Dodge is a full round action which has its own rules. Acrobatics further enhances this option. If this is some alternate form of Dodge then why create a new rule? You have a rule already.
If someone chooses to defend themselves with a missile weapon then it has nothing to do with dodge. Dodge has no consideration for weapon skills since you can not parry and dodge together. If you dodge then there is no parry.
No, this isn't any form of alternate dodge, period. What I said was:
along the lines of Dodging
Dodge is an
unskilled maneuver that allows for an increase in DB. And, as you pointed out, if a character HAS an appropriate skill, his chances of a successful Dodge are increased.
The 3 stat option is LIKE a dodge ONLY in that it is an
unskilled action, that can possibly benefit the player in some small way.
You were apparently reading something that I never actually said....
For the action described they are definitely trying to parry, but they are parrying with a weapon that is neither designed for parry, nor are they trained to parry with it. It would be no different than parrying with an umbrella or a walking cane. So you need to consider it a poorly made version of what they are trying to parry with and take penalties from there. In most cases you are far better off dodging...
Exactly! On all points! However, there may possibly be situations where there is no applicable parrying skill available and where Dodging is not an option (i.e. no space to dodge).
In such circumstances the GM can STILL allow for the "unskilled parry" so as to not totally screw over his players. It will, by no means, be as effective as an actual parry using a proper weapon (or even an unskilled parry using a proper weapon), but it gives players a slightly better chance of surviving.
And to me, that is what is important - giving the player the CHANCE to survive. He might not (likely would not, IMO), but at least he could take some sort of action in his own defense, and THAT is what I feel is important.
* Do not use a stat based maneuver. There is no single stat that would apply to this action.
Actually, there are 3 stats that apply. Strength and Agility are the stats used for combat skills, so they would automatically apply when trying to defend oneself with an unfamiliar object (i.e. attempting to parry with something that is not a weapon). Quickness is the base stat used in DB, so it also could be and would be useful in such situations. Hence, why I suggested those three stats.
The situations in which "unskilled parrying" might come into play are likely to be
almost nil, since every official culture available to players comes with at least ranks in 1 weapon skill. But just because a situation is extremely unlikely does not mean that one should not think ahead and consider how they might handle such situations.
[oRule]
When parrying with unfamiliar objects or with objects that are NOT melee weapons, the GM should allow the player to use either his full Brawling skill bonus or up to half of the closest weapon skill bonus.
Unwieldy items should likely also be assigned a -10 to -20 modifier to the amount that can be used to parry, based upon how unwieldy it is.
The GM can even allow the player to use 1/4 of an inappropriate melee weapon skill bonus if there is not a more appropriate melee skill bonus (i.e. use 1/4 of the skill in a dagger when attempting to use a log 2 handed to parry attacks).
When using non-weapons (or missile weapons) to parry, the item should be considered to be damaged in some manner with each parry that is made. Use the standard item breakage rules to determined if the item is broken or not.
[/oRule]
That official ruling will cover about 99.9% of all parrying attempts. However, I still advocate the 3 stat unskilled parry for that 1 in 1,000 situation that may possibly arise.
