Re: (TFT) Shield rush in Melee --> Momentum of heavy blows.

[Peter von Kleinsmid <pvk@oz.net>]

At 10:10 PM 11/20/03 -0800, Charles Gadda wrote:
> ...
>
> Just don't see the point in a special rule for the rare situation where (a)
> a person takes a blow of sufficient magnitude to do a "knockback" but (b)
> actually is alive and standing and *not* splattered all over the ground.
...

Well, several counter-points come immediately to mind:

* Some people in TFT have better than fine plate, or fine plate AND a 
shield and magical protection and toughness etc.

* If you are fighting someone with a tremendous amount of protection, being 
able to move them a hex or two may be a way to deal with them, escape them, 
etc, particularly if there are pits/water/mud/cauldrons etc. nearby.

* Even if a person hit by a giant is killed, the position his body lands 
can be important and interesting. It might land on something, or someone. 
It creates a terrain obstacle where it lands. It is where most of his gear 
and loot will be.

* If your friend is knocked unconscious, it makes a difference whether they 
land in a bonfire, or just next to it, etc.

* In terms of realism, distance sent backwards isn't directly determined by 
damage done. The angle of the blow, and to what degree the target reacts to 
getting hit, can either result in a powerful blow simply crumpling the 
victim in place, or a non-injuring blow sending someone off balance and 
stumbling away up to a few hexes.

* Having played hundreds of TFT and GURPS combats on maps, there is a big 
difference between the body pile arrangements after TFT battles, where you 
can often see exactly where people "stood and died", and lines of bodies 
where two large groups got engaged and stuck in place. In GURPS, where 
there is no engagement, bodies fill two hexes, and knockback and retreats 
are pretty common, you get bodies scattered about in a way that tells a 
forensic story about what happened, which can be rather neat.

* It can also be fun and gratifying to really smack someone, and have them 
fly back. Or, scary to see your enemy hit someone and send them flying.

PvK
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