Grappling is one of those things that's always a nightmare in RPG combat. It's almost invariably a fiddly mess that doesn't mesh or scale well with standard combat rules. To an extent, grappling is a part of normal combat, as a lot of grabbing, pushing, tripping, and so on takes place even in a sword fight. Sometimes, though, a combatant will expressly attempt to grasp and hold on to an opponent, and some grappling-specific mechanics come in handy.
What I'm going for here is something reasonably simple, without too many conditions and modifiers, which complements rather than contradicts the basic combat rules and minimizes absurd outcomes such as a high-level fighter wrestling a war horse or a giant to the ground.
For the basics of my fantasy heartbreaker combat system, see here and here.
Without further ado, here's what I've come up with for grappling.
The first phase of a grappling attack is resolved with standard combat rolls. The combatant initiating the grapple must either have at least one hand free or use a natural attack capable of grasping, such as a crocodile's jaws. A defender may be either unarmed or armed. (Included in standard G&G combat, if I haven't mentioned it already, is a rule that attacking unarmed against an armed opponent incurs a -2 penalty to AC; thus grappling an opponent with deadly weaponry is more hazardous than grappling an unarmed one.) A grappling combat roll is always modified by Agility; if the defender chooses to attack normally and try to avoid being grappled, it uses whatever modifier it normally would for its own mode of attack.
Both combat rolls have their normal effects, inflicting damage if they exceed the opponent's AC. If the attacker's roll is higher than the defender's (including all modifiers for both) the attacker has achieved a solid grip on the defender. If the defender's roll is higher, it eludes the attacker's grasp and remains free. Note that neither necessarily needs to inflict damage; the higher roll wins, even if it's otherwise dismal. Ties always go to the defender; i.e. no change in status.
Once a grip is established, in subsequent rounds the attacker may simply hold on, or may try to overpower the opponent. Regardless of which action is chosen, each combatant may continue to attack the other, making normal combat rolls each round and inflicting damage as appropriate.
Holding on to an opponent means that the combatant is maintaining its grip on the opponent and avoiding the opponent's attacks. One common tactic is to hold the opponent from behind, or in the case of a larger opponent, to climb on and cling to its back. While holding, the grappling character's combat rolls against the opponent are made at +2, while the opponent's combat rolls against the grappler suffer -2. Additionally, attacks by other creatures or characters against either grappler or grappled are made at +2 to the combat roll, as their ability to dodge and parry is limited.
The opponent chooses the direction of movement, if any, possibly at a reduced movement rate if the grappler is heavy enough to encumber it.
Each round, new combat rolls are made, and if the opponent wins a combat roll against the grappler, it may either throw him off or establish a grapple of its own, which leads to an overpowering contest.
Only small, medium, or natural weapons may be used while in this stage.
At the GM's option, holding onto certain opponents may render some attack forms impossible and others more likely to succeed. For instance, a grappled medusa may be unable to turn and use her gaze attack on the grappler, but the grappler would be extremely vulnerable to the bites of the writhing snakes on her head.
Overpowering occurs when one combatant tries to restrain, subdue, or move the other. When two combatants are both grappling each other, it automatically becomes a contest of overpowering. Overpowering requires a contested roll of 1d6, with each combatant adding its Combat Rating and Might adjustment. For monsters without a Might score, use the creature's unadjusted Hit Dice. Characters not using both hands to grapple (holding a weapon or other item in one hand) are penalized by -1.
The one with the higher total is in control, and may do one of the following:
Automatically inflict 1 point of damage per point of difference in the rolls
Reduce damage done by the opponent by 1 point per point of difference in the rolls
Drag/carry the opponent 5 feet per point of difference.
Break free, if its combat roll also exceeds that of the opponent.
Ties result in a stalemate, with no movement possible.
A new overpowering roll is made each round that the grapple continues, until one or the other combatant escapes or is subdued. A combatant reduced to 0 hp in a grappling contest is considered subdued and unable to resist further. A subdued opponent may be automatically slain if desired.
Only small or natural weapons may be used while involved in an overpowering contest.
