"Ignore Cover"?

[S'mon]

Is there any official word on how "Ignore Cover" (ignore -2) abilities interact with 'Superior Cover' (-5 to hit)?

eg:

1. You ignore the Superior Cover (-5 > -0) because it's cover, only superior.
2. You only ignore regular Cover, and take the full -5 vs Superior Cover.

Personally I split the difference and have Superior Cover be -3 to hit. That seems the fairest and most balanced solution, but I'm pretty sure that it wouldn't be the official rule.

 

[Nikosandros]

Can you provide the names of the specific powers or abilities that you're thinking about?

 

[S'mon]

Can you provide the names of the specific powers or abilities that you're thinking about?

I don't know - guess I need to check with the player. I just looked in the Compendium; Aspect of the Soaring Hawk and Hawk's Talon are two possibilities that both seem quite clear.

 

[frankthedm]

Is there any official word on how "Ignore Cover" (ignore -2) abilities interact with 'Superior Cover' (-5 to hit)?

eg:

1. You ignore the Superior Cover (-5 > -0) because it's cover, only superior.
2. You only ignore regular Cover, and take the full -5 vs Superior Cover.

Well, is the Rules section on cover written as though Superior Cover is its own term, or just a variant of Cover? That is the place to start.

Cover and Concealment

• Cover: Yadda Ya...
• Superior Cover: Yadda Ya...

Cover and Concealment

• Cover: Yadda Ya... Superior Cover: Yadda Ya...

 

[Ferghis]

Can you provide the names of the specific powers or abilities that you're thinking about?

This is a good question. Not only do many powers actually specify how to deal with the two different types of cover, but it would be important to know how it would be used (for example, by what class), to try to determine what would be fair.

Well, is the Rules section on cover written as though Superior Cover is its own term, or just a variant of Cover? That is the place to start.

They are both listed under the Cover section on page 219 of the Compendium, like so:

Cover

• Cover (-2 Penalty to Attack Rolls): ...
• Superior Cover (-5 Penalty to Attack Rolls): ...

 

[S'mon]

I've asked the player to let me know the name of the ability she's using, she says she'll tell me tomorrow.

 

[the Jester]

AFAIK there is no official guideline on this but IDHMBIFOM.

I would say that abilities that ignore cover but don't address superior cover treat SC normally- that is, they don't reduce the penalty. It's the difference between firing an arrow at a guy behind a waist-high barrier ("I'm good enough to ignore the barrier") and loosing at a guy on the other side of a closed door.

 

[Ferghis]

It's the difference between firing an arrow at a guy behind a waist-high barrier ("I'm good enough to ignore the barrier") and loosing at a guy on the other side of a closed door.

I would say that superior cover is more like the cover offered by a wall that comes up to your shoulders (leaving your head exposed) or an arrow slit.

Someone that is behind a closed door simply cannot be normally targeted. There is no penalty. There simply is no line of effect.

 

[Ryujin]

There are no guidelines, because they state that they ignore cover (but not superior cover), in every case that I have read.

 

[fba827]

I think the newer stuff (post essentials?) that i've seen that is like this will specifically say that it 'ignores cover and superior cover" or 'ignores cover but not superior cover'

but as a -personal- rule of thumb, i'd say that if it doesn't mention surperior cover then it does not bypass superior cover, only cover.