Primitive Screwhead
First Post
Grappling for Beginners, by Russell Morrissey (AKA Morrus)
Caveat: Morrus did not give me a free copy, nor did he admit to stealing my ideas from a HR thread that got lost in the crash… really it did!
However, he is bribing for reviews with comp copies of his next book, which I was going to buy anyway.
Anyway, on with the review!
In short: If your group prefers smoother combat and is willing to replace Core rules mechanics.. why haven’t you bought this already?
This PDF listed as the author’s first solo publishing attempt has a clear vision and gets down to brass tacks pretty quick. The goal is easy, simplify the Core Grappling mechanic and present it in a no-nonsense fashion. I believe Morrus hits the mark on both counts here.
With only 10 pages to work with, minus 1 nicely done cover and 1.5 worth of OGL text… there really is not much room to redo a mechanic that has such broad consequences.
Readability is high, altho I am one who likes pure crunch. There are no example/fluff pieces in the work but I see no reason for them. The mechanic is simple enough that no overdone play-by-play will make it easier to understand.
Playability looks promising. The system does eliminate most of the confusion around grappling altho a few new numbers need to be added to your character sheet. Fortunately these are easy enough to add on the fly as long as you have a handy size modifier chart.
Or you can just remember to modify by 4 points for each size category off from Medium.
Crunch… The system takes the complicated core rules and turns them into 3 options, Strike, Hold, or Throw. Each option is figured by a D20 roll vs a DC.
In fact, the system is so simple that if I say any more there will be no reason for you to buy the book!
Critical Hits:
The system is easy and simple to use. No more stopping mid game to look up in a book to figure out a grapple result.
Critical Miss:
Grapple is a base level mechanic for a lot of various things. The PDF is improving as Morrus quite willingly updates based on feedback, so far adding on the interaction of bull-rushes and other special actions. A pending monster web-enhancement works on how critter special abilities like Improved Grab interact with the new rules. I believe the rules will be much better fleshed out in about a month as players find the one-off abilities not already covered.
Overall:
This variant Grapple mechanic is a definite add to my game.
Suggestions for improvement:
Tidy up the paging so that major items, like Feats or ‘Other Combat Options’ all fit on one page.
Add a page of ‘status cards’ that show the Held and Grappled states on easy to cut out cards for handing to players… This would be a nice shtick for the ‘…for beginners’ series and wouldn’t take up all that extra space.
Primitive Screwhead
Admitted Crunch Lover and Tweak-a-holic
Caveat: Morrus did not give me a free copy, nor did he admit to stealing my ideas from a HR thread that got lost in the crash… really it did!
However, he is bribing for reviews with comp copies of his next book, which I was going to buy anyway.
Anyway, on with the review!
In short: If your group prefers smoother combat and is willing to replace Core rules mechanics.. why haven’t you bought this already?
This PDF listed as the author’s first solo publishing attempt has a clear vision and gets down to brass tacks pretty quick. The goal is easy, simplify the Core Grappling mechanic and present it in a no-nonsense fashion. I believe Morrus hits the mark on both counts here.
With only 10 pages to work with, minus 1 nicely done cover and 1.5 worth of OGL text… there really is not much room to redo a mechanic that has such broad consequences.
Readability is high, altho I am one who likes pure crunch. There are no example/fluff pieces in the work but I see no reason for them. The mechanic is simple enough that no overdone play-by-play will make it easier to understand.
Playability looks promising. The system does eliminate most of the confusion around grappling altho a few new numbers need to be added to your character sheet. Fortunately these are easy enough to add on the fly as long as you have a handy size modifier chart.
Or you can just remember to modify by 4 points for each size category off from Medium.
Crunch… The system takes the complicated core rules and turns them into 3 options, Strike, Hold, or Throw. Each option is figured by a D20 roll vs a DC.
In fact, the system is so simple that if I say any more there will be no reason for you to buy the book!
Critical Hits:
The system is easy and simple to use. No more stopping mid game to look up in a book to figure out a grapple result.
Critical Miss:
Grapple is a base level mechanic for a lot of various things. The PDF is improving as Morrus quite willingly updates based on feedback, so far adding on the interaction of bull-rushes and other special actions. A pending monster web-enhancement works on how critter special abilities like Improved Grab interact with the new rules. I believe the rules will be much better fleshed out in about a month as players find the one-off abilities not already covered.
Overall:
This variant Grapple mechanic is a definite add to my game.
Suggestions for improvement:
Tidy up the paging so that major items, like Feats or ‘Other Combat Options’ all fit on one page.
Add a page of ‘status cards’ that show the Held and Grappled states on easy to cut out cards for handing to players… This would be a nice shtick for the ‘…for beginners’ series and wouldn’t take up all that extra space.
Primitive Screwhead
Admitted Crunch Lover and Tweak-a-holic
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