Three Questions

[Doug Taylor]

1) Initiative, per the Core Book on p. 226 "is conducted exactly like a Swiftness test." We've been treating it like a normal test in that if you roll double 6's, you keep rolling, but have not been counting it towards Experience (since there is no TN). Does this sound like the correct way to do this?

2) Orc Chainmail is clearly supposed to cause bearers to "suffer a -1 penalty to all Nimbleness-based tests." My players were speculating that perhaps this only meant other races that absconded with Orc Armor (me, I think it clearly says that all who use it, including Orcs, suffer this penalty). A related question on this is: Do tests that use Nimbleness as their base Attribute (like Ranged Combat) suffer that - 1 to their test result?

3) One of our players just attained the Elite Order of Archer. He was wondering how he could go about shooting two arrows at the same time (like Legolas does in the movies). Anyone try anything like this before?

Thanks in advance for any answers and opinions...

[Ineti]

Originally posted by Doug Taylor
1) Initiative, per the Core Book on p. 226 "is conducted exactly like a Swiftness test." We've been treating it like a normal test in that if you roll double 6's, you keep rolling, but have not been counting it towards Experience (since there is no TN). Does this sound like the correct way to do this?

Since rolling for initiative is a test, the 'exploding' double 6's should apply. At least, that's how I've run my games for the past year.

And I do not award experience for an initiative test, simply because there is no TN for it, as you mentioned.

Originally posted by Doug Taylor
2) Orc Chainmail is clearly supposed to cause bearers to "suffer a -1 penalty to all Nimbleness-based tests." My players were speculating that perhaps this only meant other races that absconded with Orc Armor (me, I think it clearly says that all who use it, including Orcs, suffer this penalty). A related question on this is: Do tests that use Nimbleness as their base Attribute (like Ranged Combat) suffer that - 1 to their test result?

I'm almost positive everyone suffers the penalty, including nasty orcses.

All Nimbleness based tests suffer the -1 penalty, including Ranged Combat.

Originally posted by Doug Taylor
3) One of our players just attained the Elite Order of Archer. He was wondering how he could go about shooting two arrows at the same time (like Legolas does in the movies). Anyone try anything like this before?

You don't have to have the elite order to do this. All you need is the Quick-draw edge and a decent skill level with a bow. Per the errata, readying a weapon is a free action, meaning that nocking an arrow is a free action.

A hero with Quick Draw can nock and fire two arrows in a round using one standard action for each firing:

Free action - load (ready)
First normal action - fire
Free action - load (ready)
Second normal action - fire

Of course, parries and dodges in the same round will affect this.

So, an archer with Swift Shot or Swift Shot 2 can get off three arrows a round and four arrows a round, respectively.

IIRC, Legolas gets off 7 shots in about 10 seconds in the FOTR:EE during Amon Hen, so this sort of approximates that. Have fun!

[thiskitty]

Originally posted by Ineti
You don't have to have the elite order to do this. All you need is the Quick-draw edge and a decent skill level with a bow. Per the errata, readying a weapon is a free action, meaning that nocking an arrow is a free action.

*snip details*

So, an archer with Swift Shot or Swift Shot 2 can get off three arrows a round and four arrows a round, respectively.

IIRC, Legolas gets off 7 shots in about 10 seconds in the FOTR:EE during Amon Hen, so this sort of approximates that. Have fun!

But, I think he's talking about firing two arrows AT ONCE, a la Legolas against the Cave Troll in Moria. I do not think there are currently any rules regarding stunt shots like that.

But, the upcoming Barbarians and Warriors order book includes greatly-expanded combat rules, including new weapons, expanded uses of old skills, and some new ablities.

[Markraven]

I don't know it that needs to be a Order Ability or Edge, when it could simply be a Combat Action like Power Attack and Precise Attack and Sweep.

For the quick-n-dirty: Simply do an Attack roll at -5 test result penaltywith the attack requireing two actions.

[mcb]

The whole two arrows fired at that same time really rubs me the wrong way. If PJ had only had the sense to skip that scene. It is not even remotely practical and I have never let that happen in a game I was narrating, but...


If you were going to allow it for "Cinematic effect" here is how I would do it.

First it would take two actions to load the two arrows. One action if they have quick draw. Maybe allow an order ability that could make a double load a free action (the munchkinism is running ramped now ). It would then take an action to fire as normal.

I would then multiply that range increment for the bow being used by 0.7 rounding down to the nearest yard. This represent the fact that the arrow will have approximately 70% the velocity of a single arrow fired from that bow.

Damage should probably be only 1d6 per arrow due to the fact that the arrows would only have at best half the kinetic energy it would have if the arrows been fired individually, but to make thing more interesting and generous maybe make the damage 2d6-3 (minimum 1 pt) for each arrow.

If the archer fires both arrows at the same target then I would only impose a -2 or -3 penalty to hit. If firing at two separate targets then I would start at -5 and make it harder the farther apart the targets are. The arrows should never be allowed on trajectories of more then maybe 30 degrees from each other. Feel free to disallow shot at widely separated targets.

That’s the way I would play it if I had too. Tolkien had Elves and Dwarves and magic in he stories but his world of Middle Earth still conform to the same laws of physics that our world does. I like to keep my games fairly well grounded in realistic physics. The two arrows thing really starts to stretch it.

Later
mcb