Feedback on new combat system

[Temi]

Note that I'm just mulling things over, not the main decision maker on these things.


Other than a few minor things, I think most of the comments boil down to, or are affected by:

1) Range is awkward

2) There's less room for strategy

3) There's not enough benefit to going unarmored if you want to make up for the negatives


Thinking over it, Rabek's suggestions on range are interesting, but probably a bit of a departure from what we are going with already, but it did bring to mind a simplified idea that might work:

In addition to all of what we have now, you can set a range that you want to be at, which would default to the ideal range for your weapon. Then at the end of a round, everyone in the combat would try to get to their desired range. This would be contested based on skills (if there's appropriate ones? or a new one for this), stats and how far you are from your desired range. If you win the contest with the last person you attacked, you will be your desired range from each other. If you both want to be at the same range, you automatically succeed with that. If your attempt is uncontested, such as because they are trying to kill the other person in combat or they are knocked on the ground and thus not moving, you automatically succeed.

When in a range that is not allowed by your weapon, instead of not allowing attacks at all, reduce damage and/or defense to account for the working in too close of quarters or having to reach and extend yourself too far.

Any thoughts?

For the strategy, I think there is a lot of room for strategy that hasn't been explored yet as far as weapon choice, range choice, etc goes, but I also think this will be a lot better once techniques go in.

For the unarmored bit, I don't think that a bigger drain on mvs on combat for wearing armor is unreasonable.

I know there's other comments too, but those were ones which stuck out as some things I had heard more than once.

[Kinaed]

I'm keeping my eye on this feedback and mulling things over. I like a lot of the ideas here, though I have to admit that I like Temi's the most on range because it's automatic, which keeps the system easy for players - but that being said, it also makes it less strategic, the more that's done for you.

I think we'll have to review mv rate usage during combat. I think this is a minor adjustment, really.

Techniques should bring in strategy. The techniques we can add are 'sky is the limit'. Please submit ideas!

[Jei]

Possible technique

'Counter': Not really all that hung up on the name. The point is that when you watch a certain body location, if your opponent attacks that location you have a free chance to not only avoid the damage, but you counter attack while s/he's open. No idea on how it would scale with skill. Maybe skill rank = percentage chance of you countering when you successfully predict what body location they attack.

edit:
Forgot to mention this, but obviously 'body' should probably not be applicable for this skill. Or if so, at a much reduced percentage for activating the counter, since it's the most likely target and so on. Or, make it so you still get hit in the body(if they overcome your defense and such) but can still get off a free attack. Otherwise people would probably just always watch body and avoid 1/4->3/4's of the attacks directed there.

[Enix]

I was thinking a bit on this combat talk about no advantage going without armor. Maybe there was a way to decrease the hit chance if your wearing armor. Maybe have it stackable with the amount of armor your wearing, where if you are wearing a full set, a max hitroll penalty is applied, where it lowers with each piece your not wearing.

This would make sense really, where people with no armor at all are much faster and less encumbered with steel to make a clear hit. Since armor is absorbing alot of damage anyway. The way it looks, a person wearing armor gets hit maybe two to four times is about as equivalent to one strike against a person with no armor at all. This would also help with Jei's previous notion about there being not alot of missing now. Pretty realistic too, since wearing a full set of armor does make you much slower in combat, and results in more missing.

Just and idea...

[Kinaed]

I'm not sure that armor should be counter-weighted all that much. Purchasing it is an investment, and people ought to be rewarded for that investment, not made to balance out if they want to pay for armor because it costs AND has to be countered with hit rates.

[Enix]

Does armor of different brand effect things? Like steel and leather right now? Is there any difference aside from damage take?

[Kinaed]

Yes, steel is more durable than iron, which is more durable than leather, etc. The result is protection for longer in combat, which means more overall HP spared before the item breaks.

Functionally, they all damage reduce at the same rate, however.

[Olither]

As a character who switches between wearing armour and not often (Paere) I think putting too many penalties on armour is harsh, since as Paere, I've spent over six thousand silver on his first set, and spent nearly eight thousand silver on his second set (which, due to the lack of an active smith, I'm still waiting on.)

[Enix]

I dont, makes it realistic. Right now, a character with a full set of armor against a charcter without, is at a HUGE advantage, and I will bet anything the character without it, even having the same skill level as the character with, will lose. I dont think it should be this way, at all really.

Maybe the techniques will play a good factor when they are added, but right now i im pretty a fully steel wearing character can likely take out two or even three not armor waering characters, even with the same skill. Think about it, your getting mad protection while being able to still pound on someone without it.

I would not put a HUGE penalty on it, but something to even the odds against people who ICly it just makes zero sense whatsoever to purchase it, and then wear it because its the only option they have to even be effective in regards to combat.

Like I said, maybe I am just saying all of this before really knowing how techniques will effect things.

[Tribalware]

I dont see the problem with armor granting mad protection, because it did, but christ the stuff was incredibly heavy and no doubt fighting in it was very tiring. I don't see why it isn't the case that at least some penalty to general maneouverability, be it an mv, footwork or dodge penalty isnt applied, or else you work dex fighters out of the system.

I know armor is incredibly expensive and it should carry benefits reflecting that, but realistic ones. Besides i don't think a character should ever be able to buy a level of protection that raises them completely out of reach of assassin type characters, who would make use of skills which strike at weak points in armor anyway. There should be some way through is all im saying, some tactic which would be somewhat effective if not punishing to those covered with armor. Perhaps that tactic is just turning up with 5 guys, all holding long pointy sticks... While the knight is asleep.