Do you go to the dungeon?

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rules:targets-and-ranges-in-fights [2019-04-21 10:16] – [Lateral Movement] sandrarules:targets-and-ranges-in-fights [2020-09-11 13:06] (current) – removed sandra
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-====== Targets & Ranges in Fights ====== 
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-I finally cooked up some [[chases|chase rules]]. 
- 
-So now you can erase the listed ranges on your weapons & spells and instead divide that number by sixty and round **up**. Let's call it... volley number. 
- 
-Feet distances are gone baby gone! 
- 
-[[houseruled-spells-and-abilities#movement-and-targets|House ruled spells and abilities -- movement and targets]]. 
- 
-===== Front Rank: Mêlée Groups ===== 
- 
-Whenever swords clash, whenever two or people fight mêlée and their weapons have the same reach, it's a mêlée group. 
- 
-Let's say Alice and Bob is fighting two skeletons. 
- 
-Alice fighting her skeleton is one mêlée group. 
- 
-Bob fighting his skeleton is another mêlée group. 
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-==== Lateral Movement ==== 
- 
-If you are unencumbered, you can switch to another mêlée group. Let's 
-say Alice gives up on fighting her skeleton and goes over to help Bob 
-fight his skeleton. She takes an opportunity attack from her skeleton. 
-Now there are one mêlée group that's Alices' lone skeleton, and one 
-mêlée group that's Alice, Bob, and Bob's skeleton. 
- 
-If you are encumbered or frosted, it takes two rounds to go between 
-mêlée groups. You go out on the first turn, and then go in on the next 
-turn. (It works sort of like the boat in Container board game.) 
- 
-(If you have speed 25 or more you can go right away, if you have 24 or less you need two turns. That's how it works.) 
-====  Fire & Lightning ==== 
- 
-When selecting targets for a spell, you can't divide more than one mêlée group. 
- 
-Let's say there are three groups: 
- 
-  * Alice + skeleton 
-  * Bob + skeleton 
-  * Carol + skeleton 
- 
-and you are shooting a lightning bolt (a four target spell). You can go for Alice+skeleton, and one more skeleton. 
-(If you are an Evoker you have Spell sculpt so Alice, your friend, won't be harmed.) 
- 
-If there are four groups: 
- 
-  * Alice + skeleton 
-  * Lone skeleton 
-  * Lone skeleton 
-  * Lone skeleton 
- 
-you could go for all four skeletons. 
-You are allowed to divide one mêlée group and you divide the one Alice is in. 
- 
-==== A Big Mêlée Group ==== 
- 
-If the PCs join up in each other's mêlée groups they make themselves even more vulnerable. If two front rank PCs are in the same mêlée group there can be six monsters in that group! Stabbing freely at their hated foe♥ 
- 
-And three if nine and so on! The big cloud of battle is dangerous 
- 
-Large mêlée groups are risky in that way. They are also beneficial for the PCs in case they have Healing Spirit, Fireball, Fire Elemental and so on. 
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-==== Ranged Attacks in the Front Rank ==== 
- 
-**Player characters** shoot at disadvantage in the front rank. Monsters can't shoot in the front rank if they have another attack. If they **only** have ranged attacks, they shoot at disadvantage in the front rank. 
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-===== Back Rank: Ranged & Reach Attacks  ===== 
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-The //Back Rank// is an idea from The One Ring RPG. If you stay in the back rank, enemies can't run up to you and you can't run up to them. Ranged and reach attacks only. 
- 
-The normal restriction is that each person in the back rank needs two people in the front rank as guardians. 
- 
-There are two exceptions, one makes it harder and one makes it easier. The harder one is that if there are more enemies total than twice the number of party members, you're overwhelmed. No one can be in the back rank. 
- 
-It's easier when there are very few enemies. If there are three front rank PCs per monster, any amount of the other PCs can go back. 
- 
-In other words, as long as you're not completely overwhelmed: either two guardians per guarded PC. Or, three occupiers per monster to keep the monsters busy while the others stay back. 
