As a consequence, magic is real and common in my campaign. In fact, it is a consumer product. Characters are often running around with fire beads and magic lamps. They have access to all kinds of magic at the get-go. There are mysteries to the magic, but the sort of mysteries that people think of after a six-pack of beer at 3 am.
"Gee... Vorpal Swords are a really specific type of magic. Why would anyone do that?"
This sort of twist creates all kinds of weird issues in my campaign. For example, no one is really surprised by clerics and magic users casting spells. In fact, even the lowliest turnip farmer knows if a spell caster starts waving their hands, grabbing their thumb or nose stops the spell. It's fun but also ridiculous.
This means I have some house rules to cover these scenarios.
In the aforementioned scenario, it only takes a to-hit roll against armor class 9 to grab someone's nose or thumb. It stops the spell, not injures the caster. Since it is so unexpected and simple, I also have a follow-up rule for foiled spells. If you get hit BEFORE the spell is ready, it's like you never cast. The caster doesn't lose that spell.
However, getting hit AFTER the spell is prepared but before the caster can do something with it does cause them to lose the spell's effect and the memory of the spell. I like this because the caster got tagged at the exact wrong moment. It's a magical fumble.
I leverage this against the ever-stupid "called shot". I don't impose penalties for called shots. If you are in a fight, it is customary and normal to try and smash someone's head in, stab them in the heart, or lop off a hand. Why impose a penalty for something that is totally expected?
Speaking of fumbles, I don't do them unless someone is completely untrained. And the worst effect is that the fumble results in the weapon being dropped or thrown. This is something a noob does, not a professional warrior or assassin. I have several pairs of nunchucks. I've seen this a million times. I do not permit players to injure their characters with poor rolls, but comedy may ensue. I will even throw experience points at someone who roleplays a fumble.
So, what do I do with fumbles for professionals? That's easy. If 1 is the worst that you can do, and the worst that a knight can do is miss, then they swung and missed. They look bad, but didn't drop their weapon.
My house rule for missing the target on all odd numbers, 1 to whatever, you tried and missed. This tells me when someone hits a shield or completely wiffs. It's handy to know which is which without much math and record-keeping.
Alright, what are even number misses? That's even easier. Since the person is highly skilled, an even number failures represents a case where they didn't even swing or attack. They knew they would miss and didn't bother. This is more important for missile weapons, because they never throw. The user still has the missile weapon, and it is ready for the next round of action.
One of these days, I will sit down and unpack all of these fun house rules and share them all in a coherent fashion.
No comments:
Post a Comment