Pro-Wrestling Moves

[Beelzebub1111]

How exactly should I handle it if, say for instance, one of my players wants to Texas piledriver a kobold (Don't Ask)

[deuxhero]

Setting Sun maneuvers.

[Beelzebub1111]

Setting Sun maneuvers.

What I'm talking about is if, the player (in this instance, a monk) wants to do something like that while grappling. This includes things like chokeslams and DDTs and Suplexes.

[Dr.Epic]

How exactly should I handle it if, say for instance, one of my players wants to Texas piledriver a kobold (Don't Ask)

I can only think high grapple modifier and feats related to grappling.

Also, when you pst a question like that and ask people not to ask you know they're going to so...

WHY IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT'S SANE IS HE TRYING TO TEXAS PILEDRIVE A KOBOLD?

[deuxhero]

^"What is this Texas" (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0209.html)


What I'm talking about is if, the player (in this instance, a monk) wants to do something like that while grappling. This includes things like chokeslams and DDTs and Suplexes.

So he is an unarmed sword sage. He has a class feature that does exactly what you want. Why are you asking? :)

[Beelzebub1111]

WHY IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT'S SANE IS HE TRYING TO TEXAS PILEDRIVE A KOBOLD?
Well, it was an underground arena fight he was up against a kobold sorcerer who used disabling spells like glitterdust and ray of enfeeblement, following up with lesser cold orb and a few range touch cantrips for nonlethal damage with -4 to hit. The player in question made his save and ran up to grapple, while in the grapple he said he wanted to put him in a piledriver and I had no Idea where to go from there so I told him that it would be more effective just to grapple him and would deal more damage that way.

And I'm not asking what CAN do this, I want to know what to do if a player WANTS to do this, or what would happen if he tried.

[Pharaoh's Fist]

How exactly should I handle it if, say for instance, one of my players wants to Texas piledriver a kobold (Don't Ask)

He must set things up behind the scenes so that the match will turn out in his favor.

[AtwasAwamps]

Well, it was an underground arena fight he was up against a kobold sorcerer who used disabling spells like glitterdust and ray of enfeeblement, following up with lesser cold orb and a few range touch cantrips for nonlethal damage with -4 to hit. The player in question made his save and ran up to grapple, while in the grapple he said he wanted to put him in a piledriver and I had no Idea where to go from there so I told him that it would be more effective just to grapple him and would deal more damage that way.

And I'm not asking what CAN do this, I want to know what to do if a player WANTS to do this, or what would happen if he tried.

I had this in a game recently, when someone attempted to DDT a table. Players don't like fighting my tables.

I had him make an opposed strength check and told them to roll xd6 based on the results of that check. I don't remember the exact conversion, but I do remember if they lost it, they got "reversed" and the opponent was able to perform a move on them or break free.

[Tavar]

Well, he's making a grapple check. Possibly to pin the guy, but it's still a grapple check.

[OverdrivePrime]

I'd have him make a second grapple check, at a -4 penalty. If he wins, then make a strength check to lift and slam the hapless kobold. The kobold then makes a fort save vs the monk's total grapple modifier. If the kobold makes its save, it is dazed for 1 round. If it fails its save, it is stunned for 1 round. In both cases, it takes normal grappling damage.

[Tiki Snakes]

I'd say "Texas Piledriver" is a possible, legitimate explanation of what "I roll a grapple check and do x damage" actually equates to.

If you want to have a little more fun with it, opposed grapple check as if moving an opponant, and the action provokes some kind of grapple of opportunity from the target if they aren't already pinned, (to give the guy a chance to avoid the move perhaps).

Then treat it as some kind of unarmed Coup-de-Grace. Seems appropriate to the manouver. :smallcool:

[valadil]

I'd say "Texas Piledriver" is a possible, legitimate explanation of what "I roll a grapple check and do x damage" actually equates to.


Yup. In a game where "I attack" could describe any variety of thrusts, parries, slashes, draw-cuts, pommel smashes, morte strikes, etc, a "Texas Piledriver" woudl be just another kind of grapple check to do damage.

If you'd like a system with more depth when it comes to combat maneuvers, try GURPs. I also saw a number of Wrasslin' RPG books in the DriveThruRPG Haiti donations pdf collection.

[Person_Man]

Oh good, lets make the Grapple rules MORE complicated. That will be fun.

