[PnP] my first post - a few very noob questions

[Burton Choinski]

New Blood for the blood god! :}


On Sep 14, 2007, at 10:00 PM, Paul L. Ming wrote:

> Hiya.
>
>
>> 1) Can magic users wear armor and does it affect their ability to  
>> cast
>> spells? From my reading so far, I assume magic users can wear  
>> whatever
>> they like with no penalty. That seems strange to me.
>>
>    Yup, they can wear whatever they want as per the rules. Personally,
> my house rule is that for every AV of armor that they wear, the  
> Cost per
> PMR goes up by 1. So, a caster casting a spell that costs 11 mana, and
> he can cast it normally at a rate of 3 per PMR would cost 3, 3, 3, 2
> normally; but if he is wearing 2 points of AV his cost goes up to  
> 5, 5,
> 5, 4. The spell still takes the same length of time, but it just costs
> more mana.

Interesting rule.  Armor affects can be handled in so many ways,  
depending on the "flavor" you want in your game world.  Another way  
to similarly handle this is to add AV to the casting roll, or AVx2 if  
the armor is primarily metal (i.e. increased armor makes success more  
difficult -- newbie wizards need not apply).  Similarly, AV can be  
added as Paul uses, or the AV/AVx2 added to BMC directly (thus  
affecting even low-level spell use).

>
>
>> 2) Are there any house rules to take OCV/DCV or the target's
>> agility/dex (or anything) into consideration when targeting them with
>> ranged weapons?
>>
>    Again, you are correct. However, it would be a simple matter to
> simply use the listed "Line" number as the missile OCV and then  
> subtract
> the defenders DCV from that. So someone shooting a Heavy Crossbow at
> short rage at a target with DCV 4 would roll on line +2 on the  
> Combat table.

By players are somewhat grumbling over this.  In our long ago games  
(1983) we interpreted this incorrectly and assumed it was an add to  
the archer's OCV.  In my current game We are using it as stated,  
though I am applying some minor tweaks (every 5 OCV adds +1, every 5  
DCV on target adds -1), plus some other tweaks based on target size  
(I don't add a modifier based on target size, I move up or down the  
table.  Just because it's a giant doesn't mean it's all head. :} )

>
>> 4) Can I assume that most P&P GMs are VERY liberal with spell success
>> modifiers? It sure seems like the players can romp all over the NPCs
>> without them. As an example, "Abandon"; I like to assign a 5 to 10
>> penalty if the target is already leery of the caster, up to 25 if  
>> they
>> are already in combat. Meanwhile, I would consider a bonus of around
>> 10 if the caster can cajole the target into a discussion to at least
>> consider "forgetting all your woes" before casting his spell.
>>
>    Spells in P&P are *very* powerful. However, the big balancing  
> factor
> for me has always been the uncertainty of the targets MDV. :) A  
> high MDV
> and only a 'moderately bad' roll to cast can quickly result in an
> Abysmal Failure. I also have a house rule that limits the number of
> 'spells' a character can start with. The limit is based on a total
> number of  BMC's worth of spells. This way, a player can choose a list
> with a few high-power spells, a lot of low-power spells, or (most
> commonly) a general mix of them.
>    Adding modifiers in-game is also kind of expected in P&P. This  
> isn't
> a game system that relegates the GM to nothing more than a player who
> rolls for the monsters. P&P expects that the Referee to actually be a
> master of the game. In this way, P&P is quite heavy on the "Referee
> adjudication" aspect of play. This is GOOD! So, keep applying those
> modifiers in an even manner and everyone will know what to expect.

I've been doing this game for 20+ years (off and on) and even we are  
still looking at balancing tweaks.  I'm currently playing with a  
combat option (spell casting allows a -10 on an attacker's roll) that  
makes any wizard/warriors a bit more cautious about popping off  
spells when they are in the front row.

>
>> 5) I do see ambush rules, but are there any rules (House or  
>> otherwise)
>> that dictate how soon two groups of travelers will see each other in
>> the wilderness? Or who will see each other first? The skills don't
>> seem to account for sensory perception very much – is that generally
>> ignored in games that you folks run?
>>
>    I have created my own stat called "Awareness" (I+A+Em / 3, ru).  
> This
> is used for general 'awareness and perception in general'. I use it to
> see if a character notices scuff marks on the floor near a secret door
> in the wall, for example. If the characters specifically search an  
> area,
> I move to appropriate skills (Survival, Tracking, etc.).
>   As for distance in a non-ambush situation...again, P&P makes the
> Referee earn his keep by using his brain. I just think of the  
> situation
> and use my judgment. An Awareness check would probably be made;  
> success
> indicating  a greater distance at which the 'targets' are noticed.

Why A instead of D?  I understand I (understanding what you see) and  
Em (sensing).  Wouldn't D (hand-eye coordination) be better?  I  
presume you have a skill (Observation) that ties into it so that  
players can improve this (i.e. Observation skill is used, not  
attribute).  However, the use of pure stat does have an advantage in  
that legacy characters don't feel gyped if a new skill comes about  
later on.

Our group has also observed a distinct lack of "Stealth" skill or  
"Awareness".