The Campaign Builder's Guild

Just looked over some more of this, and this + the clockwork junge=beautiful. If you don't mind, I would love to run a game using this system once the full list of skills and stats and stuff is up.

I have been reading over this the last few days, BTW.
I like going for the head, it smacks of the evolution of armor.
Which leads to that question...is armor cover?  
More thoughts later.  Suffice to say that as usual, I agree with LC and am enjoying the though process as much as the result.

Quote from: beautiful. If you don't mind, I would love to run a game using this system once the full list of skills and stats and stuff is up.[/quoteI have been reading over this the last few days, BTW.
I like going for the head, it smacks of the evolution of armor.
Which leads to that question...is armor cover?

I'm always grateful for your comments.  With regards to armor, right now armor works a little differently than cover - cover increases defense against missile attacks, while armor reduces the wound level dealt by a successful melee or missile attack (possibly reducing it to zero - no wound at all).  Cover right now is just an ad hoc bonus given on the judgment of the GM, while armor is going to be a fixed bonus based on the kind of armor you're wearing.

Armor/weapons will probably be the next phase of the project, so stay tuned for specifics on that.

OK.  I am all tuned up and in.  
How do you think your gradiation on skills will stand up to character growth?  
How about weapon damage vs health (vs armor)?
This was a huge question for me that took a decade to fine tune..no joke.

Quote from: LordVreegOK.  I am all tuned up and in.  
How do you think your gradiation on skills will stand up to character growth?

How about weapon damage vs health (vs armor)?
This was a huge question for me that took a decade to fine tune..no joke.[/quote]
I don't doubt it.  The number of variables are already pretty overwhelming, and it's impossible to see how well balanced the system is just by looking at the design doc.  With weapon/armor stuff as my next project, the whole combat system (or at least, this draft of it) will soon be in place, and when that's done I can run a whole bunch of test matchups to see how health, armor, skill, attributes, weapons, and so on balance against each other.  That's not an easy task, but on the up side I believe I've got a system that I can tweak fairly easily as the situation demands it.

I'm a bit more confident than I might otherwise be because I've taken a fair amount of combat system influence from TRoS, which I've played with before and find to be pretty well balanced.  There are major differences, of course, but I think that sort of grounding in that and other systems that have been through a large amount of testing will be helpful in avoiding some of the major pitfalls I could encounter.

I really like this idea (skills increasing attributes). It seems fresh and new - far different than other roleplaying systems that I've seen. I also liked your explanation on different dice systems and probability.

When it came to combat, I'm sorry to say I got really confused (it seemed a little overly complicated, but that's just me).

Combat aside, You said you were having trouble coming up with a health system that didn't solely rely on Stamina, so here is a little thought for you to ponder:

Don't base Health off of Stamina. In fact, don't base it off of anything. Have each character begin at exactly the same Health. While this does make every character the "same" at character creation, it also grantees that no character will die after 1 hit in combat. The trick here is that when characters improve after character creation (I assume you award skill points instead of XP), a character's health can only improve by spending points in it (instead of investing those points into skill ranks). I imagine that 1 skill rank does not equal +1 Health, but the exact ratio is up to you (perhaps something closer to 4 points = 1 Health, making players choose between more health or a synergy bonus).

Is this idea perfect? No, not at all. But it is something to consider. I have learned that originality comes from breaking people's assumptions - like the idea that skills improve your attributes, Health does not necessarily have to be based off of Stamina.

Just a little something that might spark an idea. I hope this helps.

Quote from: SamuraiChickenWhen it came to combat, I'm sorry to say I got really confused (it seemed a little overly complicated, but that's just me).

choices[/i] in combat without being horribly bulky, that would be just perfect.  I'm still thinking about it.

QuoteDon't base Health off of Stamina. In fact, don't base it off of anything. Have each character begin at exactly the same Health.

I've wavered back and forth between this and Stamina-based health for a while, and I'm inclined to agree with you about having a fixed base health.  I'm extremely wary of making skill points translate into health, however.  The idea behind Synergy was always to create a more intuitive relationship between abilities and skills, and being able to use skill improvement to make oneself more resistant to wounds or poison doesn't seem very intuitive to me.

I really appreciate the comments, by the way.  The process of making Synergy work is probably going to take a while, and different viewpoints are really crucial.

For a variety of reasons, I think the wager system - like the array system before it - is going to be sidelined for a while.  There are plenty of other things to work on in the system, and I'd like to be able to move on to them instead of wrestling with an intractable combat system.  The wager was an attempt to be innovative, but originality doesn't automatically make something good (or playable).

