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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Water Bob" data-source="post: 5565740" data-attributes="member: 92305">I've been reading the Codex Martialis, which is a d20 supplement that offers a different combat system that is totally compatible with d20 games. It would be fantastic in the Conan game. I don't think I'm going to use it, sticking with RAW, but that's not because I wasn't damn tempted. In its simplest terms, each character gets a dice pool of 4 d20's. This is called the character's "Martial Pool". Everything the the character does spends these d20's, and when the character is out of d20's, his actions for the round are complete. For example, movement costs one die. A character can move up to his speed rating, spending one die from his Martial Pool. If he runs that round, he spends all 4 dice (can do nothing else during the round), moving 4x his Speed (just like in RAW). The rules use Active Defense, meaning that, in order to defend himself, the character throws a d20 and adds in all his defence modifiers, whether parrying or dodging. If this throw is greater than the attack throw, the attack is either dodged or parried. So, when spending dice from his Martial Pool, the character has to figure how many times he'll have to defend himself that round from blows. When his MP is zero, he can't roll a die for his defense, and he's much, much easier to hit. So, when playing out the round, the player has to manage his character's resources. He's only got 4 dice. If he moves, that leaves 3 dice for attacks and defensive moves. A character can also throw all his dice together, blowing his entire wad, but taking the best number from the lot. For example, let's say a character does not have initiative, has 2 HP left, and is about to be attacked by an Ymirsh Frost Giant. He wants to ensure he gets missed when the giant attacks, allowing him to live one more round. When the Ymirsh attacks, the defender throws all 4 d20, taking the highest roll to represent his defense, thereby giving him the best chance at blocking the incoming blow. Of course, this comes at the expense of being able to do anything else during the round. If you think about it, this is akin to Full Defense in RAW. Pretty neat combat system, huh? Very versatile. You don't know what's coming. You've got to manage your resources. I think it would make fights extremely interesting. Tactical. There's lots more you can do with the system. I'm just explaining the highlights here. I just think its neat. Man, am I tempted to use it in the game.</blockquote>

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