Iren's PbP - Fantasy Rules

[Lord of Riva]

Also: is it okay to write short sentences like I did on the action, or do you prefer to summarize what happens in a post on your own accord?

[Irenaeus]

Can we hold our Actions to use them as Reactions like in DnD? For example, "Norman holds his Action to attack any rat that approaches him." Which would usually mean that he only rolls to attack if a rat comes into attack range and does nothing otherwise until his next turn.

Yes, that's perfectly fine, and there's got to be some rule that benefits the defender who takes some type of waiting stance to counter-attack or something. If there isn't, we can investigate if we can make up one.

Also: is it okay to write short sentences like I did on the action, or do you prefer to summarize what happens in a post on your own accord?

You can write and describe sentences to your liking, I enjoy reading and it gives me inspiration to later describe the scene in my next post, always considering the input of the players as feasibly as possible.

[logincrash]

Can we hold our Actions to use them as Reactions like in DnD? For example, "Norman holds his Action to attack any rat that approaches him." Which would usually mean that he only rolls to attack if a rat comes into attack range and does nothing otherwise until his next turn.

Yes, that's perfectly fine, and there's got to be some rule that benefits the defender who takes some type of waiting stance to counter-attack or something. If there isn't, we can investigate if we can make up one.

Should I roll to attack right now then? So you could incorporate that into your next post? If I miss, the rat hits me, but if I hit, I might kill the rat before it can attack me. All of that on the condition that a rat even approaches.

[DemoGraph]

We might need to simplify combat. Right now it's:
day 1 - roll for init.
day 2 - roll for attack / dmg for round 1.
day n+1 - roll for round n+1.
If it's 50% chance to hit, one hit one kill, we make turns once every two days, single combat may take a week.
It might be easier for a GM, but after several combats it might become too long.
Ideally, we probably need player input only when some meaningful decision has to be made. Roll for init or attack closest are not decisions.

Also, a cellar that 12 grown men hadn't even began to fill with their bodies is a goddamn huge one for a mud pit.
It's either a sacrificial pit for us all (roof falls, everyone dies, blood for the rat god), some kind of trader's warehouse or the inn stands on top of some older foundation (proceed to discover loli elf skellingtons).

[Acrux]

I've seen several boards where initiative isn't used for combat posting for that exact reason. Players post their combat actions, but might occasionally say they wait until someone else has acted or ask if their action can be ruled to happen before another player in certain circumstances.

[SpellSword]

I rolled less than 10 so I swung and missed, but if I did hit then how much does Fighting Experience add?

That's a good question since I made up that. How do you guys feel of giving a +1 bonus to attack rolls for Fighting Experience (meaning to all level 1 fighters)?

"+1 To Hit" From the 'Fighting Experience' skill sounds good to me.

[Lord of Riva]

Also, a cellar that 12 grown men hadn't even began to fill with their bodies is a goddamn huge one for a mud pit.
It's either a sacrificial pit for us all (roof falls, everyone dies, blood for the rat god), some kind of trader's warehouse or the inn stands on top of some older foundation (proceed to discover loli elf skellingtons).

I commented about that with my char actually. I'm expecting a full blown dungeon at this point

[maidenhaver]

We might need to simplify combat. Right now it's:
day 1 - roll for init.
day 2 - roll for attack / dmg for round 1.
day n+1 - roll for round n+1.
If it's 50% chance to hit, one hit one kill, we make turns once every two days, single combat may take a week.
It might be easier for a GM, but after several combats it might become too long.
Ideally, we probably need player input only when some meaningful decision has to be made. Roll for init or attack closest are not decisions.

I'm for skipping init rolls.

[maidenhaver]

Also, a cellar that 12 grown men hadn't even began to fill with their bodies is a goddamn huge one for a mud pit.
It's either a sacrificial pit for us all (roof falls, everyone dies, blood for the rat god), some kind of trader's warehouse or the inn stands on top of some older foundation (proceed to discover loli elf skellingtons).

I commented about that with my char actually. I'm expecting a full blown dungeon at this point

Somebody should look for the source of the big rats, once more suddenly appear, but otherwise our job is done. I like the idea of a newer village moving into a sunken, neolithic one. No dungeon, just newer houses over older ones.

