Technology: Protective Equipment
Time for some more rules-crunch. I've put together a set of alternate To-Hit mechanics, in which Armor is made up of multiple worn pieces, and provides the wearer with Damage Reduction instead of increasing their Armor Class (which prevents attacks from damaging the wearer altogether).
In order to hit an opponent in combat, the attacker first makes an Attack Roll to determine if they are able to hit them. If their Attack Roll is greater than the defender's Armor Class, the defender may choose to take the blow, or attempt to defend against the attack. If defending, they make a Defense Roll; if it is greater than the Attack Roll, they avoid the attack. Otherwise, the attacker makes a Damage Roll to determine how well they hit; subtract the defender's Armor Rating from the damage roll, and deal the remainder to the defender as damage to their Hit Points. Note: each time they choose to make a Defense Roll, they take a cumulative -2 penalty on future Defense Rolls until their next round; even strong defenders in heavy armor can be overwhelmed by many attackers.
My goal in using this design for armor is to add depth to your defense strategies; you can enhance your Armor Class with shields and keep your Max. Dex Bonus high in hopes to avoid attacks entirely, or increase your Damage Reduction by wearing heavier armor to shrug off most hits. This has the added effect of making heavy armor less effective against high-damage weapons like firearms, while the lightly-armored are better at avoiding hits entirely (but are damaged more heavily when hit). The wound-tracking system is also getting an overhaul to accommodate for the higher incidence of damage, but that'll have to wait for later!
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* When carrying a buckler, you can use your shield-arm as though it were empty, but you take a –1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so.
** Bracing and Tower shields may be deployed as a standard action, to provide cover along one edge of your square. Cover strength varies by shield.Armor and Coverage:Body Armor: Chest, Torso, Neck
Leg Armor: Legs, Feet
Arm Armor: Arms, Hands
Head Armor: Head
Attack Rolls/Scores:Attack Roll = [1d20] + [Base Attack Bonus] + [Str Mod.] + [Weapon Bonus]
Damage Roll = [Weapon Dmg. Dice] + [Str Mod.] + [Weapon Bonus]
Defense Rolls/Scores:Armor Rating = [Armor Hardness/Enhancement] + [Natural Armor] + [Damage Reduction/Misc. Bonus]
Defense Roll = [1d20] + [Base Defense Bonus] + [Dex Mod.] + [Shield Bonus/Enhancement] + [Deflection/Misc. Bonus]
* When Flat-Footed, you can still defend, but gain no bonuses from Dexterity, Class Defense, or Shields.
Blocking: When defending, you may elect to block, positioning your shield to directly intercept an attack instead of dodging/parrying. Lose your Shield Bonus to your Defense Roll (note: this makes you easier to hit). If the attack hits, it damages the shield first; reduce the damage by your Shield Bonus, and deal any excess damage to the HP of the shield. If the shield is reduced to 0 HP, it is broken, and any excess damage is applied to you as normal.
* If you don't have a shield, you may block with a weapon or another appropriate held object; reduce damage dealt to the object by it's Hardness (as its Shield Bonus), but treat it as though it were 2 points lower (a -2 non-proficiency penalty for using an improvised shield).
When wearing armor pieces with different scores, you always use worst score on all the armor pieces you're wearing (Note that helmets don't carry the usual penalties, but instead grant a perception penalty when worn). Armor Hardness is one exception to this rule; you always use the AH of the armor worn on your Body slot, unless against a Called Shot (an attack aimed at a specific part of the body), which uses the AH of whatever area the attack targets (Armor coverage listed below). Called Shots are more difficult to land, but may bypass armor, and can also cause debilitating effects depending on where they hit. More on that when we get to wound tracking!
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Topic: Blunderbuss Rules and Discussion Thread - It's a Game Now! (Read 25452 times)