Variant on Firearms

[Old One]

Calico,

I was in the FLGS the other day and leafed through the new Skull and Bones, designed for a cinematic style pirate/swashbuckler campaign. One thing that was pretty neat that caught my eye was their division of people into PCs, NPCs and fodder (that might not be the right term, but it is close enough).

PCs and NPCs are stated normally and have normal hps, but fodder, representing the mooks, were treated differently. They could have additional levels, feats, skills, etc...but never gain any hit points. This means they could certainly be a threat to players in combat, getting a few good whacks in, but they don't have much staying power and would certainly be put down by a pistol shot or two.

This might not work for a standard campaign, but you might want to check the mechanic out...I thought it was a rather elegant solution.

~ Old One

 

[mmadsen]

Infantry Missile Weapons in the Renaissance

The Strategy Page's Combat Information Center has an article on Infantry Missile Weapons in the Renaissance that addresses arquebus vs. crossbow vs. longbow. Some key points:

Relatively speaking the arquebus was cheaper than either the longbow, which had to be meticulously handcrafted from yew, and the crossbow, which required equally meticulous workmanship and rather expensive steel as well. The arquebus could be mass-produced by a foundry in fairly cheap cast iron. In addition, while the range, accuracy, and effectiveness of an arquebus round were inferior to those of the other weapons, an arquebusier could carry more ammunition than either of his competitors. Arquebus ammo weighed less than arrows or crossbow bolts, even after adding in the powder charge.
[...]
In addition, despite the inferior technical performance of the arquebus ball, it was superior to arrows as an armor smasher. Rounded, soft lead bullets were less likely to be deflected by the polished curved surface of armor than were arrows.

The arquebus had one more very important advantage over its rivals. It was perhaps the critical advantage in determining the rather rapid conversion of armies from archers to arquebusiers. A man required considerably less skill to become an arquebusier than either a crossbowman or a longbowman. A few weeks training was all that was necessary to turn out a fairly capable arquebusier. In contrast, it took years to properly train a the bowman, who had to develop considerable musculature before being able to use his weapon to its fullest capacity. This was particularly true of longbowmen, of whom there was a saying that in order to a good one you had to start with his grandfather.

 

[beverson]

I agree completely with Old One - I have Skull & Bones, and have completed a "quick" read. The way they handle the "fodder" is great - all damage goes right to
Con. It's a well done system IMHO, and the book has lots of flavor.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

PCs and NPCs are stated normally and have normal hps, but fodder, representing the mooks, were treated differently. They could have additional levels, feats, skills, etc...but never gain any hit points. This means they could certainly be a threat to players in combat, getting a few good whacks in, but they don't have much staying power and would certainly be put down by a pistol shot or two.

This might not work for a standard campaign, but you might want to check the mechanic out...I thought it was a rather elegant solution.

~ Old One

I have done something similar for Grim Tales. It uses the lower Massive Damage Threshold of d20 Modern; and mooks are assumed to automatically fail a MDT saving throw.

"Mook" is a relative term, of course, tied to CR and EL. An orc is not a mook to a 1st level character; and while a giant may have scads of hit points, a sufficiently high-level hero can be assumed to drop even a giant in one shot. Of course a giant's MDT is pretty high, so it would take a heroic blow (super strength, magic weapon, specialization, power attack, whatever) to drop a giant mook.

The object is to move beyond the foregone conclusions and keep the cinematic action moving with a minimum of die rolling.

Wulf

 

[Old One]

I have done something similar for Grim Tales. It uses the lower Massive Damage Threshold of d20 Modern; and mooks are assumed to automatically fail a MDT saving throw.

Wulf

Wulf,

Interesting...I will have to check it out. I have been toying with the idea of incorporating a bit more cinematic style. Thanks for the heads up.

~ Old One

 

[Argus Decimus Mokira]

Hey

I have taken the firearms from the DMG, made them work as a ranged touch attack, and upped the price considerably. This works well in my game, as all exotic weapon proficiencies require extensive in-game training (read "play a new character while that one is off at the firing range").

Thanks
Matt