Attack Proposal - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Attack Proposal

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
zombiegleemax
Apr 17, 2004 15:54:13 My proposal for attacks:

Aiming: On any attack you can choose to aim at any part of a targets body. The penalties are listed below:
Aiming for left arm: -5 to hit (-7 For shield arm)
Aiming for right arm: -5 to hit (-7 For shield arm)
Aiming for left leg: -5 to hit
Aiming for right leg: -5 to hit
Aiming for head: -15 to hit
(NOTE: You can have negative to hit modifiers.)

Damages:
Hits on left leg: -1 Dex and other
Hits on right leg: -1 Dex and other
Hits on left arm: -1 Str and 50% chance of -1 Dex and other
Hits on right arm: -1 Str and 50% chance of -1 Dex and other
Hits head: -1 Con and take double damage
(NOTE: Any amount of damage less than 5 is counted as a minor wound and you do not take any penalties listed. However, if more than one attack hits hit the same body part, and you have 5 or more damage from multiple attacks, you still take the penalties above.)

Injured Head: If you get hit in the head, take a Massive damage save equal to damage dealt, or normal massive damage (whichever is lower) or die. Also, if a bludgeoning weapon hits you, then for massive damage the same as above but multiplied by two. For example, if you’re dealt 15 damage by a bludgeoning weapon to the head, first take a Fortitude save with a DC of 15 or die, then take another Fortitude save with a DC of 30 or be knocked out.

Injured Legs: If one of your legs is injured, you suffer a -10 Base speed. If both of your legs are injured, you suffer an additional -10 Base speed for a total of -20 Base speed. (NOTE: You can't have a negative base speed. If this puts your base speed to 0, you may have a 5 ft. move for a full-round action.)

Injured Arms: If the arm that you're fighting with (or if you're fighting with a two-handed weapon), then you take an additional -1 to hit and damage per 5 damage on that arm. (NOTE: You can have a negative to hit and damage modifier (but you cannot deal less than 0 damage).)

Infected wounds: If any of the wounds inflicted are not healed magically or any other way then after the first day (starting after 24 hours) you take 1 Con damage per day.

Healing Wounds:
Magical Healing:
Any heal spells such as cure minor wounds or other, the caster can choose which body parts to heal. For example, if a character has 12 Damage on his left arm, and 20 Damage on his right leg, he could choose which part of this he wants to heal. You must choose what you're going to heal before you cast the spell. If you heal more than the amount of damage on the specific body part, then the remaining hp to be healed will automatically be distributed to the next closest damaged body part.
Non-Magical Healing:
If you choose to rest to heal (i.e. Non-magical), then it is divided up randomly throughout the injured body parts. You still take Con damage if you rest to heal.

Minor Wounds: Once a wound has less than 5 damage on it, it is then counted as a minor wound and you take no penalties for it.

Walk it off: To avoid effects (besides damage) take a Fortitude DC= Amount of Damage x2 . After d4xCon Mod rounds this goes away.

Cut off?: If you take 25 damage in one round on a limb then test for massive damage or its cut off. This ability only works with slashing weapons

(NOTE: If you score a critical hit then you double ability damage and you double the damage you dealt. Do not double saves DCs. Also, you must aim for a body part before you roll. If you miss while aiming, then you miss (even if your attack normally would have hit).)
#2
zombiegleemax
Apr 21, 2004 10:01:46 Do you have any idea how powerful a sorcerer of level 1 with a crossbow and true strike would be with these rules!?
#3
zombiegleemax
Apr 22, 2004 12:21:44 You have a good point, and well actually, no I did not. But now that I think of it, an average first level sorcerer will probably have 1 Dex, and no BAB. If he casts true strike, then he waits until his next round to shoot. And then If he was aiming for the head, he would get a +6 to hit. So when it really boils down, he spent two turns to do that, and a +6 wouldn't be able to hit any good creature or character. All in all, if you spend a turn to get a +6, I wouldn't even say it's that broken.