So, let's do something simpler.

[spoiler=Synergy Simplified Combat]
III. Combat

Combat in Synergy is handled by an assortment of combat skills:

Melee Combat (Str|Cun)*Throwing (Str|Coo)*Ranged Combat (Per|Coo)*Unarmed Combat (Str|Sta)*Evasion (Coo|Per)

All other skills are considered to be non-combat skills. Depending on the skill and the goal, non-combat skills might not be allowed in combat; even if they are, the character suffers a -2 penalty to the skill check. 'In combat' is defined as any round in which one uses or is the target of any of the combat skills as listed above, regardless of what effect they have (a character being shot at is considered to be in combat even if none of the arrows have hit him'¦ yet). The rare exception is if the character is targeted by one of these skills but remains unaware of it (a character is shot at, but the shot misses and the character does not notice it).

A character can use only one combat skill in a single combat round.

Checks Against a Fixed TN

Combat is performed either as an opposed roll or as a roll against a fixed TN depending on whether the target is actively trying to evade the blow.  A target who is unaware of an attack or chooses not to make any defense against it does not require an opposed roll to hit.

The standard TN for hitting a creature with an attack is 2.  This can be modified in a variety of ways:

Size.  The Hit TN of a creature is increased if it is smaller than its opponent, and decreased if it is larger.*Shield.  A creature holding a shield is harder to hit in combat even if it isn't actually trying to deflect your blow, simply due to its obstructing presence.*Range.  The Hit TN of a creature increases as you get further away from it (this applies only to missile attacks).*Environment.  A creature who is obscured by darkness or concealed behind dense foliage has a higher Hit TN.*Movement.  A creature who is moving is harder to hit than one who is not (this applies only to missile attacks).

Opposed Checks

When a character is actively attempting to not get hit '" generally, a good idea '" combat is handled with an opposed roll.  The attacker's roll is not always opposed by the same skill; while Melee Combat is usually pitted against Melee Combat, a character without weapons will have to oppose with Unarmed Combat, and Ranged Combat attacks are always opposed with Evasion (if they are opposed at all).

Knowing the defender's Hit TN is still important here, because even if the attacker wins an opposed check, he does not score a hit unless his roll result is good enough to hit the target if it were not resisting at all.  Thus, a character can't actually become easier to hit by trying not to get hit (though it is possible to get no benefit from opposing the roll if you are bad or unlucky enough).

Melee Combat

Combat at melee range is handled using the melee skills (Melee Combat and Unarmed Combat), even if a missile weapon is being used '" even if you're using a crossbow to fight the man next to you, you're still fighting in melee.

Initiative

Not all opponents get to attack every round.  When two characters engage in melee combat, one has the initiative and the other does not.  Initiative determines who is the aggressive party at any one instant during the combat.

The character with the initiative '" the attacker '" has a chance of hitting and wounding the opponent.  If his combat roll is successful (it is higher than the defender's opposed roll and Hit TN), he holds on to the initiative and is also the attacker in the following round, even if his hit caused no damage.

The character without initiative '" the defender '" usually has no chance of hitting his assailant unless he can gain the initiative for himself.  If the attacker's combat roll is unsuccessful (it is lower than either the defender's opposed roll or Hit TN), no hit is scored and the character who defended gains the initiative for the next round.

If the result of the attacker's combat roll is a tie '" it is exactly equal to the defender's opposed roll or Hit TN, whichever is higher '" no hit is scored, and the initiative is 'split' in the next round.  In a split initiative round, both parties are considered to be attacking, and both may hit and wound their opponent if they win the roll.  Any character who hits the opponent during a split initiative round has their margin of success increased by 1, as when both opponents are attacking, neither is defending especially well.

At the beginning of a combat round, either combatant may choose to forfeit the initiative.  A character who forfeits the initiative immediately becomes the defender, and must win back the initiative through a successful defense if they wish to regain it.  If both players forfeit the initiative, no attack occurs, and the combatants circle each other warily.

The first round of any melee combat is always a split initiative round, as is any round after both opponents have forfeited the initiative.  In either case, one or both opponents may choose to forfeit the initiative.

The Riposte

A character who succeeds in parrying an attacker's attack by a wide margin can make a strike of their own, called a riposte.  A riposte is only available to a character under the following conditions:

1.  The character is making an opposed combat check at melee range.
2.  The character is defending (does not have the initiative).
3.  The defender's check result is greater than the attacker's check result by 4 or more.
4.  The defender's check result is greater than the attacker's Hit TN.