- 
-==== Tangential Back Rank ==== 
- 
-If you can get out of the fight via, for example, levitate you'll have back rank status without needing front rankers -- you're not a guardian and you don't need a guardian. You neither contribute to, nor consume, front rank. 
- 
-==== Medial Movement ==== 
- 
-Even if you're encumbered or frosted you can go between front rank and back rank as long as guardian restrictions are followed. 
- 
-But going front rank doesn't necessarily get you all the way into a particular mêlée group, if you are encumbered or frosted. C.f. [[https://dnd.idiomdrottning.org/rules/targets-and-ranges-in-fights#lateral-movement|Lateral Movement]]. 
- 
-==== Back Rank and "Mêlée Groups" ==== 
-For the purposes of light, spell target selection etc each back ranker is considered to be in a 1-person mêlée group. But they aren't in mêlée. 
- 
-==== Hiding & Sneaking & Sniping ==== 
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-You need to be back rank to hide (either "guarded" back rank or tangential back rank). 
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-==== Flight ==== 
-//(These aren't the the air fight rules we've been using. But it's been a mess. So let's simplify.)// 
- 
-Let's not worry about distance any more. The same way there is a back rank predicate, there is an aerial predicate. 
- 
-=== Flight & Mêlée === 
- 
-Aerial fighters can enter mêlée with grounded fighters. 
- 
-The can then fly away again so they can't be hit (possibly taking opportunity attacks if they don't have "flyby" or similar traits), or they can stay engaged in which case they can be hit. 
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-Grounded fighters can't enter mêlée with aerial fighters. 
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-Aerial fighters can enter mêlée with each other. 
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-=== Flight & Ranged Attacks === 
- 
-Fliers and grounded fighters can use ranged attacks against each other. 
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-=== Flight & Volley Rounds === 
- 
-Fliers can cause [[targets-and-ranges-in-fights#prolonged-volley-fighting|Prolonged Volley Fighting]] by refusing to close in to the ground. 
-===== "First Strike" ===== 
-It's a sort of localized mini-initative. The side that has first strike gets in their swing on their target before their target attacks. This makes it so we can go more back and forth instead of "all players go, all monsters go" etc etc. 
- 
-First strike is local, not global to the entire group: let's say Alice and Bob have first strike vs two skeletons. Alice hits her skeleton, the skeleton hits her back. Bob hits his skeleton, the skeleton then hits him back. 
- 
-==== Who Has First Strike? ==== 
-  * If someone is carrying light in a dark place, they, and every ally in the same mêlée group, have first strike. 
-  * If the light situation is equal, home turf (who was in the room first) has first strike. 
- 
-===== Volley Rounds (Before the Mêlée Starts) ===== 
- 
-Before the front rank & back rank is formed, there can be some rounds where the sides just shoot at each other, throw spears and whatnot! 
-These are called "volley rounds". 
- 
-==== How Many Volley Rounds Are There? ==== 
-//This is rounded down, as normal// 
- 
-^Terrain                               ^Number of volleys^ 
-|Arctic, desert, farmland, or grassland|6d6/           | 
-|Forest, swamp, or woodland            |2d8/           | 
-|Hills, or wasteland                   |2d10/          | 
-|Jungle                                |2d6/           | 
-|Mountains                             |4d10/          | 
-|Dungeon                               |1                | 
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-==== Volleys Per Weapon ==== 
- 
-Here's how to read this table. A hand crossbow can be used during the 
-last two volley rounds (if there even **are** two volley rounds; 
-sometimes fewer are rolled up). One round with //disadvantage// and 
-one **normally**. A shortbow can be used for four rounds with 
-disadvantage and the last two normally. 
