gurps icon indicating copy to clipboard operation
gurps copied to clipboard

damage modifiers should not be consumed from bucket during attack roll

Open devakm opened this issue 2 years ago • 6 comments

I know it quickly gets too complicated to handle all situations automatically, but damage modifiers should be consumed from the modifier bucket separately from attack modifiers.

User should be able be pick [+2 damage (Mighty Blow) *Cost 1FP] and [-2 to hit (Poor Footing)] and then click a macro or OtF like this: ["Bolas Smash"/if [A:Bolas*Swung] {/r [D:Bolas*Swung]}] and have it just work. The hit modifier should be consumed on the attack roll and the damage modifier should be consumed on the damage roll.

Currently, the damage modifier gets wasted on the attack roll and the bucket is cleared before the damage roll.

If necessary, you could require the existing syntax for rolltable modifiers (@gmod/@gmodc) to be used in the OtF, like this: ["Bolas Smash"/if [A:Bolas*Swung @gmod] {/r [D:Bolas*Swung @gmodc]}]

devakm avatar Sep 13 '22 00:09 devakm

Actually, I think you've hit upon a solution. We have been louth to allow "sticky" modifiers because you wouldn't be able to tell what they belong to. But if we could identify a modifier as a damage modifier, then it would easy to determine if the roll is for damage.

Success roles, would be difficult because there are so many different kinds of success. But there's basically only one kind of damage.

I wonder how useful it would be.

crnormand avatar Sep 13 '22 00:09 crnormand

It would be very useful in my game since I create OtF commands or macros like the examples above for most common actions. I think a lot of GMs do this or would if not for the limitations with modifiers. Currently, I have to make separate macros or OtFs to include Mighty Blow, for example, which is a huge hassle.

devakm avatar Sep 13 '22 00:09 devakm

This would also solve problems like where to apply a hit modifier in a complex OtF (such as [-2 to hit (Poor Lighting)]) since you could do something like: /if [Sp:Fireball] {/if [R:Fireball @gmod] {[D:Fireball @gmodc]}}

devakm avatar Sep 13 '22 00:09 devakm

Maybe @amod and @dmod?

devakm avatar Sep 13 '22 00:09 devakm

One other thing: the current Mighty Blow formula is actually incorrect since the *Cost 1FP part is not applied until damage is rolled. The rules on B357 and repeated in MA131 clearly state that the 1FP must be spent before rolling the attack. This means you lose 1FP even if you miss and never roll damage. The actual formula should be two modifiers, one for the attack: [+0 to hit (Mighty Blow) *Cost 1FP] and one for damage [+2 damage (Mighty Blow)]

devakm avatar Sep 13 '22 04:09 devakm

It would be handy to be able to queue up modifiers to hit and do additional damage, for example, instead of having to do them separately. As @devakm mentions, you lose your 1FP for Mighty Blow regardless of success or not, so there are many times in our games where we'd like to be able to differentiate between bonuses to skill and bonuses to damage but queue them all up in the mod bucket (or macro).

Farmeroz avatar Sep 14 '22 11:09 Farmeroz