Tourneys and jousting

[Exeter]

Originally Posted by aesir23

Sorry, you're just wrong on both counts.

Ouch, 0 for 2. :P

I actually didn't realize that breaking your own lance on an opponent's shield scored you points.

However, for the bad footing point, I realize there are mounted combat rules in GURPS, but (at least the ones in Campaigns -- maybe there are other rules in Martial Arts that I don't have access to) they don't really deal well with the specific situation where *all* the opponent is trying to do is unhorse you. To model that specific situation, I think it's perfectly reasonable to consider both combatants as having bad footing (which would give some negatives to the Riding roll needed to remain on the horse, and allow Perfect Balance to have an effect).

The reason I suggest this is that in tournament jousting, you're really not trying to hurt the other guy at all. All you're trying to do is connect your lance with the other guy's shield solidly enough that the torque created knocks him off his mount. It might not literally be a case of bad footing, but the rules for bad footing seem to create the right effect.