Knockback

[gamesmeister]

Unless I've missed it, there doesn't seem to be a way to perform a knockback in the rules other than by doing excessive amounts of damage. Given the new tactical approach to combat, I think a knockback should be an available combat action.

I envisage it working something like the following (which is pretty much the RQ2 approach adapted for MRQ):

Roll to attack with your weapon as normal. If successful, your opponent may parry or dodge as normal. If he succeeds, the knockback failed.

If not, make an opposed roll, with you rolling against STR x 5% and your opponent rolling against SIZ x 5%. If you win the opposed roll, you knock back your opponent 1D3 metres, and he also has to make an Acrobatics test or fall prone. If you lose the opposed roll nothing happens. If you fumble your roll, you have to make an Acrobatics roll or fall prone instead.

Charging in the same action gives a +20% to your chance of success in the opposed roll, and doubles the distance knocked back (i.e. 2D3) as per the standard knockback rules.

Whatever happens, your opponent doesn't take any weapon damage from the attack, although he might take damage as per a normal knockback (e.g. by being slammed into a wall)

 

[Utgardloki]

Yeah, you'd have to do a lot of damage to get knockback as a side effect of weapon damage.

But if you want to knock people, around, you could use your Brute Force skill. Damage would be lessened (perhaps 1/2) because a lot more of the energy is being used to move your opponent instead of just disrupt his biological (or nonbiological as the case may be) systems.

So you'd have to hit, and your opponent would have to fail his Dodge roll. Then you do an opposed Brute Force roll, using your favorite house rules.

If you win, your opponent gets knocked back by a number of meters equal to your Damage Bonus roll plus a meter for every point that your maximum potential Damage Bonus exceeds his maximum potential Damage Bonus (a negative adjustment, possibly zero, if his Damage Bonus is better than your Damage Bonus). So if your Damage Bonus is 1D6 and his is 1D4, you can push him back 1D6+2 meters, while he can only push you back 1D4-2 meters with a 50% chance of having no effect at all.

Finally, he makes an Acrobatic roll to avoid falling down. Your weapon did 1/2 damage against him because you were knocking him around instead of hitting for maximum effect (and does not count to determine how far you knock him back.)

Simple, albiet perhaps the system for abjudating distance knocked back could be simpler.

 

[GbajiTheDeceiver]

This is a very good idea. Normal knockback seems intended as a side-effect of damage, but intentional knockback would rock as a tactical manoeuver.

 

[Utgardloki]

Yes, I think that there would be more than one manuever in this category, which I might get a chance to define someday:

1. Bull Rush. You run into your opponent and either push him back, push him aside, or let him step the @!$# out of your way.

2. Push Back. You shove your opponent backwards.

3. Knock Away. You hit your opponent to both do damage and knock him out of his space.