Previously, I mentioned experimenting with some of the mechanics from Sellswords and Spellslingers. I wanted to give a quick update.
I had actually been writing a report where I detailed all my tweaks and experiments, but I ended up deleting it. Overall, I just did not like where they were heading, and I find myself returning to square one.
Activation
A few years ago I was using the Song of Blades & Heroes activation system but dropped it because it seemed to drag out the turn. Currently, I roll a single D6 per unit, which means I can determine my entire force's activations in a single roll of 6 dice. It moves much quicker. The S&S activation is similar to SoB&H and I encountered similar problems.
I recently had an epiphany. I translated the S&S activation odds to a single die. Assuming activation on a 4+ on a D6, I get:
- Roll of 1 = 0 activations for the player / 3 for the enemy
- 2-3 = 1 player activation / 2 for the enemy
- 4-5 = 2 player activations / 1 for the enemy
- 6 = 3 player activations / 0 for the enemy
This roughly works out the same as 3D6 per unit.
Note that the odds for S&S are better than 50/50 in favor of the players, but I think my table is fine. I can give bonuses to the roll for units with some kind of advantage.
Melee Combat
I'm still experimenting with a hit-or-be-hit melee system. Operation Last Train uses a similar system and it seems to work well for that game - you get the bug or it'll get you.
However, I'm not sure if I buy it for man vs. man combat, for 2 reasons:
- It seems plausible for both combatants to make ineffective attacks. For example, the attacker thrusts, the defender parries and ripostes, but the attacker parries the counter.
- And I have seen plenty of simultaneous hits in my fencing and LARP experience.
I guess hit-or-be-hit makes more sense at a larger scale where a turn could represent an extended period of time. But for skirmishes it seems too final. Nevertheless, I think I'll give it a try.
I recently played a battle using these tweaks. Stay tuned for a full report.
Hello Kevin,
ReplyDeleteTo get around the melee issue where there is a possibility of both/neither hit, this is I have been using for my skirmish games where only PCs roll. I don't think it will translate that well into MicroBattles as in my rules, everything is resolved with a single d6 and everything is resolved very quick!. But it is an example of how the "hit or be hit" can be "hit or both hit or be hit": so d6 results are 1 - PC Knocked out, 2 - PC wounded 3-4 Both stunned 5 - NPC wounded 6 - NPC Knocked out. Stunned only lasts a turn but is -1 on the next roll. There is more on weapon types and skill levels but you get the idea. I have played this quite a few times and am actually right now writing up a small adventure that includes some skirmish combat that shows how this works for my SF RPG blog. I look forward to seeing what you have done with S&S and Micro Battles.
And I have been thinking on activation for a small number of units for a few days now and yours has provided some inspiration, so thanks you!
I was thinking about something similar, but in the end I decided to roll dice for both sides. For battles, I just went with high roll wins. I haven't dabbled with skirmish yet.
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