Is there any way to reduce the Fortress Shield's -10ft Speed Penalty?
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Technically, per RAW, no, because a lot of the things that would apply to these statistics are for armor, of which a Fortress Shield is not, though I imagine that RAI is that any statistics for non-armor would default to the armor statistic rules, since there is no other intent behind them to draw from.
However, since there is no strength entry listed for the Fortress Shield, that means you could have a strength bonus of, say, +20, but wielding it gives you a -10 movement speed penalty at all times, regardless of how much strength you have.
That being said, the only thing I know of that would actually apply would be the Unburdended Iron feat from the Dwarf ancestry, since it specifies that it targets speed penalties to reduce, of which Fortress Shield is one of them.
And unfortunately, a lot of the Precious Material entries for shields state that they do not reduce the bulk or movement penalties incurred from them, even though they do for armor (such as Dawnsilver and Duskwood), meaning implementing it for shields is a houserule at-best.
So why would anyone use this?
I've never actually seen anyone use it, so that may answer the question. :(
I tried to make a character around it once, but the speed penalty is absolutely brutal. It's a cool item that just isn't that practical.
|
I did some digging a while back when I was trying to make it work. outside of unburdend iron, as already noted, the only thing I could find was increasing your speed by other means. It's really the only way to get it to work well enough, because 15/10ft movement is just not practical.
This was right around when TV came out though, so there may be a feat I've missed, or was changed in the remaster. Champions getting "Free" bonus speed at level 3 might help you offset it.
I can see it working on a unique Elf half-human with nimble elf and fleet, moving at 40 ft per movement, using the fortress shield moving at 30ft and if you want be a champion with the +5ft status boost to move 35ft use medium armor or move 30ft with heavy armor. would that work?
|
|
I can see it working on a unique Elf half-human with nimble elf and fleet, moving at 40 ft per movement, using the fortress shield moving at 30ft and if you want be a champion with the +5ft status boost to move 35ft use medium armor or move 30ft with heavy armor. would that work?
I don't see any rules it'd violate, at any rate.
I'm planning to take one on my Monk once he gets fast movement. Carrying a giant slab works perfectly for his pitfighting persona as, "The Great Adamantine Wall of Iblydos!"
But in general you need to be a strength based character with high movement speed, ideally with good action economy to support actually using the shield as well. Monks, Elves, and Centaurs are the main options that come to mind. The other downside is that since you're relying on reinforcing runes, your shield's hardness is much lower than a sturdy shield, so Fortress shields aren't great at actually blocking.
Get a mount or a vehicle, and/or use ranged weapons or weapons with reach. It's a tactic-specific item, not just a generically better shield.
A breaching pike, your favorite one-handed thrown weapon, and maybe a bola and a net and you make distance their problem.
The mount does seem like a good idea though.
Get a mount or a vehicle, and/or use ranged weapons or weapons with reach. It's a tactic-specific item, not just a generically better shield.
A breaching pike, your favorite one-handed thrown weapon, and maybe a bola and a net and you make distance their problem.
I agree with pairing it and a throwing weapon, meaning you cover much of the battlefield. And can stay near the squishies too. Since the action cost is also prohibitive, I'd favor Fighter for the Stance.
Does the new Guardian class receive something to negate this?
Given its defensive specialty, that feels like it should be able to.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I'm planning to take one on my Monk once he gets fast movement. Carrying a giant slab works perfectly for his pitfighting persona as, "The Great Adamantine Wall of Iblydos!"
But in general you need to be a strength based character with high movement speed, ideally with good action economy to support actually using the shield as well. Monks, Elves, and Centaurs are the main options that come to mind. The other downside is that since you're relying on reinforcing runes, your shield's hardness is much lower than a sturdy shield, so Fortress shields aren't great at actually blocking.
Can I reserve tickets for the pitfight?
Does the new Guardian class receive something to negate this?
Given its defensive specialty, that feels like it should be able to.
It didn't in the playtest IIRC. Will it in the final release? We don't know.
It would be great if it did because it would give the class something on-brand and unique. "I'm this hulking wall of steel that gets in your way when you try to harm my friends" is definitely playing to the fantasy the class is projecting.
It's likely we will see major changes. Guardian was rough in the playtest (which demonstrates the value of playtesting!).
Does the new Guardian class receive something to negate this?
Given its defensive specialty, that feels like it should be able to.
It didn't in the playtest IIRC. Will it in the final release? We don't know.
It would be great if it did because it would give the class something on-brand and unique. "I'm this hulking wall of steel that gets in your way when you try to harm my friends" is definitely playing to the fantasy the class is projecting.
It's likely we will see major changes. Guardian was rough in the playtest (which demonstrates the value of playtesting!).
But you know where I'm getting at, right?
Your fighter trained for defense and heavy armors... should be trained to carry and use the heaviest shield without penalty, if desired.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Does the new Guardian class receive something to negate this?
Given its defensive specialty, that feels like it should be able to.
It didn't in the playtest IIRC. Will it in the final release? We don't know.
It would be great if it did because it would give the class something on-brand and unique. "I'm this hulking wall of steel that gets in your way when you try to harm my friends" is definitely playing to the fantasy the class is projecting.
It's likely we will see major changes. Guardian was rough in the playtest (which demonstrates the value of playtesting!).
But you know where I'm getting at, right?
Your fighter trained for defense and heavy armors... should be trained to carry and use the heaviest shield without penalty, if desired.
yea they should prob give Fighter and other classes with Heavy armor the option to take a feat similar to Unburdended Iron.
untill then you have to take adopted acestry and train like the dwarfs for Unburdended Iron
|
|
Does the new Guardian class receive something to negate this?
Given its defensive specialty, that feels like it should be able to.
It didn't in the playtest IIRC. Will it in the final release? We don't know.
It would be great if it did because it would give the class something on-brand and unique. "I'm this hulking wall of steel that gets in your way when you try to harm my friends" is definitely playing to the fantasy the class is projecting.
It's likely we will see major changes. Guardian was rough in the playtest (which demonstrates the value of playtesting!).
But you know where I'm getting at, right?
Your fighter trained for defense and heavy armors... should be trained to carry and use the heaviest shield without penalty, if desired.
yea they should prob give Fighter and other classes with Heavy armor the option to take a feat similar to Unburdended Iron.
untill then you have to take adopted acestry and train like the dwarfs for Unburdended Iron
I think you could get away making it a general at 7, with a prereq like expert athletics. So UI remains the faster and more accesible option, but any heavy armour class can still grab it eventually.