Author Topic: Stunned characters cannot attack?  (Read 2380 times)

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Offline Druss_the_Legend

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Stunned characters cannot attack?
« on: January 11, 2017, 04:37:52 AM »
What is possible when you get stunned?
Can you attack or only parry?

Offline vector

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #1 on: January 11, 2017, 09:49:14 AM »
What is possible when you get stunned?
Can you attack or only parry?

I run a heavily house ruled RMSS campaign. From the RMSS Core Rules:

"While stunned, a combatant may not attack and may only parry with half of his Offensive Bonus. The only other allowable actions are movement and maneuvers (modified by at least -50). In addition to normal modifications, stunned maneuvers are also modified by three times the character’s SD stat bonus."

Online Spectre771

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #2 on: January 11, 2017, 10:35:22 AM »
What is possible when you get stunned?
Can you attack or only parry?

The crits in RM2 state "Stunned" or "Stunned unable to parry" so we let the wording of the crit dictate whether or not the PC could parry.  We allowed parrying at half when stunned, or the player tried to roll Stunned Maneuver for a round, but there was an bonus to OB for attacking a stunned PC.  I'm not sure if that's a house rule though.  I need to go back to look at the rules for only "stunned" to see.

PCs don't normally die from HP loss, they die from crits... and heavy stuns move that process along faster.  :D
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Offline vector

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #3 on: January 11, 2017, 11:31:07 AM »
PCs don't normally die from HP loss, they die from crits... and heavy stuns move that process along faster.  :D

Nothing truer has ever been written about Rolemaster! The crits get you and a bad Stun result can mean a quick end to a fight.

Also, in RMSS there is a +20 bonus for attacking stunned opponents.

Online Spectre771

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #4 on: January 11, 2017, 12:09:46 PM »
PCs don't normally die from HP loss, they die from crits... and heavy stuns move that process along faster.  :D

Nothing truer has ever been written about Rolemaster! The crits get you and a bad Stun result can mean a quick end to a fight.

Also, in RMSS there is a +20 bonus for attacking stunned opponents.

I believe it's +20 in RM2 as well. 

The crits are what got me hooked on this game system years ago.
If discretion is the better valor and
cowardice the better part of judgment,
let's all be heroes and run away!

Offline Druss_the_Legend

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #5 on: January 11, 2017, 01:29:30 PM »
What is possible when you get stunned?
Can you attack or only parry?

I run a heavily house ruled RMSS campaign. From the RMSS Core Rules:

"While stunned, a combatant may not attack and may only parry with half of his Offensive Bonus. The only other allowable actions are movement and maneuvers (modified by at least -50). In addition to normal modifications, stunned maneuvers are also modified by three times the character’s SD stat bonus."

cool. i like that. ill use this in my campaign from now. i have lessened the chances of a crit but increased the damage done. a side-effect of this is mamage multipliers like frenzy and and AM speed have become dangerously good. so its shufted combat to a quicker resolution. Crits still happen but far less frequently. My reasoning for using super-fast combat system (RMCIII) was to speed up combat. This has worked and done what i wanted it to but i sort miss the crits. I have also house ruled Ambush so that it increases odds of doing crits making that skill sort of a must have skill for my characters. I let my players know we were trialing these changes and will see how they feel about them after this season wraps - had planned about 8 sessions using super fast combat. After 3 sessions im sort of missing the crits a little but as a group we will have input to the combat rules changes and then ill make a call on whether we lkeep them or not.

Offline Puin

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #6 on: March 27, 2017, 05:48:09 PM »
How 'bout spellcasting while being stunned?
Reading "and the only other actions allowed are movement and maneuvers, both modified by at least -50"
Looks like you can't but there are spells that relief oneself of stuns, like monk's "Stun Relief I (HS*)".
We houseruled that you can cast NONE attack spells, like "Stun Relief" or "Leaving", "Invisibility", "Fly".......
Did we houseruled wrong?

Offline Puin

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #7 on: March 27, 2017, 05:55:04 PM »
And also, we understood that the -50 penalty for being stunned only affects "movements and maneuvers".
For us spellcasting is none of them so it doesn't have any penalty.
Something I don't really like. If you are dizzy, so to speak, spellcasting should be affected, isn't it?
What do you think or have houseruled?

Offline Majyk

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #8 on: March 28, 2017, 04:09:34 AM »
Yes, make it for everything.  Otherwise everyone will become Spell Users with those spells vs a Non User.
You can always tell when something is broken when Players always choose to use a certain Class, Race, etc. over any others, time and again.


House Rules veto everything they want to if it means it is fun for your group, though, so don't apologize for them.  ;)

Online Spectre771

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #9 on: March 28, 2017, 07:14:48 AM »
Stunned spell casters could not cast spells.  Their concentration was interrupted and we treated as an interrupted spell casting.  We had one generous GM who just extended the spell prep by 1 round with a successful concentration roll.  Anything beyond 1 round of stun and the spell prep failed.
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Offline Tywyll

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2017, 11:13:57 AM »
Page 33 of SpellLaw (RM2) address this issue specifically...stun relief and awaken spells can be cast while stunned/asleep despite those conditions.

I would say 'only other action is maneuvers' is pretty clear...normal spellcasting isn't a movement Maneuver so it is normally denied while stunned.

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Offline Puin

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #11 on: March 29, 2017, 08:12:23 AM »
Txs Tywyll, didn't remembered this part!

But it says "may be cast normally while stunned...with no penalty".
I don't understand the "...with no penalty". That doesn't mean that others spells can be cast with "some" penalty.
or we must read "may be cast while stunned (or stunned no parry)".<period>?

Offline Ecthelion

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #12 on: March 29, 2017, 08:33:02 AM »
But it says "may be cast normally while stunned...with no penalty".
I don't understand the "...with no penalty". That doesn't mean that others spells can be cast with "some" penalty.
or we must read "may be cast while stunned (or stunned no parry)".<period>?
IMHO the no penalty notion is included to make clear that those spells that are allowed to be cast while being stunned don't suffer from the penalties that other maneuver suffer from stun effects.

Offline Puin

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #13 on: March 29, 2017, 11:14:37 AM »
That settles it !!  ;)
Txs

Offline Tywyll

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Re: Stunned characters cannot attack?
« Reply #14 on: March 29, 2017, 01:18:37 PM »
Yeah basically what Ecthelion said.

In the stunned section it lists the ONLY actions you can take. Spell casting isn't on this list.

In SL it explicitly points out that a handful of effects violate this rule (rule based exceptions).

That's really it.