Example 1
Gort the fighter wishes to grapple and subdue an outlaw without killing him in order to bring the miscreant to justice. He has a Combat Rating of 4 and a Might adjustment of +2, and an Armor Class of 14. The outlaw has a CR of 3 and Might +1, and AC 14 also. Gort is unarmed, and so suffers a -2 penalty to his AC against the outlaw's dagger.
Gort scores a total of 17 on his first try, beating the outlaw's AC by 3 points, doing the maximum unarmed damage of 2 points. The outlaw, however, gets an 18, tagging Gort for 4 points of damage and preventing him from getting a good grip.
Next round, however, Gort gets a 12. This isn't enough to deal any damage, but it beats the outlaw's roll of 8, and Gort grabs hold of the cad. He immediately tries to overpower his foe, aiming to subdue him. Gort rolls 1d6 and adds 5 for his combat skill and strength, achieving a total of 10! The outlaw rolls and adds his total bonus of +4, with a -1 penalty because he's not letting go of his dagger; he only scores a 6. Gort could inflict an automatic 4 points of damage, or he could reduce the damage done by the outlaw by 4 points, or he could drag the bastard up to 20 feet. Since the outlaw failed to do any damage with his combat roll, the second option is moot. Gort chooses to wear him down with a punishing choke hold, doing 4 points of damage.
In the third round, the outlaw's combat roll is a resounding 18, but Gort outdoes him with a 21. Gort does 2 points of damage with his (unarmed) combat roll, but will take 4 points from the outlaw's dagger. Since Gort has maintained his grasp on his opponent, another overpowering check is made, which he again wins, 9 to 7. Gort could choose to reduce the damage the outlaw inflicts on him by 2 points, to increase his own damage against his foe by 2 points, or to move him 10 feet. He chooses to keep the pressure on his choke hold rather than fend off the outlaw's weapon hand, so he takes the full 4 points of damage but inflicts 4 points of his own.
So we leave their struggle, and move on to...
Example 2
Sera the thief gets caught picking the pocket of a burly fighter. With no easy escape, she decides her best bet is to grab and hold on so he can't skewer her with his sword. Sera's CR is 1, her Agility bonus is +1, and her AC is 13. The fighter has an AC of 14, +1 Might, and CR of 3. Sera has one free hand and her club in the other, so she suffers no penalty to AC.
Her adjusted combat roll is a 10 - not enough to hurt her opponent, but the fighter rolls only a 7, and she seizes him by his sword belt and jumps on his back.
Next round she rolls a 15 and the fighter gets a 16, but since she has him grappled, she gets +2 to her roll, and his roll is penalized by -2. Their adjusted totals are 17 and 14. Sera wins, holding her relatively safe position on the fighter's back. He does 1 point of damage to her, and she does 3 points to him. If she hadn't successfully grappled him, she would have taken 3 points and done only 1 to him.
If the fighter should beat Sera's combat roll next round, he could choose either to throw her off, or to attempt to overpower her. As the thief hangs on for dear life, we move on to...
Example 3
Dorn the Overly Inquisitive prods a crocodile with a stick and gets the result any person with basic common sense would expect. The croc attacks and scores a total roll of 13, not good enough to pierce Dorn's plate armor (AC 16) but enough to beat his pitiful flailing roll of 7.
The croc naturally tries to overpower him. It rolls a 4 on 1d6, plus its Combat Rating of 3, plus its unadjusted Hit Dice (also 3) for a total of 10. Dorn rolls a 5, plus his CR of 2 and Might adjustment of +1, coming up short with an 8. The croc chooses to drag him 10', into the water.
The next round the croc wins again with a combat roll of 8 over Dorn's 5, neither scoring any damage, and wins the overpowering roll 11 to 6. Now the croc goes into its "death roll" and deals 5 points of damage to Dorn, who is in serious trouble...