[tbarrie]

Speaking as somebody who's been watching pro wrestling for over twenty years: what the heck is a "texas" piledriver?

[Person_Man]

Speaking as somebody who's been watching pro wrestling for over twenty years: what the heck is a "texas" piledriver?

Wikipedia to the rescue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piledriver_%28professional_wrestling%29#Texas_pile driver)!

[sombrastewart]

Wikipedia to the rescue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piledriver_%28professional_wrestling%29#Texas_pile driver)!

Wow, I've done stuff in the ring and never heard it referred to as a 'Texas' piledriver. A Memphis Death Certificate, yes, but nothing about Texas.

[KurtKatze]

For me this sounds (although maybe a bit out of the fantasy setting) to be a great idea ^^ just let him roll the norrmal grapples and for the check involving the dmg (omg i am not too familiar with grappling) give him a modifier -2 perhaps (it was a kobold) and let him do 2x dmg with the move.

Let them have their fun ^^

[ericgrau]

Ooh, called shots in wrestling, b/c we know called shots turn out great. But seriously, please don't unless you're in the camp that says that the game is already so broken that nothing could make it worse... yet they still play for some unexplained reason.


Oh good, lets make the Grapple rules MORE complicated. That will be fun.
Agreed. I mean, grappling isn't complicated enough for you? This is called flavor text, which may exist on every attack without stopping the game to consult charts and apply modifiers. Or those who like more complicated fighting systems tend to also enjoy ToB, but don't tell me it doesn't pile drive suspension of disbelief deep into the pavement if you're trying to resemble any actual wrestling or fighting style. In short if you want it simple don't change anything except your descriptions, and if you want it complicated get ToB. But for the love of all that is fun don't make another failed and boring attempt at more realism. It is unnecessary, unbalanced, unfun and probably unrealistic for that matter.

[drengnikrafe]

I believe Wrestling moves were an acceptable type of unarmed combat back in 2e. If you could dig up an old table, you could use that. It had, like... knockout chance, damage delt... a couple of other things...

[JoshuaZ]

First you throw a book at him for trying to do something which doesn't work in real life.

No scratch that, might damage the book.

Tell him that while he has the kobold upside down, the kobold bits him in the nuts. He won't try that again.

Or, alternatively, just use the standard grapple rules and let the uncultured muffinhead professional wrestling fan flavor it as a pile driver.

[Orzel]

same way my fighter hurricarana'd a black dragon

[tbarrie]

Wikipedia to the rescue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piledriver_%28professional_wrestling%29#Texas_pile driver)!Wow, I've done stuff in the ring and never heard it referred to as a 'Texas' piledriver. A Memphis Death Certificate, yes, but nothing about Texas.

Wikipedia is notoriously unreliable when it comes to wrestling move names. (Though it's not out of the question Terry Funk might have used the standard piledriver under that name at some point.)


First you throw a book at him for trying to do something which doesn't work in real life.

Do you, er, always throw things at players who try things at the D&D table that wouldn't work in real life?

(If so, did this policy start as an offbeat way of balancing spellcasting in Third Edition?)

[JoshuaZ]

Do you, er, always throw things at players who try things at the D&D table that wouldn't work in real life?

(If so, did this policy start as an offbeat way of balancing spellcasting in Third Edition?)

Well, I don't generally DM, and that's probably a good thing. But it isn't just that this doesn't work in real life, but that the character isn't using any supernatural abilities to make something implausible happen. They're just being ridiculous. *shrug* I suspect that my own background in actual wrestling makes me a bit more annoyed at this particular response.

Moreover, this doesn't even get ok on rule of cool. I mean, seriously? piledriving? It just looks ridiculous.

[Beelzebub1111]

Well, I don't generally DM, and that's probably a good thing. But it isn't just that this doesn't work in real life, but that the character isn't using any supernatural abilities to make something implausible happen. They're just being ridiculous. *shrug* I suspect that my own background in actual wrestling makes me a bit more annoyed at this particular response.

Moreover, this doesn't even get ok on rule of cool. I mean, seriously? piledriving? It just looks ridiculous.

Well, pro wrestling isn't about the fighting anyways, it's about the drama and good guys winning and the bad guys cheating. It's like theater, moreso than sport.

Meanwhile it doesn't detract from Greco-Roman wrestling in any way by its existance.