Fantasycraft

[pawsplay]

Curious, does maximize do what I think it does? Static, maximum damage against a nonmoving foe? That would be very different from D&D.

 

[drnuncheon]

Curious, does maximize do what I think it does? Static, maximum damage against a nonmoving foe? That would be very different from D&D.

Yep. if you're in the stance (half action to enter, only one stance at a time) and someone hasn't moved since your last turn, you get to do maximum weapon damage. (Bonus damage dice like sneak attack or a flaming sword are not maximized).

There's some subtle synergies there, too. Zweihanders and claymores both have the massive quality which requires a nice high Str to use but gives a chance of knocking the foe down - it'll cost them a half action to get up and leave them with the choice of moving away or doing something else and suffering a max-damage hit next round. Since the chance to knock down is based on the damage…

 

[litpho]

Weilding a longsword two-handed, at 18 Str, using the stance you get from Sword Basics, you do 1d12+9 damage, or an average of 15.5 points.

Weilding a greatsword at 18 Str, using the stance you get from Greatsword Basics, you do 16 points of damage (since you maximize damage on targets that have not moved). Plus you get Guard +2, so your AC is higher. And you have a chance to knock your opponents flat on their keister.

And of course, since stances are usually not weapon specific, nothing is stopping you from using the stance you get from Sword Basics when wielding a Greatsword.

 

[drnuncheon]

And of course, since stances are usually not weapon specific, nothing is stopping you from using the stance you get from Sword Basics when wielding a Greatsword.

True, but that would put you behind in damage. (you'd be roughly equivalent to a sword'n'board swordsman in damage & AC though)

The greatswword stance only works with two-handed melée weapons, so the longsword guy can't use it to maximize his damage.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Completely unrelated to the uses and abuses of great swords....

I just hauled out City Works by FFG, to see how much work would be needed to use it with Fantasy Craft.

Pretty much everything except the first chapter can be used straight up with no conversion at all. Most of the modifications I made in later chapters were to fit the book in to an Industrial Age setting - increasing the population of Residential blocks, etc..

I am pretty happy about that - Mike Mearls did a great job on that book, and I can keep on using it, even for my Steampunk games.

The Auld Grump

 

[pawsplay]

I have my copy now, thanks to a special order. Even after paging through it twice, I find I still have lots of questions, like how nonlethal damage works. Still, it is coming together in my mind. So far, I am very impressed.

There are some peculiarities. For instance, classes are almost completed defined by a central set of mechanics, tasks, and special qualities. Only their skill lists are background driven, for the most part. For instance, a mage could be anything from a bone-waving tribal sorcerer to the librarian of Unseen University. What unites them is that they cast spells, very powerful spells. Your Specialty more or less defines your adventuring profession, although some are rather abstract. The classic D&D classes are represented as specialties, so you can be a Fighter (dude who wears armor and uses lots of weapons) who advances as a Soldier or a Captain or maybe even an Explorer. So, for instance, a traditional D&D paladin might be some curious-sounding combination such as Cavalier (speciality) + Lancer (class that focuses on mounted combat and combat toughness), going into the Paladin class. A traditional fighter would be a Fighter (speciality) Soldier (class focused on combat feats and proficiencies and improved defense). Some of the specialties are kits or things that might be represented by class variants. For instance, the Gladiator and Guardian specialties impart melee mastery and bodyguard skills, respectively, to a class. It would be very difficult to do a 1:1 conversion from PCs in D&D to Fantasy Craft using some kind of mechanistic process, but doing it holistically is pretty easy. For instance, your typical fighter would be a Fighter-Soldier, but Regdar might be a Fighter-Captain in keeping with his high Charisma.

Partly as a result of this peculier vocabulary, converting someone like Conan can be interesting. For instance, Barbarian doesn't really fit very well since he isn't known for his Berserk Rage, so he's probably a Tribesman (good athletics bonus, probably better from an aesthetic viewpoint than Acrobat or Rogue, other very considerable options). Tribesman also gives him thick hide, so he doesn't bother with armor that isn't fitted steel plate. His first few levels might be in Burglar, reflecting his penchant for larceny, alertness, and agility, so he picks Resolve as one of his origin skills since Burglars don't get that. Burglar gives him a core ability that helps him perform high DC Dex based checks. The next few levels might be in Soldier, then Edgemaster, reflecting his legendary sword skill, and after level 10 or so, he might finish out as a Captain, a king and leader of men more than an athlete.

So to summarize, Fantasy Craft, despite very similar structures, uses a different vocabulary from D&D or Pathfinder. It bears some resemblance to d20 Modern in a number of respects, as well as True20. Overall, it reminds me in tone, scope, and style most of Rolemaster and Fantasy D6, two games I would consider very different. It has Rolemaster's penchant for detail and gory realism balanced with dramatic effects, and D6 Fantasy's generic, toolkit approach based on very simple core mechanics.

 

[Silvercat Moonpaw]

Tribesman also gives him thick hide, so he doesn't bother with armor that isn't fitted steel plate.

And if you want to go with the loincloth-only version you apply the Beefy Heroes campaign quality on p. 322.

FantasyCraft really is like some great big machine with all these different pieces so that you could just spend all your time trying the different combinations out and never even get to playing/running.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Tribesman also gives him thick hide, so he doesn't bother with armor that isn't fitted steel plate.

Because of the way Thick Hide stacks (greatest Thick Hide at full, +1 DR for each other Thick Hide) a dwarf tribesman can be really tough, without any armor at all. Not as scary as if they stacked fully, but DR4 is pretty good.

The Auld Grump

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

Are there any kinds of fantasy that would be difficult to pull off?

Is the learning curve steeper than 3.x/Pathfinder? Steeper than 4e? Could this be a candidate to teach kids as young as 10 who have never role played?

Is the this the kind of system where one puts a bulk of time in character prep/design that pays off in substantially faster play? Or is there equal slowdown in play?

 

[pawsplay]

Are there any kinds of fantasy that would be difficult to pull off?

It doesn't do super-heroes. If you want PC wizards moving ocean tides, it won't do that. It is, however, very versatile, able to handle anything from a dungeon crawl to founding a barony to engaging in a war of wits and blades at the King's court.

Is the learning curve steeper than 3.x/Pathfinder? Steeper than 4e? Could this be a candidate to teach kids as young as 10 who have never role played?

The game is robust, but not exceedingly complex. However, it is not organized in a teaching style. Important rules are scattered throughout the chapters, meaning that someone will have to learn the rules thoroughly and ask as a mentor to other players at first. I think a 10 year old could handle it easily enough. It has lots of options, however, so new players especially would benefit from guidance from the GM.

Is the this the kind of system where one puts a bulk of time in character prep/design that pays off in substantially faster play? Or is there equal slowdown in play?

There is a certain amount of prep work, but it reads like a fast-playing game. I have yet to try it. However, the combat is probably simpler than in 3e/Pathfinder, overall. Using premade NPCs is much simpler. PCs have pretty simple mechanics, but typically have several options in any situation that plays to their strengths.