This is meant to be a brief summary of some minor changes regarding weapon damage I made for my group. I decided to share it here so others can benefit from it and/or give some feedback.
Heavy weapons deal B+3K2 damage as usual, but receive -1K0 to attacks made with them. This change is made because the way it was a Heavy Weapon was just mechanically better than a Fencing weapon. I consider that in the 7th sea setting the players should feel encouraged by the rules to use fencing weapons rather than heavy ones, so I made the later less attractive than they were (but still mechanically as good as fencing weapons). Zweihanders do not receive the penalty to attack, but they need to be reset instead, as normal. Claymores deal B+4K2 damage as usual, but receive -2K0 to attacks made with them (instead of the normal -1K0 from the books).
Instead of working just like heavy weapons, polearms deal B+2K2 damage (B+2K1 if it’s a blunt weapon), give +5 to the total initiative of the wielder and give -1K0 to attack rolls made with them. This allows the wielder to act before opponents using other weapons, reflecting the greater reach of polearms.
A musket is not considered a heavy weapon when used in corps a corps combat, instead is considered an improvised weapon (B+2K1 damage, -1K0 to attack rolls) that breaks by rolling at least one 10 (although this may be variable depending on the situation). A bayonet, however, allows its use as a regular polearm (B+2K2, -1K0 to attack rolls, +5 Total initiative). The swordman school Rois et Reines does not have the skill Heavy weapons in its basic curriculum, instead it has Polearms.
Crossbows deal 3K3 damage. In the manual is stated 2K3, which is impossible (please, let me know if I missed something).
Sat, 12/09/2017 - 03:54
#1
Jordi Estefa
Weapon damage: minor changes and errata.
1st edition, weapons, Damage
Heavy weapons deal B+3K2 damage as usual, but receive -1K0 to attacks made with them
Heavy weapons are used with BOTH hands so that is why they do 3K2 instead of 2K2. With a fencing weaopn, you could use your free hand to hold a torch, a pistol, a mug and so on. Giving them a penalty of -1K0 to any attack made with them and using them with both hands makes them basically unappealing to anyone.
Claymores deal B+4K2 damage as usual, but receive -2K0 to attacks made with them (instead of the normal -1K0 from the books).
A Zweihänder is really really big so, slashing and getting back to an attacking position is cumbersome to say the least so I believe it is ok to spend one action resetting it. Giving a Claymore a penalty of -2K0 to attacks made with them though, puts them in the same situation you put Heavy Weapons. No one would use them as penalties are too harsh.
I used to train with a steel long sword in a fencing academy. A long sword is considered (by the rules) a heavy weapon and it was really easy to maneuver, feint, hit and defend with it when used with both hands even thouh I considered myself an average student. A Claymore would be a bit more cumbersome and slower but not that much.
Crossbows deal 3K3 damage. In the manual is stated 2K3, which is impossible (please, let me know if I missed something).
This was made with the idea of the player declaring Raises for damage before shooting with it. Increasing the difficulty by 5 gave you +1K0 damage, thus making a Crossbow a 3K3 weapon.
I totally missed that all heavy weapons require both hands to be used! Thanks a lot for pointing it out.
In my group people use a lot the main-gauche when Fencing, so I never thought about them having a free hand.
A polearm should be always used with two hands then (it’s not stated in the rules as far as I know), and deal B+2K2 damage and add +5 to the total initiative of the wielder.
I understand the crossbow’s 2K3 now. I personally don’t like it like that, so I’ll stick to the 3K3. But that's just me.
Thanks a lot for your feedback!
I totally missed that all heavy weapons require both hands to be used! Thanks a lot for pointing it out.
In my group people use a lot the main-gauche when Fencing, so I never thought about them having a free hand.
Not all heavy weapons require both hands, at least not if I'm remember correctly. In cases where a heavy weapon can be used with one hand, they DO usually have a -1k0 to attack penalty. If I remember correctly there is an Ussuran Swordsman School that uses hatches or hammers or something like that where this is the case. This kind of the way Cutlassess work; they're Fencing Weapons (one-handed) that deal Heavy Weapon damage (3k2) and have a penalty To Hit (-1k0).
I understand the crossbow’s 2K3 now. I personally don’t like it like that, so I’ll stick to the 3K3. But that's just me.
Just remember that firearms only do slightly more damage (4k3 for pistols and 5k3 for muskets,) but have a fraction of the range Crossbows do and require WAY more time to Reload. With the Reload (Crossbow) knack at 5 you can basically fire a shot every other Action. Literally a pistol's max range is less than Crossbow's Short Range and puts you at a -15 penalty, while the Crossbow is only at -5 to your attack roll. Now, granted, Crossbows don't get the benefit of dealing another DW for every 10 you miss your wound soak by as is the case with Firearms.