If a character meets these conditions against a single melee opponent, he may choose to immediately make a riposte.  He not only gains the initiative for the next round, but scores an immediate hit with a base margin of success equal to 3 less than the difference between his result and the attacker's result (e.g. A defender who got a result of 6 against the attacker's result of 2 would score a hit with a base margin of 1).  This hit happens instantly, within the same round.

A character may make only one riposte per round.  If he meets the conditions against multiple melee opponents in the same round, he must choose one to make the riposte against.

Multiple Opponents

Fighting multiple opponents in melee at once is difficult.  A character must make a choice between concentrating on a single opponent or spreading his attention among multiple assailants.

A character may choose to oppose only one opponent.  If he does this, he suffers no penalty against that one opponent and makes checks against him as normal, but his other opponents need only roll above his Hit TN to hit him.

A character may fight against multiple opponents by splitting his skill points.  He can split his skill points in any way he chooses among his opponents.  A character with 6 ranks in Melee Combat, for instance, could choose to make opposed checks against three opponents simultaneously as if he had only 2 ranks in Melee Combat, or put 4 into checks against one opponent and 1 against each of the other two.  A character may not split skill points among a number of opponents greater than half his total points in the skill, rounded down (so a character with 7 skill points in Melee Combat could only oppose 3 opponents at most '" any more would be unopposed and only have to surpass his Hit TN).

A character may only have the initiative against one opponent at a time.  If he gains the initiative against more than one of his opponents, he must forfeit the initiative against his opponents until he holds it against no more than one of them.  Though this means a character can only be the attacker against a single foe at one time, a riposte against another in the same round may still be possible.

Ranged Combat

Combat at range is covered by the Ranged Combat, Throwing, and Evasion skills.  Unlike the melee combat skills, which are used for both attacking and defending, skills for ranged combat are used only either to make attacks (Ranged Combat and Throwing) or defend against them (Evasion).

Ranged combat does not utilize initiative.  A character in ranged combat always decides whether he is attacking or defending in any given round, regardless of whether he has been hit by another or not.

Preparation Time[/b]

Aiming and firing a ranged weapon usually takes longer than swinging a fist or blade.  Most missile weapons have a 'prep time' that indicates how many rounds must be spent preparing the weapon before the round in which it is fired.  Usually, the prep time varies depending on how the weapon or ammunition is carried '" a javelin already in the hand has only one round of prep time, while one carried on the back or strapped to a shield has two rounds.

A character can rush a ranged attack to try and make a ranged attack in haste.  Decreasing a weapon's prep time by 1 round incurs a -2 penalty to a character's Ranged Combat or Throwing check.  Prep time can only be decreased by one round in this way.

A weapon with a prep time of zero cannot be reduced any further; it cannot take less than one round to make a ranged attack.

Evading Missiles[/size]

A character can only oppose a ranged attack roll with the Evasion skill.  If the attacker's result is less than or equal to the defender's Evasion result, the attack misses.  As with melee attacks, the missile attack result must be higher than the target's Hit TN as well in order to score a hit (which can be quite high at long ranges).

Because Evasion is a combat skill, however, using it precludes the use of any other combat skill that round, including making a ranged attack of one's own.  A character can move around while making an attack to raise his hit TN, but this is not Evasion (Evasion is watching and dodging a specific attack, not just running around to make yourself a more difficult target).

Evasion can be used against multiple opponents by splitting one's skill points.  Like fighting in melee against multiple assailants, a character can only split his skill points among a number of opponents equal to half his total skill points, rounded down.  All others need only exceed the character's Hit TN.

Evading thrown weapons is easier than evading shots from a bow, and characters using Evasion against attacks made with the Throwing skill gain a +1 bonus to their check result.

Equipment in Combat

Armor and weaponry is not part of the combat system itself, but the damage system - both the weapon used and the armor used against it may change the impact of a successful hit, but they don't actually make the attack more or less likely to succeed.  Some pieces of equipment, however, do affect combat skill checks directly.

Shields

Shields can be employed in both melee and ranged situations.  They may provide both a passive defense (raising a character's Hit TN) and an active defense (providing a bonus to a character's Melee Combat and Evasion checks).

A shield's passive bonus is applied to the character's Hit TN against all ranged and melee attacks; optionally, the GM may decide that attacks coming from directly behind a character ignore this bonus (combat facing is not covered here).  Ripostes ignore this bonus to Hit TN.

