Since this game doesn't have "attacks of opportunity" or "control zones", how do you handle a situation where, say, the PC has an NPC backed into a corner and the NPC is trying to flee? Or a PC is guarding a door. Per RAW the NPC would be considered "engaged", so they could move from engaged to short (out of the corner), and then forego their action (or spend strain) and take another maneuver.

It seems too easy. I don't want to add the crunch of control zones, but it does feel like there's something missing. I'm thinking in specific situations it might require an opposed Athletics or Coordination check to get past someone who holds a tactical advantage. If the NPC succeeds, they move to short range out of the corner, and then can do what they want. Thoughts?

If the player described their character as pinning the NPC into the corner, then I'd probably do an opposed check as you mentioned. Such descriptive action encourages the players to narrate their PC's actions more, I think.

Although, the lack of AoOs is something that I really like about this system compared to PFRPG/d20.

I like it too, but sometimes having a zone of control makes more narrative sense. For another example, currently the mechanics let you skip right past somebody blocking a narrow corridor, and there are no consequences. The person blocking should have a way to actually do it.

I guess in this game there are many ways to handle such a situation, depending on the taste of each of us. One possibility would be that during a fight a PC may spend a certain amount of advantages or a triumph to say that he corners his opponent. As a result, you could say as the GM that the NPC has to use his action for an opposed athletics or coordination check to disengage. Or alternatively, the NPC would need a similar number of advantages (or threats from a roll of the PC) to find a spot to run away and disengage as a maneuver.

I will do something similar for the corridor situation.

Cheers,

Yepes

Per RAW the NPC would be considered "engaged", so they could move from engaged to short (out of the corner), and then forego their action (or spend strain) and take another maneuver.

When you are engaged, you need to spend a maneuver to disengage (Removing yourself from combat while avoiding attacks.) and then another maneuver to move away to short range. (CRB. p. 202)

Conversely, you have to spend a maneuver to move from short to engage an enemy. This seems like way of representing "cornering your opponent". You have to spend the maneuver to engage them or disengage them.

For the person blocking the door scenario, I would have the acting player that wants to get by the person blocking the door make an opposed Brawl check. If the person trying to get by wins, they get by. If the blocker wins, they do not get by.

Ian

I handled this type of situation recently.

When the enemy came into range, the PC and the Enemy both made vigilance checks, creating a mini initiative order within the initiative. Boosts or setbacks apply depending on how distracted the enemy/pc is. After that, the Enemy/PC involved in the attack of opportunity get 1 action against the target. I had to come up with it on the fly, but it seemed pretty simple.

in such a situation i would simply rule that you can't just "maneuver" out of your situation. you'd have to take "action" to break out (if that is at all possible, sometimes it won't).

how exactly this action would be played out depends on the situation.

want to rush your opponent, push him out of the way and run... opposed athletics check. or maybe a brawl attack?

fool him into thinking you'd do something else, like surrendering, then surprise him and rush past... something involving deception.

fire at your enemy to put him on the defensive for a moment, then flee... attack roll.

next turn you're not cornered anymore, and if you act before your opponent, you can then simply maneuver away.

as long as you have to use up your action i think there should be plenty of ways to get out of being cornered without it feeling too easy, and as yepesnopes said, how you do it exactly is up to the gm. there are several ingame options available.

Good feedback all, thank you.