Pechvarry
2010-05-05, 11:40 PM
I've had this idea in the back of my brain for the better part of 6 months, now. Every time I try to focus on it, it kinda fizzles away and stuff. So this is a cry for help and input. I'm really not entirely sure what I'm after.
Objective:
More move-equivalent actions with a focus on tactical positioning.
What I'm picturing is something like a readied move action that doesn't actually affect your initiative. A sort of melee contingency -- You spend your move action to state a behavior your character is abiding by for the round and the opponent may or may not play into it.
So... in a medieval combat, what kind of stances would one take? Evade at all costs? Dodge & Roll behind? "The Wall"?
Things I'm expecting:
-Everyone can make use of them, but melee combatants should get the most use out of them. Tying abilities to BAB or opposed checks with BAB added to them could work well, as I'd appreciate the skillful fighter being better at tactical positioning than the wildshaped druid.
-Ideally, these wouldn't be something a character would do every round. Though if a decent one can be worked out for tanking (particularly something encouraging sword-and-board tanking over reach abuse), I wouldn't mind that happening 80% of combats.
-Probably 1 dedicated tanking maneuver, one tanking/intercepting move, 1-2 based on evasion or distancing opponents, and one based on aiding allies would be nice.
-Some moves designed to foil other moves. Or perhaps some of them are designed such that it's their nature to foil other moves, creating a bit of paper/rock/scissors. Maybe both.
-Movement as a result of these actions aren't necessary, but shouldn't be shied away from.
Example: Perhaps a swashbuckling rogue will use a duck & roll maneuver to automatically end up behind the charging barbarian who missed him. Perhaps in this instance, the barbarian missed because he failed his opposed BAB check against the rogue. Moreover, the Barbarian could have countered this by spending a move action to harry the rogue into a position to block certain other options, such as a duck & roll. In this instance, the cost is being forced to wait 1 round until he can ubercharge the poor rogue.
I figure something like 3-6 of these would be ideal. New rules for players to learn, sure, but I think if I could make this idea coherent, it could introduce a fun layer to combat without making it overly complex.
I understand this is incredibly vague. I'm hoping someone out there gets a spark of inspiration from it and posts some ideas, though.
Objective:
More move-equivalent actions with a focus on tactical positioning.
What I'm picturing is something like a readied move action that doesn't actually affect your initiative. A sort of melee contingency -- You spend your move action to state a behavior your character is abiding by for the round and the opponent may or may not play into it.
So... in a medieval combat, what kind of stances would one take? Evade at all costs? Dodge & Roll behind? "The Wall"?
Things I'm expecting:
-Everyone can make use of them, but melee combatants should get the most use out of them. Tying abilities to BAB or opposed checks with BAB added to them could work well, as I'd appreciate the skillful fighter being better at tactical positioning than the wildshaped druid.
-Ideally, these wouldn't be something a character would do every round. Though if a decent one can be worked out for tanking (particularly something encouraging sword-and-board tanking over reach abuse), I wouldn't mind that happening 80% of combats.
-Probably 1 dedicated tanking maneuver, one tanking/intercepting move, 1-2 based on evasion or distancing opponents, and one based on aiding allies would be nice.
-Some moves designed to foil other moves. Or perhaps some of them are designed such that it's their nature to foil other moves, creating a bit of paper/rock/scissors. Maybe both.
-Movement as a result of these actions aren't necessary, but shouldn't be shied away from.
Example: Perhaps a swashbuckling rogue will use a duck & roll maneuver to automatically end up behind the charging barbarian who missed him. Perhaps in this instance, the barbarian missed because he failed his opposed BAB check against the rogue. Moreover, the Barbarian could have countered this by spending a move action to harry the rogue into a position to block certain other options, such as a duck & roll. In this instance, the cost is being forced to wait 1 round until he can ubercharge the poor rogue.
I figure something like 3-6 of these would be ideal. New rules for players to learn, sure, but I think if I could make this idea coherent, it could introduce a fun layer to combat without making it overly complex.
I understand this is incredibly vague. I'm hoping someone out there gets a spark of inspiration from it and posts some ideas, though.