D&D 5E "Damage on a miss" poll.

[urLordy]

Sure, although recharges on a critical seems awfully gamey. Why shouldn't it be at-will? (It's fun being the infernal advocate! )

I can appreciate devil's advocate. Ya, it's gamey unless the mechanic solidifies towards some narrative. But +1 on damage isn't gamey, that's power smash, and so I could do a side of gamey.

Another concept: You gain advantage with melee attacks. If both d20s would be hits, you do full damage. If only one hits, you do half damage.

I like that. Evokes that heavy weapon is "swingy". Does it infringe on the barbarian savage recklessness?

 

[Halivar]

If you want something unrealistic, a much easier target is the fact that a guy with a dagger doing d4+0 cannot possibly kill someone with 30 hit points no matter how good an attack he does and no matter how bad a defense the other guys does. Given that HUGE level of unrealism in combat, damage on a miss seems a pretty minor thing to worry about.

We model the outlying combat events as best we can. Sneak attack is the way D&D has chosen to model this.

 

[urLordy]

I'm not seeing that one....how did the character suddenly know to turn the miss into a hit?

Genre trope? You miss with the sword but the opponent goes off balance or stunned by the deflected impact, and you head butt or kick him.

 

[TwoSix]

I can appreciate devil's advocate. Ya, it's gamey unless the mechanic solidifies towards some narrative. But +1 on damage isn't gamey, that's power smash, and so I could do a side of gamey.

No, I'm fine with +1 damage. But why would I would be able to swing my sword in a wide, unfocused arc (which is what Broad Swing is simulating) only after I hit someone really hard? I could see that for a Cleave-type attack, but not Broad Swing.

Genre trope? You miss with the sword but the opponent goes off balance or stunned by the deflected impact, and you head butt or kick him.

If you headbutt or kick him, why are you using your weapon damage? Shouldn't it be your unarmed damage?

 

[Weather Report]

No, I'm fine with +1 damage. But why would I would be able to swing my sword in a wide, unfocused arc (which is what Broad Swing is simulating) only after I hit someone really hard? I could see that for a Cleave-type attack, but not Broad Swing.

Obviously no idea of how combat works with a heavy blade.

 

[herrozerro]

Obviously no idea of how combat works with a heavy blade.

This is an issue with any kind of media. The layperson has no true understanding of how a subject works and has expectations that the actual expert scoffs at.

Take almost any medical show, Doctors will probably roll their eyes. A computer programmer will probably groan at the hackers represented in a movie.

In the end, a true simulation isn't want people are after, they want what feels right and cool. Not necessarily what is actually right.

 

[urLordy]

No, I'm fine with +1 damage. But why would I would be able to swing my sword in a wide, unfocused arc (which is what Broad Swing is simulating) only after I hit someone really hard? I could see that for a Cleave-type attack, but not Broad Swing.

I don't have a good answer. A recharge on a critical would just be a gamey thing to give the player someone to look forward to. In the spirit of brainstorming, I'm getting a sense for what's gamist fun first. However, if the secondary ability is at-will, then it makes it easier (the character simply chooses a certain sword technique).

Edit: What I meant was because the +1 to damage is already sim-oriented, I think I would be personally OK with a secondary ability that is more on the game-y side (if it had less controversial implications than damage on a miss of course)

 

[TwoSix]

Obviously no idea of how combat works with a heavy blade.

If it doesn't look like Siegfried and Nightmare from Soul Calibur, it isn't accurate enough.

 

[TwoSix]

This is an issue with any kind of media. The layperson has no true understanding of how a subject works and has expectations that the actual expert scoffs at.

Take almost any medical show, Doctors will probably roll their eyes. A computer programmer will probably groan at the hackers represented in a movie.

In the end, a true simulation isn't want people are after, they want what feels right and cool. Not necessarily what is actually right.

And honestly, how many professional two-handed weapon fighters are there? I know 99% of forum posters have been in the SCA for 20 years, but still.

 

[Derren]

In the end, a true simulation isn't want people are after, they want what feels right and cool.

Speak for yourself. I certainly loath this need for artificial coolness and I am pretty sure I am not alone with that.