FMC Basic: Final Fighters Revision

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JWMillwright left this really cool comment on my previous post about fighters:

I’ve more or less adopted these rules but allow Fighters to use this bonus as one of the following; to-hit bonus, a damage bonus, or make an extra attack with no bonus.

And only now something just clicked: it should be really simple to introduce the same framework as simple skirmishes if you just allow fighters to split their bonus between multiple attacks (if their bonus is +2 or greater). So I've removed the rule that fighters attack until they miss, and replaced it with fighters being able to split or combine their attack bonus into multiple small attacks or one big attack. Monsters can now also do the same thing. This increases the continuity between FMC Basic and FMC proper, so it really feels like a simplified version of how I run the latter.

You could give experts +1 prowess every second level and mages every third level, but that feels more appropriate for how I run FMC proper where hit dice translate directly into combat capability. You could also remove classes altogether, and allow characters to gain 1 prowess, energy, or skill each level. Options!

Also check out this really cool thread by James Palmer about the development of D&D into a social/psychodramatic game. Really resonant with how I've played Fifth Edition or seen it played.

Comments

  1. JWMillwrightDecember 21, 2023 at 11:38 AM

    This is pretty fantastic! Would you keep the +1 damage to attack per prowess from the linked article?

    ReplyDelete
  2. hdpDecember 25, 2023 at 8:02 PM

    "You could also remove classes altogether, and allow characters to gain 1 prowess, energy, or skill each level."

    Or strip the classes down to the bare bones and allow each of them to do something special with prowess, energy, or skills.

    Fighter: attack multiple enemies w/ prowess
    Expert: extra skill
    Mage: maleficence

    but also then

    Elf: trade between prowess and energy every morning

    or drawing from more modern sources,

    Bard: while playing an instrument, may cast (choose two) charm, dispel, empathize, hasten, heal, or lullaby as from a scroll (spend energy)
    Ranger: animal companion with prowess and HP equal to yours / 2
    Warlock: maleficence, may cast (choose two) charm, metamorphose, float, reveal, or shroud without a scroll (spend energy), don't upset your patron

    ReplyDelete

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