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My group and I have dabbled with GURPS and we really like some aspects of it (mostly combat related), but we miss Pathfinder a lot (especially all of the Adventure Paths). So with this in mind I am trying to create a combat system that marries the two based on Ultimate Combat alternative rules and GURPS.

The goal of this system is to make combat more engaging like in GURPS, deadlier, and to increase role play. Note that I am making this system with low level play, low magic, and Core-only in mind.

So here are the core changes:
1. Replace D20 with 3D6
2. Called Shots
3. Piecemeal Armor
4. Active defense rolls
5. Armor and Con as damage reduction
6. Different damages vs Different armor types
7. Optional combat actions
8. Consequences of Damage

1.
I think the D20 is too random, my group likes normal distributions better so we are going to go the 3D6 system instead of D20. If skill checks prove to be problematic we will only use 3D6 for combat related rolls.

2.
Called shots are the standard hits. You must declare where you are attacking before you roll for attack. Modifiers are as described on Ultimate Combat, but they are added to the AC of that specific body part instead of being a penalty to the attack roll.

3.
As described in the Ultimate Combat but with minor modifications. AC is directly converted into Damage Reduction.

4.
Instead of taking 10, players will have to 3D6 to determine their base AC. So a Fighter with 14 Dex will have the following AC if attacked on the Torso.
3D6 + 2 Dex + 2 Torso= 14 (assuming a +10 roll on the 3D6)

5.
Armor will be directly converted into DR, con modifier will also be added to base DR. So a fighter with 16 Con and wearing Hide armor will have base 5DR (3 from Con and 2 from armor). I am still working on how Natural armor will work, I'm thinking in customizing it in a per-monster basis rather than making a general rule.

6.
Different damages affect different armor types differently. Here is a list of how the 3 types of damage affect armors (armor types will be classified by how hard they are):

Slashing= effective vs soft (1/2 DR), normal vs semi-solid (doesn't modify DR), e weak vs solid (X2 DR)

Piercing= very effective vs soft armor (ignores DR), effective vs semi-solid (1/2 DR), very weak vs solid (X3 DR)

Blunt= normal against all armors (doesn't modify DR).

As a base line Cloth counts as soft, Hide is semi-solid, Plate is solid.

7.
Actions that replace your Defense roll (so you lose your 3D6 when you are attacked for one turn)-
Determined Attack: Add your dexterity bonus twice for your attack roll

Strong Attack: add your strength bonus twice for your damage roll (melee only, if weapons doesn't normally allow you to add your str to damage then add it only once)

Double Attack: gain one extra attack

Actions that replace your attack roll-
Aim: Dexterity for your next attack roll (must see opponent).

All out defense: roll for defense twice and take the best result (once).

Cautiousness: add dex twice when attacked (once).

8. Consequences of Damage

If you take 1/2 of your HP in damage in a single body part you get the consequences of a regular called shot as described in Ultimate Combat. If you take more than 1/2 of your HP, you have to do a Fortitude saving throw of 10+ Damage Taken/2, if failed you get the Critical Called Shot condition (do the check every time you take damage there). If you take your full HP in one body part, you automatically get the Critical CS and must save or else get the Debilitating CS condition.

Additionally, if you take more than 2/3 of your HP (regardless of where the damage is dealt) you lose your Dex for AC and your speed is halfed.

When you are at less than 0HP you have to do a fortitude test every turn to remain conscious, you also lose 1HP per turn until stabilized (DC is 10+negative damage). At -Con you have to do a saving throw each turn to remain alive, the DC is 10+negative points away from con.

To keep track of all of this I made a simple HP tracker I still have to add boxes for DR and add a few body parts. (https://www.dropbox.com/s/b9dadicoe30uncf/Wound%20Points.jpg)

Well this is all of the changes I have so far, but I'm planning to revamp archery as well if needed. My group will playtest this next week so until then any feed back is welcomed! I would like to emphasize that the goal of these changes is to make combat more engaging and deadlier. Additionally, I want to make it easier to incapacitate foes instead of just killing them to make fights faster, more tactical, and with extra role playing.

I am sorry I posted this thread in the wrong section. Can a mod please move it to the houserules/homebrewed section.

My friends and I were eagerly waiting for Ultimate Combat to come out to introduce the alternative Armor and HP system. I read through them and decided to create my own combat system in which I plan on using in my first campaign. I need suggestions and constructive criticism to know if this system could possibly work.

Here are the changes to HP:

- Heath Points are broken up in Vigor and Wound Points (just like Ultimate Combat)
- Vigor Points to level*hit die (pretty much like HP points but without the con mod bonus)
- Wound Points are always equal to Constitution
- Wound Points are broken up into three categories: blunt (heals constitution modifier per hour), piercing/cutting (heals con mod per day), supernatural/elemental (heals con mod per week). [similar to WoD]
- Vigor points are fully restored after an 8 hour rest
- Potions and magic restore only Vigor points
- Only way to regain Wound points is to wait for it to heal (a heal check is necessary)

Changes to Armor:
- Each body part has its own AC (torso, legs, arms, and head)
- Called Shots are built-in (instead of providing a penalty on the attack roll, it will give a bonus to AC)
- The AC given by each part of the armor will be raised (since there is no "total AC" the AC bonus found on Ultimate Combat will be raised)
- Piercing weapons receive a +2 attack roll bonus against leather/hide/chain mail (any piercable armor) and a -2 attack against metal and wooden plates (anything that is hard to pierce)
- Slashing weapons receive a +2 against against plated armors (any armor that could possibly deflect a blow, thus increasing the chances of hitting another body part) and a -2 against leather/hide/chain mail
- Blunt weapons do not receive bonuses or penalties

Changes to Called Shots:
- Players will have to track their Wound Points for each body part
- The debuffs that Called Shots bring will be linked to Wound Point loss (1/4 of total WP to the same body part will cause a light penalty, 1/2 will cause a moderate penalty, and anything over will be a debilitating blow)

Example:
A Fighter has 14 Constitution so he will also have 14 total Wound Points
- If he takes 2-4 wound points to his right arm he will get a -2 penalty on any action involving that arm
- If he takes 5-7 wound points to his right arm he will get 1D4 of Str and Dex damage (fort save halves the damage)
- If he takes more than 7 wound points to his right arm he will debilitate his arm and lose 1D6 of Dex and Str will run the risk of severing his arm.

