Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
Good news, everyone, I found a system that replaces the combat maneuver system in 3e/Pathfinder.
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Greenfield" data-source="post: 6162480" data-attributes="member: 6669384"><p>The thing is, whether I use D20/D&D3.* or Pathfinder, if I decide to build a Grapple specialist, or a Trip specialist, or any other combat maneuver, I can choose weapons and feats that stack my bonuses to "startlingly high". </p><p></p><p>And I'm not sure that's a bad thing.</p><p></p><p>I built a trip-monster once. Spiked chain, high Strength, access to Enlarge Person, and the Improved Trip feat. I also added Combat Reflexes, of course. One DM balked, seeing what his Trip bonus was (Under D&D 3.5 rules it was +6 for Strength when enlarged, +4 for Size and +4 for the Feat) for a total of +14. Improved Trip isn't BAB based, so it was as effective against higher level monsters as it was at lower levels. He let the character in (It was a pick up game at a Convention), but was worried that I'd be abusive.</p><p></p><p>As we played, though, he realized that, while the character was hell on wheels in a swarm-attack situation, he lacked certain feats that he considered common for a melee combat type. That's when it became clear that my specialty came at a price: I'd had to spend Feats for Exotic Weapon - Spiked Chain, Combat Expertise (Pre-req for Combat Reflexes), Combat Reflexes, and then Improved Trip. I'd also had to take a 1 level dip into Wizard to get access to Enlarge Person. That makes it essentially a feat tree four levels deep. And those four Feats that I'd spent on that were Feats I didn't have for things like Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Dodge, Mobility, Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave, etc.</p><p></p><p>Now, those weren't the only Feats he had, and he wasn't missing all of those I listed, but Cleave wasn't there, nor were any of it's children. Dodge and Mobility weren't there. Since at least part of his build was Ranger he had some archery skill, but lacked Point Blank and Precise Shot. </p><p></p><p>So I can see where characters (or monsters) that specialize in combat maneuvers might make DMs uncomfortable, if only because it's not something they see very often, but since those tricks come at a price, it's not as unbalancing as some might first think.</p><p></p><p>Now, does that mean that the 3.5 or Pathfinder rules are balanced or easy to use? Of course not. But "fixes" that have the result of eliminating the maneuvers from play aren't fixes at all. (Unless you're thinking of "taking your dog to the vet" kind of fix, that is.)</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Greenfield, post: 6162480, member: 6669384"] The thing is, whether I use D20/D&D3.* or Pathfinder, if I decide to build a Grapple specialist, or a Trip specialist, or any other combat maneuver, I can choose weapons and feats that stack my bonuses to "startlingly high". And I'm not sure that's a bad thing. I built a trip-monster once. Spiked chain, high Strength, access to Enlarge Person, and the Improved Trip feat. I also added Combat Reflexes, of course. One DM balked, seeing what his Trip bonus was (Under D&D 3.5 rules it was +6 for Strength when enlarged, +4 for Size and +4 for the Feat) for a total of +14. Improved Trip isn't BAB based, so it was as effective against higher level monsters as it was at lower levels. He let the character in (It was a pick up game at a Convention), but was worried that I'd be abusive. As we played, though, he realized that, while the character was hell on wheels in a swarm-attack situation, he lacked certain feats that he considered common for a melee combat type. That's when it became clear that my specialty came at a price: I'd had to spend Feats for Exotic Weapon - Spiked Chain, Combat Expertise (Pre-req for Combat Reflexes), Combat Reflexes, and then Improved Trip. I'd also had to take a 1 level dip into Wizard to get access to Enlarge Person. That makes it essentially a feat tree four levels deep. And those four Feats that I'd spent on that were Feats I didn't have for things like Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Dodge, Mobility, Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave, etc. Now, those weren't the only Feats he had, and he wasn't missing all of those I listed, but Cleave wasn't there, nor were any of it's children. Dodge and Mobility weren't there. Since at least part of his build was Ranger he had some archery skill, but lacked Point Blank and Precise Shot. So I can see where characters (or monsters) that specialize in combat maneuvers might make DMs uncomfortable, if only because it's not something they see very often, but since those tricks come at a price, it's not as unbalancing as some might first think. Now, does that mean that the 3.5 or Pathfinder rules are balanced or easy to use? Of course not. But "fixes" that have the result of eliminating the maneuvers from play aren't fixes at all. (Unless you're thinking of "taking your dog to the vet" kind of fix, that is.) [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
Good news, everyone, I found a system that replaces the combat maneuver system in 3e/Pathfinder.
Top