[CONAN] More Exciting Conan Combat!

In my Conan game, I wanted to liven up combat a bit. Instead of just having two characters slug it out (albeit with exciting description) in the normal D&D fashion, I wanted to add heat butts and elbow jabs, and see people people grappling and using their daggers to slice a foe's throat. I wanted them to be able to trip their foe or kick 'em in the chest, knocking them backwards.

I wanted combat to mirror this...



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b6got4G4Ys



There are rules for all of this in the game, but those rules seem to get used sparingly because, when you use most of them, you allow your foe to first take an Attack of Opportunity on you (for example, if you punch your foe, you make yourself open to an AoO first--and that makes attempting the punch not worth it).







What I did was to encourage the type of fighting you see in the youtube link above was this:


First, I adopted the Active Defense rule. You know the one. It's an offical d20 variant where you roll your defense rather than have your attacker roll against an AC number. Take your AC and subtract 10 (the average roll of a d20 is 10). Then use the remainder as a modifier on your defense roll.

Thus, if you have an AC 17, your defense roll is d20 + 7.

The attacker rolls his attack normally, then, in opposed roll fashion, the defender rolls his defense.







The next thing I did was throw in some exciting variables that can happen during a fight.

Check this out...





Natural 20 throws...

If the attacker rolls a natural 20, it's a critical threat, per the normal rules. Roll to see if the hit supports Critical Damage.



If a natural 20 is rolled on the defense roll, then the defender just parried or dodged in such a way that he's gained a counter attack on his enemy. This counter attack is a free action, but it also counts and an Attack of Opportunity (and characters are usually limited to one AoO per round).







Natural 1 throws...

If the attacker throws a natural 1, or if the defender throws a natural 1, then he has opened himself up to a special limited attack of opportunity from his foe.

This special AoO is limited in that it cannot be a lethal attack. It must be an attack aimed at delivering nonlethal damage or some other nonlethal type action.

Thus, if your foe throws a natural 1, you have an opportunity to heat butt him, punch him in the face, elbow him, knee him, kick him in the gut.

Normally, a foe would earn an AoO against you for such an action, but under this special rule, when the natural 1 shows on the attack or defense roll, the target's AoO is ignored, making these types of nonlethal attacks safe to use.

So, when your foe throws a natural 1, you may attempt an unarmed strike safely, but you might also want to start a grapple, sunder his weapon or shield, attempt to trip him, among other options.

All of this is legal as long as the character doesn't move or attempt to deliver lethal damage.







When Attack = Defense....

If the attack throw ties the defence throw, different things can happen.

If the attack throw ties the Parry defense roll, and the number is even, then the two weapons are locked together (use the Lock Weapons combat maneuver).

If the tie number is odd, then the attacker gets a free sunder attempt on his foe's weapon. Again, the defender does not get an Attack of Op as he normally would if someone tried to sunder his weapon or shield.





If the attack throw ties the Dodge defense roll, and the number is even, then the attacker is allowed to take a free 5' step to better position himself against the attacker (or even to get out of threat range and leave combat on his next turn).

If the attack throw ties the Dodge defense roll, and the number is odd, then the attacker gets a free Trip attemp against the defender. Again, normally a defender would get an AoO against someone trying to trip him, but in this situation, the defender's AoO is barred. It's a consequence of the tie.







I find that these rules are perfect to making my Conan combat look like what you see in the video. Many, many strikes are just normal blows, but if a natural 20, natural 1, or a tie shows up, something interesting is going to happen that may change the nature of the combat.
 
Supplement Four said:
When Attack = Defense....

If the attack throw ties the defence throw, different things can happen.

If the attack throw ties the Parry defense roll, and the number is even, then the two weapons are locked together (use the Lock Weapons combat maneuver).

If the tie number is odd, then the attacker gets a free sunder attempt on his foe's weapon. Again, the defender does not get an Attack of Op as he normally would if someone tried to sunder his weapon or shield.





If the attack throw ties the Dodge defense roll, and the number is even, then the attacker is allowed to take a free 5' step to better position himself against the attacker (or even to get out of threat range and leave combat on his next turn).

If the attack throw ties the Dodge defense roll, and the number is odd, then the attacker gets a free Trip attemp against the defender. Again, normally a defender would get an AoO against someone trying to trip him, but in this situation, the defender's AoO is barred. It's a consequence of the tie.

I like the Parry stuff: Either a Lock Weapon result or a Sunder attempt.

I'm not as crazy about the Dodge stuff. I like the Trip attempt, but I need a better idea than the free 5' move.

