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<blockquote data-quote="irdeggman" data-source="post: 5523120" data-attributes="member: 16285"><p>Who does the flat footed rule actually favor or penalize?</p><p></p><p>It favors those who wear armor (thus not relying on their Dex bonus for AC).</p><p></p><p>It penalizes those who rely on movement (i.e., dodging and weaving) to gain their AC.</p><p></p><p>If you can't act yet - you can't move yet (that is doge and weave).</p><p></p><p></p><p>D&D combat is an abstaraction - it is not an accurate capture of real life. People who try to insert real ife situations/conditions into the D&D fantasy combat system always end up feeling dissatisfied.</p><p></p><p>The D&D combat system, while an abstraction, was written to be "balanced".</p><p></p><p>There are tons of potential unintended consequences that result from changing the rules as written.</p><p></p><p>In the case of the flat footed rule -</p><p></p><p> The barbarisn and rogue class ability "uncanny dodge" loses a lot of its benefits.</p><p></p><p> Touch attacks are less effective.</p><p></p><p> The Ambush feats from Complete Scoundrel - lose a lot of their desireability since a rogue won't be able to sneak attack if he acts prior to his opponent in a combat.</p><p></p><p> Characters who don't wear armor now have an advantage over those who spent their funds on armor.</p><p></p><p> Dex becomes an even more valuable ability than before (especially for those who would normally wear heavier armors).</p><p></p><p></p><p>There are more those are just the ones I grabbed quickly.</p><p></p><p>Essentially what your new player is saying is that a character should retain his Dex bonus to AC even if he can't move - which opens up another can of worms (like if he is "held" for instance), what about the effects of the slow spell and so on. .. </p><p></p><p></p><p>Now if he wants to increase the AC of characters then I would suggest using the Defense Bonus option from Unearthed Arcana pg 109. Basically a character gets a bonus to AC based on his level and his class type(s) - this does not stack with bonuses due to armor but it should work for flat footed characters.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="irdeggman, post: 5523120, member: 16285"] Who does the flat footed rule actually favor or penalize? It favors those who wear armor (thus not relying on their Dex bonus for AC). It penalizes those who rely on movement (i.e., dodging and weaving) to gain their AC. If you can't act yet - you can't move yet (that is doge and weave). D&D combat is an abstaraction - it is not an accurate capture of real life. People who try to insert real ife situations/conditions into the D&D fantasy combat system always end up feeling dissatisfied. The D&D combat system, while an abstraction, was written to be "balanced". There are tons of potential unintended consequences that result from changing the rules as written. In the case of the flat footed rule - The barbarisn and rogue class ability "uncanny dodge" loses a lot of its benefits. Touch attacks are less effective. The Ambush feats from Complete Scoundrel - lose a lot of their desireability since a rogue won't be able to sneak attack if he acts prior to his opponent in a combat. Characters who don't wear armor now have an advantage over those who spent their funds on armor. Dex becomes an even more valuable ability than before (especially for those who would normally wear heavier armors). There are more those are just the ones I grabbed quickly. Essentially what your new player is saying is that a character should retain his Dex bonus to AC even if he can't move - which opens up another can of worms (like if he is "held" for instance), what about the effects of the slow spell and so on. .. Now if he wants to increase the AC of characters then I would suggest using the Defense Bonus option from Unearthed Arcana pg 109. Basically a character gets a bonus to AC based on his level and his class type(s) - this does not stack with bonuses due to armor but it should work for flat footed characters. [/QUOTE]
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