[CONAN] How to handle the Feint

[Supplement Four]

How do you guys handle feints in your game? If you have an NPC attack a PC with a feint, when do you alert the PC about the feint?

I'll explain...


Example A: Tell The PC Early

A PC Cimmerian and NPC Pict in combat. The Cimmerian has initiative. Neither character has the Improved Feint feat.

Round 1 PC Turn: Cimmerian attacks and misses.

Round 1 NPC Turn: Pict attempts to feint. GM announced this to the Player. Pict's Bluff roll is made vs. Cimmerian's modified Sense Motive. Feint is successful.



Round 2 PC Turn: The Player announces that his Cimmerian is using Total Defense to counter act some of the effects of the feint (Cimmerian gets +4 Defense).

Round 2 NPC Turn: Pict attacks with Cimmerian at AC 14 instead of AC 10.







Example A: Tell The PC Late

A PC Cimmerian and NPC Pict in combat. The Cimmerian has initiative. Neither character has the Improved Feint feat.

Round 1 PC Turn: Cimmerian attacks and misses.

Round 1 NPC Turn: Pict attempts to feint. The GM does not announce this to the Player, and the GM makes a fake attack behind the screen to make the player think the Pict is making a normal attack. Regardless of the throw (it is ignored), the GM describes a miss.



Round 2 PC Turn: The Player, without knowledge of the attempted feint, rolls the Cimmerian's normal attack, and misses again.

Round 2 NPC Turn: The feint is resolved first. Here, the Player is informed that the Pict's last attack was a Feint attempt. Roll Pict's Bluff vs. Cimmerian's modified Sense Motive. If successful, the Pict attacks the Cimmerian at AC 10. If not successful, the Pict attacks the Cimmerian at his normal AC.





You see...if you alert the player early, then he can use Total Defense, or Fighting Defensively, or maybe even Withdraw to defeat the bonus a successful feint should bring.

Thoughts?

 

[Mach5RR]

How do you guys handle feints in your game? If you have an NPC attack a PC with a feint, when do you alert the PC about the feint?

What is your plan to handle the actual feint? The player gets an actual sense motive check to defend against being feinted. Sure, you could make your roll in secret and let him wonder if he actually detected the feint, but he point of the check is to actually resolve for him that, yes, he did see through the feint.

I would just go with option 1, since that strikes me as the point of the (un)improved feint. Yes, the player can now take steps to defend himself. But all he has to do is give up whatever attacks he has planned. Total Defense? That's the attack action to activate (To improve your defense by 4). Withdraw? Full round action, and you open yourself up to AOO from others. Any movement (not a withdrawal) beyond a 5' step opens yourself up to an AOO from the feinter, who then gets to make an AOO against you - with your defense now a 10.

This is what makes improved feint even more valuable, as you now get to take away even these paltry defensive moves.

 

[Supplement Four]

What is your plan to handle the actual feint?

I think I'm going to stick with RAW, as I think it is important that an attack be sacrificed in order to feint. But, to answer your question, the idea above was to roll the Bluff vs Sense Motive first, then the attack, in the same round. If the feint is successful, then the target is AC 10. If the feint is not successful, then the target gets his AoO first, and then the character who made the unsuccessful feint can attack normally.

I supposed that, if the feint attempt is not successful, you could just assume that the attach doesn't hit, either. That way, if you do not make the feint, then you lose your attack, too.

Like I said, though. I think I'm sticking with RAW. I'm just going to keep feint's secret from their targets until the actual attack comes.

I would just go with option 1, since that strikes me as the point of the (un)improved feint. Yes, the player can now take steps to defend himself. But all he has to do is give up whatever attacks he has planned. Total Defense? That's the attack action to activate (To improve your defense by 4). Withdraw? Full round action, and you open yourself up to AOO from others. Any movement (not a withdrawal) beyond a 5' step opens yourself up to an AOO from the feinter, who then gets to make an AOO against you - with your defense now a 10.

Also, Fighting Defensively.

This is what makes improved feint even more valuable, as you now get to take away even these paltry defensive moves.

That's a good point, worthy of thought. In fact, I think you just convinced me.