And the Winner is...

I'll be going with Labryinth Lord Advanced Edition Companion from Goblinoid Games.

I have to do a new layout for the character sheets, getting rid of Skills and Feats, which will make life a WHOLE lot simpler.

Narrowed Down System Choices

Looking like a choice between OSRIC and Labryrinth Lord AEC. Leaning towards LL AEC.

Settling on an OSR Game

I've been doing more comparisons today. I'm now convinced, I want to go pre 3.x for my core rule system.
The question is, what to pick? I seem to have narrowed it down to OSRIC and Labryrinth Lord.

Choices, Choices...

Considering Feats into the Mix

I was kind of psyched when I first came across Feats in D&D version 3.0. But the more I look at them now, I see them as patches for an incomplete system. Adding Feats into my Alternative Combat System really winds up making the Feats way too powerful. For many of the Feats, I think the answer is to make those powers the rule, rather than the exception.

Here's one example: Power Attack. Benefit: You can choose to take a –1 penalty on all melee attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +2 bonus on all melee damage rolls. 


In my system, that isn't Feat. It's a weapon. You want to get more damage, with less accurate to hit? Pick a weapon that does that. You want more accuracy, but less damage. Pick a different weapon. The Feat is superfluous.


How about Cleave: You can strike two adjacent foes with a single swing.


My version is this: Drop a guy from full hit points to zero in a single swing, and you get to roll to hit the next guy with half your CR. Do it again and keep on going. Anyone. No Feats required.

How about Combat Expertise: You can choose to take a –1 penalty on melee attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +1 dodge bonus to your Armor Class.


Again, this is the default ability in my system for everyone. No Feat required.


It seems to me Feats were invented to allow players to do the obvious.

The Power of Anticipation

OK, so as indicated in A Word or Two on Parrying, it becomes important to be able to read your opponent.
If they are attacking full out, do you want to parry? Or do you want to try to hit them before they hit you?

Fortunately, it isn't too difficult to anticipate the actions of monsters. They tend to attack full out, with little thought for self defense. But when dealing with human opponents or the like, it seems like the higher level character should have the advantage.

One way to handle this is to make the lower level character declare his actions before initiative is rolled. The higher level character can declare his action after initiative is rolled. It would be interesting to bring Charisma into the mix, allowing for more charismatic characters to more easily fool their opponents in battle. Maybe Wisdom helps you see through the charade.

Some things for me to chew on...

A Word or two on Parrying

Parrying can be the key to survivability. In most systems, as your level goes up, so does your chance to hit. Eventually, hitting is almost guaranteed. In a system where a single strike can stun an opponent, this becomes a bit too powerful. Add Feats into the mix, and death is likely around any corner.  Wading into battle with both sides swinging full force is a recipe for quick demise.

Parrying allows for strategic decisions. The basics is this:

Lets say we match up 2nd level Sebastiano against 5th level Arn. Both come to the table with the following stats:

Sebastiao: CR: 27, CP:3, Dex bonus d100: 15, CMR: 39

Arn: CR: 50, CP: 19, Dex bonus d100; 10, CMR: 41

Ok... the two foes come face to face and roll for initiative to see who gets first blow. I like the standard d6 for initiative roll. So I'm going to modify the CMR and give it a secondary vaule based on d100 by dividing by 5 and rounding. So now the CMRs are: Sebastiano: 39/8 Arn: 41/8

Both have a CMR of 8 on the d20 scale. The two are tied. Arn is higher level, but he is slowed down by his chain mail.

Both roll d6, and add their d20 CMR. Sebastiano rolls a 5, and Arn rolls a 4. Sebastiano wins.

Sebastiano is attacking full out. He needs a 42 (His CR +  dex bonus) + 19 (Arns CP) to hit for a 61.

Arn decides he is going to parry. He parries with his CR + Dex Bonus, Subtracting 60 from Sebastiano's "to hit". Sebastiano needs a 1 or less to hit. But we're playing with the equivalent of the rule that a 1 on a d20 is an automatic hit, so he needs 01-05 on d100 to hit.

Sebastiano rolls a 12 and misses.

Arn gets two attacks per round. His second attack is at at CR of 25. He needs a 38 (25+3+dex +10) or less to hit Sebastiano. He rolls a 42, and misses.

Sebastiano now realizes he is in for it, and probably won't survive long if he keeps this up. Next round, he decides to parry Arns attack. Arn attacks full out. Arn needs a 63 to hit, and Sebastiano parries with a 42, reducing Arn's to hit do 21 or less. Arn misses with a 79, but still gets his second attatck, needing a 38 or less to hit. He rolls a 39 and barely misses.

At this point, Sebastiano should be thinking of a way out of this fight, or have some creative ideas on how to get the advantage against Arn.

Sample Character: Arn, the Knight Templar

Here's a sample character sheet for Arn, the Knight Templar. Arn is a formidable knight, but perhaps not the very best in the land. In the E6 framework, I've made him level 5.

As he displayed an innate talent at an early age, I figure he's got some pretty healthy base stats. I've given him a chain hauberk, which goes down to his knees and has full sleeves. Here's a pic of Arn from the movie:

He has a chain hood, long chain sleeves, and his hauberk goes down to his knees. I've given him leather (AC8) on his shins, otherwise he is AC5. He wields the light two handed sword, which is meant to represent a real two handed sword. The heavy two handed sword it the mythical dragon slaying variant.






Ok, so here's Arn's sheet:

I've held off giving him Feats, as that's another matter entirely and depends on the system you are using.

He has a CR of 50, a CP of 19, and a dex bonus of 10 to add to the mix. I've added a box for Combat Maneuver Rating (CMR). This is his CR, minus his CP, plus his dex bonus. It is representative of his overall strengths and weaknesses, and is a great indicator of initiative rating. This number can be used for a wide variety of things.

Edit: the CMR dex bonus rating is d100, not d20. I'll fix the character sheet soon.

At a CR of 50, Arn fights equivalent to a 10th level fighter. As such, he gets a second attack at +25 each round.

A great strategy for Arn would be to parry with his first attack. A parry subtracts the CR from the opponents CR,  potentially forcing his opponent to roll a 01-05 to hit. He then gets a second free attack in the round at +25.