown weapons, muscle-powered missiles, firearms, and beams. It would not count as an active defense. There would be two choices:

Evasive movement would automatically give you a penalty to attack that turn (-4, -6, who knows . . .). It would involve a roll, probably against DX or a mobility such as Acrobatics. Success would reduce your attack penalty by the margin and give anybody attacking you with a ranged weapon a penalty to hit equal to half your margin, but always at least -1. If hit, you could still try an active defense against anything that allows that.

Taking cover would require a shield, automatically reduce your shield's effective DB by 2 for active defenses, and prohibit using that shield to block or parry at all. It would involve a roll against Shield + full DB. Success would give anybody attacking you from the front with a ranged weapon a penalty to hit equal to half your margin, but always at least -1. Attacks that miss due to this penalty would hit and damage the shield, per a block. To avoid shield damage, you could try a dodge if the attack allows such a defense.

Hack and tinker to taste.