Fantasy Craft Second Printing Q&A Thread

[meadicus]

It doesn't feel quite right to me that everyone (NPCs included) is able to just pick up and use Bows in melee. So I introduced the Spycraft penalties, -4 firing in, -4 firing out, but made Bow Basics and Bow Mastery cancel them out. Similarly for hurled.

[aegis]

It's really not difficult to use a bow in melee, but if you wish, this can make sense.

However, I really feel the ranged penalty is quite useless (and even silly sometimes). If something is blocking your sight toward your target, they already get a cover bonus! And if nothing does, why would it be more difficult to shoot at a target while someone is adjacent to it ? It is still dangerous though, since you can easily confirm critical misses in order to hit an adjacent character.

[Coyote0273]

People in melee combat aren't just standing there swinging their swords at each other. They're moving, dodging and weaving, and generally making themselves as hard to hit as possible. Plus, you're also trying *not* to hit your friends, which makes aiming that much more difficult. Hence the minus.

Same thing with using a bow in melee. If you stop while someone's swinging a sword at you to pull the string and aim, then you're dead as the guy trying to hit you with a sword, just succeeded. So while you're ducking and dodging and weaving all while trying to aim at someone 30 or 40 feet away, that's where the minus comes from. Granted, you could also put that minus into a defense penalty if you actually stop to aim, as that makes you easier to hit.

[Catodon]

I think this is about style really. Perhaps for the more simulationist among you a campaign quality would be useful.

[Morgenstern]

Consider: Your ally and your enemy are mixing it up in melee and you want to get into the fight with a dagger, sword, or even a staff. Shouldn't you be taking a penalty because they are engaged with each other and you could easily hit your ally? Yes, to a degree, but I see no argument being raised that melee weapons should have a penalty when used on targets in melee with allies.

Assume that in both cases - ranged AND melee that difficulty is already folded into the attack roll itself. You are either overcomming the challenge of not hitting a nearby ally or overcomming the challenge of hitting a target who is not otherwise occupied fighting your friend - the difficulties are about the same and wash out.

Consider: as long as I have about 18 inches of seperation to allow the bow to transfer mechanical energy to the arrow (quite reasonable distance in a melee - swords have a minimum effective range too...), as a bow wielder I'm waving around a line of absoultely lethal ouchie, same as a melee-armed combatant. You point a ready bow in someone's face and they're gonna flinch/dodge/save theselves rather than prosecute their own attack. Drawing back a bow isn't that much slower than drawing back back a sword. The traditional vulnerability of archers to melee folks has a lot more to do with the armor that achers ussually have on (namely NONE) than with their weapon not being able to threaten and discourage the enemy even at toe-to-toe range.

[Catodon]

someone call Mythbusters!

[Golden Dragon]

someone call Mythbusters!

So that we can then move the debate to whether the Mythbusters properly simulated the situation? 

[ArawnNox]

someone call Mythbusters!

So that we can then move the debate to whether the Mythbusters properly simulated the situation? 

I'd trust them over the incompetent morons over on "Deadliest Warrior".

[Mister Andersen]

Speaking of Mythbusters, Grant -- while cosplaying as the 10th Doctor -- was recently inducted as an honoury member of the 501st.

I remember a time when the various bows were going to be fed into the Crafty damage algorithm. What ever became of that?

[Coyote0273]

Question. Soldier with the Favored Gear (any weapon) feat. Soldier already rolls 2 action dice for each spent, and Favored gear lets you roll 2 dice for every attack/skill check with the Favored Gear item.

So... rolling 3 dice? Or what?

[aegis]

I would say yes, 3, although the wording doesn't support that.

[Crafty_Alex]

Question. Soldier with the Favored Gear (any weapon) feat. Soldier already rolls 2 action dice for each spent, and Favored gear lets you roll 2 dice for every attack/skill check with the Favored Gear item.

So... rolling 3 dice? Or what?

Pg 29, under Doubled Action Dice: "Doubled Action Dice: Some abilities allow you to roll 2 dice when you spend 1 action die. When two or more of these abilities apply to the same roll, you still only roll 2 dice for each action die spent."

[Gilbetron]

Do abilities that allow you to 2 dice when spending an action die to boost a roll (such as the Emissary's "Sympathetic" core ability) combine with the Sage's Wise Counsel ability?  In other words, if I spend an action die to boost a teammate's Wisdom-based skill, do I roll 2 action dice?

And do action die bonuses (like Lady Luck's Smile and Fortune Favors the Bold) apply to both dice or just one?  ie I roll 2d4 on a Wisdom-based roll and get a 1 and a 2.  I have +2 to my action dice rolls.  Is my total 5 or 7?

[Kerebrus]

I honestly do not knwo the answer to your first question.  the "use your die type and your action die modifiers" leads me to think that you do roll the two dice in that case (Soldier / Sage luckmonger of party wide HITTING).

the second part of that question has been asked and answered.  And I think I was the one to ask it.  Nope, the bonus to the action die roll applies to the TOTAL roll, not the individual dice.

[Krensky]

When you use Wise Counsel, you roll one of your dice and add the result to your team mate's roll, so the roll benefits from whatever the Sage can bring to bear, but none of the recipients abilities. You're not giving them an Action Die, you're spending one of your dice and giving them the bonus.

If the Sage has a roll 2 and add ability that applies to the check, it applies when using Wise Counsel. If the recipient has the ability, it does not apply.

And the +X applies to the Action Die result, not the individual dice. So in your example, you get a 5.