3-15 yrds, -10 to attack roll
The Player’s Guide states in the description of the Heavy Weapon skill (page 155) that “A Heavy Weapon requires both hands to use“. In the description of the Attack (Heavy Weapon) adds “Note that all Heavy Weapons inflict 3k2 damage”. Not all weapons that inflict B+3K2 damage are Heavy Weapons, though. The description for the cutlass presented in the Swordman’s Guild book (page 101) specifies that “cutlasses are Fencing Weapons”, not one-handed Heavy Weapons. Cutlasses are wielded with Fencing, but instead of inflicting B+2K2 damage they inflict an extra unkept dice to damage (B+3K2) in exchange for one less in the attack rolls (as you pointed out). Claymores are Heavy Weapons mechanically modified in the same way (+1K0 to damage, -1K0 to attack), so their final damage is B+4K2 instead of B+3K2. It seems that a 1K0 to damage is equivalent to a 1K0 to attack, but this is only “applied on top” of the basic stats for weapons used with Heavy Weapons (B+3K2 damage, two-handed) and Fencing (B+2K2 damage, one-handed) skills. Comparing Fencing with Heavy Weapons we can infer that the “two-handed” requirement is equivalent to +1K0 damage (in turn equivalent to 1K0 in attack), so perhaps the Heroes could simply chose to wield a Heavy Weapon one-handed in exchange for a -1K0 in their attack roll. However, the Apprentice level of the Eisenfaust Swordsman Schools (Player’s guide page 127) “allows you to use a broadsword (Heavy Weapon) in one hand”, so it seems that to wield a Heavy Weapon one-handed is not a basic option. My guess is that if a Hero would try to attack with a Heavy Weapon with only one hand, the player would have to roll only the Trait value.
As a “house rule” the GM could allow the Heroes to use Heavy Weapon one-handed for a -1K0 in attack, but only if their Brawn is higher than the unkept dice given by the weapon. In this scenario, the Eisenfaust Apprentice level should read “allows you to use a broadsword (Heavy Weapon) in one hand without penalty”. Note that it will also require the Hero to have at least three points in Brawn.
The Ussuran Swordman School to which you are referring is the Bogatyr Swordsman School (Ussura’s Nation Book page 97). Bogatyr simply uses Heavy Weapon (two-handed axes) like other schools use Fencing (fencing swords), with no further modification to attack or damage rolls. The Ussura’s Nation Book (page 96) introduces a new martial skill for using hatchets: Hand Axe. Hatchets being practically fencing swords (B+2K2 damage) that can be thrown (page 103). The inclusion of axes in the examples for heavy weapons (Player’s Guide page 21) is a bit misleading, but in the light of Ussura’s Nation Book my understanding is that the player’s Guide refers only to two-handed axes.
It feels to me that the skill Hand Axe is mechanically better compared to Knife and Fencing as it combines the best of both (B+2K2 damage and able to be thrown (at 5+2B yards for knife and 5+B for hatchet)). I propose a -5 to total initiative when using Hand Axe to balance it.
You have really good points regarding the crossbows. You actually convinced me to leave it as it is!
Thanks a lot for your comment.
Here's a table summarizing the stats I'm using for the different (armed melee) fighting skills. I left out the skills from the Cathay sourcebook.
SKILL
DAMAGE
KNACKS
NOTES
RANGE S/L
RELOAD
PAGE
Buckler
B+1K1
Attack, Parry.
-
-
-
PG 152
Fencing
B+2K2
Attack, Parry.
-
-
-
PG 154
Hand Axe
B+2K2
Attack, Parry, Throw.
-5 Total INI
B+5 yards. 0/-5
-
NU 96
Heavy Weapon
B+3K2
Attack, Parry.
Two-handed
-
-
PG 155
Knife
B+1K2
Attack, Parry, Throw.
-
2B+5 yards. 0/-5
-
PG 155
Panzerhand
B+0K2
Attack, Parry, Uppercut.
-
-
-
PG 155
Polearm
B+2K2
Attack, Parry, Set Defense.
Two-handed +5 Total INI
-
-
PG 155
Shield
B+1K1
Attack, Parry.
You may use 1/2 Buckler knacks, +10 TN Passive Defense vs non-firearm ranged, -1K0 attack.
-
-
NU 96
Whip
B+0K1
Attack.
Act. Dice -1, +5 Total INI
-
-
NC 95