Unarmed parries while wielding a 2h weapon

[Mercutio Montecchi]

Originally Posted by Polydamas

Can you do free actions on somebody else's turn though? The most natural form is "He hit with his pommel strike? I let go of my longsword with my left hand and do a Judo parry with my left hand."

I would allow someone with Grip Mastery to remove one hand from a weapon and parry with that hand. I don't think this is canonical, but I've done it reliably in practice with Two Handed Sword-8 and Judo-7.

Dunno but it doesn't matter much really. You let go on your turn after your attack.
It seems always beneficial to me if you have an unarmed combat skill at a decent level and you are using any two-handed weapon. This way you have two "good" parries instead of having to make a second parry with penalties using your 2h weapon.

[Polydamas]

Originally Posted by Mercutio Montecchi

Dunno but it doesn't matter much really. You let go on your turn after your attack.
It seems always beneficial to me if you have an unarmed combat skill at a decent level and you are using any two-handed weapon. This way you have two "good" parries instead of having to make a second parry with penalties using your 2h weapon.

It does matter a lot, because it changes something which in real life is reactive and fluid to something that you have to artificially set up in advance. Realistic two-handed weapon fighters don't let go with one hand after every swing. (Consider using a Longsword: you can use your 2HS parry, or let go with one hand and use your lower Broadsword skill + an unarmed skill to parry. Letting go at the end of your action forces you to chose one or another in advance).

[Mercutio Montecchi]

Originally Posted by Polydamas

It does matter a lot, because it changes something which in real life is reactive and fluid to something that you have to artificially set up in advance. Realistic two-handed weapon fighters don't let go with one hand after every swing. (Consider using a Longsword: you can use your 2HS parry, or let go with one hand and use your lower Broadsword skill + an unarmed skill to parry. Letting go at the end of your action forces you to chose one or another in advance).

Guess we'll have to wait for a rule clarification on that.

Another question... if my GM decides to use the rules on MA for using 2h weapons with 1 hand (-1 to dmg and polearms use Axe/Mace for 1h swings and Spear for 1h thrusts), could I take Weapon Adaption (Polearm to Spear) so that I don't have to take the Polearm skill at all to use a Polearm with 2 hands? The rules state that the malus cannot be higher than -4 (it's -4) and the number of hands should be the same (Spear covers both 1h and 2h weapons, LOL!)

Seems extremely convenient for any spear user: for just 1 point you open up a big subset of weapons.

[Verjigorm]

I really don't like this idea. I mean, i understand trying to keep all the bonuses you can when playing a two-handed fighter, but the idea of a fighter attacking with an unbalanced weapon, then slipping his hand off the weapon, using that hand to intercept a blow, and then returning it to the weapon, all in one fluid motion? I don't think that matches reality at all.

Now, by RAW, it is possible(keep in mind that if use a free-action to go onehanded after you attack, and then a free action to go two handed on your next turn, you can't pull this trick more than every other second), but I don't think it's correct. Yes, in historic record, there are incidents where a grapple may be attempted while weapons are close, but I think that's very different from what is being proposed in this thread.

A master of the longsword, when seeking to maximize his defense does not take his hand off of his sword. The poleaxe or halberd fighter doesn't flit between gripping his weapon in one hand and two. In both this cases, you use your weapon to parry, utilizing it's length to parry attacks.

I just don't think this ruling sits well with how things should work.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Verjigorm

A master of the longsword, when seeking to maximize his defense does not take his hand off of his sword. The poleaxe or halberd fighter doesn't flit between gripping his weapon in one hand and two. In both this cases, you use your weapon to parry, utilizing it's length to parry attacks.

I just don't think this ruling sits well with how things should work.

If using realistic rules for Judo and Karate, note that he'll have a -3 on the Judo Parry, so of course he wouldn't do that.

The unarmed parry is an option that only makes sense in certain situations, such as when the fight is at such close quarters than a long weapon has a higher penalty than -3 to the Parry or when the weapon is unbalanced.

And I don't really have any problems with visualising a skilled fighter with the right Perk as not committing both his hands so heavily to a swing that he's unable to try to defend with one of them.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Icelander

The unarmed parry is an option that only makes sense in certain situations, such as when the fight is at such close quarters than a long weapon has a higher penalty than -3 to the Parry or when the weapon is unbalanced.

Or the user decided to 'waste' 4 points on an appropriate Technique.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Or the user decided to 'waste' 4 points on an appropriate Technique.

Say what? Do you mean if the fighter with the two-handed weapon wants to parry with his live hand to set up an Arm Lock? I have a PC in my campaign who sometimes does that.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Say what? Do you mean if the fighter with the two-handed weapon wants to parry with his live hand to set up an Arm Lock? I have a PC in my campaign who sometimes does that.

I put waste in quotes because the actual efficiency of such a Technique is a matter of opinion. Parry + Arm Lock + Dagger is a nasty combo . . . but so is getting hit on the hand* . . .

* == actual results depend on set of Optional Rules used.

[roguebfl]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Say what? Do you mean if the fighter with the two-handed weapon wants to parry with his live hand to set up an Arm Lock? I have a PC in my campaign who sometimes does that.

I built a Katana fighter who used grip mastery to have the option to judo throw. But given he was a Weapon Master tend to like his -1 intertve parry with his Katana. But sometimes the terrain made the throw a good choice to go for instead.

[Verjigorm]

Originally Posted by Icelander

The unarmed parry is an option that only makes sense in certain situations, such as when the fight is at such close quarters than a long weapon has a higher penalty than -3 to the Parry or when the weapon is unbalanced.

The close in thing i understand. I've done that in a swordfight(well, as close to a sword fight as you can legally get) before. What I have never done, and what I have never seen is someone attacking with an unbalanced weapon, or even a balanced two-handed sword and then holding it in one hand and using the free hand to intercept blows.

And I don't really have any problems with visualising a skilled fighter with the right Perk as not committing both his hands so heavily to a swing that he's unable to try to defend with one of them.

I don't think this is a realistic portrayal of two-handed weapon. Any weapon that would have a U or double dagger is going to have balance issues that mean that moving a hand off in one turn should not mitigate.