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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Dausuul" data-source="post: 5581725" data-attributes="member: 58197">Urk. I'm very, very, very reluctant to add rules that substantially restrict PC mobility in melee. First, it makes for static combats, and static combats are boring. A PC who wants to move to a new location, changing the dynamic of the battle, should be able--nay, encouraged--to do so.Second, making it hard to retreat when the battle turns against you is Bad. Part of the core of old-school D&D is "Know when to walk away, and know when to run." In my experience, PCs are by nature reluctant to run, even without the rules punishing them for it. They don't need more incentives to stand and fight to the death.Third, it makes the combat rules that much more complicated, in order to facilitate a single fighter talent.Skirmisher is meant to enable the archetype of the lightly armored fighter--the bare-chested barbarian or rapier-wielding duelist--while still imposing a cost, so there's a reason why most fighters wear heavy armor. The simplest way to do that is to allow the lightly armored fighter a "feat" to get an AC comparable to, if not quite equal to, the guy in plate. Maybe you lose the bonus if knocked prone or prevented from moving. Very good stuff here. I'll certainly develop these. Morale booster, eh? Hmm. Morale is such a tricky business to implement... still, it does have potential. And I like the basic concept. Well, if there are going to be morale rules, this would be another obvious application. Ding your enemies' morale rather than boosting your allies'. Although the balance concerns are substantial here--after all, it means you can potentially win an entire battle with one die roll. The simplest way to do this would be to let the PC stay conscious when reduced to zero life points: say, instead of dropping as soon as you fall to zero, you don't go down until your first failed Con check, or until you're reduced to the "auto kill" threshold.(Although it's worth noting that abilities like this crank up PC mortality considerably. Unconsciousness protects wounded PCs by removing them as targets.)</blockquote>

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