[TKVNC]

Also, a cellar that 12 grown men hadn't even began to fill with their bodies is a goddamn huge one for a mud pit.
It's either a sacrificial pit for us all (roof falls, everyone dies, blood for the rat god), some kind of trader's warehouse or the inn stands on top of some older foundation (proceed to discover loli elf skellingtons).

I commented about that with my char actually. I'm expecting a full blown dungeon at this point

There's some pretty big cellars in old buildings in Europe.

But maybe it's built on top of old ruins or some such. Maybe we'll find the Amulet of Kings in there...

[Humbaba]

I think we can very easily abstract this as the cellar simply being large enough for 12 guys and about as many dog sized rats. Best not to worry about it too much.

[maidenhaver]

I think we can very easily abstract this as the cellar simply being large enough for 12 guys and about as many dog sized rats. Best not to worry about it too much.

Wrong thread, move it to the setting.

[maidenhaver]

You also need to take Acrobatics as a skill, if you want to be a twrilly, twinkle-toe ******.

[Irenaeus]

We might need to simplify combat. Right now it's:
day 1 - roll for init.
day 2 - roll for attack / dmg for round 1.
day n+1 - roll for round n+1.
If it's 50% chance to hit, one hit one kill, we make turns once every two days, single combat may take a week.
It might be easier for a GM, but after several combats it might become too long.
Ideally, we probably need player input only when some meaningful decision has to be made. Roll for init or attack closest are not decisions.

I'm seeing it as we are learning how to play by post, using this whole Prologue to test the rules and the flow of the game, we will be adjusting the back and forth between players and DM as we go by.

I've seen several boards where initiative isn't used for combat posting for that exact reason. Players post their combat actions, but might occasionally say they wait until someone else has acted or ask if their action can be ruled to happen before another player in certain circumstances.

An idea I have to speed up combat is that the DM rolls the initiative after the players announce their actions when faced with an encounter/combat. Players can also change their actions after a little discussion of the situation with other players so that plans of action can be made instead of everyone acting on their own without coordinating efforts.

Also, a cellar that 12 grown men hadn't even began to fill with their bodies is a goddamn huge one for a mud pit.
It's either a sacrificial pit for us all (roof falls, everyone dies, blood for the rat god), some kind of trader's warehouse or the inn stands on top of some older foundation (proceed to discover loli elf skellingtons).

I commented about that with my char actually. I'm expecting a full blown dungeon at this point

Yes, it's a big cellar. You'll be able to explore it after the fight, but I don't promise any mega-dungeon

[rusty_shackleford]

Per-side initiative might not be a bad idea, dunno if ACKS has rules for that

[Val the Moofia Boss]

To verify, if I were to do an attack roll, would it look like this?

1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus) + 1(fighter damage bonus)
or 1d20 +2


and then the damage roll would be a 1d10 (because of two-handed axe) + 1 (fighter damage bonus) + 1 (two-handed fighting style)
or 1d10 + 2

[rusty_shackleford]

To verify, if I were to do an attack roll, would it look like this?

1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus) + 1(fighter damage bonus)
or 1d20 + 3 +2

I would roll it like so:

Selection_022.webp

The purpose is to be able to break the rolls down and label each part clearly.

[Irenaeus]

To verify, if I were to do an attack roll, would it look like this?

1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus) + 1(fighter bonus)
or 1d20 + 3

it's 1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus)
or 1d20+3

The +1 fighter bonus is for damage (melee AND missile).

Eventually fighters get better at hitting things than other classes when they level up:



Page 102 of the ACKS rulebook. I made up the +1 fighting experience bonus, it's part our house rules (which I promised Rusty I'd compile).

[Val the Moofia Boss]

it's 1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus)
or 1d20+3

If +1 STR ability score bonus + 1 fighting experience bonus = 2, where does the third point come from? Or was that a mistake and it's supposed to be just +2 total?

[Irenaeus]

To verify, if I were to do an attack roll, would it look like this?

