Have you ever used a ballista or catapult?
- Thread starter Bullgrit
- Start date
As the PCs found out when they hit the PCs, bounced off and hit the ground, and then transformed into dire apes. Ah, good times!
Sir Devria
First Post
In the most unorthodax way, yes. My dwarf fighter had a rep for both drunken dabauchery and battle fevor. Sadly they both often blured into one. Adminst the great battle against the Warlock Lords army of evil on the plains of Abrneth, it became apparent that if the advancing ranks were not disrupted then our army would fall. Thus came the catapult loaded up with the most terifying thing Known to mortals anywere. A hungover dwarf. By the GODS those basterds never knew what hit'em. 
In one "chapter" of a campaign the party I was in needed to defend a keep from a small group of Giants and ogres, and then an invading army. For a little bit of one battle it was seige weapons versus Giants throwing rocks. I wasn't personally involved so much as I was the wizard so I was tossing, you know, fireballs.
Wombat
First Post
Several characters have used siege equipment in sessions of Ars Magica and Pendragon, but not D&D.
And as for me, I helped build a trebuchet (counter-balanced) back in my Boy Scout days ... there was really, really lousy food at the summer camp that year and we had some bags of flour and some water balloons, so....
And as for me, I helped build a trebuchet (counter-balanced) back in my Boy Scout days ... there was really, really lousy food at the summer camp that year and we had some bags of flour and some water balloons, so....
Henrix
Explorer
A couple of friends built a large trebuchet for a large LARP once. I've only seen pictures of it, but it was well over three meters tall.
When they were going to test it for the first time, most of them wanted to try with some large stones first. One of them said "no, let's try something a little less dangerous first". "Aw, come on, it'll be much cooler with stones".
A couple of minutes later they were all happy that they had done as she said, when a couple of dozens of tennis balls rained down on their heads.
Catapults are not at all like they are portrayed in D&D.
When they were going to test it for the first time, most of them wanted to try with some large stones first. One of them said "no, let's try something a little less dangerous first". "Aw, come on, it'll be much cooler with stones".
A couple of minutes later they were all happy that they had done as she said, when a couple of dozens of tennis balls rained down on their heads.
Catapults are not at all like they are portrayed in D&D.
A couple of times...
In an old FR campaign, the PCs recovered an ancient dwarven book of "blueprints" laying out the design for a number of advanced weapons. One was a wheeled ballista platform with scythed-wheels and crank-driven reloading device (a 4-dwarf team). After a lot of trial and error, they created a working model with the help of the local dwarf clan and become famous for clearing goblin infested tunnels.
My kobolds tend to like setting up ballistas at the end of long, straight narrow tunnels...
In my most recent Faded Glory campaign, I designed a rather nasty undead ballista. The ballista fired mummified zombie heads that were attached to the ballista by "lines" made from woven intestine. On a successful hit, the zombie head would attempt to bore into the victim, at which point the skeletal ballista team would start reeling the victim towards his/her doom. It was particularly effective at preventing casters from getting of spells without a serious concentration check from continuous damage...yummy!
~ OO
PS - Have usually used the ranged touch attack rules with siege engines, but made them a single exotic weapon proficiency for each siege engine (with double the non-proficiency penalties).
In an old FR campaign, the PCs recovered an ancient dwarven book of "blueprints" laying out the design for a number of advanced weapons. One was a wheeled ballista platform with scythed-wheels and crank-driven reloading device (a 4-dwarf team). After a lot of trial and error, they created a working model with the help of the local dwarf clan and become famous for clearing goblin infested tunnels.
My kobolds tend to like setting up ballistas at the end of long, straight narrow tunnels...
In my most recent Faded Glory campaign, I designed a rather nasty undead ballista. The ballista fired mummified zombie heads that were attached to the ballista by "lines" made from woven intestine. On a successful hit, the zombie head would attempt to bore into the victim, at which point the skeletal ballista team would start reeling the victim towards his/her doom. It was particularly effective at preventing casters from getting of spells without a serious concentration check from continuous damage...yummy!
~ OO
PS - Have usually used the ranged touch attack rules with siege engines, but made them a single exotic weapon proficiency for each siege engine (with double the non-proficiency penalties).
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