reCalled from Action Blogging Challenge

Sahh had this fun idea I wanted to get in on.

The Challenge

It really is as simple as:

1. Pick a fight scene that isn't just two dudes hitting/shooting each other back and forth. Preferrably something with clever/weird manouvers and unconventional fighting techniques.
2. Run as through how you would have adjudicated the fight, what kind of rulings would you have made to allow the players to pull off all the cool manouvers.

I'm gonna take Sahh's suggestion of doing the same scene she posted for comparison's sake: Guts' fight against Lord Zondark from the Guardians of Desire chapter of Berserk.

First, a refresher on combat in my current rules.

Skill Checks

When a character attempts something, if they have all the skill, time, and tools they need and no one opposes them, they succeed.

When a character lacks sufficient skill, time, or tools, they make a skill check. The player rolls 1d6 if the character is unskilled, 2d6 if they’re skilled, 3d6 if they’re an expert, or 4d6 if they’re a master. On a 4+, they succeed.

When two characters oppose one another, they both make skill checks. Whoever rolls the highest die succeeds. Ties that must be broken go to player characters.

Initiative

Combat happens in rounds, about 6 seconds each (10 rounds to a minute). In each round, each fighter gets 1 action, which they can use to do anything they could do in about 6 seconds.

When combat starts, each fighter writes down what they want to do with their action. Everyone reveals their actions at the same time. Then, everyone rolls 1d6 for initiative. The referee counts down, starting at 6; each fighter gets to act when the countdown reaches their initiative. On a tie, PCs act first.

If one side of the fight catches the other by surprise, everyone on that side wins initiative automatically for the first round.

Melee Combat

When two characters fight blade to blade, each attempting to wound the other, they make opposed skill checks. The winner deals damage to the loser. On a tie, the fighters clash dramatically and no one deals damage.

When a fighter with a melee weapon attacks someone without a melee weapon, the target can make an opposed check to evade. If the target was preparing a missile attack, using an item, or casting a spell, they lose their action for the round.

An outnumbered melee fighter takes -1 per additional opponent. Only about 3 fighters can gang up on a single opponent effectively, less in tight quarters.

Missile Combat

When an archer or thrower takes aim at a target, the target can try to evade by throwing themselves out of the way or taking cover. They make an opposed check to evade against the shooter's check to hit. If the shooter wins, they deal damage. If the target hasn't acted yet, whether they evade or not, they lose their action for the round.

A target with a shield can attempt to block the shot instead of evading. If they win, they don't lose their action.

A character who's engaged in melee can't make missile attacks. A character aiming a missile attack into melee hits a random participant.

Items & Spells

When a character attempts to use an item or cast a spell in combat, any attack aimed at them before their action interrupts them. If they reach their action without being interrupted, they successfully use the item or cast the spell.

Damage & Wounds

When a character is hit by something that can hurt them, make a damage roll, 1d6 minus the target’s AC.

On a 1-3, the target takes a wound. A wound is a burden. If a character has 3 wounds, they’re down and dying.
On a 4-5, the target is down and dying. Without help, they’ll be dead in minutes.
On a 6+, the target is dead outright.

Morale

Every NPC has a morale score that measures how likely they are to keep fighting. Morale scores range from 2 (utter cowardice) to 12 (utter fearlessness). 7 is average for most humans.

When an NPC’s morale is tested, they make a morale check, 2d6. On a roll over their morale score, they’ll attempt to flee or surrender.

Individual NPCs check morale in combat each time they’re wounded. Groups of NPCs check morale the first time they’re outnumbered, when they’re reduced to half their fighting strength, and when their leaders are defeated.

Now that that's out of the way, it's killin' time.

The Fight

Ref: Okay, the knight goes down, his arm's off, he's in shock. 

Guts: I turn away and go, "now we're even," all cool.

Ref: You hear Puck call out, some kind of warning, but he cuts off as you hear another set of armored footsteps behind you. These ones sound a lot bigger. The other knights all shrink back, obviously scared. One of them stutters, "Lord Zondark!"

Guts: Fuck kinda name is that?

Ref: You turn, and fuck, you're pretty big, but this guy is big. Full plate, warhammer almost as long as the Dragonslayer. His visor's got this creepy-ass face design, he's muffled from behind it. "That's quite a sword you've got there, little man."

Guts: I just stare him down.

Ref: "Let's see how that sword of yours fares...when I put it to the test against this war hammer!" He winds up. Round one.

The ref starts writing down Zondark's action.

Guts: Okay, he's definitely gonna come in swinging. This is a two-hander, right?

Ref: Yup, so +1 on damage.

Guts: And he's got heavy armor...okay.

Guts' player writes down his action.

Ref: Ready...and, flip.

Both turn over their notecards. The ref's says, "warhammer strike aimed at Guts." Guts' says, "try to evade his blow, bait him into tying up his weapon."

Ref: Ooh, not going for an attack, alright. Hmm...you're just reacting to his attack, so I don't think we need initiative, you're letting him do his thing. That sound right?

Guts: Yeah, pretty much.

Ref: Cool. So, opposed checks, his warhammer skill against your dodging. He wins, he hits you, you win, his hammer's tied up. He's an expert with this thing, so three dice."

The ref picks up 3d6.

Guts: Dodging blows like this still counts as using my swordsmanship, right?