And when you think of True Strike, you generally think of always hitting. So when a sorcerer casts True Strike and attacks, and the bolt flies at somebody's head and kills them (or badly hurts them if they have good HP), then it seems pretty fair to me. Am I that wrong?
#4
cryptictravler
May 17, 2004 15:08:00 Ok, a first level sorc pays for the damage. But a eldritch knight is going to become the best class in the game. Quicken true strike head, power attack five, he loses a 5th level slot and does enough damage to lop off your head almost every time. Yeah it realistic, but way unbalancing. Also it is a really stupid rule to use against non-humanoids. Dragon takes 25 damage and loses its head...you should at least limit that.
#5
zombiegleemax
May 28, 2004 12:37:04 I'm in the process of changing these attack rules so that there are two sets. One for melee aimed shots, and one for ranged aimed shots. These will also have different effects on the target.

I'm also going to change:

The minor wound rule or else no commoners would ever have a deep wound.
I'm going to get rid of the massive damage rule, but keep the knocked out.
The per 5 damage on the arm is going to be a % of max HP.
Change the cut off rule to a % of max HP.

I'll post back once I have modified all of these and some others if I think of more.
#6
zombiegleemax
Jun 13, 2004 15:33:35 Actually I've thought of such variants before but they are unbalancing, especially at high levels
For example

a 20th level elven fighter who starts with a DEX of 17 raises his DEX 5 times has a +5 longbow and gloves of dexterity +6 (with weapon focus and greater weapon focus and specializations) and greater bracers of archery has an attack bonus of 37 and does on average 15 + Str modifier of damage (and if he has flaming or something like that arrows more)

A creature with CR 20 will have approximately an AC of 35

On horseback you can move up to 50 feet back shoot an arrow towards your opponent (with an attack bonus of +35 with the mounted archery feat) and move again, if you hamper his movement by 10 ft each time you attack his legs he will never be able to reach you

Also if you hit the opponent’s arms at some point his strength will become that low that the opponent will not be able to move

And all you'd have to do is roll a 5 on your first attack roll (10 on the second etc.)

A variant of your rules that I wanted to use one (inspired by the Fallout series) was this:

Each part of the body has a modifier
Legs and arms have a modifier of 2
The groin (or some other area that a creature is particularly sensitive) has a modifier of 4
Head has a modifier of 6
Eyes have a modifier of 8

If you decide to make a called shot you subtract the modifier from your attack roll and add that number to your enemys AC

You increase your weapon's threat range by half the modifier

If you successfully roll a critical hit (with the above modifiers still in place) then instead of the extra damage you deal normal damage and something bad happens like in the legs enemies were slowed in the arms enemies got a penalty on their attack and damage and in the head they had to make a fort equal to the damage dealt or die
If you didn't roll a critical then normal damage is dealt. The above modifiers were only in place during the attack not through the whole round (like power attack)

I never got to use it though because it involved too many calculations.
#7
bitnine
Jun 15, 2004 8:56:39 You should also note that limited wish can be used to guarantee a hit. Normally, this is not so bad. However, combined with a 'head shot' rule, things might be a little sticky.
#8
zombiegleemax
Jun 16, 2004 7:16:28 Perhaps you should use some scaling values, and some multipliers for larger creatures to allow for a Higher Level party to still have a hard time beating that Balor in the face every single swipe of their sword.

For the Multiplier (on the damage required for an effect), it would start with x1 for Small and Medium creatures. Every category above Medium it goes up by x0.5. So a Large Creature would take x1.5 the normal amount of slashing and hacking to take his arm off in combat.

The scaling values for attack penalties wouldn't be that bad either - it could even be based off from the monsters AC. For every two points above AC 20 you're trying to hit, the penalty is increased by -1. It would still allow High Level characters to do well, but that's pretty much the point of being High Level, isn't it?

And in advance folks, don't argue over the validity of a House Rule with obvious Powergamer answers to it. We're talking about your average party of a Wizard, Cleric, Rogue, and Fighter here. And responding with a "But What If . . ." is a cop-out. The DM reacts accordingly to your "But What If . . ." regardless of what it is. It's the DM, people.
#9
zombiegleemax
Jun 16, 2004 18:16:14 I have to agree with what people have been saying. You also have to think about things like slimes, which have no body parts, and undead/golems, who aren't affected by where you hit them. The D&D combat system is good enough as is, and this is ingenious, realistic, and totally unbalancing.

