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Old 12-27-2022, 07:26 AM   #1
Plane
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Default Blind Fighting in a vacuum

B180 mentions you normally add Acute Hearing to this sense-based skill, but that there is a -7 penalty if you cannot hear at all.

Would it be reasonable to assume in situation where you can't possible hear an enemy (like fighting them in space) that you would only take the -7 penalty but not apply Acute Hearing bonuses?

It mentions "mainly hearing, but also touch and even smell" although I can't find any precedent for adding any bonuses from those w/ enhanced touch or smell, is that just fluff which has no impact?

Space combat would also seem like a situation which prevents smelling an opponent (ie you're in a spacesuit) and where there's no sense-of-touch feedback (you're not grappling with them, there's no air or sound vibrations to prickle your skin) so it makes me wonder if even a -7 roll should be allowed.

The actual crunch is it lets you add the better of ESP or Telepathy talents (ie this is a skill which benefits from having psionic powers) so presumably this would be the basis of being able to roll in space. But having such a talent isn't a prerequisite for the skill, so should we assume that learning this skill actually gives you some form of latent psychic ability to roll in space combat?

The skill can normally be resisted by a Stealth-4 roll but B222 describes it as being able to move silently...

Would being able to move quietly be of any benefit in resisting a skill not dependent on hearing? It sounds like maybe if you roll at -7 penalty (can't hear anything) that there shouldn't be an ability to resist it with Stealth at all. Instead maybe it should be resisted with some kind of telepathic mind block.
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Old 12-27-2022, 09:27 AM   #2
Varyon
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Default Re: Blind Fighting in a vacuum

Quote:
Originally Posted by Plane View Post
B180 mentions you normally add Acute Hearing to this sense-based skill, but that there is a -7 penalty if you cannot hear at all.

Would it be reasonable to assume in situation where you can't possible hear an enemy (like fighting them in space) that you would only take the -7 penalty but not apply Acute Hearing bonuses?
Yeah, I think any situation in which you are taking the -7 for being unable to hear is also one where Acute Hearing bonuses shouldn't apply... because it doesn't matter how acute your hearing normally is if you can't currently hear anything anyway.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Plane View Post
It mentions "mainly hearing, but also touch and even smell" although I can't find any precedent for adding any bonuses from those w/ enhanced touch or smell, is that just fluff which has no impact?
For a typical character, I either wouldn't have enhanced touch/smell matter or have them give half their normal bonus (and limit the bonus to the greatest of touch, smell, and hearing bonuses); but for a character with Vibration Sense I'd let Acute Touch apply fully, while for a character with Discriminatory Smell, I'd let Acute Smell similarly apply fully. Again, only the greatest bonus would apply. None of this would matter in a vacuum (although touch might be a factor if you're both on the same surface, as you can feel the vibrations of their movement).

Quote:
Originally Posted by Plane View Post
The actual crunch is it lets you add the better of ESP or Telepathy talents (ie this is a skill which benefits from having psionic powers) so presumably this would be the basis of being able to roll in space. But having such a talent isn't a prerequisite for the skill, so should we assume that learning this skill actually gives you some form of latent psychic ability to roll in space combat?
A character with psionic abilities (which may be as simple as just having a Perk) could probably use Blind Fighting when otherwise sense-deprived at -10 or so; one without such wouldn't be able to use Blind Fighting. As for psionic-related talents adding a bonus, I'd probably only apply the highest bonus of each Talent, Acute Sense, etc - so if you've got ESP Talent 3 and Acute Hearing 2, you're simply at +3, not +5.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Plane View Post
The skill can normally be resisted by a Stealth-4 roll but B222 describes it as being able to move silently...
Stealth skill is a general "move undetected" ability; I'd let it apply against any sense. If the character is at -7 because they cannot hear, you can still use Stealth to sneak up on them (avoiding causing vibrations that they can feel through their sense of touch, approaching from downwind so they can't smell you, masking your thoughts/intentions* so they can't sense you with psionic capabilities, etc).

*In settings where mystical forces - magic, psionics, etc - exist, I feel it's appropriate for mundane stealth to at least partially work against them, giving stealthy characters a touch of the mystical as well.
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