A shield's active bonus is applied to all Evasion checks a character makes, as well as all Melee Combat checks a character makes while defending.  A character does not gain the shield's bonus when attacking (making Melee Combat checks on opponents against whom he has the initiative).

A shield's effectiveness is based on its size:

Small: +1 active, +0 passive
Medium: +1 active, +1 passive
Large: +2 active, +2 passive

A small shield permits a character to hold objects and use certain two-handed ranged weapons (though not melee weapons) even while wielding the shield.  Medium shields are too large for this; the hand cannot be used for anything else.  Large shields likewise require the whole arm, and in addition impose a -1 penalty to Melee Combat checks made when a character is the attacker.

Reach (Optional Rule)

The length of weapons is not detailed in this system.  At the GM's option, however, a character's reach can affect his initiative.

A character with significantly longer reach than another, whether naturally or because of a weapon, automatically causes his opponent to forfeit the initiative at the beginning of any round that would be a split initiative round (at the beginning of combat or any round after both opponents forfeit the initiative).[/spoiler]

A lot about this is stuff you've already read, though in another form and with a fair amount of extra stuff that's since been trimmed.  My hope is that the initiative system will imbue the system with more of a TRoS feel of shifting advantage without actually being TRoS (as the wager system was trying to be).

I like your new combat system. The Initiative system is completely different than any RPG I've played, yet it seems to introduce more tactical combat. It also feels more like real-life combat, thus making combat in this system a little scary (which can be a good thing). One thing you might want to change is naming it 'initiative,' since people may confuse it for the combat turn order. Perhaps you could rename it to 'advantage' or even 'combat advantage.' Also, if initiative in your system determines who is the attacker in melee combat, what do you call the order in which each character takes their actions?

I really like how shields work. It makes perfect sense to be used in this way. I wouldn't worry too much about facing in combat, since facing rules seems to make RPGs too complicated in my opinion.

If you could, I would love to see the numeric adjustments for modifying a character's standard TN to be hit (is it always in +1 increments, or is each type of adjustment different from each other?)

I'm a little concerned on ranged combat's preparation time, but the more I look at it, it does make a lot of sense. While archers can choose to take a '"2 penalty to lessen the preparation time, those who don't become very vulnerable targets (since they already used up their combat skill in preparing for the attack). I would suggest that no ranged weapon (other than siege weapons) have a preparation time greater than 1 turn (1 round to prepare, and spend the following round to attack).

In the end, I really like what you did with combat. The tactics seem very realistic, which you don't see in RPGs all that often.

On a completely different note, do you have a completed skill list?

Quote from: Skill ListAcrobatics (Coo|Str)
Agriculture (Apt|Per)
Alchemy (Apt|Per)
Ancient Lore (Apt|Apt)
Animal Handling (Cha|Per)
Art (Per|Coo)
Artillery (Per|Apt)
Astronomy (Per|Apt)
Ballooning (Per|Coo)
Brachiation (Sta|Str/Coo)
Camouflage (Per|Cun)
Channeling (Apt|Sta)
Chanting (Cha|Sta)
Climbing (Sta|Str/Coo)
Commerce (Cun|Cha)
Crafting (Apt|Str/Coo)
Dance (Coo|Cha)
Deception (Cha|Cun)
Decipher (Per|Apt)
Diplomacy (Cha|Per)
Disguise (Cun|Per)
Evasion (Coo|Per)
First Aid (Cun|Coo)
Fishing (Coo|Cun)
Folklore (Apt|Cha)
Gaming (Cun|Per/Apt/Coo)
Herbalism (Apt|Per)
Interrogation (Cha|Cun)
Intimidate (Cha|Str/Cun)
Jumping (Str|Coo)
Language (Apt|Apt)
Lock Picking (Coo|Cun)
Mathematics (Apt|Apt)
Mimicry (Coo|Per)
Meditation (Sta|Apt)
Melee Combat (Str|Coo/Cun)
Music (Apt|Per)
Observation (Per|Sta)
Oration (Cha|Cun)
Philosophy (Apt|Apt)
Ranged Combat (Per|Coo)
Riding (Sta|Coo)
Rowing (Sta|Str)
Sailing (Per|Coo)
Singing (Cha|Per)
Sleight of Hand (Coo|Per)
Sport (Sta|Str/Coo)
Stealth (Coo|Cun)
Surgery (Coo|Apt)
Survival (Cun|Per)
Swimming (Sta|Str)
Taunting (Cha|Cun)
Theology (Apt|Apt)
Throwing (Str|Coo)
Tracking (Per|Sta)
Trapping (Cun|Coo)
Unarmed Combat (Str|Sta)[/spoiler]
Yes, you read that right, I do have brachiation as a skill. :)

