Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > The Fantasy Trip > The Fantasy Trip: House Rules

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 06-09-2021, 06:17 PM   #1
Kieddicus
 
Join Date: Oct 2020
Default Getting Knocked Out

I never really liked that the only way to fall unconscious in combat was to drop to exactly 0 ST so I came up with a fix that I thought I'd share. (This also has the added benefit of making ST slightly more useful.)

When ST drops to 3 or less in addition to the loss of DX you must also make a 3/ST saving roll if you fail you are knocked out, you must also make this roll every time you are hit while at 3 or less HP (even if the hit deals 0 damage).
Kieddicus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2021, 09:16 PM   #2
Shostak
 
Shostak's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: New England
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

You shouldn't have to be at death's door to be knocked unconscious. One fairly believable way to handle KOs is to require an aimed blow tothe head, detailed on ITL 121. I might define the time unconscious to 1d turns.

Another is to require any blow delivering enough damage to knock someone down also requiring a ST roll to avoid getting knocked out. I'd probably cap the time unconscious from this method to 1d-3 turns (1 min).
__________________
* * * *
Anthony Shostak
myriangia.wordpress.com
Shostak is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2021, 08:07 AM   #3
larsdangly
 
Join Date: Dec 2017
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

The aimed shot rules are the obvious way to go here. I find them to be appropriately scaled, in terms of DX penalty and damage threshold to knock someone out.
larsdangly is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2021, 10:25 AM   #4
hcobb
 
hcobb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Pacheco, California
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

Roofie, Halfling wizard, age 20
ST 6, DX 15, IQ 9, MA 10
Talents: Blowgun, Literacy, Thrown Weapons
Spells: Dark Vision, Darkness, Fire, Staff, Summon Scout, Turn Missiles
Language: Common
Weapons: blowgun wand (pos, 1d occult)
Attacks and Damage: Punch (1d-4)
Equipment: 4 doses sleeping potion
__________________
-HJC
hcobb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2021, 04:09 PM   #5
RobW
 
RobW's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

Quote:
Originally Posted by hcobb View Post
Roofie, Halfling wizard
Weapons: blowgun wand (pos, 1d occult)
Literally lol xD
Sleep spell probably more reliable but less theatrical than Roofie the hobbit blowing poisonous darts out his wand
RobW is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-11-2021, 04:36 AM   #6
hcobb
 
hcobb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Pacheco, California
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

UC III pin tag teamed with a wizard who knows Drain ST and Aid.
__________________
-HJC
hcobb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2021, 02:16 AM   #7
Steve Plambeck
 
Join Date: Jun 2019
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kieddicus View Post
I never really liked that the only way to fall unconscious in combat was to drop to exactly 0 ST
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shostak View Post
You shouldn't have to be at death's door to be knocked unconscious.
I couldn't agree more with both those statements.

My admittedly radical proposal is to alter the rules of death itself, doing so in such a way that it enlarges that window between death and unconsciousness from its current setting of only 1 point. To do so requires reclassifying damage as well, so these would be pretty big as far as house rules go.

Hits become tallied separately as either LETHAL or NON-LETHAL. Which still parallels what we already do in keeping fatigue hits separate from wounds. Hits from sharp and edged weapons would count as LETHAL hits, unless the attacker chose them to count as NON-LETHAL instead (striking with the flat of the weapon or the butt of the haft, etc.) Hits from blunt weapons, barehanded attacks, kicks, or a flower vase broken over the head would count as NON-LETHAL hits, as of course anything that currently counts as "fatigue". LETHAL hits recover at the same rate as wounds do now, and are treatable with medical attention. NON-LETHAL hits recover at the same rate as fatigue does now, 1 point per 15 minutes.

Now the tricky bit. A figure only dies when LETHAL hits exceed ST. But a figure becomes unconscious any time the total of all hits, LETHAL plus NON-LETHAL, is greater than or equal to ST.

So for example, a 12 ST figure could have 6 LETHAL hits (wounds) and 10 NON-LETHAL hits (exhaustion, spell expenditures, blunt force trauma, or any combination of all three). Because 16 total hits exceeds ST 12, they are unconscious, but not dead yet because the 6 LETHAL hits is less than ST. In this example, the figure would regain consciousness in 75 minutes, by which time 5 of the NON-LETHAL hits would wear off. At that point total hits has come down to 11, bringing net total ST to 1.

This whole approach has a number of ripple effects which need to be contemplated. For example wizards would be much harder to kill, although not any harder to knock out (which in a 1 on 1 arena fight comes down to the same thing anyway). Everyone would be harder to kill outright, but no one would be harder to defeat. There'd be survivors waking up to crawl off after a big battle, unless someone had gone around with a dagger slitting throats.
__________________
"I'm not arguing. I'm just explaining why I'm right."

Last edited by Steve Plambeck; 06-13-2021 at 02:19 AM.
Steve Plambeck is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2021, 10:52 AM   #8
David Bofinger
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Sydney, Australia
Default Re: Getting Knocked Out

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kieddicus View Post
I never really liked that the only way to fall unconscious in combat was to drop to exactly 0 ST
Post-combat physickering can raise ST from negative to non-negative, effectively that does create a zone where a character is de facto unconscious-and-dying rather than dead. So the line has become more blurred in Legacy than it was in Classic.

Quote:
When ST drops to 3 or less in addition to the loss of DX you must also make a 3/ST saving roll if you fail you are knocked out, you must also make this roll every time you are hit while at 3 or less HP (even if the hit deals 0 damage).
This rule has a couple of interesting effects:
  • It's easier to neutralise someone. TFT is already a game where characters can't survive much attrition, so you need to decide whether that's something you
  • It makes low ST characters one-hit-and-they're-down. I think that's probably a good thing, off to hell with the flimsy prats, but it's something to think about.
David Bofinger is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 07:09 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.