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Old 12-29-2018, 05:21 PM   #1
Scintillant
 
Join Date: Dec 2018
Default Your opinions on a few house rules

I'm thinking of implementing these and would love feedback from some experienced players.

NEW TALENTS
IQ 11, Assassin (1): Ability to make a deadly strike against a 1-hex humanoid foe. When striking with a one-handed weapon or UC from a foe’s rear hex increase the critical success range by one point, inflicting triple damage on a roll of 3 or 4, and double damage on a 5. If the foe is surprised increase the range by an additional point, with triple damage on 3, 4 or 5, and double damage on a 6. A hit is still automatic only on a roll of 3, 4, or 5.

IQ 13, Expert Assassin (1): Prerequisite: Assassin. As for Assassin, but a strike from the rear hex increases the critical success range by two points, or one from the side hexes by one point. Surprise still increases the critical range by an additional point.

LEARNING NEW TALENTS AND SPELLS
Each new spell or talent learned costs a base of 500 XP – or 1,000 for talents marked (2) in the listing, and so on. As when your character was created, spells cost triple for a non-wizard, and talents cost double for a wizard. The cost (after multiplication) is reduced 50 XP for each point by which the required IQ is lower than the character’s current IQ, to a minimum of 100 XP.
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Old 12-29-2018, 05:32 PM   #2
Skarg
 
Join Date: May 2015
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

The Assassin talents seem like an ok thing to exist for balance purposes, to me, though I would require the user have some talent (UC or weapon talent) to use it (no unskilled cudgel slayers or brawler slayers).

I might make the second level cost another point or two.

However I wouldn't call it "Assassin", as that describes a whole job of someone who probably prefers not to even get into combat, and who would have other skills.

I might call it Backstabber.


The learning XP savings rule is interesting and, at first consideration, I think I like it.
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Old 12-30-2018, 11:40 PM   #3
RobW
 
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Join Date: Mar 2018
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

The og ITL used a similar mechanic, of easier 2x and 3x damage, for the fencing talent. It was always a pleasant surprise when it worked, but not very reliable. Given the limitations you're placing, 1-handed weapon, surprise, and attack from the rear, i could imagine boosting the odds of success quite a lot over this. Maybe even tieing the chance of success to the attackers dx?
Maybe for the circumstances you describe, 4d/dx to do double damage?
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Old 07-01-2019, 07:28 AM   #4
Tywyll
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

How about:

Backstab (IQ 10) (2): Prerequisite: Weapon Skill, Silent Move
When attacking a foe from the side, behind or who is prone, the character may choose to inflict +1d6 damage by suffering a -4 to hit. This modifier is canceled out in part or in full by the bonus received from facing.

The advantage here is that in some circumstances, even if attacking from behind you might choose to not use the ability (a wounded back stabber might instead choose to take the full bonus to hit to off set pain penalties, which seems reasonable).
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Old 07-01-2019, 07:43 AM   #5
MikMod
 
Join Date: May 2019
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

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Originally Posted by Tywyll View Post
How about:

Backstab (IQ 10) (2): Prerequisite: Weapon Skill, Silent Move
When attacking a foe from the side, behind or who is prone, the character may choose to inflict +1d6 damage by suffering a -4 to hit. This modifier is canceled out in part or in full by the bonus received from facing.

The advantage here is that in some circumstances, even if attacking from behind you might choose to not use the ability (a wounded back stabber might instead choose to take the full bonus to hit to off set pain penalties, which seems reasonable).
Plus it limits users to leather armour?
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Old 07-01-2019, 09:26 AM   #6
Tywyll
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

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Originally Posted by MikMod View Post
Plus it limits users to leather armour?
Other than D&D trope, why? I don't see any reason why skill at taking advantage of a foe's opening requires your armor choice to be limited. I'd rather stick it at maybe a minimum adjusted Dex, say 12 after modifiers or something?

Remember, despite rpgs claim to the contrary, leather armor is thick and bulky and almost as cumbersome as plate armor (it is rigid after all). It's not a sexy cat-suit!
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Old 07-01-2019, 10:28 AM   #7
MikMod
 
Join Date: May 2019
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tywyll View Post
Other than D&D trope, why? I don't see any reason why skill at taking advantage of a foe's opening requires your armor choice to be limited. I'd rather stick it at maybe a minimum adjusted Dex, say 12 after modifiers or something?

Remember, despite rpgs claim to the contrary, leather armor is thick and bulky and almost as cumbersome as plate armor (it is rigid after all). It's not a sexy cat-suit!
Erm, RAW you can't use Silent Movement if you are in anything heavier than leather?

Last edited by MikMod; 07-01-2019 at 05:40 PM.
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Old 07-01-2019, 04:58 PM   #8
larsdangly
 
Join Date: Dec 2017
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

The assassin talent, as written in the OP, will be pretty frustrating in play, as only rarely will it 'work' - the large majority of the time there will be no special benefit of the investment in talent points. Alternatives I suggest:

1) Just use the aimed shot rules - a successful aimed attack to the 'head' (which I would say includes the most natural targets for a lethal assassin's blow with a knife) will incapacitate with relatively little damage. Particularly if the attacker has a weapon expertise/mastery talent to bump up base damage.

2) Introduce an assassin talent but have it provide a flat damage bonus or a bonus to hit on aimed shots
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Old 07-02-2019, 02:41 AM   #9
Tywyll
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

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Originally Posted by MikMod View Post
Erm, RAW you can't use Silent Movement if you are in anything heavier than leather?
Ah good point. However, I was only thinking of that as a prerequisite in the sense that you have to learn to be sneaky before you can learn to take sneaky shots like this, not that you had to perform silent movement to do so.
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Old 07-02-2019, 04:18 AM   #10
MikMod
 
Join Date: May 2019
Default Re: Your opinions on a few house rules

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Originally Posted by Tywyll View Post
Ah good point. However, I was only thinking of that as a prerequisite in the sense that you have to learn to be sneaky before you can learn to take sneaky shots like this, not that you had to perform silent movement to do so.
Ah, yeah, I think in TFT if there's a prerequisite talent you have to be in a position to use that talent? Stealth, for example?
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