Ref: Yeah, it'll let you do that.

Guts: Okay, great, so I'm a master swordsman, four dice.

Guts' player picks up 4d6. Both roll; Zondark's highest die is a 4, and Guts' is a 5.

Ref: Alright, you've got that one. His hammer comes down toward your head, you're ready with a backstep. It smashes down into the flagstones at your feet; the beak digs in, it looks pretty stuck.

Guts: Sick.

Ref: Round two.

Guts' player starts writing down his action. The ref thinks for a moment, then does the same. They both reveal. Guts' says, "Strike at Zondark with the Dragonslayer." Zondark's says, "Recklessly pull my hammer clear, hitting one of my own men with the backswing."

Guts: Oh, shit. Wait, so I don't just get a free shot, even though I got his weapon stuck?

Ref: Yeah, so I'm thinking, if he just wanted to pull the hammer clear, that's like using an item, not fighting you. So if he won initiative, he'd pull it out, but then he wouldn't be able to hit back at you when you attacked, it'd just be your attack versus him guarding. And of course if you won, you'd have a free shot and he'd lose his action. But what he's doing is being an asshole, sacrificing one of his own guys to free his weapon quick. So if you win initiative, you'll still have your clear shot and he'll lose his action, but if he wins, he'll have his weapon back in time to threaten you when you attack.

Guts: Damn, okay. Alright, let's go.

Both pick up 1d6 and roll. The ref rolls a 3; Guts' player rolls a 1.

Guts: Fuck.

Ref: Zondark heaves, and the hammerhead pulls clear of the flagstone. The head swings back from the force, caving in the breastplate of another knight who got too close to the duel. That guy's dead, but Zondark's got his weapon back and ready. Your action.

Guts: So now it's my attack, and it's back to a regular opposed roll?

Ref: Yup.

Guts: Fuck it, I got this. Master swordsman.

Guts' player picks up his 4d6. The ref picks up 3d6. Both roll... 

...and get a high die of 5.

Ref: Okay, that's a tie, no one gets hit. You're trying to weave around that hammer, find an opening, but he's pushing you back. You feel a wall behind you, and get out of the way just in time for him to smash clean through it right where your head just was. He laughs. "What's wrong? There's nowhere left to run."

Guts: Asshole.

The ref's having fun hamming this up.

Ref: The other knights who still have intact chest cavities are all watching, amazed. Puck looks terrified. You can see Zondark's beady eyes glaring through his helmet slits. "See, it's not just a question of size." He's so obviously talking about his dick--

Guts: Yeah, I got that--

Ref: "If you can't handle your weapon...it's nothing more than baggage!" Round three.

The ref starts writing. Guts' player frowns for a moment, then gets an idea, smirking as he does the same. Both flip their notecards. The ref's says, "Finish this fool off." Guts' says, "Sunder weapon on his dick."

Ref: Ha, I love it. Wait, you mean the hammer, right?

Guts: Yeah, the hammer.

Ref: Cool. Okay, initiative...kind of seems like we don't need it again? He's trying to kill you either way, either you smash the hammer before he gets you or not. That can just be an opposed check.

Guts: Yeah, that sounds good.

Guts rolls his 4d6, the ref rolls his 3d6...

 Guts' high is 6. Zondark's is 3.

Ref: Ooh, you got it. Yeah, the Dragonslayer smashes right into the hammerhead as it comes down, just the right angle, that thing fucking shatters. Shards flying everywhere.

Guts: Hell yeah.

Ref: So he's unarmed now...I feel like he's checking morale at this point.

The ref rolls 2d6 and gets a 9, a failure for Zondark with his score of 7.

Ref: Yeah, he's out. *Getting inspired* Actually, y'know what, the shards of the hammer and just the weight of your strike knock his helmet clean off, and a bunch of the pieces get him in the face.

Ref: He goes down, clutching at his eyes. He's not getting up any time soon.

Guts: I plant my boot on the back of his head and grind his face into the flagstones. What was that last line he had?

Ref: Uh..."If you can't handle your weapon, it's nothing more than baggage?"

Guts: Yeah, that. I'm like, "Couldn't agree more."

Ref: Cold.

So this was tougher than I expected, and actually really helpful. If I were just starting from my rules as they are, I probably wouldn't come up with a lot of these moments in play. Still, I think the scene does present some really good examples of how the mechanics can work in interesting ways.

Figuring out how to handle the "Zondark merks his own guy" and "sunder weapon on his dick" moments within my procedures was tricky, but I feel like the solutions work well. The only thing I wasn't really able to figure out a way to represent without relying on ref improv was the bit at the end with Zondark losing an eye. I'd be interested to see a ruleset that would prompt a moment like that in that situation.

The challenge I see is, the bit where Guts breaks the hammer already presents pretty clear stakes on both sides: Guts wants to disarm Zondark, Zondark wants to crush his skull. Those were the stakes I had my players agree on. If Guts' player in this situation said, "I want to break his hammer and send the pieces flying into his face to wound him," I'd be inclined to say, "whoa, that's asking for two pretty big things from one action. If you don't want to put more on the line from your end, you've gotta pick one, and considering he's trying to kill you, I don't really see what more you could risk." I'm not sure if this is something that really needs or wants fixing from a game perspective.

This was a really fun exercise, and I highly encourage everyone to try it.