These are the house rules I'm going to propose to my group for tactical combat in C&C. Many are derived or stolen from Scadgrad's rules. These are "battlemat" rules designed for high-tactic battles on a grid with minis.
1) Spells may be cast in melee combat. Spells may be interrupted only if an opponent won initiative and is "holding." If a caster takes damage while casting a spell, he can still succeed in casting the spell if he makes a con save with a CL equal to the damage taken.
2) Free Attack by melee opponent when:
a) You are in melee and try to move around the opponent to flank (or something). The free attack can be avoided if you make a dex save at a CL equal to the opponent's HD. If you have the back attack ability and you make this roll, you get the back attack without needing to move silently as a prerequisite.
b) You withdraw from melee combat. Period. You can't just take a half move and avoid the attack. The only exception is when someone switches places with you.
c) You switch places with someone to pull them out of melee. If you make a successful dex save at the opponent's HD as the CL, you avoid the free attack. The person getting pulled out does not need to make a save and does not incur a free attack. This does not use up the actions of the person pulled out. This action is either pulling out an unconscious person or switching places with someone who's conscious.
d) you enter an area where an opponent is ready to attack, but you want to keep moving past without entering melee. As you breeze past, the opponent gets a free attack unless you can make a move silently roll. It's not precisely because you're moving silently, of course, but it means that rangers can do this outdoors but not indoors.
3) Critical hit on a natural 20 with melee weapons (unless you need a 20 to hit). Bows crit on a 19-20 unless you need a natural 20 to hit. Natural 20 always hits. Natural 1 always misses. Critical hit does [edit - an additional die of] damage from the weapon, but no added modifiers from strength, magic weapon, etc. If you roll the weapon's max damage on the critical hit's additional die, roll again for even more damage. Keep going as long as you keep rolling max damage.
4) Firing into melee is at -4. If you miss, there's a 50% chance that you'll have to roll again to hit someone else (determined randomly based on who is adjacent to the opponent you were aiming at. The second "to hit" roll is also at -4.
5) Flanking and rear attacks are at +1 and +2, per the rules. You can move around an opponent to flank with a dex roll (see above).
6) Prone opponents are +4 AC against missile weapons, -4 AC in melee.
7) Cover is determined by the CK, but ranges from -2 (1/4 cover), -4 (1/2 cover), -6 (3/4 cover).
8) If you're swinging or shooting wildly at an opponent you can't see (but you know is there), you only have a 50% chance to get a to hit roll at all. Clues (footprints, etc) would increase your chance of getting a to hit roll up to 90%.
9) Higher ground gets you a +1 to hit and a +1 to your AC.
[edit - 10) A five foot step can be taken before casting a spell.
Note: I have not distinguished precisely between AC and bonuses/penalties to hit. You can tell what I mean, though.
1) Spells may be cast in melee combat. Spells may be interrupted only if an opponent won initiative and is "holding." If a caster takes damage while casting a spell, he can still succeed in casting the spell if he makes a con save with a CL equal to the damage taken.
2) Free Attack by melee opponent when:
a) You are in melee and try to move around the opponent to flank (or something). The free attack can be avoided if you make a dex save at a CL equal to the opponent's HD. If you have the back attack ability and you make this roll, you get the back attack without needing to move silently as a prerequisite.
b) You withdraw from melee combat. Period. You can't just take a half move and avoid the attack. The only exception is when someone switches places with you.
c) You switch places with someone to pull them out of melee. If you make a successful dex save at the opponent's HD as the CL, you avoid the free attack. The person getting pulled out does not need to make a save and does not incur a free attack. This does not use up the actions of the person pulled out. This action is either pulling out an unconscious person or switching places with someone who's conscious.
d) you enter an area where an opponent is ready to attack, but you want to keep moving past without entering melee. As you breeze past, the opponent gets a free attack unless you can make a move silently roll. It's not precisely because you're moving silently, of course, but it means that rangers can do this outdoors but not indoors.
3) Critical hit on a natural 20 with melee weapons (unless you need a 20 to hit). Bows crit on a 19-20 unless you need a natural 20 to hit. Natural 20 always hits. Natural 1 always misses. Critical hit does [edit - an additional die of] damage from the weapon, but no added modifiers from strength, magic weapon, etc. If you roll the weapon's max damage on the critical hit's additional die, roll again for even more damage. Keep going as long as you keep rolling max damage.
4) Firing into melee is at -4. If you miss, there's a 50% chance that you'll have to roll again to hit someone else (determined randomly based on who is adjacent to the opponent you were aiming at. The second "to hit" roll is also at -4.
5) Flanking and rear attacks are at +1 and +2, per the rules. You can move around an opponent to flank with a dex roll (see above).
6) Prone opponents are +4 AC against missile weapons, -4 AC in melee.
7) Cover is determined by the CK, but ranges from -2 (1/4 cover), -4 (1/2 cover), -6 (3/4 cover).
8) If you're swinging or shooting wildly at an opponent you can't see (but you know is there), you only have a 50% chance to get a to hit roll at all. Clues (footprints, etc) would increase your chance of getting a to hit roll up to 90%.
9) Higher ground gets you a +1 to hit and a +1 to your AC.
[edit - 10) A five foot step can be taken before casting a spell.
Note: I have not distinguished precisely between AC and bonuses/penalties to hit. You can tell what I mean, though.
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