Adv Log Session 52: Onyxgleam Manor, and Landscape Supply

GM’s Note: Extra Effort Options from Martial Arts

Giant Step: If you take an Attack or Defensive Attack maneuver, you can spend 1 FP for one extra step. You’re buying mobility similar to All-Out Attack, Committed Attack, or Move and Attack without the drawbacks, and cannot combine this option with those maneuvers. You may take your extra step before or after you attack; you can step, attack, and step again. Critical failure on the attack causes 1 HP of injury to the leg (not the weapon arm), as if dodging.

Great Lunge: If you make an Attack, Committed Attack, or Move and Attack in melee combat, you can spend 1 FP to get the effects of an All-Out Attack (Long) (pp. 97-98) without sacrificing your defenses. These include +1 reach, -2 damage or -1 damage per die with swinging attacks (whichever is worse), and the option to drop into a crouch. This is incompatible with Defensive Grip, and with the All-Out Attack and Defensive Attack maneuvers.

Heroic Charge: If you make a Move and Attack, you can spend 1 FP to ignore both its skill penalty and its effective skill cap in melee combat. If you do a Flying Attack (p. 107) or Acrobatic Attack (p. 107), the extra -1 or -2 to hit still applies. Likewise, you’re still subject to defensive penalties (no parry or retreat).

Rapid Recovery: If you attack with an unbalanced weapon (one with “U” in its Parry statistic) during an Attack maneuver or with any weapon using Move and Attack, and a foe later attacks you, you can spend 1 FP to parry with that weapon. You must spend the FP before you try your first parry – but unless this parry critically fails, the weapon can continue to parry afterward, at the usual penalties. In effect, you’ve returned the weapon to its guard position. This is one of the benefits of Defensive Attack; there’s no point in taking this option with that maneuver.

All-Out Attack (Long) (not an Extra Effort maneuver, just another AOA option)

This is a fifth All-Out Attack option for melee combat. It represents a full-extension jump or lunge. It gives the fighter an extra yard of reach; e.g., he could use a shortsword, which normally has a reach of 1 yard, to strike somebody 2 yards away. All-Out Attack (Long) has no effect on the attack roll. For thrusting attacks, there’s no effect on damage, either. Swinging attacks are more awkward, and at -2 damage or -1 damage per die, whichever is worse.

As usual for All-Out Attack, the attacker may move up to half his Move forward before attacking. This makes it possible to simulate balestras and similar gap-closing moves. Even without movement, this maneuver can be useful for leaning over or under a barrier, or over a fighter who’s kneeling, sitting, or lying down. However, the extra reach can’t be used to attack past a crouching or standing fighter – through his hex, in tactical combat – as his body would get in the way of the extended arm and foot.

The attacker may opt to end this maneuver in a crouch, which represents a sprawling lunge with a hand on the floor for support (often termed a “floor lunge”). He cannot support himself with a hand that’s holding the weapon used to attack; thus, two-armed beings with two-handed weapons can’t drop to a crouch. The supporting hand need not be empty – it can hold a shield, second weapon, etc. This crouch calls for a DX roll. Failure means the fighter ends up kneeling instead; critical failure means he falls down.

All-Out Attack (Long) is incompatible with Defensive Grip (pp. MA109-111), which involves holding the weapon closer than usual, and mutually exclusive with other All-Out Attack options (Determined, Double, Feint, and Strong). It’s compatible with most other attack options: Deceptive Attack (p. B369), Rapid Strike (p. B370), Telegraphic Attack (p. MA113), Tip Slash (p. MA113), etc.

Move and Ready

Move as described for the Move maneuver while hastily pulling out an item, either during or after your movement, without using the Fast-Draw skill. This requires a DX roll.

Modifiers: Any penalties for bad footing, distraction, or shock that would apply to an attack under the circumstances; -4 if using your "off" hand to ready a one-handed item (unless you have Ambidexterity +1 if the item is in delver's webbing; -3 per level of Ham-Fisted or +1 per level of High Manual Dexterity.

Any success grants the benefit of one Ready maneuver. Normal failure means this counts only as a Move maneuver. On a critical failure, you drop the item – and on an 18, you suffer a catastrophe of the GM's choosing (a fragile item breaks, while a durable one might slip down a grating or fly into the air and land at an enemy's feet).

