GAHH!! Time to take a break from 3.5

[jdrakeh]

They kept rolling on the "small animal critical hit table" (or some similar nonsense) and stunning us for three, four rounds at a time.

Crit tables are only used when a critical hit is scored. If every hit that your opponents scored was a critical as you suggest, then something was horribly wrong behind the GM's screen.

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

Crit tables are only used when a critical hit is scored. If every hit that your opponents scored was a critical as you suggest, then something was horribly wrong behind the GM's screen.

It wasn't every hit. But it was enough to keep us stunned a lot. And if I recall correctly, being stunned made it easier to suffer critical hits.

And they were attacking us with, I repeat, sharpened fingernails. I had no idea that those acrylic nail places in the mall were such dens of villainy.

 

[Steel_Wind]

I can't speak to the encounters and games of others. I don't know what the circumstances or stats of what you were fighting were - or what the GM was doing.

I do know that Rolemaster is a far more realistic combat system than appears in any other RPG system. That does not make it perfect or without its faults - simply that I expect your experience and conclusions were not fairly formed.

 

[HelloChristian]

My only experience with RM was playing MERP. What a great game. So concise. An entire system in a 100 page perfect bound book. And those supplements! The cover art and maps were brilliant.

But yes, the system was brutal. We tried to fight a troll and ended up running like hell.

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

My only experience with RM was playing MERP...We tried to fight a troll and ended up running like hell.

A MERP Troll was damn serious business.

 

[Evilusion]

Well, as I said, there appears to be a move affoot to make the game playable with less "iconics" in the party. Part of that is making all character more skilled, generally, especailly at higher level.

Rolemaster's skills are based upon ranks and stat bonuses and profession bonuses added in on a per level basis. I think we will see exactly that in 4E. So if that's your prediction - I'm with you.

Most people who are unfamiliar with RM don't comment on that element of its design as one of the hallmarks of the system. It's all about critical and weapon and spell charts to those who familiarity with it is only in passing.



Oh I would disagree there. Never is far too big a word for me.

When the game is assumed to be moderated during play with a computer (and we are only one edition, maximum TWO without that technological assumption permeating the rules throughout), then all bets are off in terms of complexity.

RM would be laughably easy to play and run with computer moderated combat. The squawking about "all those charts to look up and addition and subtractins at the table to do" vanish into the ether when it is all hidden by a button that says "roll" and a read out that says "current hit points and status".

Yes if you can get the computer to look everything up for you makes things much easier. Man wish I had something like that durning the RM campaign I was in.

 

[Steel_Wind]

Yes if you can get the computer to look everything up for you makes things much easier. Man wish I had something like that durning the RM campaign I was in.

I'm tempted to key in all the data for the arrays and just do the program for an automated Rolemaster combat utility and damage tracker for my own use.

It's been talked about for years. The pressing need for such a program is just so plain and obvious it's laughable.

The sad thing is, it would give the system a new lease on life. But because it - and subsequent piracy of the program - would effectively end the sale of Arms Law, ICE has always said "no".

And so one company goes bankrupt and the successor company can barely get their products in stores and no longer even bothers to go to Gencon.

It makes no sense at all.

 

[Breakdaddy]

This will make you happy. I think you should do it. I'd WFRP, personally, but I've never played Rolemaster.

I think the moral of the story is "RAW are written for someone who isn't necessarily you." Playing what you don't love is no fun for anyone.

i've made my consequences all NPC-based and plot-based, but that's harder to do in a published module -- and again, not for everyone.

I would ABSOLUTELY go WFRP if I were feeling like Robert is. Either way, enjoy your game!

 

[pawsplay]

Scarrified veterans and insane magicians
Bounties from barons and death by attrition
Vengeful red dragons with powerful wings
These are a few of my favorite things

When the orcs crit
When the rocks fall
When I'm sure I'm dead
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad.

 

[Evilusion]

I'm tempted to key in all the data for the arrays and just do the program for an automated Rolemaster combat utility and damage tracker for my own use.

It's been talked about for years. The pressing need for such a program is just so plain and obvious it's laughable.

The sad thing is, it would give the system a new lease on life. But because it - and subsequent piracy of the program - would effectively end the sale of Arms Law, ICE has always said "no".

And so one company goes bankrupt and the successor company can barely get their products in stores and no longer even bothers to go to Gencon.

It makes no sense at all.

So very true.