Grid Based Combat and Non-Relative Distance

By SladeWeston, in Your Settings

2 hours ago, finarvyn said:

I wish I could contribute, but tumble and grapple are all jumbled in my brain at the moment. Cody's original post seems pretty solid, however, and replacing vague distances with more specific numbers seems like it could work pretty well on a grid. One issue that I've had with Genesys (and Star Wars before it) is that I tried to play on a grid but had vague ranges in the rules. Takes a little time to reconcile the two in my head.

Also, why is this a "Your Settings" topic? Seems like a general rules discussion and not a setting-specific one. :(

I don't disagree except that I've gotten a pretty negative reception in the past with similar rules overhauls. "Why don't you just play X instead" or "Genesys is just fine. If you want that, maybe you should be playing Y" etc. I didn't want to deal with that, and the people who frequent the "My Setting" Section seem more open to rules alternatives. And really, this is specifically for my setting. I'm doing an Eberron Setting that has a ton of major rules overhauls. One of those is a Vancian magic system that needed real distances. At the same time, because it is a D&D based setting, the grid-based combat should help capture the more tactical feel there as well.

One way other people could contribute would be to take 15 minutes and try out some combat with it in your own game or just for fun with some friends. We've done a decent bit of testing but its always good to get a second set of eyes on something.

I have been using grid for my Star Wars and now Genesys game for a couple years. Never really have issues with extreme range bands as the combat usually pertains to the map in front of us, and I would do the scene narratively anyways.

Borrowed from SWSAGA/DnD4E:

-6 squares = a range band

-add blue/black depending on situation (Flank, cover, etc)

i use a Movement characteristic derived from Brawn and Agility (MOV = AGL + BRN).

this than translates into Pace:

  • Basic Pace is MOV = ft/sec.
  • (Structured) Combat Pace is MOV * 10 ft/round
  • (Narrative) Pace is MOV * 30ft/minute

for movement speeds i use these multipliers:

Pace | xMOV
Creep | x1/2
Walk | x1
Brisk | x3/2
Jog | x2
Run | x3
Sprint | x4
Dash | x5

the movement multiplier is also used as the number of setback dice used as a situational modifier (eg. if you are running receive +3 setback to actions)

  • a starting character (BRN 2, AGL 3) might move 5ft/sec or 50ft/round in combat, per movement maneuver OR about 3km/hour overland
  • for the same character, Maraton Distance (ie. 42 km) at Running Pace would be 9km/hour for 4.6 hours

please note that these values might not reflect reality

  • a hero character (BRN 5, AGL 5) might move 10ft/sec or 100ft/round in combat, per movement maneuver OR about 6km/hour overland
  • for the same character, Maraton Distance (ie. 42 km) at Running Pace would be 18km/hour for 2.3 hours