Unarmed parries while wielding a 2h weapon

[Mercutio Montecchi]

Hi, let's assume I have a character with 18 ST who wields a warhammer.

Warhammers are not exactly the best weapons for parrying (0U) so I'm looking into some defensive options for such a character.
I was wondering... can I wield such a weapon with two hands on my turn and then let one arm go, parry bare-handed and then attack again with my warhammer on my next turn?

[Bruno]

You can let one hand go as a free action, but after that your weapon is Unready, and you will need to take a Ready action before attacking again.

You might be able to put together a "parrying kick" technique with Martial Arts, but I'd better warn you that parrying a weapon with a limb invites the limb getting crippled or cut off. An arm is bad enough, but a crippled leg makes you fall over, which really stinks.

I would recommend making Defensive Attack maneuvers (again, from Martial Arts) if you're concerned about your defenses - there's a damage penalty, but you can bypass the U this way. Otherwise, consider investing in good armor, extra HP, and High Pain Threshold, or as high a Dodge as you can afford and your GM will allow.

[Dinadon]

Originally Posted by Bruno

You can let one hand go as a free action, but after that your weapon is Unready, and you will need to take a Ready action before attacking again.

I'm fairly certain any change in the number of hands on a weapon requires a Ready maneuver.

[Mercutio Montecchi]

So this basically means I should work on the "flying barbarian" character concept and be a warhammer-wielding, 18 ST ballerina with a high basic move, combat reflexes, and a lot of points in Acrobatics.

[gilbertocarlos]

Originally Posted by Mercutio Montecchi

So this basically means I should work on the "flying barbarian" character concept and be a warhammer-wielding, 18 ST ballerina with a high basic move, combat reflexes, and a lot of points in Acrobatics.

Actually, I would remove a point or 2 from ST, and increase wealth, that way, you can have a plate armor, or heavy mail, with gives at least DR5, combine it with high pain threshold, and since you have reach 2, you will attack first, combine it with a good skill(14+) and intimidation, and you will basically kill the first who gets in reach and scare the other ones.

[Mercutio Montecchi]

Originally Posted by gilbertocarlos

Actually, I would remove a point or 2 from ST, and increase wealth, that way, you can have a plate armor, or heavy mail, with gives at least DR5, combine it with high pain threshold, and since you have reach 2, you will attack first, combine it with a good skill(14+) and intimidation, and you will basically kill the first who gets in reach and scare the other ones.

That sure sounds more optimal, but I need 18 in ST to attack with a warhammer every round...

on the other hand, with Grip Mastery I'm allowed to change my grip once per turn, before or after my maneuver, right?
So I could attack with my Warhammer and, after my attack, change my grip to one-handed. Now one of my hands is free and I can use that for Judo parries.
Next turn, I can switch back to two-handed before my attack.

So yea, I could basically pull-off this trick once per two turns.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Dinadon

I'm fairly certain any change in the number of hands on a weapon requires a Ready maneuver.

There are several related Perks such as Grip mastery that can get around some of the limitations . . .

[Dustin]

Originally Posted by Dinadon

I'm fairly certain any change in the number of hands on a weapon requires a Ready maneuver.

I think you can free up one hand as a free action (both if you're just dropping the weapon, of course), but that doesn't mean the weapon is Ready for one-handed use (for weapons that permit it).

In other words, a Ready would still be required to change your grip from Two-handed (dropped one hand) to One-handed (ready to fight).

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Dustin

I think you can free up one hand as a free action (both if you're just dropping the weapon, of course), but that doesn't mean the weapon is Ready for one-handed use (for weapons that permit it).

In other words, a Ready would still be required to change your grip from Two-handed (dropped one hand) to One-handed (ready to fight).

Yes, this is my interpretation - I probably should have mentioned this, but I figured if the OP's character could wield the warhammer one handed already, this was likely a moot problem, and didn't want to clutter up the issue. But we're already on page two of the thread, so meh, so much for that :)

I'd seriously suggest going with a polearm with a backspike instead, or a onehanded pick and either another weapon (to parry with) or a shield (to block with, gasp), over the Warhammer, but some folks just likes themselves some warhammer.

[Mercutio Montecchi]

Originally Posted by Bruno

Yes, this is my interpretation - I probably should have mentioned this, but I figured if the OP's character could wield the warhammer one handed already, this was likely a moot problem, and didn't want to clutter up the issue. But we're already on page two of the thread, so meh, so much for that :)

I'd seriously suggest going with a polearm with a backspike instead, or a onehanded pick and either another weapon (to parry with) or a shield (to block with, gasp), over the Warhammer, but some folks just likes themselves some warhammer.

Can't actually wield the warhammer one-handed... 18 is just enough to wield it in 2 hands and attack every turn without it becoming unready.

It's not so bad with the Warhammer actually, but it gets pretty silly with weapons like the Maul, which requires ST19 to use every turn and deals the same damage as the Flail (2h), which can be used every turn without becoming unready at ST13.

The Naginata is even more absurd because it deals 2 less damage, but it's bladed and pretty cheap, so you can have it in higher quality, plus it's cutting and it can be used every turn at ST 9.
With 18 in ST you could use it in one hand every turn without it becoming unready, so basically with less ST than you need to use a Maul every turn in 2 hands, you can use a Naginata every turn in one hand and potentially deal much more damage because it's cutting.

This all sounds a bit strange...