I've revised the wound system into something that is very short and simple.  It's serviceable, but not complete.  I think we can separate what we're missing into three categories:

Core: Weapons, Armor
Secondary: Fatigue, Hit Locations, Damage Effects
Peripheral: Poison, Disease, Channeling

Core stuff is definitely in.  I need to come up with a list of weapons that provides their damage adjustments, as well as their reach relative to each other (so we can use the optional rule on reach) and their type (to compare against armor types).  Armor will be listed as well, varying in effect depending on what kind of weapon is used.

Secondary stuff might be in depending on whether I can get it to work elegantly.  I'd like to have some way of measuring fatigue not only for purposes of 'realism' but because several of the offensive channeling forms I have in mind are fatigue-draining.  It's also a good counterbalance against wearing heavy armor all the time.  Hit locations would be nice but would probably involve the most complexity out of all of them.  By damage effects, I mean stuff like unconsciousness, knockdown, winding, bleeding, and other effects of different damage types and wounds aside from the general penalty and health damage.

Peripheral stuff is not directly related to combat, but does need to 'mesh' with the system.  Poison is going to be common in CJ, and it's important that it is both useful and not excessively so.  As I've mentioned, channeling will have some impact on combat, though CJ magic isn't really of the 'fire and lightning' sort.  Finally, while I don't expect disease to come into combat situations very often, it may produce similar penalties and deserves a bit of thought.

Sample Fight

But first I'm going to work on a few sample fights.  Let's begin with a simple sparring session '" two low-level Iskites sparring with staves (damage +0, for now) and no armor.

We will start with the following standard assumptions:

Base Attributes all start at 1*Iskite racial mods are +1 Per, +1 Apt, but it doesn't matter here as Melee Combat is (Str|Cun)*10 point skill buy*3 point maximum, or 4 point for Per or Apt skills

The possible range for a character like this is  +2 (no ranks in MC, base attribute bonuses) to +7 (3 ranks in MC, 4 each in Strength and Cunning skills).  Let's pit a total newbie against a practiced militiaman (+2 vs +7) and see what happens.  By the way, their names are Jeng (the newbie) and Ssaka (the warrior).

[spoiler=Round-by-Round Breakdown]Round 1:
Jeng and Ssaka close to melee range.  Initiative is split.  Jeng decides to forfeit the initiative, worried about that +1 damage bonus in split initiative rounds.  Ssaka opts to retain the initiative and is the attacker this round.

Now we roll.
Jeng: 5-4: -1 modifier, for a result of 1
Ssaka: 1-6: -5 modifier, for a result of 2

Ssaka's horrible roll is still enough to beat Jeng, but recall that attacks also have to beat the Hit TN of the enemy (which defaults to 2).  Jeng's result, being lower than his TN, isn't used.  The round result is a tie, which means no hits and another split initiative round.

Round 2:
Jeng, a little more confident, decides to retain the initiative this round.  Ssaka does likewise.  Both attack.

Jeng: 5-2: +3 modifier, for a result of 5
Ssaka: 1-5: -4 modifier, for a result of 3

Ssaka continues his horrible streak and Jeng picks up a nice positive.  Jeng wins the round with a margin of 2; this is modified by +1 because this was a split initiative round.  The total damage is 3.  Ssaka takes a -3 shock penalty in the next round; after that, he will retain a 1S wound.  His Health is also down to 9.

Round 3:
Jeng has the initiative and decides to keep it '" he wants to take advantage of that nice shock penalty to score another damaging hit.  Ssaka remains on the defensive.

Jeng: 6-3: +3 modifier, for a result of 5
Ssaka: 4-3: +1 modifier, -3 shock, for a result of 5

Another tie round '" but Ssaka is the real winner here, because he rides out that shock penalty without injury.  Now, he only has the enduring -1 wound penalty.  Another split initiative round is next.

Round 4:
Jeng decides to hope his luck holds and keeps the initiative, as does Ssaka.  Both attack.

