Playing with Durability
The concept of durability, specifically that of weapons, is extremely exciting for me. What better to add tension to a fight than a sword snapping in twain, right in the middle of the battle? I've seen many different mechanics, from RuneQuest's weapon HP or Jason Knight's excellent "Notches" system, but I have yet to find one that satisfies both my desire for slightly more simulationist combats and game-ified tension.
My current solution to this is written below, and is an excerpt from my forthcoming house rule-book for my own setting:
For example, a character with a +1 Strength modifier successfully hits a Wretch with a Sword. The character rolls 1d8 for damage, and gets a 1. The Wretch takes 2 points of damage. The character rolls the d8 again, and gets a 5, enough to splinter it, and it now deals 1d8-1 base damage, but an effective damage of 1d8 (-1 damage +1 for Strength. They cancel out).
*All successful attacks deal a minimum of 1 damage.
I wrote this during a thoroughly boring seminar about Rousseau, so I hope it makes sense. I have yet to thoroughly test it, so it might be terrible. We'll se.
I'm also considering a durability system for shields and armor, but those are still very much preliminary ideas.
Critical hits can also open up opportunities for exciting equipment durability rules. However, I am still uncertain about the necessity of critical hits or fumbles. I'll further develop my thoughts on this in a later post. For now, I hope these durability rules make sense for your game.
My current solution to this is written below, and is an excerpt from my forthcoming house rule-book for my own setting:
Each weapon has a rating of durability. When a 1 is rolled on the damage die for the weapon, roll the damage die again. If the result is higher than half of the maximum damage on the damage die, it does not wear down. If it is half or below the maximum damage, it becomes splintered, which subtracts 1 from the base damage of the weapon.* If, in the future, another 1 is rolled on the weapon’s damage die, and the damage die rolled again and rolled equal to or below half the maximum, then the weapon is mangled, and cannot be used to deal damage in combat, and must be repaired.
For example, a character with a +1 Strength modifier successfully hits a Wretch with a Sword. The character rolls 1d8 for damage, and gets a 1. The Wretch takes 2 points of damage. The character rolls the d8 again, and gets a 5, enough to splinter it, and it now deals 1d8-1 base damage, but an effective damage of 1d8 (-1 damage +1 for Strength. They cancel out).
*All successful attacks deal a minimum of 1 damage.
I wrote this during a thoroughly boring seminar about Rousseau, so I hope it makes sense. I have yet to thoroughly test it, so it might be terrible. We'll se.
I'm also considering a durability system for shields and armor, but those are still very much preliminary ideas.
Critical hits can also open up opportunities for exciting equipment durability rules. However, I am still uncertain about the necessity of critical hits or fumbles. I'll further develop my thoughts on this in a later post. For now, I hope these durability rules make sense for your game.
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