HarryFlashman
First Post
The Garrote has had a long history in the works of adventure writers, whether as the weapon of choice for the insidious Thuggee cult (from whose name we get the term "thug") and their knotted strangle cords, or mafia hit-men who strike from the shadows with little more than piano wire around their victim's throats.
In Dungeons and Dragons we have seen this simple yet ingenious weapon in the WOTC guidebook for Bards and Rogues, Song and Silence . The pages you can reference are pages 52, for statistics and descriptions, and 86-87 for a full description of effectively strangling your targets.
The problem is that a garrote only does hit point damage. This is wholly unrealistic as typically the victim passes out (usually due to crushed larynx and collapsed trachea) ling before the damage rendered would otherwise kill him.
To better model this fact of (under) life I propose the following:
Added to the List of Garrotes: Garrote, Knotted
A knotted garrote is a normal cord garrote with a knot strategically placed to crush the windpipe. The user of the garrote takes a -2 penalty to his attack roll but if successful reduces the amount of time the target may remain conscious while holding his or her breath. The Amount of time the target can hold his or her breath is reduced to a quarter of his or her Constitution Score to a minimum of one round. The target also suffers a -2 penalty to his will check to be able to cry out for help.
If the attack roll fails by less than 2 points then the knotted garrote is treated as a normal cord garrote.
ALL GARROTES
Not only do Garrotes do damage to hit points but they also choke the opponent cutting off his flow of oxygen. This is handled in exactly the same way as holding your breath listed under the Skill: Swim (PHB pp. 84). The target may only hold his or her breath half as long as the constitution score would normally indicate. This reflects the assailant’s ability to choose the most propitious moment to make the attack.
During this time the target may cry out for help if he or she is able to make a Will Save vs. DC15 + total damage dealt by the garrote. His or her voice will only carry a number of squares = half of the target’s Constitution score - number of rounds grappled with the garrote.
The only rule changed for attacking with the garrote is that the target must be caught unawares and the target can be no more than one size category larger than the assailant. Either sleeping, distracted, fascinated , or otherwise in dispose. The Garrote may not be used effectively in combat or while flanking. If used in combat or against an opponent 2 or more size categories larger than the assailant the garrote cannot be used to cut off an opponents air supply.
In Dungeons and Dragons we have seen this simple yet ingenious weapon in the WOTC guidebook for Bards and Rogues, Song and Silence . The pages you can reference are pages 52, for statistics and descriptions, and 86-87 for a full description of effectively strangling your targets.
The problem is that a garrote only does hit point damage. This is wholly unrealistic as typically the victim passes out (usually due to crushed larynx and collapsed trachea) ling before the damage rendered would otherwise kill him.
To better model this fact of (under) life I propose the following:
Added to the List of Garrotes: Garrote, Knotted
A knotted garrote is a normal cord garrote with a knot strategically placed to crush the windpipe. The user of the garrote takes a -2 penalty to his attack roll but if successful reduces the amount of time the target may remain conscious while holding his or her breath. The Amount of time the target can hold his or her breath is reduced to a quarter of his or her Constitution Score to a minimum of one round. The target also suffers a -2 penalty to his will check to be able to cry out for help.
If the attack roll fails by less than 2 points then the knotted garrote is treated as a normal cord garrote.
ALL GARROTES
Not only do Garrotes do damage to hit points but they also choke the opponent cutting off his flow of oxygen. This is handled in exactly the same way as holding your breath listed under the Skill: Swim (PHB pp. 84). The target may only hold his or her breath half as long as the constitution score would normally indicate. This reflects the assailant’s ability to choose the most propitious moment to make the attack.
During this time the target may cry out for help if he or she is able to make a Will Save vs. DC15 + total damage dealt by the garrote. His or her voice will only carry a number of squares = half of the target’s Constitution score - number of rounds grappled with the garrote.
The only rule changed for attacking with the garrote is that the target must be caught unawares and the target can be no more than one size category larger than the assailant. Either sleeping, distracted, fascinated , or otherwise in dispose. The Garrote may not be used effectively in combat or while flanking. If used in combat or against an opponent 2 or more size categories larger than the assailant the garrote cannot be used to cut off an opponents air supply.