Jeng: 2-1: +1 modifier, for a result of 3
Ssaka: 1-6: -5 modifier, -1 wound, for a result of 1

Ssaka, who at this point is starting to wonder if random.org is really that random, loses out.  The margin of success is 1, however, not 2, because Ssaka's Hit TN (which is 2) is higher than his roll.  The damage is increased to 2 because this is a split initiative round, so Ssaka takes a -2 shock penalty in the next round and gets another S1 wound.

Round 5:
Jeng is liking where this is going and keeps his initiative.  He is on the offensive, and Ssaka is defending.

Jeng: 6-6: +0 modifier, for a result of 2
Ssaka: 3-1: +2 modifier, -2 shock, -1 wound, for a result of 6

Ssaka successfully defends despite his penalties '" and defends by a margin of 4, which means that he qualifies for a riposte!  He immediately gets a free hit against Jeng with a margin of 1.  That's really just a scrape, but Ssaka seizes the initiative and Jeng has to deal with a -1 shock penalty next round.

Round 6:
Ssaka, having turned the tables, is now attacking.  Jeng defends and hopes for the best.

Jeng: 2-4: -2 modifier, -1 shock, for a result of -1
Ssaka: 6-3: +3 modifier, -2 wound, for a result of 8

Well, we all knew what would happen eventually.  Jeng had an impressive (and somewhat improbable) run, but Ssaka follows up his riposte with a monstrous 9 damage hit in the 6th round.  That's a -9 shock penalty next round and a -4 wound penalty thereafter, meaning that Ssaka is probably just going to be rolling against Jeng's Hit TN for the rest of the match'¦

Round 7:
'¦assuming, of course, the match doesn't end right now.  Jeng begins the round with a -9 shock penalty and his Health is now 6.  The shock exceeds his Health, which means he must make an immediate Stamina check against a TN equal to the difference between the shock and his Health (3).  This is handled before combat is rolled.

Jeng's Stamina check: 5-4: -1 modifier, for a result of 1.

Jeng collapses in a heap; Ssaka has won the fight.  This is a sparring match, so he immediately attends to poor Jeng; were it a real fight, Jeng would be at his mercy.  He walks away with only two S1 wounds '" deep and painful bruises, but nothing like the S4 he gave Jeng.  Jeng will live, however, and Ssaka will make sure to congratulate him when he wakes up for doing rather well against a professional.[/spoiler]

This is basically what I'd expect from this pairing - with good luck, the novice might be able to hold out for a while, but eventually he's going to get overpowered by a professional.

Of course, I need to do far more tests than this, but this at least gives you an idea of how Synergy combat plays out.  This is a super simple example - identical weapons, no armor, no shields, no ranged combat - but I hope it's at least a little illustrative.

Looks good. I like how the newbie seemed to have a fighting chance, but was eventually defeated by the more accomplished of the two.

For hit locations, perhaps you could roll 1d6 to determine which body part is hit:

Quote from:  left leg
2 = right leg
3 = left arm
4 = right arm
5 = torso
6 = head[/quoteYou could change the list however you want, but I prefer the concept of rolling a high number is better than rolling a low number. You could also roll a second d6 to determine the severity of the hit, or have the severity based on how much damage you deal.

I described weapons and armor as primary goals, so I should probably do that first.  The opening post has been updated with a new chapter.

Damage Types

I'm aware that using damage types, for whatever purpose, complicates a system.  I feel that the possible benefits outweigh the added complexity.

The only benefit immediately visible, of course, is expanded armor/weapon interactions.  Having varying effectiveness against different armors for different damage types requires more strategic thinking '" you can't just grab your 'best' armor and 'best' weapon and be satisfied that you're optimally prepared for any contingency.

Damage types also expand the possibilities for the effects of damage '" a slashing weapon might cause more bleeding or sever a limb, while a blunt weapon might be better at winding someone or knocking them unconscious.  I haven't touched that topic, but having damage types allows this to be added (as either an integral part or an optional one).

By the way, I know it's not quite the traditional pierce/slash/bludgeon system.  Honestly, though, the concept of "slashing" as it is often used is incoherent.  A two-handed axe and a scimitar don't have much mechanical similarity and really shouldn't share the same type.  It might seem weird to group sharp things (axes) with blunt things (maces), but in practice these weapons were used in a very similar manner.  I'd like to think that I've placed a little more emphasis on the kind of motions you make when wielding a weapon.

Armor and Such

Right now, of course, there's no reason to not wear the heaviest possible armor, but drawbacks - whether based on movement or fatigue or something else - can come later.  Additionally, if hit locations end up being used, it may matter what kinds of armor can be worn on specific areas.  