You can combine Ready and Move and Ready maneuvers to ready items that require multiple turns to ready. Failed Move and Ready attempts don't advance your progress, but don't set it back. Critical failures always undo all previous efforts!

Movement: You receive movement points equal to your current Move score – but trying to do two things at once gives you -2 on all rolls to avoid falling down, and to avoid obstacles or traps.

Active Defense: Any – but you cannot parry or block with the hand you're using to ready, or with either hand if readying a two-handed item, and you cannot retreat.

Evaluate change - Gives a +1 defense against the Evaluated opponent in addition to the attack bonus.

Tactical Evaluate new - gives only a +1 defense bonus against the Evaluated opponent, but a second Tactical Evaluate taken against the same opponent on any subsequent turn makes the defense bonus permanent for the duration of the combat encounter.

Move and Evaluate new - Gives either the attack or defense bonus of Evaluate but allows half-move.

Move and Ready new - Allows the character to Move while readying an object he is carrying. Choose Full or Half Move. Roll vs. DX. Failure means for Half-Move the Ready fails; for full Move the Ready fails, the object becomes fouled and requires a long-action to free. Critical fail in either case means the object is dropped.

Recoup new - A special Concentrate manoeuvre allows a roll vs. Meditation, Auto-Trance, Body Control (or similar) to recover 1 FP. Cannot be used again until full FP restored by other means.

Opportunistic Wait new - As a usual Wait manoeuvre, but the character declaring this manoeuvre must specify they will attack if triggered and specify a trigger that involves either an attack (1) that uses a specific technique or (2) which limb, striker, etc. the attacker will use. (If the nature of the fight constrains the opponent to using only one limb/weapon (e.g. a fencing match), the Wait trigger must specify the nature (thrust, swing) if applicable and/or line (high, low, etc.) of attack. If this Wait is triggered, the Waiting character gets +1 on his own attack and +1 on his defense against the opponent's attack.

GM’s Note: The Chinese developed something called the “Ox Bow” or “Bed crossbow”, a type of crossbow that used multiple prods and thus had a really long draw length (for a crossbow) (pics can be found here and Tod’s Workshop has a videoabout it). It required multiple men to draw, or a team of oxen. These weren’t man-portable, but were used for sieges (the documentation even mentioned that it was strong enough to embed the bolts deeply enough in the stonework to be used like a ladder). I’m thinking it’s a Dwarven invention, used for defense in their Undercities, or used as siege weaponry.

A two prod xbow would have scorpion stats at 1.2xST. A three prod xbow would have it at 1.5xST. To be honest, it may be higher, given that it could take 10 men or a team of several oxen to draw it. Scorpions do 5d imp. That works out to a ST of 38, assuming it does Thr+4. So, a two-prod would do 6d imp (ST 45) and a three-prod would do 7d imp (ST 55). Shots: 1(30) (requires team of men or oxen to recock).

GM’s Note 1: Almë was trying to do a takedown, using his staff. I should have said that he could put his leg behind her legs and do a wrestling/brawling based “judo throw”, with his staff at her throat. That would have made it more clear, I think. Game-wise, mechanically, nothing would change, but the description of what he was trying to do could have been expressed better.

For those interested, here is the text for Armed Grapple (a technique used when you want to grapple someone using your weapon):

Armed Grapple (Hard)

Defaults: Cloak, or other prerequisite skill-2.

Prerequisite: Cloak or appropriate Melee Weapon skill; cannot exceed prerequisite skill.

Many armed styles teach how to step close to a foe, maneuver a weapon past him, and then pull it in tightly to restrain him. This results in an actual grapple of his body in close combat. To snag an opponent at full reach, use Entangle (p. 71) for a flexible weapon or Hook (p. 74) for one with a hook or other projection. To lock blades with him, use Bind Weapon (see below).

To initiate an armed grapple, roll against weapon skill at -2 – this is an awkward and unconventional attack for most weapons. It’s a standard move with a cloak, however, and uses your unpenalized Cloak skill (see p. B404). Use the hit location penalties for grappling, not those for striking.