Optional Rules
Multiple attackers: If more than one combatant tries to grapple the same target, any that is not counterattacked succeeds as long as its combat roll is not a natural 1. For example, four goblins try to grapple a fighter wielding a mace, with which he can sweep up to three opponents. The first three goblins succeed only if they beat the fighter's combat rolls against them. The fourth succeeds unless it rolls a 1; the fighter doesn't have enough actions to oppose it.
When multiple attackers attempt to overpower a grappled opponent, only one 1d6 roll is made for the entire side. Add the most powerful member's CR and Might or HD adjustments and +1 for each additional member.
Multiple defenders: An attacker with more than one available grasping appendage may attempt to grapple more than one target. This is treated as a sweep, with combat rolls modified accordingly. Overpowering rolls are made, dividing the attacker's bonus from CR and Might or HD evenly among the opponents held, rounding down. For example, a fighter with CR 4 and Might adjustment +2 who grapples two goblins rolls 1d6+3 for each of his overpowering rolls. The goblins roll without penalty.
Holding onto a grappled opponent while attacking or fending off others is likewise considered a sweep and combat rolls should be adjusted accordingly.
Mutual grappling: If two combatants both wish to grapple, both are automatically successful. Combat rolls determine only whether any damage is scored. A mutual grapple is always a contest of overpowering; proceed to the overpowering roll.
Disarm: If a combatant wins two overpowering rolls in a row and chooses the "reduce damage" option (whether or not the opponent would actually score any damage), the opponent is disarmed if desired (and applicable.)
Tackle: Charging or leaping onto an opponent adds +2 to the initial grappling attempt. For example, a panther leaping from a tree branch to grapple a target on the ground would get this bonus.
Adapting to standard D&D
Use Dexterity adjustment instead of Agility, and Strength instead of Might. Use (20-THAC0) instead of Combat Rating. When Combat Rating is increased or penalized due to grappling positions, increase or reduce any damage caused by rolling twice and taking the higher or lower roll, respectively.
If I've made any mathematical or logic errors, or if you find a serious (or even not-so-serious) rules expoit that could result in an unbalanced advantage or an absurd result, please point them out!
Showing posts with label unarmed combat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unarmed combat. Show all posts
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
On unarmed combat
For all its many strengths, there are a few areas in which D&D fails in epic fashion. Either there's a glaring hole in the rules where something that desperately needs to be addressed is not, or there's some bizarre kludge dropped into the hole which is either inconsistent with the rest of the game, absurdly complex to the point of being virtually unplayable, or both. Among those epic fails are the game's attempts to model unarmed combat.
I've only briefly glanced at the 1st and 2nd edition AD&D unarmed combat rules, so I can't comment much on them but to say that even at a glance they seemed convoluted and bizarre. What I've read in the OSR blogosphere from people much more familiar with them only reinforces that initial impression. Classic D&D has kept it simpler, at least relative to AD&D, but it's still pretty weird.
Frank Mentzer's Companion Set contains the first attempt, so far as I'm aware, at an official unarmed combat system for Classic. It includes such mechanics as rolling against Constitution to check for stuns, and saving throws to avoid being knocked out. Of course, in real brawls and fist fights, people are sometimes stunned and knocked out. Tacked on to an already existing system in which people beat on each other with clubs and hammers with no chance for stuns and knockouts, though, it looks pretty absurd. You can knock out a guy with 50 hp, or leave him reeling and unable to defend himself for a few rounds, by striking him with a fist, but whack him over the head with a mace and he takes 1d6 damage and keeps fighting? That's just silly.
There's really no reason that unarmed strikes need a different system at all. A knockout is aptly modeled by reducing an opponent to 0 hp with unarmed strikes. Just as the 50 hp fighter doesn't get run through every time he's successfully attacked with a sword, he doesn't take it square on the chin every time someone lands a haymaker on him, either. All the damage leading up to the final blow, whether lethal or non-lethal, is about wearing him down, rattling his confidence, using up his luck, or whatever the fashionable explanation of hit points is these days. It's the final blow that finally strikes true and lays him out.