In case you didn't notice, I've got no mail or plate, and I'm probably missing a fair number of common weapons.  I've used only weapons and armor that would be common in CJ, but mail and such can be added easily enough.

Quote from: SamuraiChickenFor hit locations, perhaps you could roll 1d6 to determine which body part is hit:

I'm not fond of random hit systems.  I understand the argument - that your character is assumed to be taking advantage of momentary vulnerabilities - but wholly randomly determined strikes just don't sit well with me for some reason.  I prefer purposeful targeting, but that does present difficulties of its own.

Well, with the addition of weapons and armor, I think it's time for'¦

Sample Fight #2

Our previous fight was just a sparring session '" the same weapons and no armor.  It was also between two radically different combatants, one with the maximum possible Melee Combat skill (for a starting character) and one with none whatsoever.  For our second sample fight, let's make things a little more interesting.

Our first combatant is Tholun, a Tahr warrior.
+4 Str
+2 Cun
5 ranks in Melee Combat (total +11)
Beast Leather armor, Warbeak

Our second combatant is Shalek, an Ussik mercenary.
+2 Str
+2 Cun
4 ranks in Melee Combat (total +8)
Brigandine, Saber, Large Shield

Tholun has a few obvious advantages.  In terms of sheer combat prowess, he's 3 points up over Shalek, coming from both his superior strength and training.  Brigandine is better armor than leather, but Tholun's warbeak is designed to punch through armor and a saber isn't particularly good at punching through anything.  Shalek has only one possible advantage '" that big shield.  Still, if a novice can go six rounds with a veteran, then the Ussik has a fighting chance.

[spoiler=Round-by-Round Breakdown]
Round 1
Tholun and Shalek close to melee range.  Initiative is split, but Tholun's warbeak has greater reach than Shalek's saber (long vs. medium), so Shalek forfeits the initiative automatically.  Tholun keeps his and is the attacker this round.

Tholun: 5-6: -1 modifier, for a total of 10
Shalek: 3-5: -2 modifier, +2 shield, for a total of 8

Tholek's margin is 2, modified to 3 (+3 for weapon, -2 for armor).

Tholun lands a hit '" a rather minor hit, but Shalek is already the underdog and this doesn't help.  3 damage means a -3 shock penalty in the next round, and a -1 wound penalty thereafter for the S1 wound.  Shalek's Health is now 9.

Round 2
Tholun retains the advantage and is in a mood to press it.  He'll be the attacker again this round.

Tholun: 5-5: +0 modifier, for a total of 11
Shalek: 5-1: +4 modifier, -3 shock, +2 shield, for a total of 11

I'm not sure why the losers always seem to luck out in these practice fights, but Shalek has managed to break even with Tholun and ride out the shock round.

Round 3
Initiative is again split, but again Shalek forfeits it automatically because of Tholun's longer reach.  Tholun is the attacker again.

Tholun: 3-4: -1 modifier, for a total of 10
Shalek: 4-2: +2 modifier, +2 shield, -1 wound, for a total of 11

Shalek ekes out a successful defense, but it's not even close to what he needs for a riposte.  On the bright side, he can try to deal some damage of his own next round.

Round 4
Shalek has gained the initiative for the first time in the battle and intends to use it.  He is the attacker.

Shalek: 4-4: +0 modifier, -1 shield, -1 wound, for a total of 6
Tholun: 3-5: -2 modifier, for a total of 9

Tholun doesn't quite make a riposte but does ably deflect Shalek's attack, hindered as his opponent is by damage and an unwieldy shield.  Tholun is back in the driver's seat.

Round 5
Tholun is attacking again.  Are we going to go longer than the last fight?

Tholun: 1-5: -4 modifier, for a total of 7
Shalek: 5-2: +3 modifier, +2 shield, -1 wound, for a total of 12

Shalek defends with a margin of 5, which means he qualifies for a riposte with a base margin of 2.  Shalek has been slashing with his saber so far, which is the obvious choice, but ripostes require combatants with dual-type weapons (like a saber) to randomly determine which one is used.  A coin is flipped '" and Shalek rolls for slashing, which is rather good news for him.  With +2 for the weapon and -2 for the armor, the attack deals 2 damage.

Tholun takes a -2 shock penalty, an S1 wound, and 1 point of Health loss (putting him at 9).  Shalek gains the initiative.

