Faking Stun

[Mcoorlim]

I'm wondering... can you use Acting or some other skill to trick your foe into thinking that you're still stunned after you've recovered, hoping he'll AoA and leave himself open?

Can you use Acting or some other skill to play up a hit and pretend to be stunned for the same purpose?

[mlangsdorf]

Dungeon Fantasy (DF2 p 11) suggests an Acting roll after you drop and let go of your weapons to play dead, with a bonus for the amount of damage taken. Foes roll at the higher of Perception or IQ to notice it. I've actually seen it used in play once - the party's druid wanted his buddy Berserker minotaur to attack someone else, and played dead for a few rounds until the minotaur moved away.

For your trick, I'd probably allow an Acting roll at a penalty, say -3, to convince the foe that you're stunned. It would require a Concentrate maneuver, so you wouldn't be able to do much else.

[Sense of Duty (Kittens)]

Remember also, that it is the kind of thing that attracts a Reputation as in Martial Arts if you aren't careful. The durty tricks rules might also be pertinent.

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by Sense of Duty (Kittens)

Remember also, that it is the kind of thing that attracts a Reputation as in Martial Arts if you aren't careful. The durty tricks rules might also be pertinent.

The Samurai seemed okay with it when Tom Cruise used in THE LAST SAMURAI.

[bcd]

Originally Posted by Kurlumbenus

I'm wondering... can you use Acting or some other skill to trick your foe into thinking that you're still stunned after you've recovered, hoping he'll AoA and leave himself open?

Note that if you are up against someone who AoA's stunned enemies then due to the way stun recovery works they are already routinely leaving themselves open on the turn that the enemy first acts after stun. They are basically gambling on being able to land a decisive blow and are in big trouble if they don't. Consider this sequence of events with Alice being the AoA'er:

1. Alice hits Bob and stuns him.
2. Bob Does Nothing, does not recover.
3. Alice AoA's Bob because he's obviously stunned.
4. Bob Does Nothing, but recovers. Note that he remains stunned until the beginning of his next turn (p. B364).
5. Alice AoA's Bob because he's obviously stunned.
6. Bob attacks Alice, who cannot defend herself because of her AoA.

So unless Alice managed to KO Bob in 3 or 5, she is defenseless in 6 because of her AoA strategy.

[bcd]

Originally Posted by mlangsdorf

For your trick, I'd probably allow an Acting roll at a penalty, say -3, to convince the foe that you're stunned. It would require a Concentrate maneuver, so you wouldn't be able to do much else.

Also, if you're happy with a more abstract resolution you could call it an Acting-based Ruse (Martial Arts p. 101).

[Mcoorlim]

No. On 4, Bob does nothing but recovers. He has the -4 to his defenses, but can retreat, etc, and is no longer stunned.

5. Alice can tell Bob isn't stunned, even though he still has -4 to his defense. She attacks normally.

[bcd]

Originally Posted by Kurlumbenus

No. On 4, Bob does nothing but recovers. He has the -4 to his defenses, but can retreat, etc, and is no longer stunned.

5. Alice can tell Bob isn't stunned, even though he still has -4 to his defense. She attacks normally.

I believe that this is in error. The rules say this:
"Someone who is conscious but stunned or surprised must take [Do Nothing]. On each turn of Do Nothing, he may attempt a HT roll to recover from physical stun or an IQ roll to recover from mental stun. On a success, he recovers at the end of his turn - that is, he Does Nothing this turn, but may act normally next turn."

They go on to say:
"If you are stunned, however, your active defenses are at -4 until your next turn - even if you recover."

Therefore, after 4, Bob is still stunned for the -4 and has Do Nothing as his current maneuver. "Retreat", p. B377, says that "You cannot retreat (...) while stunned." There is no way for Alice to tell that Bob is no longer stunned because he remains stunned until the start of his next turn (6 in my example).

[Mcoorlim]

Originally Posted by bcd

he recovers at the end of his turn

No, he's recovered. He's no longer stunned, but still has the -4.

At least, that's what I think it's saying - can we get some kind of official statement about that?

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Kurlumbenus

No, he's recovered. He's no longer stunned, but still has the -4.

At least, that's what I think it's saying - can we get some kind of official statement about that?

AFAIK still at -4 as long as the character is Doing Nothing as a result of the stun, which is indeed a bit longer than the stun itself, but shorter than the next turn. Weird quantum effects, huh?