Pistol Whip Proficiency Question

[Old Drew Id]

I am setting up my own stat blocks for the Ordinaries from the d20 Modern book, so I can have easy access to them in Word where I can edit them (since they were not released in the Modern SRD). And as I have been copying the stats over from the book, I found something that doesn't match up. The ordinaries list their attacks with something like this:

+1 melee (1d4+1, unarmed strike) or -3 melee (1d4+1, pistol whip)

This would seem to me to indicate that there is a -4 penalty for using a pistol to make a pistol whip attack, but I can not locate any reference to a rule like that in the book or SRD. Is this a misprint in the stat blocks, or am I just missing the rule. And if there is a rule, what proficiency feat is needed to remove the -4 penalty?

 

[DanMcS]

In the modern book, pistol whipping is listed under the simple weapons table. All base classes have proficiency with simple weapons, so there shouldn't be a penalty.

Unless they're trying to count it as an improvised weapon, which does get a -4, but then it shouldn't have been listed on the simple weapon table. Hmm. Probably an error in the stat blocks.

 

[Old Drew Id]

Also, for anyone who is interested, I thought I would explain what I am doing with the Ordinaries stat blocks. I tend to do all my game planning in Microsoft Word, and I use an Excel sheet for character building. So, even though I own all the books and use them at the table, I prefer to have electronic versions of anything I might need during planning, like the stat blocks for the sample Ordinaries. Plus, by having the stat blocks in an electronic format, it makes it easy for me to adjust them with a different occupation, feat list, etc. without spending a bunch of time on a completely new workup

So, I use the SRD pretty heavily. But, the stat blocks for the sample Ordinaries were not released with the SRD, so I have to copy them from the book into Word. As I go through the copying, I change a few things that I think make more sense, and I try to double-check the skill totals, etc. to be sure they make sense. So I tend to edit each one as I go.

Incidentally, would anyone be interested in these stats when I am done? I assume I could post them without violating any kind of license. I am considering adding more Ordinaries as I go, to put in stats for other generic characters.

 

[Old Drew Id]

In the modern book, pistol whipping is listed under the simple weapons table. All base classes have proficiency with simple weapons, so there shouldn't be a penalty.

Unless they're trying to count it as an improvised weapon, which does get a -4, but then it shouldn't have been listed on the simple weapon table. Hmm. Probably an error in the stat blocks.

Thanks! That's what I thought. And I was hoping that was correct, seeing as we've been playing that way in our Medallions campaign now for 10 months...

 

[RangerWickett]

I'm working on a book of whips and whip-variants, and I just got a weird mental image. Too many whip-daggers, I think. But hey, it's so crazy it just might work.

 

[HeapThaumaturgist]

That would be great, Drew. I'm using Word and Excel to work up my D20Modern stuff as well, and having the ordinaries would be great and save me alot of time (not that I have any in the first place).

--fje

 

[Fredrik Svanberg]

Incidentally, would anyone be interested in these stats when I am done? I assume I could post them without violating any kind of license. I am considering adding more Ordinaries as I go, to put in stats for other generic characters.

I would love to have them in electronical format as well. Feel free to e-mail me when they are done, thanks!