How much damage an unarmed strike should do is open to debate, and varies from source to source. Some prescribe a base damage of 0 or 1 point, modified by Strength bonuses. Others say 1d2 points, or 1d2 for a punch and 1d3 for a kick, plus Strength bonuses. Still others start at some base amount, like 1 point, and increase it by one die size per Strength bonus - 1d2 for a +1, 1d3 for a +2, and 1d4 for a +3, for example.
Personally, I like the punch 1d2+St/kick 1d3+St formula. I'd probably apply a -2 penalty to hit with a kick, unless the target is much lower to the ground or the attacker is standing on a higher level relative to the target, e.g. a brawler standing on top of a table kicking someone standing beside it.
Stuns are a little more problematic. They could be hand-waved as just an expected part of the 10 second (or 6 second, or one minute, or whatever your edition uses) combat round, like feints and parries and jockeying for position. Alternatively, on any critical hit with a weapon that the DM rules capable of stunning, the target must making a saving throw (vs. paralysis seems an appropriate old school save) or be stunned for 1 round per 2 points of damage inflicted by the attack. It seems reasonable to limit stuns to creatures twice the mass of the attacker or less.
Wrestling or grappling attacks, which attempt to grasp and restrain an opponent rather than causing damage, are another problem. You could handle it in the same way as unarmed strikes, wearing the opponent down and capturing it when its hp reach 0, but that produces some odd and counterintuitive results. For one, what happens to the opponent's hp when the attacker releases it? It seems weird to have it remain at 0 hp, but equally weird to suddenly regain all of its hit points. It also runs counter to common sense that simply grabbing hold of someone should require completely wearing down his resistance.
Mentzer's wrestling rules from the Companion Set are serviceable, but add a new game mechanic (Wrestling Rating, which is used for nothing else, and sometimes breaks down in strange ways, especially when calculating it for monsters) and a lot of complexity to combat. Below is my tentative attempt at integrating grappling into the usual combat mechanics.
A character attempting to grapple an opponent makes a normal attack roll vs. the opponent's AC sans armor. Dexterity and magic still apply, but physical body armor does not. Success indicates that the opponent has been grabbed. If desired, the attacker may attempt to grab a specific body part (e.g. the opponent's sword arm) by accepting a -4 penalty to the attack. An opponent using a conventional attack, either armed or unarmed, automatically wins initiative and may strike first against the would-be grappler. If the attack hits, the grappling attempt is fended off for that round, and the grappling character may not take another action. Note that if the opponent is attacking a different target entirely, and ignores the grappler, actions are resolved according to normal initiative procedures, and the opponent does not automatically win initiative over the grappler.
A grabbed opponent may be limited in its movement (opposed Strength check to see who determines the direction of movement, but the winner is still encumbered as if carrying the other.) It may attack with a small or medium weapon or natural attacks, unless the specific limb holding the weapon was the target of the initial grab. Attacks against the grabbing character are +2 to hit, since the character cannot evade them effectively while maintaining his hold. Alternately, the opponent may try to escape the hold by making a grappling attack of his own; if it succeeds he may choose between throwing off the grappler or establishing a grip of his own (both combatants are now holding onto each other.)
A second successful grappling attack results in the opponent's attack being neutralized completely, and the grappling character may inflict 1d6+Strength bonus of subdual damage for each round that he maintains this hold. This is the equivalent of placing the opponent in a hammer lock, full nelson, choke hold, or similar. A successful armed or unarmed strike by the opponent once again fends off the grappler's attack, although the initial grab is not broken unless the grappler chooses to break it; only the improved grip and subdual hold are prevented. Note that two characters both grappling and trying for such a hold against each other cannot both succeed; in this case the attacker who hits the best AC gains the upper hand. The held opponent may attack with his off hand, either unarmed or with a small weapon, at -4 to hit. Anyone else may attack either combatant at +4 to hit, as neither can dodge while the hold is maintained.
