Topic: Striking distance

[darksilver]

Can anyone help me with a reference. I remember somewhere reading that a warrior's reach for attacks in RMSS is 5' plus his weapon length. The problem is I can't seem to find this reference anywhere. Did I imagine it?

[Marc R]

I believe you are correct, but the term in the book is melee range. I can find the reference in RM2 and RMC, but I cannot locate the reference in the RMSS/FRP books. . .anyone?

[rgmadd7]

I was looking for that today! I can not find it anywhere in the RMFRP either. There's got to be something some where, the closest i came to finding it today was in the Rolemaster Standard Rules book where it talks about weapon combinations, theres a paragraph called Second Line Pole Arm Attacks that says second line combatants can attack from behind a front line if they are using polearms. But no reference to reach or melee range.

[arakish]

...a warrior's reach for attacks in RMSS is 5' plus his weapon length.

Only if the attacker was 12 feet tall!! 

I am 6 feet tall and my arm's reach is only 30 inches at most (measuring from middle fingertip to shoulder).

My standard that I have always used is 2 feet plus weapon length.  Of course this is not always correct, but has always worked for me.  With Pole Arms, I used the standard 2 feet plus (Pole Arm length minus 3 feet).

To be wholly honest, I don't think any of the RM/SM products ever listed this.  Thus, I created the above.

rmfr

[providence13]

I don't have a rule quote with page #.
That said, melee combatants aren't nailed to the floor.

Find a combat range/sphere of melee that works for you and stick to it.
You could say that 2-3m or 5-10ft is an approximate circle.
IMHO, combat can be a few steps, a lunge, back peddling a couple of steps, etc.

Giving 10% of BMR could work. Anything over that and you're making a moving maneuver, charge, etc.

[arakish]

That said, melee combatants aren't nailed to the floor.

IMHO, combat can be a few steps, a lunge, back peddling a couple of steps, etc.

Giving 10% of BMR could work. Anything over that and you're making a moving maneuver, charge, etc.

Thanks prov, I am corrected again.  I did not mention it, but the method I used above is the "reach" from where the person is currently "standing".  I just usually adjusted as the melee occurred.

rmfr

[Marc R]

Your weapon reach is 5' plus weapon length in RMC.

IMO that's an approximation off of "Height plus weapon length"

IMO that's an approximation of "Span plus weapon length" i.e. the distance from striking fist surface to fist surface across your chest.

IMO "Span" is a better measurement of reach than arm length, which likely explains why it's the "reach" measurement used in boxing.

If you only punch with your arms, you want arm length, if you presume you rotate and bend your torso, and move your legs. . .

If you nail one of your feet to the floor, allowing you to lunge and strike, you will discover that. . . .the distance from the "Nailed" foot to the striking surface of your fist is actually within a few percent of your "Span".

Which seems to show that ye olde 19th century boxing statisticians knew what they were doing when they measured reach as "Span". (In checking out the background on this, I discovered that while on average in most people span and height are the same or close to it, with world class boxers their span is almost always larger than their height, indicating being abnormally long armed is apparently an advantage in boxing).

That said, I think Height + Weapon length would be correct, but the RM2/RMC rule is the (man sized) approximation of 5' + weapon length, and I can't locate a specific rule in RMSS/RMFRP.

[arakish]

Thanks a bunch Marc R.

It does make more sense to call it "span" instead of "reach".

rmfr

[providence13]

OK. I have a rule quote with a pg #. 

RMSS pg 76, under "Missile Fire in Melee", actually.

In reference to melee attacks;
" 2) That foe is still within striking distance (ie. usually within 5-10')..."

[Marc R]

Of course, who doesn't file "melee range" under "missile attacks"? 

That's fairly close to 5' + weapon length also. I suspect the RM2 standard could be considered to apply, and that it was just such a background wallpaper rule someone forgot to include it explicitly in the RMSS text.