Second problem....headache....a battle with four PCs, five goblins, and a hobgoblin alone is gonna be hard to keep track of all the damage, penalties. All in all, forget it, it’s a lost cause.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 zombiegleemax Apr 17, 2004 15:54:13	My proposal for attacks: Aiming: On any attack you can choose to aim at any part of a targets body. The penalties are listed below: Aiming for left arm: -5 to hit (-7 For shield arm) Aiming for right arm: -5 to hit (-7 For shield arm) Aiming for left leg: -5 to hit Aiming for right leg: -5 to hit Aiming for head: -15 to hit (NOTE: You can have negative to hit modifiers.) Damages: Hits on left leg: -1 Dex and other Hits on right leg: -1 Dex and other Hits on left arm: -1 Str and 50% chance of -1 Dex and other Hits on right arm: -1 Str and 50% chance of -1 Dex and other Hits head: -1 Con and take double damage (NOTE: Any amount of damage less than 5 is counted as a minor wound and you do not take any penalties listed. However, if more than one attack hits hit the same body part, and you have 5 or more damage from multiple attacks, you still take the penalties above.) Injured Head: If you get hit in the head, take a Massive damage save equal to damage dealt, or normal massive damage (whichever is lower) or die. Also, if a bludgeoning weapon hits you, then for massive damage the same as above but multiplied by two. For example, if you’re dealt 15 damage by a bludgeoning weapon to the head, first take a Fortitude save with a DC of 15 or die, then take another Fortitude save with a DC of 30 or be knocked out. Injured Legs: If one of your legs is injured, you suffer a -10 Base speed. If both of your legs are injured, you suffer an additional -10 Base speed for a total of -20 Base speed. (NOTE: You can't have a negative base speed. If this puts your base speed to 0, you may have a 5 ft. move for a full-round action.) Injured Arms: If the arm that you're fighting with (or if you're fighting with a two-handed weapon), then you take an additional -1 to hit and damage per 5 damage on that arm. (NOTE: You can have a negative to hit and damage modifier (but you cannot deal less than 0 damage).) Infected wounds: If any of the wounds inflicted are not healed magically or any other way then after the first day (starting after 24 hours) you take 1 Con damage per day. Healing Wounds: Magical Healing: Any heal spells such as cure minor wounds or other, the caster can choose which body parts to heal. For example, if a character has 12 Damage on his left arm, and 20 Damage on his right leg, he could choose which part of this he wants to heal. You must choose what you're going to heal before you cast the spell. If you heal more than the amount of damage on the specific body part, then the remaining hp to be healed will automatically be distributed to the next closest damaged body part. Non-Magical Healing: If you choose to rest to heal (i.e. Non-magical), then it is divided up randomly throughout the injured body parts. You still take Con damage if you rest to heal. Minor Wounds: Once a wound has less than 5 damage on it, it is then counted as a minor wound and you take no penalties for it. Walk it off: To avoid effects (besides damage) take a Fortitude DC= Amount of Damage x2 . After d4xCon Mod rounds this goes away. Cut off?: If you take 25 damage in one round on a limb then test for massive damage or its cut off. This ability only works with slashing weapons (NOTE: If you score a critical hit then you double ability damage and you double the damage you dealt. Do not double saves DCs. Also, you must aim for a body part before you roll. If you miss while aiming, then you miss (even if your attack normally would have hit).)
#2 zombiegleemax Apr 21, 2004 10:01:46	Do you have any idea how powerful a sorcerer of level 1 with a crossbow and true strike would be with these rules!?
#3 zombiegleemax Apr 22, 2004 12:21:44	You have a good point, and well actually, no I did not. But now that I think of it, an average first level sorcerer will probably have 1 Dex, and no BAB. If he casts true strike, then he waits until his next round to shoot. And then If he was aiming for the head, he would get a +6 to hit. So when it really boils down, he spent two turns to do that, and a +6 wouldn't be able to hit any good creature or character. All in all, if you spend a turn to get a +6, I wouldn't even say it's that broken. And when you think of True Strike, you generally think of always hitting. So when a sorcerer casts True Strike and attacks, and the bolt flies at somebody's head and kills them (or badly hurts them if they have good HP), then it seems pretty fair to me. Am I that wrong?