Any thoughts?

What type of nonlethal attack goes well with a bungled Dodge?





EDIT: I'm thinking of going with Trip and Disarm for the Dodge fumble.
 
If you check out the battle scene again:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b6got4G4Ys

Then, follow these notes.





At 0:48, you see a ceturion benefit from the free trip attack because his attack roll equaled his foe's Dodge roll. The soldier kicks his foe to the ground.

At 0:59, a Pict rolls a "1" on his attack roll, missing his opponent, and the centurion benefits from this by laying a left hand punch on his enemy.

At 1:03, there was a similar situation last round where the Pict rolled a "1" on his defense roll, and the centurion decided to grapple with his enemy. On this round, the centurion used his dagger/knife to slice his enemy's throat. Under this system, the centurion cannot make a lethal attack when his enemy rolls a "1" on an attack or defense throw. That round, he started the grapple. But, as they were grappling going into round two, that's when the centurion used the rules (as written) to pull his knife and attack his grappled enemy. The attack must have been fatal (maybe a critical hit?), because, obviously, the Pict did not survive from that attack.

At 1:07, we see a centurion benefitting from a "1" being thrown on his foe's attack or defense throw. The centurion elected to throw an unarmed punch.

At 1:12, we see the Pict with the hand axe roll a "1" on his attack, and the centurion decides to trip him. Note that you don't have to wait for the attack = dodge situation in order to attempt a trip. Whenever your opponent throws a "1" on his attack or defense throw, you can pick any reasonable nonlethal attack against him. Here, the centurion wanted to trip his foe. If you get a foe on the ground, you've got a good advantage over him as his defenses are lowered while he's on the ground, and you will get a free Attack of Opportunity on him when he tries to stand.

1:16 shows us the result of another grapple that ended with the centurion pulling his knife and killing his foe.

1:24 shows us a Full Action where the centurion missed with his main weapon but succeeded with a shield bash.

1:27, we see another trip.

1:31 is neat because the centurion used an unarmed attack--a kick--that brought the Pict's nonlethal damage total higher than his hit point total. Thus, the Pict went down, unconscious.

1:56 shows the advantage one gets if he can get his foe on the ground.

2:04 is a trip directed at a mounted rider.
 
Those are some interesting ideas, I've used a house-rule where rolling a one on an attack roll allowed the defender to make a free counter-attack but nothing that detailed.
 
So, the triggers are a natural 20, a natural 1, and ties between the attack and defense throws: 20's, 1's, and ties.



A 20 gets you extra damage or a counter attack.

On the attack throw, a natural 20 is a critical threat, per the normal rules.

On either defense throw, a natural 20 indicates the defender gets an immediate counter attack.





A 1 is a fumble and allows your foe to pick a nonlethal attack against you.

A natural "1" on an attack throw or either defense throw allows your foe an assortment of actions, from making an unarmed attack against you, to grappling with you, to trying to trip you or sunder your weapon or shield, among other things. The restrictions are that your foe cannot move, and his action must be a nonlethal agressive move against you.





A tie between the attack throw and a defense throw indicates a special circumstance on the battlefield has occured.

Attack = Parry, and the number is odd, indicates a Lock Weapon result.

Attack = Parry, and the number is even, indicates a Sunder Weapon or Shield result.

Attack = Dodge indicates a Trip result.







The fine print...

All of these special attacks are considered Attacks of Opportunity. Therefore, a character can only take advantage of one AoO per round unless that character has the Combat Reflexes Feat and a high DEX.

Many of these nonlethal attacks allow the defender to make an AoO against the aggressor as the maneuver is begun. Under this special attack rule, the defender does not receive that AoO. For example, if Jozan rolls a "1" on his attack throw, and his foe decides to make an unarmed attack against him, Jozan does not get the AoO he normally would when being armed and attacked with an unarmed strike. Likewise, the AoO that Jozan would normally get if his foe attempts a trip against him is forfeited under these special attack rules.

Note that the defender's AoO is only forfeited under the special circumstances outlined in the rules (when a 20, 1, or tie is rolled). Otherwise, if a foe makes a trip attempt during normal combat, the defender does get the normal AoO when the trip is attempted.

Also note that many of these special attacks can be dangerous for the attacker. For example, when the attack throw and Dodge throws are tied, a trip attempt is indicated. The defender does not get his AoO against the attacker, but if the attacker fails in his trip attempt, the defender still gets to attempt to trip his attacker as per the rule. Many moves are not without risk.
 
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