d20 Fantasy Martial Arts

[cybernetic]

I've been putting together some ideas for a High Fantasy Martial Arts d20/OGL game that is inspired by films like Storm Riders and The Legend of Zu movies..and somewhat inspired by movies like Swordsman 2 and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. I was just interested in getting some feedback on some of the concepts and ideas I have for it...

First off..

Character Race(s)
While I do have some ideas for some decent non-human PC races, I am leaning more towards having "Human" be the only PC race.

Classes
I think I'm going to go classless with the game. Characters would all get the same amount of skill points each level, modified by their intelligence mod. They would still get feats and ability increases per their character level. All characters would be called "Warriors" in honor of the Zu movies.

For Class skills I'm thinking about putting together packages of skills that a character can pick from during character creation (i.e. Fighter, Sorcerer, Shaman, Ninja, etc..)

Base attack bonus and Saving throw bonuses would be handled a little differently..see below.

Martial Arts
I don't plan on having any specific martial art styles in the game. Styles would be a more individual thing as opposed too a set way that one must follow. Like the movies that my idea takes inspiration from, martial arts will be a universal thing.

In this game, martial arts would be composed of three ideas: Combat Ability, Stances, and Techniques.

Combat Ability
Combat ability is your attack and defense capabilities. In order to fully flesh out my vision, Base Attack Bonus and Armor Class are going to be changed. Base Attack Bonus simply becomes Attack Bonus and Armor Class becomes Defense Bonus.

They will both be dynamic rolls (AC being a static number in normal d20). Would makes all attacks opposed rolls. The attacker rolls his 1d20 + Attack Bonus + Ability Modifier + Misc. Bonuses against the defender's 1d20 + Defense Bonus + Dex Modifier + Misc. Bonuses to see if an attack is successful. IMHO, this represents the combat in a martial arts flick a little better then simply having everyone "Take 10" on Defense. (Even the greatest martial artist can miss a block...its just their Combat Ability usually makes up for it.)

Stances
Stances are the primary key of an individual's personal fighting style. It would take a move action to switch to a stance and each stance would have its own bonues and penalties (i.e. a stance might grant a bonus to damage while penalizing defense)

Stances would be learned much like feats, gaining new ones every so levels. Some stances might even require the character to know one or more other stances as prerequisites.

Techniques
Techniques are the bread and butter of Fantasy Martial Arts. They are the Flaming Dragon Fists, the Hadoukens, and the Spells of the Martial Arts world. Each Stance would have techniques that can only be used in that stance (as each stance cultivates Ki and Elemental Energy in different ways to allow for these effects.). Characters would get a set number of Training Points each level to "purchase" techniques with.

An example Technique would be Fist of Flame (grants all unarmed attacks a +1d6 Fire damage for 1 round per level). This technique would belong to the Fire Stance that draws upon the elemental power of fire when a warrior assumes it.

There would be several types of techniques as well.

• Strike: These are attack techniques. (obviously ) Basically direct damage techniques.
• Defense: These are protections and ward techniques.
• Empowerment: These techniques enhance the character's normal abilities for certain durations. (i.e. improving strength or movement rate for 1 round per level.)
• Alteration: These are techniques that improve and change a characters abilities, stances, and techniques. (i.e. Improved Flame applied to the Fist of Flame from before could grant an additional +1d6 fire damage, a Elemental Resistance 5 could be added to the Fire Stance to give the warrior Fire Resistance 5 when in that stance, and this would also be how a character improves their saving throws.
• Spell: This is kinda the "Misc." technique type. Things that do not really fit with other types would be here. (i.e. divinations, raise dead, illusions..etc.)

Characters would gain Ki points each level just like Hit Points. Ki points are spent to use techniques.


Some Other Random Concepts

• The Jump skill would be changed to allow characters to perform amazing leaps and air battles like in Wuxia films..and would be a class skill for all characters.
• Cleric like characters would be handled by allow characters to select a deity and learn that deities Divine Stance (along with special divine techniques). The divine stance connects the character to the deities essence and allows certain powers.
• Relic Weapons would be unique weapons that are absobed by the character and become a special technique or techniques that they can use in any stance.
• Characters could join clans. Each clan would be lead by a deity. Only a character who has been initiated into a clan is able to be brought back from the dead. The deity of clan reincarnates his experience, abilities, and martial arts into a new body.
• Possible rules from characters becoming Immortals (basically epic levels) and then becoming protectors (or tormentors ) of mankind..kinda like the Warriors of Zu.

Whew....ok...thats it for now ...let me know what you guys think..

 

[Lugh]

Wow, that is very cool. Very nicely thought out. I like the idea of rolling for defense, though you may find that it slows down combat. You might even put in rules for critical successes and failures on defense, granting a "riposte" style attack from the defender, or an extra attack from the attacker.

I might suggest that you check out the Spycraft martial arts system. It is built to be very generic, so that you put together a group of feats to make up any style. The feats are like Punching Basics and Hard Style Master. If you also pick up the Pan Asian Collective book, it expands the unarmed rules from the core rulebook. Of primary interest to you, probably, is the fact that they already have stance feats written up. It would at least give you a good starting point.

 

[NekoAli]

Very very nice. Keep us appraised of what you're doing. Possibly put up the rules somewhere as an option, I'd love to swipe, errr borrow the ideas for my own martial arts campaign.

I'm a big fan of wuxia films myself, and I do like a lot of the ideas you've presented. Making defense an opposed roll will keep people on their toes a bit more I think. And it shouldn't slow things down during the game, just announce who's attacking whom and let both declare stances/techniques being used, then roll at the same time. It might even add more excitement to every attack, because there's a much greater chance of people getting lucky.