Your opponent may use any normal defense. If he fails to defend, you’ve successfully grappled him with your weapon. While using your weapon to grapple, you can neither attack nor defend with it. On your turn, you can follow up with a takedown, pin, choke, or Arm Lock (options depend on the body part grappled). Releasing the grapple is a free action.

A one-handed weapon other than a cloak can only grapple if you grip it in two hands first. This requires a Ready maneuver.

GM’s Note: Combat Maneuvers

This is just a summary of the range of options combatants have to play around with. I've been rather lax about letting everyone know about the various options available (and some I forget anyway, so this is for my benefit as well!)

Aim: spend a turn aiming, and you get your ACC bonus from your weapon. Spend an additional 1 or 2 turns and you get another +1 per second to your attack skill. It caps at +2, so you don’t get any more bonus if you continue to aim past the first three seconds.

All-Out-Attack: This comes in several flavors. Determined (+4 to attack skill Double (make two attacks against the same foe…this could actually be two attacks, or it could be a single long attack, like slitting a throat Feint (do a feint and then an attack in the same turn Strong (+2 damage, or +1 per die if that would be better and Long (a full extension jump or lunge while attacking, giving an extra meter of reach. No penalty for thrusting attacks, but swinging attacks are more awkward, giving -2 damage, or -1 per die, whichever is worse). For all All-Out-Attacks, you may move up to half your move, but only forward. No Active Defense rolls are able to be made; you are spending all of your time driving home an attack.

There is an available option for ranged weapons. Determined (+1 to hit). Two, really, if the RoF is 5+ for the weapon (usually firearms). That is Suppression Fire, where you spray the area with bullets, hopefully to keep the enemy’s head down and not shooting back.

Slams are All-Out-Attacks. You may choose Determined, Feint, or Strong option, but not Long. The Double is a special case. You can’t slam twice, but you can lead with a weapon and just keep going, slamming into them after your weapon attack. The melee attack can also be on someone else you may have passed along the way to your target. You only get half your move with this option, just like any other AOA.

All-Out-Defense: There are two options. Increased Defense (add +2 to one Active Defense. If you are dodging, you may move up to half your move, otherwise you only get a step Double Defense (apply two different Active Defenses against the same attack. In the case of parrying, each hand you attempt a parry with counts as a separate Active Defense).

Attack: make a single attack (unless you have multiple attacks for some reason), while retaining the ability to use Active Defenses). There are also two variants: Deceptive Attack (for every -2 you accept to your own skill, the foe suffers a penalty of -1 to their active defense; you can’t reduce your skill below 10 and Rapid Strike (get a second attack, both at -6; if you already have multiple attacks, one of them can be designated a Rapid Strike, gaining one more attack).

Beat/Ruse: Like a Feint, but using sheer force to beat a weapon or shield out of the way. It’s handled much like a Feint, but the attacker uses their ST, not their skill to make the roll for the contest of skills. In the case of a Ruse, you use IQ, simulating clever tactics, sex appeal, or verbal dialogue to fluster the opponent. See MA100-101.

Change Posture: Change from standing, sitting, kneeling, crawling, lying prone, and lying face up. Going from a lying down position to standing takes 2 Change Posture actions (lying down to kneeling; kneeling to standing). Acrobatics can allow a Kip Up, Flip, or Roll which gets you from lying down to standing in one turn. Make an Acrobatics roll at -6, with an additional penalty equal to your encumbrance level (See MA98 for more details).

You may also Dive Forward, to go from standing to kneeling, crawling, or lying prone. You may also Dive Forward, to go from kneeling to crawling or lying prone. You can Fall Backward to go from standing to sitting or lying face up. You can Fall Backward to go from kneeling or sitting to lying face up. Some of these actions can be used as part of an Attack.

Position                 Attack Defend

Standing                +0      +0

Kneeling                 -2       -2

Sitting                    -2       -2

Crawling                 -4       -3

Lying Face Up         -4       -3

Lying Face Down     -4       -3

See MA99 for details on hit location modifiers and modified attacks.

Committed Attack (resides in the space between AOA and Attack): comes in two flavors, Determined (+2 to hit) or Strong (+1 damage). You get one or two steps, but if you do take the second step, it puts you at -2 to hit. The movement can come either before the attack, after it, or it can be a step-attack-step. Active Defenses are possible, but you can’t use the weapon or hand that you attacked with. So you can’t Parry with the sword you attacked with, or Block with the shield you bashed with, but any other defense can be used, albeit at -2.

