Should there be a "Keeping the Distance Maneuver?"

By SEApocalypse, in Star Wars: Edge of the Empire RPG

Something similar to the chase from starship combat, trying to keep the distance instead of running away, something which makes a disengage maneuver a opposing check instead of an auto success when you get into melee range your your auto-blaster wielding opponent.

Or maybe is there even one and I just failed to see it?

Something similar to the chase from starship combat, trying to keep the distance instead of running away, something which makes a disengage maneuver a opposing check instead of an auto success when you get into melee range your your auto-blaster wielding opponent.

Or maybe is there even one and I just failed to see it?

The Warden has the Grapple talent which forces adversaries to spend 2 maneuvers to disengage with them. It's pretty potent. Especially against minions.

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

I wouldn't appreciate a rule like that unless there was a corresponding cost for running up on a guy pointing a gun at you.

But I agree that this is a suboptimal solution to the problem... my preference for a house rule is that ranged attack difficulties and penalties are set by where you START your turn unless you move closer before shooting. This fixes the start engaged but take 5 steps back before shooting problem (that is caused by turn based movement where reality is that a melee combatant would be chasing a fleeing ranged combatant as they were trying to get out of engaged ranged)... it makes ranged combatants have to be careful about not letting a melee combatant get close to them if they don't want to suffer the penalties for being engaged

Edited by EliasWindrider

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

I wouldn't appreciate a rule like that unless there was a corresponding cost for running up on a guy pointing a gun at you.
A melee guy wants to get close he may be "afraid" of being far away but closing with someone is not a bad thing for them, in fact it may be calming. A ranged guy is afraid of being close and that's what causes the stress.

But I agree that this is a suboptimal solution to the problem... my preference for a house rule is that ranged attack difficulties and penalties are set by where you START your turn unless you move closer before shooting. This fixes the start engaged but take 5 steps back before shooting problem (that is caused by turn based movement where reality is that a melee combatant would be chasing a fleeing ranged combatant as they were trying to get out of engaged ranged)... it makes ranged combatants have to be careful about not letting a melee combatant get close to them if they don't want to suffer the penalties for being engaged

Simple and elegant.

And the best part about it - it allows for kiting as well, you run already because expect the enemy to follow you, if he does not you might have have to get closer again next turn, but you can for sure vary distance constantly and keep the melees away anyway, you just do not want them to get ever engaged to you.

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

You've gutted the Grapple Talent.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

Just because D&D did it doesn't mean it's a good idea.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

Just because D&D did it doesn't mean it's a good idea.

I would go one step further and say: Just because D&D did it does not mean it is automatically a bad idea, just becomes just very likely a bad idea. :P

But in this case something really seems to missing. Maybe intentional to allow people to get away from that scary wookiee with the vibroaxe and his even more scare friend with the red light saber.

After reading a jet pack threat that wanted to butcher those wonderful, yet abstract, but so wonderful vehicle rules because everyone did not want to have a jetpack which does accelerate. fly as maneuvers to overshoot / circle after reaching its target … I started to look over raw and found something which sounds somehow right.

Melee weapons hit luck trucks and there is knockdown and a few other tools. Maybe I simply overate the importance of staying engaged and everything is fine. We had so far no opponents who could stay in engage to a light saber at all.

Edited by SEApocalypse

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

You've gutted the Grapple Talent.

In fairness, the Grapple Talent didn't exist at the time. Once I get my hands on it, the house-rule will likely go out the window.

To mitigate kiting I've implemented a simple fix. If armed with one or a pair of single-handed weapons it's one maneuver to disengage, two if armed with a two-handed weapon. In the case of grapple you're required to use your action resoure to disengage. It's simple.

Just don't make it look like your keeping your distance.

...

I don't know.. Fly casual?

I've thrown in a house-rule that says getting out of melee costs 2 strain - running from the Trandoshan with the vibroaxe is quite stressful, and you can only do it for so long. This makes the shooting types mindful of distance, and keeps the melee types from having their target just take five steps back and shoot them in the face at optimum range.

Of course, both I and the majority of my players cut our teeth on D&D, so the fact that there wasn't any sort of 'opportunity attack' in RAW for getting out of melee in FFGSW was weird enough for us that we almost had to do something.

I wouldn't appreciate a rule like that unless there was a corresponding cost for running up on a guy pointing a gun at you.
A melee guy wants to get close he may be "afraid" of being far away but closing with someone is not a bad thing for them, in fact it may be calming. A ranged guy is afraid of being close and that's what causes the stress.

But I agree that this is a suboptimal solution to the problem... my preference for a house rule is that ranged attack difficulties and penalties are set by where you START your turn unless you move closer before shooting. This fixes the start engaged but take 5 steps back before shooting problem (that is caused by turn based movement where reality is that a melee combatant would be chasing a fleeing ranged combatant as they were trying to get out of engaged ranged)... it makes ranged combatants have to be careful about not letting a melee combatant get close to them if they don't want to suffer the penalties for being engaged

Simple and elegant.

And the best part about it - it allows for kiting as well, you run already because expect the enemy to follow you, if he does not you might have have to get closer again next turn, but you can for sure vary distance constantly and keep the melees away anyway, you just do not want them to get ever engaged to you.

I thought it was a good house rule, but to be honest it wasn't my first attempt at a fix, the first attempt effectively gave grapple to everyone... which 2P51 and others correctly said was a bad idea in another thread on this topic... and then I took a step back and said to myself "what house rule would fix the take 5 steps back to get an easier difficulty and avoid engaged penalties but not change anything else in the game?" And after asking myself that question the answer was kind of obvious, your ranged difficulties/penalties are set by where you start your turn but people should be able to reduce them by moving closer before shooting ... basically all I had to do was ask the right question and a "good" solution became apparent.