Forum

[Galloglaich]

Originally Posted by GlaziusF

Playing a game of D&D, as long as it's say 4th edition instead of 12th, there is not much use for consistent visual metaphors and fight scene choreography. I'm not really sure that there is much use for anything, at least not to the degree that taking the time to study and appreciate actual Western martial arts would result in a net savings of time for all involved.

The idea isn't that every gamer should instantly want to learn all about HEMA, but that game designers who do understand Eastern or Western martial arts can bring the mechanics of fighting into the game. So that combat takes on more of the feel of a fight rather than an exercise in book-keeping or meaningless abstractions like pressing keys in a certain order to get a particular "combo" in WoW.

If you gave players a few cleverly wrought tools, on the same level of abstraction as the rules they use already but based on what a fight is really like, they could use these to make the 'game within the game' of combat a more fun and meaningful part of the overall experience. Done right this could be the solid foundation of many different styles of gaming done in all different directions, including your shooting flames or whatever.

And if in the process gamers learned a little strategy, or how every part of the sword can be used to attack, or that swords don't wiegh 8 pounds or what half-swording is- it won't hurt anybody any more than it hurt us to learn how to kill a gelatinous cube.

G.

EDIT i should point out though I'm not talking about 4E here, I don't know if 4E could be adapted to something like this. 3.5 / pathfinder might be another story ...