#4 cryptictravler May 17, 2004 15:08:00	Ok, a first level sorc pays for the damage. But a eldritch knight is going to become the best class in the game. Quicken true strike head, power attack five, he loses a 5th level slot and does enough damage to lop off your head almost every time. Yeah it realistic, but way unbalancing. Also it is a really stupid rule to use against non-humanoids. Dragon takes 25 damage and loses its head...you should at least limit that.
#5 zombiegleemax May 28, 2004 12:37:04	I'm in the process of changing these attack rules so that there are two sets. One for melee aimed shots, and one for ranged aimed shots. These will also have different effects on the target. I'm also going to change: The minor wound rule or else no commoners would ever have a deep wound. I'm going to get rid of the massive damage rule, but keep the knocked out. The per 5 damage on the arm is going to be a % of max HP. Change the cut off rule to a % of max HP. I'll post back once I have modified all of these and some others if I think of more.
#6 zombiegleemax Jun 13, 2004 15:33:35	Actually I've thought of such variants before but they are unbalancing, especially at high levels For example a 20th level elven fighter who starts with a DEX of 17 raises his DEX 5 times has a +5 longbow and gloves of dexterity +6 (with weapon focus and greater weapon focus and specializations) and greater bracers of archery has an attack bonus of 37 and does on average 15 + Str modifier of damage (and if he has flaming or something like that arrows more) A creature with CR 20 will have approximately an AC of 35 On horseback you can move up to 50 feet back shoot an arrow towards your opponent (with an attack bonus of +35 with the mounted archery feat) and move again, if you hamper his movement by 10 ft each time you attack his legs he will never be able to reach you Also if you hit the opponent’s arms at some point his strength will become that low that the opponent will not be able to move And all you'd have to do is roll a 5 on your first attack roll (10 on the second etc.) A variant of your rules that I wanted to use one (inspired by the Fallout series) was this: Each part of the body has a modifier Legs and arms have a modifier of 2 The groin (or some other area that a creature is particularly sensitive) has a modifier of 4 Head has a modifier of 6 Eyes have a modifier of 8 If you decide to make a called shot you subtract the modifier from your attack roll and add that number to your enemys AC You increase your weapon's threat range by half the modifier If you successfully roll a critical hit (with the above modifiers still in place) then instead of the extra damage you deal normal damage and something bad happens like in the legs enemies were slowed in the arms enemies got a penalty on their attack and damage and in the head they had to make a fort equal to the damage dealt or die If you didn't roll a critical then normal damage is dealt. The above modifiers were only in place during the attack not through the whole round (like power attack) I never got to use it though because it involved too many calculations.
#7 bitnine Jun 15, 2004 8:56:39	You should also note that limited wish can be used to guarantee a hit. Normally, this is not so bad. However, combined with a 'head shot' rule, things might be a little sticky.
#8 zombiegleemax Jun 16, 2004 7:16:28	Perhaps you should use some scaling values, and some multipliers for larger creatures to allow for a Higher Level party to still have a hard time beating that Balor in the face every single swipe of their sword. For the Multiplier (on the damage required for an effect), it would start with x1 for Small and Medium creatures. Every category above Medium it goes up by x0.5. So a Large Creature would take x1.5 the normal amount of slashing and hacking to take his arm off in combat. The scaling values for attack penalties wouldn't be that bad either - it could even be based off from the monsters AC. For every two points above AC 20 you're trying to hit, the penalty is increased by -1. It would still allow High Level characters to do well, but that's pretty much the point of being High Level, isn't it? And in advance folks, don't argue over the validity of a House Rule with obvious Powergamer answers to it. We're talking about your average party of a Wizard, Cleric, Rogue, and Fighter here. And responding with a "But What If . . ." is a cop-out. The DM reacts accordingly to your "But What If . . ." regardless of what it is. It's the DM, people.
#9 zombiegleemax Jun 16, 2004 18:16:14	I have to agree with what people have been saying. You also have to think about things like slimes, which have no body parts, and undead/golems, who aren't affected by where you hit them. The D&D combat system is good enough as is, and this is ingenious, realistic, and totally unbalancing. Second problem....headache....a battle with four PCs, five goblins, and a hobgoblin alone is gonna be hard to keep track of all the damage, penalties. All in all, forget it, it’s a lost cause.