In the case of multiple attackers trying to grapple a single opponent, each attacker rolls separately. Unless the opponent has multiple attacks, only one grappling attack may be fended off by a successful hit. Each attacker beyond the first that successfully grapples adds +2 to the Strength score of the strongest of the group for purposes of determining movement, and adds to the encumbrance of the load on the grappled opponent. Conversely, the opponent's encumbrance is divided amongst the grapplers. Up to four attackers can grapple an opponent of equal size, eight can grapple an opponent of twice their size, and twelve can grapple one of three times their size. When a subdual hold is established, each additional grappler can completely neutralize one attack of the held creature.
A character or creature who is a part of such a "dog pile" may be pulled away by a new combatant making a successful grappling attack against it.
A subdual hold, and the resulting damage, may not be inflicted on an opponent greater than twice the mass of the attacker. In the case of multiple attackers, if a number of them whose combined mass is greater than half that of their opponent succeed in a second grappling attack in the same round, they may establish such a hold.
Whenever the Strength score or mass of a creature are not known, the DM may assign them according to his own judgment. Large or huge creatures, like horses, giants, and dragons, should certainly have Strength scores far outstripping the human range; that and their great masses (an average horse weighs around 1,000 pounds) should serve to curtail the most absurd abuses of the grappling rules.
And there you have it. Hopefully it's less complicated and easier to apply than its length would indicate. It may very well have some holes or be prone to breaking under certain circumstances, so please feel free to weigh in if you spot a problem.
I've only briefly glanced at the 1st and 2nd edition AD&D unarmed combat rules, so I can't comment much on them but to say that even at a glance they seemed convoluted and bizarre. What I've read in the OSR blogosphere from people much more familiar with them only reinforces that initial impression. Classic D&D has kept it simpler, at least relative to AD&D, but it's still pretty weird.
Frank Mentzer's Companion Set contains the first attempt, so far as I'm aware, at an official unarmed combat system for Classic. It includes such mechanics as rolling against Constitution to check for stuns, and saving throws to avoid being knocked out. Of course, in real brawls and fist fights, people are sometimes stunned and knocked out. Tacked on to an already existing system in which people beat on each other with clubs and hammers with no chance for stuns and knockouts, though, it looks pretty absurd. You can knock out a guy with 50 hp, or leave him reeling and unable to defend himself for a few rounds, by striking him with a fist, but whack him over the head with a mace and he takes 1d6 damage and keeps fighting? That's just silly.
There's really no reason that unarmed strikes need a different system at all. A knockout is aptly modeled by reducing an opponent to 0 hp with unarmed strikes. Just as the 50 hp fighter doesn't get run through every time he's successfully attacked with a sword, he doesn't take it square on the chin every time someone lands a haymaker on him, either. All the damage leading up to the final blow, whether lethal or non-lethal, is about wearing him down, rattling his confidence, using up his luck, or whatever the fashionable explanation of hit points is these days. It's the final blow that finally strikes true and lays him out.
How much damage an unarmed strike should do is open to debate, and varies from source to source. Some prescribe a base damage of 0 or 1 point, modified by Strength bonuses. Others say 1d2 points, or 1d2 for a punch and 1d3 for a kick, plus Strength bonuses. Still others start at some base amount, like 1 point, and increase it by one die size per Strength bonus - 1d2 for a +1, 1d3 for a +2, and 1d4 for a +3, for example.
Personally, I like the punch 1d2+St/kick 1d3+St formula. I'd probably apply a -2 penalty to hit with a kick, unless the target is much lower to the ground or the attacker is standing on a higher level relative to the target, e.g. a brawler standing on top of a table kicking someone standing beside it.
Stuns are a little more problematic. They could be hand-waved as just an expected part of the 10 second (or 6 second, or one minute, or whatever your edition uses) combat round, like feints and parries and jockeying for position. Alternatively, on any critical hit with a weapon that the DM rules capable of stunning, the target must making a saving throw (vs. paralysis seems an appropriate old school save) or be stunned for 1 round per 2 points of damage inflicted by the attack. It seems reasonable to limit stuns to creatures twice the mass of the attacker or less.
