Have any of you found yourself in the situation of having a player wanting to use (repeatedly or eventually) the Perform a Stunt action card to perform a Reaction-type action? For example to attack twice in a combat round (such as with the cards Counter Blow, Coup-de-Grace or Hostile Redirection)?

How you manage it? (I am assuming the player has enough imagination to come up with an acceptable description)

Yepesnopes said:

Well Perform Stunt is really not a "combat" card, though it sometimes doubles as one in cases where a player is performing some sort of stylish manuver which he finishes off with an attack. In this case the attack is always a default basic attack (either melee or ranged). I generally don't allow a player to fuse say a perform stunt with a double strike or something. So if you want to make a double strike you can't be doing back flips on your way there which I think in most narrative makes sense, noting that there are ALWAYS exceptions to any general things I follow.

I definitly allow reactive stunts, but never as a replacement for things like dodge, block or other things that might help avoid an attack for which there is already a basic card.

Well if a player "repentantly" uses perform a stun to do a special reaction or attack which isn’t covered by the rules. Why not build an action card for him?
It seems like its his "signature move" so let him do it a few times with "perform a stunt" with a few more "banes" or challenge dice and then build it and let him buy it when you feel like he’s gotten some experience using that special attack and reduce the banes/challenges a little since he spend an Exp for that now.
If it’s an attack you can always use “acrobatic strike” which covers all kinds of artistic or special attacks!
For reaction cards, keep in mind they are the most powerful cards in play. They allow you to act "out of turn" and can cascade easily. I.E if you got a shild&sword fighter with riposte, counterblow, retaliation and "who’s next" he could easily kill 3-4 opponents in his "off turn" which is devastating regarding that he also can use his “normal action” when he is the active player.
I’d be careful with reactions bearing that in mind. But what I so far could see from your work and handling concerning balance makes me feel very confident that you will find the right path

I would not allow Perform a Stunt to get a 2nd action a round, even as a reaction. Reaction cards that give you something like "if you parry successfully, take a basic melee attack" are very specialized moves and thus limited to the character with them in my view.

If I was "going in that direction at all" I would always ensure that what you got doing it without the Action Card was notably inferior (making the Action Cards still worthwhile to have) - being harder and not having as spiffy as set of outcomes when rolling well.

For me the deciding factor is that because the perform a stunt card has only the basic trait, not the active trait, it simple cannot be used to do anything active, period. A player is never permitted more than one standard per turn. All other actions would have to be valid out of turn plays, such as a card with an active trait.

As far as uses of the perform a stunt card during a turn, it is meant to be very open ended allowing actions that they would otherwise qualify. It would not let someone of Str 2 toss a heavy door aside with one hand, while carrying the princess under his other arm, but if his Agility was 5 he could surely use perform a stunt to crash through the window next to the door, landing in a way that he shields the princess from harm, taking a few wounds himself as he slides across the broken glass.

It may sound like it lacks a little imagination, but I think it makes perfect sense to allow it to be used to emulate other action cards, with some caveats. For example, maybe you have seen your soldier buddy do a nasty double strike when pressed by goblins, and you find yourself surrounded and think to try it yourself. Why not?

The caveats:

• You must otherwise meet the qualifications required to use the action
• You have no training..there are more ways to do it wrong, and more ways to be unlucky about it.
• Add 1 challenge and 1 bane to the pool.
• Can only convert comet's into boons. (Cannot activate specific card comet effects or convert to success, due to lack of training or practice.)
• If this sounds too open ended, restrict it to major story moments..like a depserate move to save a friends life, or get across a chasm before its too late, etc.

Ultimately, if a player really likes an action, he'll probably get it at some point, and this allows you to say "yes" to your players in a way that lets them experiment or act out of story-driven desperation.

Interesting situation. I'd just say to everyone, "No more perform stunt reactions. Only ACTUAL reaction cards are allowed."

Just tell them the new rule before the game starts, and go from there.

jh

Hi,

Start giving trolls and black orcs some perform a stunt reactions should send a message across if players are taking the p***?

No:12 said:

You are evil!