1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus) + 1(fighter damage bonus)
or 1d20 +2

Now I see the edited post, that is correct.

and then the damage roll would be a 1d10 (because of two-handed axe) + 1 (fighter damage bonus) + 1 (two-handed fighting style)
or 1d10 + 2

I think you have a normal-sized axe that does 1d6 with one hand and 1d8 with two hands.
So it would be 1d8 + 1 (fighter damage bonus) + 1 (two-handed fighting style)
or 1d8+2 damage.

[rusty_shackleford]

@Val the Moofia Boss I fixed the image & roll to be in line with your edits/the rules.

Let me know if you guys need any other help on how to use the roller.

[Irenaeus]

it's 1d20 + 1 STR ability score bonus (Gunthard's STR is 15) +1 (fighting experience bonus)
or 1d20+3

If +1 STR ability score bonus + 1 fighting experience bonus = 2, where does the third point come from? Or was that a mistake and it's supposed to be just +2 total?

Sorry, it's 1d20+2.

I copiedpasted your original post and forgot to edit the 1d20+3 to 1d20+2.

[Irenaeus]

By the way, not sure if you noticed, but there's no fumbles or critical rolls. A 1 is just an automatic miss and a 20 is just an automatic hit.
Noticed the other day and forgot to comment

[logincrash]

Tillomar stepped forward to engage but his axe swing went wide, missing the rat he targeted. His dog also seems unable to engage effectively with a rat.

Nearby, Tillomar, equally frustrated by his own missed swing, finds his attention split. As he recovers his axe, another rat lunges, not for his legs, but for the hand gripping his weapon (attack roll 17). Its teeth sink into his glove, drawing blood and pressing hard, eliciting a surprised curse (1 damage).

and Tillomar with his hand hurt attacks (or uses his hand) with a further -1 penalty.

How was the last part decided? Can we do called shots? Aiming for the specific body parts, like VATS in Fallout?
Or did you roll to hit and then roll to see which body part?

[Irenaeus]

Tillomar stepped forward to engage but his axe swing went wide, missing the rat he targeted. His dog also seems unable to engage effectively with a rat.

Nearby, Tillomar, equally frustrated by his own missed swing, finds his attention split. As he recovers his axe, another rat lunges, not for his legs, but for the hand gripping his weapon (attack roll 17). Its teeth sink into his glove, drawing blood and pressing hard, eliciting a surprised curse (1 damage).

and Tillomar with his hand hurt attacks (or uses his hand) with a further -1 penalty.

How was the last part decided? Can we do called shots? Aiming for the specific body parts, like VATS in Fallout?
Or did you roll to hit and then roll to see which body part?

I rolled randomly for the rats attacking either legs or arms (50%/50%). When you're attacking a target the size of a ball like these large rats, you can't really aim at something like the head or tail, it's too small. For future larger enemies, we might make a rule that you can target a specific body part and the roll is harder but if you miss by little you still hit central mass or something. We can house rule it. It's an idea.

[logincrash]

ACKS PHB says to roll for Initiative at the start of every round. I assume we won't be doing that and will only roll for Initiative once at the start of combat?

[Irenaeus]

ACKS PHB says to roll for Initiative at the start of every round. I assume we won't be doing that and will only roll for Initiative once at the start of combat?

I think it's a great idea for tabletop since the rolls are so simple. But for sake of brevity in our combats at Play-by-post, we'll roll initiative once at the beginning of each fight. So good luck with that one roll!

[maidenhaver]

I needed a roll at or lower than my DEX, which I got. Let me know if I need to roll for anything else, or if I need to use Skirmish to escape the cellar.

[Irenaeus]

I needed a roll at or lower than my DEX, which I got. Let me know if I need to roll for anything else, or if I need to use Skirmish to escape the cellar.

Safe to say you "escaped" freely since the fight was over and there was no threat nearby.

[Humbaba]

How does my Stealth skill work? I don't see an entry about that in the -ACK rulebook. Is it analogous to Hide in Shadows?

Speaking of Hide in Shadows, should I roll for that now? Or do we assume I hide successfully since we're currently out of combat?