Round 6
Shalek is attacking now.  It's time to face facts '" though Tholun now has a minor wound too, the Tahr is still the favorite in this match, and even Shalek's good luck has only just kept him in the game.  Next round, Tholun's shock will be gone, and it might be the last opportunity Shalek gets.  It's time to take a risk.  Shalek takes a deep breath and drops his shield at the beginning of the round '" not only does this remove the -1 penalty for a large shield, but his saber has variable grip, so he's now gripping it with two hands and swinging with a +3 damage mod.  A nice move, but if he doesn't make this hit he won't last long without that shield.

Shalek: 5-1: +4 modifier, -1 wound, for a total of 11
Tholun: 1-6: -5 modifier, -2 shock, for a total of 4

Shalek's margin is 7, modified to 8 (+3 weapon, -2 armor).

OH GOD WHY.  Thanks for nothing, Random.org.  With those rolls, Shalek probably didn't need to throw away that shield '" though if he hadn't, that damage would only be 6.  As it stands, Tholun takes an S4 wound and a -8 shock penalty to stack with the -1 wound penalty kicking in from his initial scrape.  Tholun's Health is also down to 5 '" and, as happened last time (in the exact same round, no less), he'll need to make a certain check'¦

Round 7
With a shock (8) higher than his Health (5), Tholun must now make a Stamina check against a TN equal to the difference between them (3).  We didn't note it initially, but Tholun's Stamina is +4.

Tholun's Sta check: 3-4: -1 modifier, for a result of 3.

Tholun stays conscious '" just barely.  But Shalek still has the initiative (and still has no shield).

Shalek: 2-1: +1 modifier, -1 wound, for a total of 8
Tholun: 4-4: +0 modifier, -8 shock, -1 wound, for a total of 2

Shalek's margin is 6, modified to 7 (+3 weapon, -2 armor).

Tholun, reeling from the last blow just seconds ago, takes another devastating slash.  That S3 wound means another -7 shock in the next round, plus a -5 wound penalty for previous damage.  The shock is again greater than the Health (which is now 2), so we're rolling again.

Round 8
Tholun makes another Sta check, this time against a TN of 5 (7-2).

Tholun's Sta check: 4-3: +1 modifier, for a result of 5.

Tholun, again, fights back the encroaching darkness, but there's little to be done at this point.  Shalek raises his saber for the presumably final blow.

Shalek: 1-3: -2 modifier, -1 wound, for a total of 5
Tholun: 4-3: -1 modifier, -7 shock, -5 wound, for a total of -2

Shalek's margin is 3, because Tholun's check result is lower than his Hit TN (2).  This is modified to 4 (+3 weapon, -2 armor).

We can safely forget shock and wound penalties at this point, because that S2 hit brings Tholun's health to 0.  He is unconscious and mortally wounded.  For Shalek, luck, a big shield, and a big risk helped him turn the tables on a very challenging adversary.[/spoiler]

What have we learned?

Firstly, combat is deadly '" maybe too deadly.  Both characters' weapon bonuses were equal to or higher than their opponents' armor bonuses, so every hit '" even a 1-margin hit '" dealt damage.  It might be better to either lower weapon damage across the board or increase armor values in the same manner.  That would tend to lengthen combats, because more blows would be blocked outright, preventing the 'shock cascade.'

That's what the real killer is here.  Had Tholun gotten even one round to recover after the first big hit (or even the second), it's entirely possible that he could have come back.  Shalek's rolls held steady, however, and those shock penalties were far too high for Tholun to block, let alone offer a riposte to those attacks.

Even a small hit can open the way for the shock cascade.  Look at Round 5 again.  If Shalek had rolled a thrust instead of a slash for his Round 5 riposte, his damage would have been reduced to zero, he probably wouldn't have thrown away his shield at the start of round 6, and the total damage of that attack would only have been 4 '" half what it actually was, and moderate enough to have given Tholun a chance to ride it out and come back.  Already 4 points up on Shalek, Tholun could afford to take some damage and still have an even fight.  That S1 riposte '" and Shalek's willingness to put everything he had into exploiting it '" opened the way for a catastrophic defense failure on Tholun's part that led to his death only seconds later.

And what about equipment?  Tholun's weapon was a good choice for damage, but a shield might have served him better in this fight.  In addition, Tholun's greater reach didn't amount to much, because Shalek probably would have forfeited the initiative in those rounds anyway.  Reach would have served Shalek better (here we see the potential advantage of a spear, the only Long weapon that can be used with a shield).

I do think this needs further revision, perhaps a lot of it, but I do like where the system is going.