- 
-Italic //disadvantage// and bold **normal**: 
- 
-^Weapon^Volleys usable^ 
-|Longbow|//10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, //**3, 2, 1**| 
-|Heavy crossbow|//7, 6, 5, 4, 3, //**2, 1**| 
-|Light crossbow|//6, 5, 4, 3, //**2, 1**| 
-|Shortbow|//6, 5, 4, 3, //**2, 1**| 
-|Blowgun|//2, //**1**| 
-|Hand crossbow|//2, //**1**| 
-|Javelin|//2, //**1**| 
-|Sling|//2, //**1**| 
-|Dagger|**1**| 
-|Dart|**1**| 
-|Hand-axe|**1**| 
-|Light hammer|**1**| 
-|Net|**1**| 
-|Spear|**1**| 
-|Trident|**1**| 
- 
-^Spell^Volleys usable^ 
-|Firebolt|**2, 1**| 
-|Lightning Bolt|**2, 1**| 
-|Shatter|**1**| 
- 
-As a general formula, divide the listed range by 60 but round **up**. 
- 
-Just like how you can note/remember how many targets a spell can hit, 
-you can also note/remember which volleys a ranged attack (spell or 
-weapon) can be used for in ordinary fight. If you wish. 
- 
-==== Prolonged Volley Fighting ==== 
- 
-Sometimes the sides don't close in on each other because there is 
-obstacles; a ravine, a guarded log over a rapidly raging river, 
-shooting between two towers etc. In that case a volley round might 
-repeat. 5, 4, 3, 3, 3, 3.... etc. 
- 
-[[targets-and-ranges-in-fights#flight|Fliers]] can also refuse to close in. 
- 
-When there is no such obstacle and at least one side wants to close in, the volley rounds tick down normally, even when the other side is reluctant to close in. 
-===== Reach attacks ===== 
-Reach is listed as 5 foot reach, 10 foot reach, 15 foot reach etc. Depending on your size as a being and some weapons (like whips) add five to that. 
- 
-A reach attack is when you have longer reach than the person you are fighting. For example, if two humans with swords are fighting each other, or with whips are fighting each other, neither can make reach attack. But if one has a whip and the other a sword, the one with the whip can make reach attacks on the other. 
- 
-==== Reach Attacks in the Front Rank ==== 
- 
-You don't automatically enter mêlée groups with the ones you attack, if you attack with longer reach. 
-So shorty is considered engaged with longy, but not the other way around. 
- 
-But they might still use their movement to close in, and enter into a mêlée group with you. 
- 
-==== Reach Attacks in the Back Rank ==== 
- 
-You can hit front rank enemies while remaining in the back rank (provided you meet other restrictions for being back rank) and they can't hit you back. 
- 
-===== Conjured animals & elementals ===== 
- 
-Conjured animals & elementals are in the front rank but do not count as such for the purposes of protecting back rank. (I.e. they do not contribute to the 2:1 formula.) They do participate in mêlée groups normally for the purposes of target limits, opportunity attacks and similar. 
- 
-However, if they want to go back rank (to use ranged attacks) they **do** consume back rank space and need two front rank guardians each, unless they can use tangential back rank through evasive abilities such as flight. 
- 
-The rules for who the monsters attack do not apply to conjured animals & elementals. The DM can choose completely freely if the monsters attack, or ignore, conjured animals & elementals, or mix freely between attacking them or ignoring them. 
- 
-In other words, the conjured beings can't be relied on as damage sponge tanks, nor can they be relied on as completely inattackable/invulnerable persistent sources of damage. 
- 
- 
-===== Q & A ===== 
-====How do monsters use back rank?==== 
- 
-They use a different formula (according to TOR); as long as they have a front ranker for each PC front ranker they can stay back, or try to gang up. This might look like it's easier for them but: 
-So if there are five skeletons and five PCs, the PCs can have one back rank PC and four front rank PCs. And then so can the skeletons. 
- 
-==== What happens if I fly out of reach, or run out of reach? ==== 
-  * If you want to flee and they want to follow, we'll go to a [[chases|chase]]. 
-  * If you can fly / run to a place where you can hit them and they can't hit you, we can still be in an ordinary fight except you can't be hit or reached. 
-