Cookiemobsta
2010-05-21, 05:48 AM
An awful lot of combat in D+D devolves into "I hit it with my axe" over and over and over again. Sometimes characters use a special attack, but generally that still boils down to "I hit it with my axe--and do extra damage" In order to give players more to do and make combat a bit more unpredictable and exciting, I developed the idea of combat actions. The concept behind them is that if a character lands a very successful hit on the enemy, it opens up the enemy's defense and gives the character the momentum they need to do something cool.
The mechanics
The way it works in game mechanics is, if a character hits an enemy and beats their AC by 5 or more, they are allowed to do a combat action immediately after their turn. The number 5 is arbitrary; you are welcome to adjust it based on the power of your characters or their opponents. Combat actions don't require the use of a move or standard happen; they happen for free and instantly. For the most part, they also instantly succeed--in the interest of speeding up combat, no additional check is needed. However, each character can only do one combat action per round, even if they hit multiple times.
What is a combat action?
Combat actions can be any number of things. I've listed some examples here; you are welcome to come up with new ones.
1) The character bats the enemy's blade aside and lands a kick on their chest. This does no damage but caused the enemy to stumble back 5 feet. If there enemy stumbles into something damaging (like a window), they'll take damage. If there's a cliff edge within 5 feet, they'll go plummeting off, Sparta-style.
2) The character ducks under the enemy's guard and moves to the other side of them. The character is now on the opposite side of the enemy.
3) The character bats the enemy's blade out of position, leaving the enemy flat-footed until the enemy's next turn.
4) The character gets to make a free trip, disarm, sunder or grapple attempt (although the normal rules apply here--so they must make opposed rolls)
5) The character may swap weapons or pick up an item without using a move action or provoking an attack of opportunity.
6) If the character has a move action remaining, they may move away from the enemy without provoking an attack of opportunity.
7) The character may interact with the environment without provoking an attack of opportunity (for instance, knocking over a table, pulling a lever, or spilling a jar)
8) The character may do a throat punch or groin-kick, which requires them to successfully hit the enemy with an unarmed attack. If successful, the enemy doubles over in pain and must make a con check or lose their next turn.
Other notes
1) These combat actions can be used in ways that are very powerful. For instance, the PCs may decide that rather than fight your Big Bad Villain, they're simply going to kick him off a cliff. If this is too much of a problem, you might decide to give powerful enemies a chance to save against combat actions, or simply keep your powerful enemies in areas where combat actions can't sway the fight too much.
But honestly, I think it is more fun to allow players to use these combat actions even when they are very powerful. Spending 5 rounds whacking at Dark Lord Whoever with your axe is much less fun and memorable than kicking him off a cliff.
2) The DM will have to use common sense when deciding when combat actions can be used. Rendering a city guard flat-footed makes sense. Making a dragon flat-footed does not.
3) For the most part, common enemies should not be allowed to use combat actions (even if they beat PC armor by 5 or more.) This prevents combat actions from slowing down combat, and it also makes the PCs appear more hardcore and cool. However, significant enemies should use them.
So there's the idea. Please let me know other ideas for combat actions that you have, and if you use them successfully in one of your campaigns, please let me know that too. This idea is very much a work-in-progress, so I am eager for any feedback that you have.
The mechanics
The way it works in game mechanics is, if a character hits an enemy and beats their AC by 5 or more, they are allowed to do a combat action immediately after their turn. The number 5 is arbitrary; you are welcome to adjust it based on the power of your characters or their opponents. Combat actions don't require the use of a move or standard happen; they happen for free and instantly. For the most part, they also instantly succeed--in the interest of speeding up combat, no additional check is needed. However, each character can only do one combat action per round, even if they hit multiple times.
What is a combat action?
Combat actions can be any number of things. I've listed some examples here; you are welcome to come up with new ones.
1) The character bats the enemy's blade aside and lands a kick on their chest. This does no damage but caused the enemy to stumble back 5 feet. If there enemy stumbles into something damaging (like a window), they'll take damage. If there's a cliff edge within 5 feet, they'll go plummeting off, Sparta-style.
2) The character ducks under the enemy's guard and moves to the other side of them. The character is now on the opposite side of the enemy.
3) The character bats the enemy's blade out of position, leaving the enemy flat-footed until the enemy's next turn.
4) The character gets to make a free trip, disarm, sunder or grapple attempt (although the normal rules apply here--so they must make opposed rolls)
5) The character may swap weapons or pick up an item without using a move action or provoking an attack of opportunity.
6) If the character has a move action remaining, they may move away from the enemy without provoking an attack of opportunity.
7) The character may interact with the environment without provoking an attack of opportunity (for instance, knocking over a table, pulling a lever, or spilling a jar)
8) The character may do a throat punch or groin-kick, which requires them to successfully hit the enemy with an unarmed attack. If successful, the enemy doubles over in pain and must make a con check or lose their next turn.
Other notes
1) These combat actions can be used in ways that are very powerful. For instance, the PCs may decide that rather than fight your Big Bad Villain, they're simply going to kick him off a cliff. If this is too much of a problem, you might decide to give powerful enemies a chance to save against combat actions, or simply keep your powerful enemies in areas where combat actions can't sway the fight too much.
But honestly, I think it is more fun to allow players to use these combat actions even when they are very powerful. Spending 5 rounds whacking at Dark Lord Whoever with your axe is much less fun and memorable than kicking him off a cliff.
2) The DM will have to use common sense when deciding when combat actions can be used. Rendering a city guard flat-footed makes sense. Making a dragon flat-footed does not.
3) For the most part, common enemies should not be allowed to use combat actions (even if they beat PC armor by 5 or more.) This prevents combat actions from slowing down combat, and it also makes the PCs appear more hardcore and cool. However, significant enemies should use them.
So there's the idea. Please let me know other ideas for combat actions that you have, and if you use them successfully in one of your campaigns, please let me know that too. This idea is very much a work-in-progress, so I am eager for any feedback that you have.