Concentrate: the action used to cast spells, or control active spells, using your senses to find something like an invisible opponent, or using a mental skill. If you are forced to use an Active Defense, are knocked down, injured, or otherwise distracted, you must make a Will-3 roll, or you’ll be forced to start over. Distracting a mage while they are casting can potentially delay them from casting their spell, providing an opportunity to really distract them (No matter how subtle the wizard, a knife between the shoulder blades can really cramp their style).

Defensive Attack (resides in the space between Attack and AOD): Represents a cautious “probing” attack like a jab, or a quick, light tap with a swung weapon. It does -2 damage (or -1 per die, whichever is worse). Active Defenses are at +1.

Do Nothing: You stand still, doing nothing. You still have normal defenses, though. This is usually a result of stun or surprise, but it can also represent someone trying to figure out what to do next (such as weighing the pros and cons of attacking enemy A vs enemy B). It also represents a lack of decision (some tables, such as at gaming conventions, may use a “Shot Clock” set to 10 or 20 seconds, so if you don’t come up with an action by then, you “Do Nothing”. It keeps the game moving and prevents it from getting bogged down.

Evaluate: Study an opponent to gain a combat bonus on your next attack. You may make up to 3 consecutive Evaluate maneuvers, giving up to a +3 to your attack. But see the above GM’s Note, which modifies Evaluate to also give a bonus to your defense roll.

Feint: Fake a melee attack in order to draw your opponent’s weapon out of line. It’s resolved using a Contest of Skills. Your margin of success is how much is subtracted from his defense roll when he defends from your next attack. The feint lasts for one second; if you follow it up with AoA (Double) then both attacks get the bonus. You may move one step while doing a Feint, and under most circumstances, only you can take advantage of your feint. To resist a Feint, use your best melee combat skill.

Move: You may move up to your maximum MV. You may defend yourself normally during this action.

Move and Attack: This is what used to be called a “wild swing”. You make up to your full move, and you get a single, poorly aimed attack at the end. If you are making a ranged attack, you have a penalty of -2 or the weapons Bulk rating, whichever is worse (Elitheris’s bow has a Bulk rating of -7; a short bow is -6, and a longbow is -8). If you are making a melee attack, you are at -4, with a max adjusted skill of 9. You cannot Parry with this maneuver, but you can Block or Dodge.

Ready: This is the ability to do stuff/prepare items. You may take a step while doing this, and you defend normally (subject to the situation…If you are digging around in your pack looking for a potion then you aren’t able to Block or Parry.)

Wait: Do nothing unless an event specified in advance happens, at which point you do your thing.

Some Movement options:

Banister Sliding (DX-2 or Acro-2, or DX-8/Acro-8 if standing on the bannister, MV 5, regardless of MV score, you fall off if you fail the roll)

Evading (used when moving through an opponent’s hex using a Move maneuver)

Skidding (used on slippery ground; requires a running start)

Spinning (turning to face a different hex side costs movement points, this allows you to face any direction using Acrobatics or Running)

Swinging (Tarzan, chandeliers, etc)

Tic-Tacs (running at a wall and kicking off from it to gain height. If there is another wall nearby, you can bounce between them. Requires a roll against Acrobatics-4 or Jumping-4. MA106)

Tumbling (somersaults, rolls, cartwheels, etc; makes you harder to hit at range. Acrobatics)

Vaulting and Diving (Requires Acrobatics at a -4 penalty, and allows for quicker movement through, around, under, and above objects. Usually movement like this takes at least two turns; you can do it in one.

Acrobatic Attack: You can use any of the special tricks described under Acrobatic Movement (pp. MA105-106) as the movement portion of a Move and Attack. The benefits and drawbacks of Move and Attack “stack” with those of your acrobatic feat. You have an additional -2 on both your attack roll and any roll required to pull off the stunt – the price of doing two things at once!

