Author Topic: About blocks  (Read 5067 times)

Offline Sanctaphrax

  • White Council
  • Seriously?
  • ****
  • Posts: 12405
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #15 on: January 30, 2012, 06:51:23 PM »
Blocks do not affect defence rolls.

If this seems unrealistic, bear in mind that you can run normally with a CHOPPED-OFF LEGS consequence unless compelled.

PS: Most blocks only affect some actions. The balance of a truly universal block is questionable.

Offline Watson

  • Conversationalist
  • **
  • Posts: 161
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #16 on: January 30, 2012, 08:58:23 PM »
Does it really? The player can tag the aspect to "force" a compel. The gm could still compel it himself if he feels like it.

A tag is a kind of "activation" [for free] that, and the GM could always compel an Aspect if he feels like it.

Offline Watson

  • Conversationalist
  • **
  • Posts: 161
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #17 on: January 30, 2012, 08:59:45 PM »
The balance of a truly universal block is questionable.

True, with the Grapple being one exception.

Offline Becq

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 1253
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #18 on: January 31, 2012, 10:36:32 PM »
Blocks do not affect defensive rolls.
Nor do they place an aspect.
... unless done as the 'freebie' action that maintaining a grapple allows you to perform.

Ok, I think I understand better what the original question was than I did before.  Say Jimmy is walking down the street when suddenly two thugs jump out of an alley.  One of them grabs him and puts him into a full Nelson, leaving the other free to pummel the ever-lovin' *bleep* out of him.  "In real life", this grapple would be preventing Jimmy from putting up much of a defense; his only hope is to break out of the grapple if he hopes to defend himself.

In DFRPG, grapples don't restrict defense at all, which makes it difficult to represent this sort of situation.  The closest you can get is for the thug doing the grapple to use his free bonus action to put maneuvers on Jimmy -- such as "Got you pinned" and "Helpless to defend yourself".  The the punching thug can either throw attacks each exchange, tagging the most recent aspect for a +2 (thus in effect counter 2 points of Jimmy's defense) or by piling on maneuvers of his own, then letting loose with a 'one-shot-takedown' attack tagging whatever maneuvers have built up.  Which might actually do a decent job of dealing with the situation.

Of course, that's the mundane version; the OP was using a spell to do the grappling.  Which brings up a question: does the spell, once in place, get that freebie action each exchange?  Or does it get the action, but only if the spellcaster 'concentrates' on it (in other words, it's not really a free action)?

Offline Sanctaphrax

  • White Council
  • Seriously?
  • ****
  • Posts: 12405
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #19 on: January 31, 2012, 11:11:42 PM »
Why should a spell get the freebie action at all?

The only precedent I know of for such a thing is Orbius, and that isn't exactly a good precedent.

Offline Becq

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 1253
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #20 on: February 01, 2012, 02:13:32 AM »
Why should a spell get the freebie action at all?

The only precedent I know of for such a thing is Orbius, and that isn't exactly a good precedent.
Why isn't that a good precedent?  Basically, the Evocation rules say that you can cast a block spell as a grapple (or rather, the sidebar says that), the grapple rules say that each turn the grapple is maintained (assuming the caster paid extra for duration) there is an extra effect, and Orbius is an example of spell doing exactly that (though Orbius is much more narrowly focused that a typical block (Enderance only), which means fewer options to break it, thus making it basically a DoT damage spell).

I had previously wondered what was intended, but now that you've pointed Orbius out, it does seem to make it clear what the designers' intent was.

Offline Sanctaphrax

  • White Council
  • Seriously?
  • ****
  • Posts: 12405
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #21 on: February 01, 2012, 05:40:53 AM »
Never mind. I refuse to discuss Orbius again.

I generally don't get angry online, but Orbius grinds my gears quite badly. And I see no sense in discussing something that makes me angry.

Offline Becq

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 1253
    • View Profile
Re: About blocks
« Reply #22 on: February 01, 2012, 09:25:19 PM »
Never mind. I refuse to discuss Orbius again.

I generally don't get angry online, but Orbius grinds my gears quite badly. And I see no sense in discussing something that makes me angry.
Hm.  Must of missed that discussion.  Alrighty, then.