Topic: Creature Armour Types

[craggles]

More questions! 
(are you ready to hate me yet?)

I have the 'creatures and monsters' book where it lists all the creatures stats including their AT.

• (on a side note, there's loads of codes that need deciphering before you can drop them into the encounters like is speed and initiative bonus - why couldn't they have just been listed?)
  (on ANOTHER side note - I used a 'Lesser' Great Spider (stats on page 54) and it has a '40 OB in Small Sting' with the double arrow after after it which means that if it got a non-tiny critical with that attack, the next attack applies as well. In this situation, the next attack was poison. Unfortunately, ALL criticals on the Small Sting table are 'Tiny' no matter what AT their against! So why have that in the stats if it's unachievable - unless I'm interperating the rules wrong?)

NOW - on with the actual issue at hand...   
The stats for the creatures includes their ATs BUT what if a hill troll happened to have full plate on (AT20)? Would you use the amour's AT and ignore the fact that the troll has it's own naturally tough skin (being AT11 as it happens) or would you somehow combine any results for the attacks between the ATs?

Thanks for the help.

[markc]

 I will try and take a swing at this.

1) About listed codes instead of a full listing under each creature.
 I am going to guess that they tought it was more effecient to do it this way as they could list more monsters in the book and not have a lot of info that needed to be read under each creature. IMO also it might a been better to drop the creature stat blook into adventures or other published material.

2) I will have to look up the info about the spider but it might refer to info in GM law or under the spider text.

3) IMO you have hit upon one of the classic GM problems in RM. Again IMO what I would do is have the troll use the higher at and provide a bonus to there DB based on there natural AT. I do not have an offical idea but I might provide a bonus to DB= ATx2 but again I might also adjust it for each creature do to there description.

MDC

[Rasyr-Mjolnir]

The stats for the creatures includes their ATs BUT what if a hill troll happened to have full plate on (AT20)? Would you use the amour's AT and ignore the fact that the troll has it's own naturally tough skin (being AT11 as it happens) or would you somehow combine any results for the attacks between the ATs?

AT20 would be the AT used, and the natural would be ignored.

Unless, you are using the new AT rules from Combat Companion, in which case, any natural AT adds to the DB, and thus can/does stack with armor worn over it.

(on a side note, there's loads of codes that need deciphering before you can drop them into the encounters like is speed and initiative bonus - why couldn't they have just been listed?)
(on ANOTHER side note - I used a 'Lesser' Great Spider (stats on page 54) and it has a '40 OB in Small Sting' with the double arrow after after it which means that if it got a non-tiny critical with that attack, the next attack applies as well. In this situation, the next attack was poison. Unfortunately, ALL criticals on the Small Sting table are 'Tiny' no matter what AT their against! So why have that in the stats if it's unachievable - unless I'm interperating the rules wrong?)

Did you read the notes on the Stinger attack table? The first note saying that any result with a critical injects a poison?

The codes and such are a general guideline, plain and simple. Notes on the actual attack tables will over-rule the notations (i.e. stingers will do poison attacks, regardless of the critical type, if a critical is done).

The use of the symbol for the spider is meant to indicate that the second is usable ONLY if the first succeeds.

For other creatures, there WILL be cases where the secondary attack is not a poison (and the primary attack is not a stinger), and therefore, the non-Tiny critical note will apply.

The codes for things like MA/AQ are done in that manner because they can be applied to multiple things and give different bonuses based on what they are applied to.

Also, remember, the folks who originally made these rules are no longer around, so there is way we can be sure what their reasons for anything might have been. 

[craggles]

Did you read the notes on the Stinger attack table? The first note saying that any result with a critical injects a poison?

I'm going to say 'no' (obviously), but now I know.

My wife deals with the attack and crit tables for me, leaving me a little freer to GM - although, I'd have to say that I wouldn't have spotted it myself as I was going on the 'double arrow' info that's at the start of the book. The ONLY thing that I had drilled into my head and it happens to be not applicable.

Thanks both - and until my next question, I bid thee goodnight (and a happy xmas).

[markc]

craggles,
 I like it also when players help. Infact in my game I give each weapon sheet to the players with out the crit tables, I handle those as somethimes I need to adjust the crits up or down for variuos reasons.

 Keep the Q's comming as RM has a lot of info to digest and it is easy to mis-remember things.
MDC

[GrumpyOldFart]

Infact in my game I give each weapon sheet to the players

Me too, been doing that since RM had those parchment cardstock tables. It helps the game go faster, it makes the players feel more involved... it even builds teamwork in the party. If two fighters both have mace and shield, and both have longbows, one ends up with the mace table and one with the bow and the shield bash. Believe it or not that subtle, out of character reinforcement of their teamwork affects how their characters play over the long run.

[craggles]

I can't remember where I read about it - but it was in one of the RMFRP books that suggested spreading the load. It's definitely the way to go! I'm not sure how bored everyone would be if they had to sit and wait for me to look through books.