Wrestling or grappling attacks, which attempt to grasp and restrain an opponent rather than causing damage, are another problem. You could handle it in the same way as unarmed strikes, wearing the opponent down and capturing it when its hp reach 0, but that produces some odd and counterintuitive results. For one, what happens to the opponent's hp when the attacker releases it? It seems weird to have it remain at 0 hp, but equally weird to suddenly regain all of its hit points. It also runs counter to common sense that simply grabbing hold of someone should require completely wearing down his resistance.
Mentzer's wrestling rules from the Companion Set are serviceable, but add a new game mechanic (Wrestling Rating, which is used for nothing else, and sometimes breaks down in strange ways, especially when calculating it for monsters) and a lot of complexity to combat. Below is my tentative attempt at integrating grappling into the usual combat mechanics.
A character attempting to grapple an opponent makes a normal attack roll vs. the opponent's AC sans armor. Dexterity and magic still apply, but physical body armor does not. Success indicates that the opponent has been grabbed. If desired, the attacker may attempt to grab a specific body part (e.g. the opponent's sword arm) by accepting a -4 penalty to the attack. An opponent using a conventional attack, either armed or unarmed, automatically wins initiative and may strike first against the would-be grappler. If the attack hits, the grappling attempt is fended off for that round, and the grappling character may not take another action. Note that if the opponent is attacking a different target entirely, and ignores the grappler, actions are resolved according to normal initiative procedures, and the opponent does not automatically win initiative over the grappler.
A grabbed opponent may be limited in its movement (opposed Strength check to see who determines the direction of movement, but the winner is still encumbered as if carrying the other.) It may attack with a small or medium weapon or natural attacks, unless the specific limb holding the weapon was the target of the initial grab. Attacks against the grabbing character are +2 to hit, since the character cannot evade them effectively while maintaining his hold. Alternately, the opponent may try to escape the hold by making a grappling attack of his own; if it succeeds he may choose between throwing off the grappler or establishing a grip of his own (both combatants are now holding onto each other.)
A second successful grappling attack results in the opponent's attack being neutralized completely, and the grappling character may inflict 1d6+Strength bonus of subdual damage for each round that he maintains this hold. This is the equivalent of placing the opponent in a hammer lock, full nelson, choke hold, or similar. A successful armed or unarmed strike by the opponent once again fends off the grappler's attack, although the initial grab is not broken unless the grappler chooses to break it; only the improved grip and subdual hold are prevented. Note that two characters both grappling and trying for such a hold against each other cannot both succeed; in this case the attacker who hits the best AC gains the upper hand. The held opponent may attack with his off hand, either unarmed or with a small weapon, at -4 to hit. Anyone else may attack either combatant at +4 to hit, as neither can dodge while the hold is maintained.
In the case of multiple attackers trying to grapple a single opponent, each attacker rolls separately. Unless the opponent has multiple attacks, only one grappling attack may be fended off by a successful hit. Each attacker beyond the first that successfully grapples adds +2 to the Strength score of the strongest of the group for purposes of determining movement, and adds to the encumbrance of the load on the grappled opponent. Conversely, the opponent's encumbrance is divided amongst the grapplers. Up to four attackers can grapple an opponent of equal size, eight can grapple an opponent of twice their size, and twelve can grapple one of three times their size. When a subdual hold is established, each additional grappler can completely neutralize one attack of the held creature.
A character or creature who is a part of such a "dog pile" may be pulled away by a new combatant making a successful grappling attack against it.
A subdual hold, and the resulting damage, may not be inflicted on an opponent greater than twice the mass of the attacker. In the case of multiple attackers, if a number of them whose combined mass is greater than half that of their opponent succeed in a second grappling attack in the same round, they may establish such a hold.
Whenever the Strength score or mass of a creature are not known, the DM may assign them according to his own judgment. Large or huge creatures, like horses, giants, and dragons, should certainly have Strength scores far outstripping the human range; that and their great masses (an average horse weighs around 1,000 pounds) should serve to curtail the most absurd abuses of the grappling rules.
And there you have it. Hopefully it's less complicated and easier to apply than its length would indicate. It may very well have some holes or be prone to breaking under certain circumstances, so please feel free to weigh in if you spot a problem.
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