Flying Attack: Somewhat less risky than an Acrobatic Attack is a Flying Attack: a Move and Attack with a jump for extra distance (not to avoid an obstacle, evade a foe, etc.) just before the attack. You must run, then jump, and then attack. You cannot change the order; you need an uninterrupted run to build momentum for the jump, and a successful jump to attack.

First, run as far as you plan to. This can be any distance up to your full Move. In fact, this option gives little benefit unless you run your full Move!

Next, make a running broad jump. This requires a DX or Jumping roll. Success gives extra movement equal to your jumping distance at the end of your run. Add the bonus for running, but halve the final distance for jumping in combat. Your jump carries you in the direction you were running. Failure means you fall down and you turn ends; you cannot attack. See Jumping (p. B352) for details.

Finally, launch your attack. You can attack anyone you can reach from your landing point. This is at -5 instead of the usual -4 for Move and Attack. The usual restrictions on Move and Attack still apply, such as the maximum adjusted skill of 9.

Stop Hit: You attempt to attack while the opponent is attacking, to make it harder for the opponent to defend. To try a Stop Hit, take a Wait and declare that you intend to attack your foe. Instead of simply attacking first, which allows him to parry and continue with his attack, you attack into his attack in an effort to hit him while he’s on the offensive and less able to defend. Since you’re on the offensive, too, this is a gamble: your skill against his.

You and your opponent both roll to hit normally. If you both miss, nothing happens. If one of you hits and the other doesn’t, the struck fighter defends at -1 . . . or at -3 if he tries to parry with the weapon he used to attack. If you both hit, the one with the largest margin of success defends normally while the other has the penalty above – but in a tie, you both suffer this penalty!

You can do this with an unbalanced weapon (one with a “U” in its Parry statistic) or even one that becomes unready after an attack – and if you do, you can try to parry your foe’s weapon. This is because your Stop Hit and parry are a single move, not two distinct actions. You cannot parry after your Stop Hit, however.

Bind Weapon (Hard Technique, Default: prerequisite skill-3)

Prerequisite: Jitte/Sai or any fencing weapon skill; cannot exceed prerequisite skill.

Fencers with swords that have crosspiece hilts (or other weapons with wings, lugs, hooks, or crosspieces) can lock blades or hilts in a so-called bind. With a pronged weapon such as the jitte (p. 217), it’s possible to bind any weapon. This technique covers all such tactics.

To bind, you must first successfully parry your opponent’s fencing blade with your own such sword – or use a Jitte/Sai weapon to parry any weapon. On your first turn after the parry, roll against Bind Weapon to try to bind the weapon you parried; this is an attack. If you’re using a fencing weapon, your adversary must be within a yard and you must step into close combat. With a Jitte/Sai weapon, the target weapon must merely be in reach (see p. B400).

Your foe’s only legal defenses are a dodge or a parry with the targeted weapon. He may retreat for the usual bonus. If his defense fails, you bind weapons – and if he tried to retreat, he can’t step back.

You can use Bind Weapon offensively rather than after a parry. Step into range (see above) and roll against Bind Weapon to hit. The only difference is that your foe may try any defense, not just a dodge or a parry with the target weapon.

While a bind is in effect, neither fighter can use the weapons involved to attack or defend. All other actions taken by defender and attacker alike are at -2 DX.

Your foe may attempt to free his weapon on his turn. This counts as an attempt to break free (p. B371), and requires a full turn and a Quick Contest of his weapon skill against your Bind Weapon technique. If he uses finesse to disengage, make DX-based rolls. If he uses brute force, the rolls are ST-based. If he wins, the bind ends – and if he used ST, you must make a skill or Retain Weapon roll or drop the weapon you used to bind!

Either of you can escape by dropping the weapon in the bind. This is a free action at any time. You can end the bind without losing your weapon. This, too, is a free action – but only on your turn.

This tactic is common for two-weapon fencers – especially those with a main-gauche. The objective is to bind the enemy’s blade and attack with a secondary weapon. Jitte/Sai fighters use paired weapons to similar effect.

Applicable weapons: Tondene hooked spear, halberds, partisans, bill hooks, winged spears, boar spears, spontoons, blades with hilts (swords, knives), axes.

GM’s Note 2: The vampire thing crit failed its defense roll, basically defending itself so badly that it reduced its ability to attack. Oops.