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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 1711305" data-attributes="member: 3146">Low magic or high magic doesn't make a difference in this regard. A bog standard 4th level half-orc barbarian (starting strength 18) with a masterwork falchion, weapon focus, and power attack does: 2d4+9 points of damage on a hit without power attacking. If he power attacks for 4 points, that's 2d4+17 and he still has an attack bonus of +8. If he charges, that's +10 to hit. With a bless or bardsong, that's +11. Make him the only slightly more min-maxed Bbn 1/Ftr 4 and he's now doing 2d4+11 points of damage without power attacking and power attacks for 2d4+19.That doesn't involve any magic at all. Wound points/vitality points as written means that after first or second level, characters go down on the first crit. Period. It also means that they will regularly take out even larger foes on a power attack crit.I liked the fatigue angle too. However, my players regularly have trouble counting their attack bonus as soon as bard song came into play and I have one player who still can't really wrap his head around AoOs. I had to make a compromise. I simply couldn't get them to keep track of the fatigue rule as written. If you can, I imagine it'll work well.It's not just the falchion, scimitar, and kukri. The light pick, heavy pick, and scythe also have an 18-20 crit range in this system. Making the high crit weapons mechanically identical to the more common weapons would work but takes some of the interest out of the system. Simply accepting that they will be the best gives the game the wrong feel as far as I'm concerned. It would work fine in Al Quadim where the PCs are supposed to be carrying scimitars and falchions. However, in a more LotR-esque, king arthur style, norse saga inspired, or classical game, characters are supposed to carry swords, lances, battle axes, spears, gladii, etc. Weapons like scimitars and falchions are exotic and unusual weapons--perhaps used by orcs, perhaps used by foreigners. If all of the PCs pick weapons that none of the NPCs use then they won't really fit with the campaign area. If all of the NPCs use effective weapons too then the campaign has a different feel than the one it should. (Knights are supposed to use longswords, lances, and bastard swords darn it).I don't think there's really an easy way out of the dilemma short of reducing the crit=death nature of the way power attack works with the system. Eliminating power attack would probably work as well but there will still be some difficulties with the system--especially with fighter/barbarians wielding two handed weapons (Remember, average damage from the previous unbuffed fighter/barbarian would drop a 16 con character even without power attack. Give him Prayer, Bardsong, a magic weapon, or a better strength (easily possible since 18 strength 4th level half-orcs only started with a 15 strength before stat bumps and racial adjustments; 22 strength is conceivable for half-orcs at 8th level without magic; 24 strength is doable for real orcs)</blockquote>

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