I am working on a character sheet to help players track Wound Points (I think I would track Vigor points for them and tell them when they are running out). Here is the link to the character sheet (I am still working on it)

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/534/woundpoints.jpg/

The goal of this system is to make game play more cinematic and realistic. I don't like the traditional HP system because a character with 1HP fights just as well as one with full health; on my alternative system wound points prevent this from happening.

Also HP tracking will no longer be a burden since I would be tracking the vigor points and my players would only have to worry about their wound points. When a player takes blunt damage he would mark a box with a circle, if he takes slashing or piercing he would put a slash, and elemental/supernatural would be marked with a star.

I would also like to add that the campaign that I plan on running will have limited magic (no PC casters allowed). Thats why magical damage is so dangerous.

Please tell me what you think about this system, and any comments on how to improve it will be greatly appreciated.

My friends and I are fairly new to RPGs in general, we started a little over a year ago with 4E but quickly switched to Pathfinder. We played the "Keep on the Shadow Fell" adventure and we all had a blast, it was pretty simple but there were still some interesting NPCs and some very interesting puzzles (like a whirlpool room in which players must find out how to deactivate the whirlpool before they all die).

I feel like that was the perfect adventure for someone that is just getting into RPG, it had a great epic feel, tons of dungeon crawl, and hints of role playing every now and then (honestly when you are just picking up D&D you care more about battles than RP).

While I throughly enjoy the APs, I wish each edition was shorter and with more descriptions. I can't really generalize since I've only played one of them (and we are still in the second part).

My group and I took nearly 4 months to finish (playing once or twice per week for 4-6 hours per session) Souls for Smuggler Shiv, but we all had a great time. That adventure was a lot of fun to GM and play, but towards the middle of adventure everything just slowed down to a crawl.

After that we started Racing to the Ruins, but we are almost giving up on it. It is just too linear and with way too many random encounters. The adventure is a lot of fun while you are in the city and there are all of these exciting options, but the trip (which is a major part of the adventure) and the countless side quests are just plain boring with little sense of reward or importance. We just now reached the middle of the adventure after 6 months of playing (on and off since we are not really enjoying it as much as we did the first one).

My friend and I are taking turns to GM (I GM'ed the first part, and he is doing the second part) since we do not have much experience GMing we are doing our very best to follow the APs rules and recommendations. I already picked up a copy of the 3rd instalment of the AP and it looks promising but it still looks too long and dragging. I wish they were shorter (yet longer than a module) but at the same time more detailed instead of sand-boxy.

I am really looking forward to the armors acting as damage reduction, alternative HP system, and called shots. I hope we get a playtest soon =)

The Soundstriker bard archtype seems really interesting, but I am not entirely sure how it works.

Does anyone know the save DC for Weird Words and if you can have multiple sounds targetting the same creature?

Hello,

I think this is my second question about bonus spells as this is the aspect of the game that I have the most trouble on.

I was wondering if a character could use his bonus spells slots to use metamagic feats.

Situation:

My sorcerer is level 4 and has 22 charisma (thus I gain bonus spells up to 6th level). I was wondering if I could use my level 1 and level 2 spells with metamagic feats (especially quick cast).

Thanks for the help

You will not be able to get into the Eldritch Knight prestige class at level 2.

Looking at the which spell progression, she cannot cast level 3 spells until she is level 5. At the VERY MINIMUM, you'll have to be level 5 witch to get into the class. This is indicated by the "Spells Per Day" chart on page 67 of the Advanced Player's Guide.

Bonus spells due to high intelligence only come into play when you already have a sufficient level to cast the spell. Once you hit level 5, you can then cast 1 lvl 3 spell per day, but your bonus spells give you an extra spell per day. Therefore, at level 5, you can cast 2 level 3 spells per day.

If you are brand new to Pathfinder/D&D, I would start with a much simpler class than Witch/Eldritch Knight. They don't call it the "Advanced Players Guide" for nothing. ;)

Thanks for clarifying things! My friends and I are taking turns to GM the Serpentine Skull campaign, I'm GMing the first part but we are about to finish it (just entered the sanctuary!). The bonus spells due to high intelligence has been one of the few topics that we didn't understand until now, so we ruled that a character couldn't cast spells higher than his own level.

I guess I'm just gonna be a Witch until level5 and then decide what to do from there. Thanks once again!

So just to clarify things:

I only gain bonus spells (based on intel) to spell levels that I can already cast?

Thanks for the replies!

Hello,

A few other thing I would like to clarify:

As a wizard or witch, how many spells can I prepare per day? I've been preparing just the amount of spells that I can cast per day, but I was wondering if there is a different rule for this (for example, if I could prepare two other spells in case I need them)

The book says that the spell remain prepared until I either use or abandon them. But what if something happens to the materials (like water gets into my pouch and messes up the sand/powder required for some spells). Could I possibly save unused spells and prepare new ones during the next morning (thus stacking them up)?