GM Harpwizard |
In the josting tournament, we are using touch armor class to hit each other. If this is the case, is there an advantage to wearing armor at all? The armor penalizes my ride check which I need to stay on the horse and the armor does not really help otherwise. Does armor offer damage resistance in this case?
Tirion Jörðhár |
If it is jousting, I would think that you would have essentially 2 ACs. One to hit the target on the character's shoulder. And one to actually damage the character. Essentially, hit the "target" which is like a touch AC as it is on the outside of the armor. And hit the real AC to cause injury/damage (knock the player off the horse.)
--> Yeh, so I am the peanut gallery and not in the joust so feel free to ignore my comments.
Tirion Jörðhár |
Never played 3.5 --> I would read it as 1 attack(joust) roll with two targets. If you roll a 15 and the touch AC is 14 with the actual (armored) AC being 18, then you hit the target and get a jousting point. But you do not actually hit/hurt/dismount the opponent. If you rolled a 19 on the other hand, then you get your jousting point and any bonus for hurting/dismounting.
Ok, that is my 2 cents, not back to pretending to work.
Shifty |
OPINION
Well I take it that the whole Jousting mechanic is actually just abstracting the process. Though targetting the Touch AC seems odd at first look, it actually isn't too far off the mark.
The attack roll players make doesn't really define a 'hit or miss' per se, it defines an attack that overcomes the protection of the defensive elements in such a way that it brings the lpayer into danger. The HP's are an abstraction of not only the physical makeup of the character, but also luck etc... so a 10th level warrior doesn't REALLY have 20-30 arrows poking out of him, but rather maybe just the last couple that bring his HP down to a dangerously low level.
With the joust we are just continuing that concept - you aren't crunching through the full AC because thats not what you are trying to do, you are just trying to get your lance to hit a man-sized target, not smash the lance throught that armoured target and kill it. Pretty easy to hit a man in full plate armour and shield with a thrown rock - hurting him is another matter.
So why wear armour?
Well like hitting the man with the rock, we are accepting that the armour worn in the joust is essentially soaking the blows - if we took it away it becomes a whole other concept. The heavy armour is just an accepted part of the abstraction.
Key concept: You are targetting a fixed man sized silhoutte moving towards you at galoping speed on a fixed and well defined trajectory and attempting to simply strike that shape - you aren't trying to hurt or kill anyone, and indeed you actually don't want that to happen in this sport. You aren't trying to lance a freely moving and well defended person with lethal attacks - that would be another conversation altogether.
On the other hand if you took a REAL lance in and tried to kill the guy, you would need to deal with his full armour class.
Other:
It also makes the system quick and easy to resolve, especially at low levels. Could you really imagine having to resolve FULL AC based attacks at the low level vs full plate and shield? Lets sit around rolling a million dice til someone manages a '20'... it would take a dozen tilts before anyone hit anything - most boring game ever :p Most jousts were pretty short affairs, the current system reflects that.
Tirion Jörðhár |
Zyren, the minis finally arrived! They are all in perfect condition. Thanks again!
I still cannot find my old lead figures. I know where they were an have no idea what happened to the box. DMHW - I didn't give them to you at some point did I?
Also, I still like the red dragon you used to have.
DM Harpwizard |
Zyren, I would be fine with just using flat-footed rules. However, after listening to what Shifty said, he reminded me of something I read recently. It was the idea of using armor as damage reduction. I am certainly not invested in this for normal combat, but it may work for the jousting. This is a Variant Rule that I found at the PFSRD site. If it sounds too complicated, then I would just go with using the Flat-footed armor class and go from there.
Tirion, Yes, you gave me all of your lead figures to keep, don't you remember?! You don't want them back now, do you? :-)
Tirion Jörðhár |
@DMHW: That's great!
Don't have time now to write anything-heading to the Symposium - not sure if I have internet there -if not: See you on Sunday!
NOOOOOOO - if you leave, Perdy will burn down the library and Mobo will invite the whole tribe into the party.
Ozyrrandion |
Ozyrrandion picks up Hundgesicht Schweinnase and clutches him in his claws, eying him hungrily.
Grapple Check vs. CMD 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (19) + 22 = 41
"Hmm? This little piggie went to market! I wonder how good he tastes? I wonder if I should cook you first? Maybe Campfire Elemental could oblige me with a little flame!"
Abithriax |
1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Hands a bag of marshmallows and a stick to the red dragon
"Thank you, Lorekeeper. You appear to know a great deal about dragons and their love of marshmallows."
Bree has the sudden urge to try to climb onto the back of one of the dragons...
"Climb up, my lady. You have chosen well to select a most powerful red dragon! You should know that I come with my own source of fire to toast my marshmallows."
Ozyrrandion |
"Aren't you dead and rotting at the bottom of some gorge?"
"Yes that was the role for which I was hired to play in that Harpwizard campaign. The pay is terrible, but then again, there is not much work for dragons these days. I can't believe the adventurers actually won that battle. However, like any good movie, they are just making the story suspenseful until the real heroine, Tiamat, the Queen of the Dragons, shows up and crushes the twits! So what kind of work does a pig like you have these days?"
Mark Sweetman |
I hear these guys have an opening for a bacon.. I mean for a big pig :) *blinks innocently*
Abithriax |
"What can a mortal hope to know about your kind? I just thought the gift to be fitting to your majesty and wisdom"
Sense Motive 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (3) + 20 = 23
"Hmm? Your kindness is acknowledged. You certainly know where we dragons stand in the rightful order of things! Now, how are we suppose to deal with getting sticky fluff all over my claws when I put the marshmallows on the stick?"
Hundgesicht Schweinnase |
Yum, Bacon. I hear that bacon wrapped dragon steaks are to die for. With marshmallow chasers for desert.
You start to see Hundgesicht begin to drool at the though. You also realize that his current appearance is an illusion, and that this is his real form.
Bree Longfield |
"Climb up, my lady. You have chosen well to select a most powerful red dragon! You should know that I come with my own source of fire to toast my marshmallows."
Bree smiles, "Thank you." and scurries up the dragon, nestling in between spikes at the base of it's neck. From this point she can survey the whole campsite much more easily, and the light from the fire interferes with her vision less. Nevertheless her eyes are drawn to the strange pig man in the other dragon's hands. She says rather idly, "He's changing..."
Ozyrrandion |
Perception Check 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (15) + 20 = 35
"It appears that the Tarrasque in Pig's clothing is really a bully, my friends. Hundgesicht Schweinnase, I suggest you take your firecracker marshmallows and eat them yourself! Even though we are evil dragons, you don't see us carrying on like that do you?! Look, even my red dragon friend is about to give a ride to the lovely lady! Just imagine what would have happened if you gave on of those loaded marshmallows to Abithriax? If I am not mistaken, it would have exploded in his mouth upon contact. Now, if you are going to hang out at this campfire, I suggest you change your charisma and stop being such a pig headed bully!"