[TG] Preventing your target from speaking

[johndallman]

If you want to prevent your target from speaking (or shouting, etc.), how does that work with TG?

With more basic grappling, a grapple to the face was the obvious thing, but now one has to grapple the head as a whole (TG p7).

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by johndallman

If you want to prevent your target from speaking (or shouting, etc.), how does that work with TG?

With more basic grappling, a grapple to the face was the obvious thing, but now one has to grapple the head as a whole (TG p7).

Grapple the Jaw (Martial Arts, p. 118) to keep it clamped shut, or the mouth to keep sound from escaping. Use the rules for "tucking the chin" to escape or avoid a choke or strangle, or tossing the head using the "Using your Head" rule (p. 23).

The "you grapple the head" thing was to forestall comments about grappling the face. The face, head, and jaw are all -3 to grapple, though, so just wave your hands real fast and move along. :-)

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

Grapple the Jaw (Martial Arts, p. 118) to keep it clamped shut, or the mouth to keep sound from escaping.

OK... roll CP for that attack, for the target to counter to try to get free. Does it take CP to keep the target quiet, or is that automatic while one has CP on the appropriate location?

[jacobmuller]

Sentry Removal on MA184 is about silencing sentries but only covers lethal options.
Would inflicting CP double the sentry's Jaw ST be the non-lethal solution? Not totally silent but not able to shout out... I'm assuming Jaw ST is Mouth ST, ie 1/2 ST.
For that matter, CP spent that turn to decrease Jaw ST, ie if your attack scores 4CP, that's -2ST, but spending three CP gets you to -5ST this turn? You'd be building your CP to the point where you didn't need to spend CP to control the Jaw.

And you'd still have the option to Neck Snap.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by jacobmuller

Sentry Removal on MA184 is about silencing sentries but only covers lethal options.

Silencing sentries the scenario I'm interested in, but the treatment on MA84 is ... not very detailed. Getting a target unconscious with a single Knife attack is possible, but not reliable without a lot of strength and/or a very fancy knife. Restraining the target from shouting while you stab a second or third time is desirable. Using "Grab and Smash!" from MA118 could plausibly boost the damage enough.

Would inflicting CP double the sentry's Jaw ST be the non-lethal solution? Not totally silent but not able to shout out... I'm assuming Jaw ST is Mouth ST, ie 1/2 ST.

For that matter, CP spent that turn to decrease Jaw ST, ie if your attack scores 4CP, that's -2ST, but spending three CP gets you to -5ST this turn? You'd be building your CP to the point where you didn't need to spend CP to control the Jaw.

That looks plausible, too.

[DouglasCole]

This is kinda neat, and I'll likely steal it for my blog.

I think I like the "build up CP until you overwhelm Bite ST, which as noted is ST/2. This will prevent them from using their Jaw at all . . . but they can still subvocalize and go "MMMMMM! MMMMMM! MMMMM!" as loud as they can.

Note that there are pressure points in the mouth (I've been the crash test dummy for that one in a martial arts demonstration). I'd allow a successful Pressure Points attack (p. 33, p. B215, Martial Arts pp. 58-59) to put someone in so much pain they can't speak. Maybe make a Will roll modified by the pain threshold described in the text for them, and if they fail, they can only whimper or something.

[jacobmuller]

A happy coincidence of misunderstanding the question and an educated guess:D
(and I still haven't got peace to read the whole of MA:TG:()

How would you handle the one-handed choke-hold-ish move that goes with the knife-work, ie how much damage or how many CP, and Choke or Strangle, to keep the sentry quiet until your stabtastics render him? Would my Jaw guesstimate be the answer here to? {cue jaw-dropping sound effect}.

Is it Strangle for: Active CP penalty + expended CP > tST/HT/Skill or enough Injury to Cripple?