I'm surprised I never thought of including stances into the game before. It would be very easy to do, and it is so 'in character' for the genre to have to go an learn a certain stance or technique to defeat a rival. Kudos on that especially.

For empowering techniques, I would keep it to one round per turn duration for all of them. Unlike 'fire and forget' spells, channeling Ki into amazing feats should be very draining and dramatic, done right before/in the middle of a fight. Not the high level warrior waking up, scratching himself, then 'buffing out' for the rest of the day.

And finally, have you looked at the Psionics Handbook for some ideas? I was intending to use that for Ki powered characters in my game. Remove psionic combat, change the name psionic to Ki and you're good to go. A lot of the feats especially are well suited to wuxia characters.

 

[cybernetic]

Very very nice. Keep us appraised of what you're doing. Possibly put up the rules somewhere as an option, I'd love to swipe, errr borrow the ideas for my own martial arts campaign.

Not a problem. In fact, it will be a published product. It'll be a free pdf from WikidNinja Games. (Kinda how Wizards of the Coast released Dragon Fist as a free pdf.) The rules themselves are being written for a setting that I call Dragon Sunrise.

If you want I let you you be the first ginnea pig...err I mean playtester when I get a full set of rules fleshed out.

I'm a big fan of wuxia films myself, and I do like a lot of the ideas you've presented. Making defense an opposed roll will keep people on their toes a bit more I think. And it shouldn't slow things down during the game, just announce who's attacking whom and let both declare stances/techniques being used, then roll at the same time. It might even add more excitement to every attack, because there's a much greater chance of people getting lucky.

I've never really like the fact that all d20 characters allways "Take 10" on Defense. Its just so bland and players have to sit around waiting for other to take their turn. With the Defense roll and Defense techniques you get something to do everytime someone attacks you, plus it kinda feels more combat-like when you and your friend roll your attack and defense at the same time.

I'm surprised I never thought of including stances into the game before. It would be very easy to do, and it is so 'in character' for the genre to have to go an learn a certain stance or technique to defeat a rival. Kudos on that especially.

I agree totally it is very much "in character". Also, learning rare and unqiue stances and techniques or finding ancient scrolls or reclusive masters to learn them from can open up many possiblities for adventures.

The main design idea behind stances is the fact that I didn't want to create any set styles that characters would have to conform to...so I created stances so each character could define his or her own martial arts style by learning different stances and techniques.

For empowering techniques, I would keep it to one round per turn duration for all of them. Unlike 'fire and forget' spells, channeling Ki into amazing feats should be very draining and dramatic, done right before/in the middle of a fight. Not the high level warrior waking up, scratching himself, then 'buffing out' for the rest of the day.

I agree, all durations in the game will be in rounds. They'll last maybe an encounter or two (if you're powerful enough).

And finally, have you looked at the Psionics Handbook for some ideas? I was intending to use that for Ki powered characters in my game. Remove psionic combat, change the name psionic to Ki and you're good to go. A lot of the feats especially are well suited to wuxia characters.

The Psionics Handbook has definatly been a big player in my brainstorming. It has a somewhat wuxia tinge to it that I've always liked. Every Psychic Warrior I've played has ended up being a wuxia warrior For instance, I played a Elven Psychic Warrior in a Dragonstar Campaign that ran up a mech and started slashing at servos...

 

[cybernetic]

Just as a little side note...I wanted to lay down some of the non-human PC races I had ideas for...maybe as a GM Option or something....maybe even just settring specific...

I was thinking of maybe using something similar to racial "class" levels akin to those from Arcana Unearthed by Monte Cook.


Ogres
These aren't the DnD Smash-everything Ogres. The ogres of Dragon Sunrise would be ancient and wise beings. They would still be somewhat large and physically strong, but they would have bonus to wisdom and maybe even some unqique spell techniques that only an Ogre can harness. They would be a mystical race.

Elves
Again, not the typical DnD elves. The elves of Dragon Sunrise would be split into two seperate sub-races: The Shadow Elves and the Dragon Elves.
Dragon Elves: They are creatures born from the blood of the ancient dragons. They would have draconic-like racial abilties and such.
Shadow Elves: Born from the Void. They are adept at magic and infused with the shadowy essence of the void.

D'raal
They are a human-like race were each member of the race is born under a totem animal spirit. Their racial abilities would include limited shifting into the form of their totem animal. (i.e. at low levels a Tiger D'raal they could speak with and have a kinship with tigers, at medium levels they could shift his hands into claws to deal more damage in combat, while at the highest level they would be able to shift into full blown tiger.

 

[NekoAli]

hehe... Sounds like we're of similar minds with your idea. I'd be happy to help playtest for you. Hmmm... I should dig out the Dragonfist PDFS and look at them again. I know that there was a lot of spells and such that made it from there into the Oriental Adventures 3e book.

For other ideas though, do you own the Feng Shui game, by Robin D. Laws (published by Atlas). There is a lot of wuxia inspired action in there, including martial arts schtick trees that aren't entirely dissimilar to feat trees. Those could also be used for inspiration.

Keep us appraised of the ideas!

 

[cybernetic]

hehe... Sounds like we're of similar minds with your idea. I'd be happy to help playtest for you. Hmmm... I should dig out the Dragonfist PDFS and look at them again. I know that there was a lot of spells and such that made it from there into the Oriental Adventures 3e book.

Also, the Rokugan d20 books all have some good things in them. I have gotten some inspiration from them (I own all of them).

For other ideas though, do you own the Feng Shui game, by Robin D. Laws (published by Atlas). There is a lot of wuxia inspired action in there, including martial arts schtick trees that aren't entirely dissimilar to feat trees. Those could also be used for inspiration.

Unfortunetly, I don't have Feng Shui. I've been meaning to check it out for a while now though.