Grim-n-Gritty: Revised and Simplified

[KenHood]

Hmm been playing around a bit with the rules. One observation is that power attack is made obsolete.

Not necessarily. In 3.5E, you get a 2-for-1 damage bonus when using a two-handed weapon. +10 damage? You'd have to roll 10 points higher than your enemy to get it. With power attack, all you need to do is roll the same amount! Good incentive for a muscle-bound warrior to put away the shield and pick up that gigantic sword.

All in all fighters should opt to maximise attack bonus over damage in this system. I even think that finesse fighters will be better off than in regular d&d.

Yes. That's kind of the way things work in Real Life (tm), too.

Consider the elderly martial artist who moves with great ease and devastates younger, stronger, and faster opponents.

 

[SSquirrel]

Ok so I'm looking at things to convert one of the characters that is made for my upcoming campaign into GnG's combat version and I noticed that Soak has Armor and Defense has Shield.
Just want to make sure that I'm not supposed to count Shield under Armor and vice versa.


Hagen

 

[KenHood]

Ok so I'm looking at things to convert one of the characters that is made for my upcoming campaign into GnG's combat version and I noticed that Soak has Armor and Defense has Shield.
Just want to make sure that I'm not supposed to count Shield under Armor and vice versa.

You are correct.

Your armor bonus applies to Soak. Shield bonus applies to Defense.

Reasoning: Armor reduces damage, so Soak. Shields block attacks and decrease likelihood of a hit, so Defense.

 

[SSquirrel]

You are correct.

Your armor bonus applies to Soak. Shield bonus applies to Defense.

Reasoning: Armor reduces damage, so Soak. Shields block attacks and decrease likelihood of a hit, so Defense.

Ok sounds good. Another question. In AU there is a feat called Focused Healing. It allows you once a day to make a Concentration check and heal up to your Con bonus*your character level in Hit Points with the DC being however many points you're attempting to heal. How would you convert this to GnG?

Using the Toughness feat as a possible example, maybe have 1 pip equal 3HP so I can just see what their possibility is and round down? I can still know what the DC would be either way.

Hagen

 

[HarryFlashman]

Ken, I have no critical remarks, yet. I just came back to ENworld after a month Hiatus. I have been extolling the virtues of your old system for several months while I work on my own low-magic low-fantasy game and now this. Once I get a good look at the system and perhaps run a fight or two I will see how well I like it over the old system (which I have used extensively).

I noticed that your old G-n-G ( actually Skills-n-Feats) system made it to OtherWorld Press's Forbidden Kingdoms. I was overly pleased to see it in print.

Thank you for coming back, even if it is only for a limited engagement. You should know that you and your creations are very much appreciated by myself and my gaming group.

 

[rangerjohn]

The only thing is, according to your philosophy, rogues make better combatants than fighters. Sure fighters get bab, but rouges get hide, move silently, sneak attack. In your system the best chance is to either sneak up on the opponent, skills which are cross class for a fighter or attack from range, in which case the rogue is more likely to have a high dex.

 

[monboesen]

rangerjohn: Don't discount soak. That is what keeps the fighter alive. With heavy armor, a decent con score and the toughness feat (and thats going to be popular) a fighter can easily reach soak scores of +12-15. Thats a lot. At the end of his career it should reach +20 (+13 armor, +5 con, +2 toughness).

Also defence is tied in with BAB, meaning that high BAB opponents will be difficult to hit for the moderate BAB rogue.

A viable tactic not relying on sneaks are mounted charges. The +1 to hit for higher ground, the +2 to hit from charge and doubled damage from the lance (should extra damage from a high hit roll be doubled too?) makes it deadly.

Rogues will simply have a hard time both hitting (high defense) and hurting (high soak) more skilled opponents.

 

[KenHood]

In AU there is a feat called Focused Healing. It allows you once a day to make a Concentration check and heal up to your Con bonus*your character level in Hit Points with the DC being however many points you're attempting to heal. How would you convert this to GnG?

Wow. That would be a lot of life pips.

Depends on what you want to do with the feat. If you want your players to instantly recover from damage and be rip-roaring ready, then go with the 1 pip = 3 HP. If you want it to give your guys a little boost, maybe change the feat to 1d4 or set the Concentration check at DC 20 and give the character a number of pips equal to the relative degree of success.

 

[KenHood]

rangerjohn: Don't discount soak. That is what keeps the fighter alive. With heavy armor, a decent con score and the toughness feat (and thats going to be popular) a fighter can easily reach soak scores of +12-15. Thats a lot. At the end of his career it should reach +20 (+13 armor, +5 con, +2 toughness).

Yep. And he'll probably get the Soak even higher with Constitution enhancing items, natural armor bonuses, and maybe an item that increases size.

Imagine: 20th level fighter
*Base Constitution: 20 (+5 Soak)
*Amulet of Health +6 and Natural Armor +5 (+8 Soak)
*Full Plate Mail +5 (+13 Soak)
*Toughness x3 (+3 Soak)
Total Soak: 29

Then, once a character gets into epic levels, he can take the Damage Reduction feat for +3 soak a shot.

Also defence is tied in with BAB, meaning that high BAB opponents will be difficult to hit for the moderate BAB rogue.

Yep. Makes a significant difference as levels increase.

A viable tactic not relying on sneaks are mounted charges. The +1 to hit for higher ground, the +2 to hit from charge and doubled damage from the lance (should extra damage from a high hit roll be doubled too?) makes it deadly.

I never thought of that one. Very good suggestion for the medieval crowd.

The Mexican Army, during the days of the Texas Revolution and USA's War with Mexico, was a terror. They were the only army in the theater that had mounted calvary. (The US had dragoons. They'd ride up and dismount to fight.) The Mexicans would charge in and lance the lot of their enemies. Devastating.

I like how the revised GnG rules make that work.

I don't think I'd double the damage from the attack roll, just the dice and bonuses.

Rogues will simply have a hard time both hitting (high defense) and hurting (high soak) more skilled opponents.

Yes. Their sneak attack helps level the field, but there are easy ways to overcome that special ability (such as Uncanny Dodge).

I'd hate to be a Rogue fighting a Barbarian.

 

[SSquirrel]

Wow. That would be a lot of life pips.

Depends on what you want to do with the feat. If you want your players to instantly recover from damage and be rip-roaring ready, then go with the 1 pip = 3 HP. If you want it to give your guys a little boost, maybe change the feat to 1d4 or set the Concentration check at DC 20 and give the character a number of pips equal to the relative degree of success.

Well the Magister I just made for an online AU game has a +3 Con bonus and so an heal up 15 points on a DC 25 check heh. That would convert into healing an entire wound category on a successful roll. I already planned that is say they were trying to heal 10 points (DC 20) and rolled a 19, they would heal 9, so I'll probably go with the 1:3 conversion rate. I like the fact that its something that can improve with level. Hell someone with a 20 Con at 5th level could heal up 8 pips at once, but it would be a DC 35 roll. Definitely Heroic. I know 35 is in the Heroic end of teh old West End Games version of Star Wars. heh.

Hagen