df enhanced backstab?

[muduri]

Have just been looking up backstabbing in DF Dungeons and Power-Ups. The Backstabber advantage seems quite solid, but I'm curious, could it be rebuilt with say an additional +1 to Telegraphic Attacks or a +1 to target the Skull or Vitals specifically? Or even as a skill / technique somehow? Maybe one of these would make it adaptive to get rid of the high skill prerequisites for Backstabber so that lower-point thieves could specialize in it earlier.

[Sam Baughn]

Should be simple enough to do as a technique using the Creating New Techniques rules from Martial Arts (p. 89). You can then make it a Wildcard Technique (Power-Ups 7, p. 20) to apply to all your combat skills. If you only want one skill to benefit, then you can probably include offsetting hit location penalties, since most skills will favour one location (knife thrust to vitals, brawling punch / blackjack to skull, axe/mace swing to neck, etc.) but as a wildcard technique it might be better to separate them out.

Another option would be to take the cap off First Strike at the cost of another perk (equivalent to technique mastery, etc.). Using the rules for designing new advantages, a skill bonus to 6 or fewer skills is 5 points base. Add the limitations Only to Attack Rolls (-40%) and Only During a Sneak Attack (-40%) and you get a 1 point advantage, so it's arguably balanced so long as it's only allowed for characters with a small number of melee skills. If, like me, you think those limitations might be a bit generous, require an unusual background perk for every level (or couple of levels, if you think it's more like a 1.5 point advantage).

[tbone]

There are already canonical things the thief can do to improve backstab. There are Targeted Attacks vs Vitals or Skull (if allowed); Trademark Move (something like "Telegraphic Knife stab to the vitals") should help too.

But those aren't specific to thieves, or even to backstab attacks.

I don't think it'd be unbalancing to allow +1 TH (only usable with Telegraphic surprise attack) for 1 pt., especially if limited to a single weapon skill (i.e., a Technique) and to DF thieves only. Wing the cost and effects – or do the smart thing, as Sam Baughn suggests, and generate a Technique with the nifty creation system.

It may all be a bit moot, in that any thief, with +4 TH for Telegraphic Attack and up to +3 for Evaluation, should have no trouble with a backstab to begin with. Then again, there are often penalties... (If vitals/skull are the problem that's weighing down TH, that's again a job for Targeted Attack.)

[Fred Brackin]

I do not have whatever you're taking this "Backstabber"Advantage from but what I would doo is to use the Trademark Move Perk from PU2 p 8.

With that Perk you spcify 1 Turn's worth of actions is precise detail (which you can not depart from) but you then get +1 to that move.

So you want a trademark move you'd call "Backstab". That works out to something like "Target Attack to Vitals w/Knife Telegraphic and AOA(Determined)".

The stats for this work out as -3 to hit for TA/Vitals, +4 for Telegraphic Attack, +2 to damage for AOA (Determined), al damage that pentrated DR is x3 no Active Defense is possible while using this and the target is +4 to his defence."

Then you add the +1 for Trademark Move and you're a net +2 to hit and +2 to damage and damage is Impaling to Vitals for x3 daamgebut you really better only use this on targets who don't know you're there.

You can improve the To Hit by as much as +2 buying up the TA/Vitals Technique but that's all I can think of that's RAW.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by muduri

Maybe one of these would make it adaptive to get rid of the high skill prerequisites for Backstabber so that lower-point thieves could specialize in it earlier.

None of those things are going to change the Prereqs or increase skills to meet the Prereqs. And starting Thieves are only 2 exp away from meeting the Prereqs out the gate.