Topic: Combat actions for non-combat characters

[Grimsouled]

Morning all,

We recently had a big fight in our campaign and the scholar was feeling a bit useless... Are there actions that a non-combat character can take to contribute/assist in a combat situation? (he has no spells, btw)
I know other systems have actions you can take like inspiring the troops or using tactics skills to aid you companions. Does this exist in RMU or any older material?

Thanks.

[Hurin]

Note that Scholars are considered primarily an NPC class for precisely that reason. I can't think of too many things they can do in combat without any spells or weapon skills at all.

If they have a reasonable Running skill, they could draw enemy fire by Dodging.

[jdale]

I let a non-combatant take the Sense Weakness talent only for use assisting others. There will be more options along those lines in the Character Companion when it comes out.

There should generally be things you can do in combat using other skills, whether it's causing distractions, identifying weaknesses, etc. Some of those you could handle as complementary skill bonuses. We'll expand on that later too. But it requires a certain level of creativity by the player and a willingness by the GM to encourage that creativity.

[Grimsouled]

I let a non-combatant take the Sense Weakness talent only for use assisting others. There will be more options along those lines in the Character Companion when it comes out.

There should generally be things you can do in combat using other skills, whether it's causing distractions, identifying weaknesses, etc. Some of those you could handle as complementary skill bonuses. We'll expand on that later too. But it requires a certain level of creativity by the player and a willingness by the GM to encourage that creativity.

Okay, good. This was the train of thought that both I and the player in question were going down. Thanks.

[Spectre771]

In RM2, there is Brawling skill which is improvised weapons like "Chair-to-the-Back" or "Handful of Sand to the Face."  You can always allow an action like that with -25 modifier, or less.  It doesn't take much to swing a chair at someone or to throw your mug of ale as a distraction at the very least.  It doesn't even have to be as an actual attack to try to score hits/crits.  We had a player do exactly that.  He only had a bow skill and no secondary weapon  training.  He made perfectly good use of his non-combat skills in combat.

Running into an opponent from behind to make him stumble.
Running into a spell caster to try to break his concentration.
Pouring a flask of oil on the ground then lighting it.
Throwing a flask of oil at an opponent, then throwing a lit torch.
Holding a shield and preventing a flank or back attack on the fighter of the party.
Taunting is a skill in RM2, but any Public Speaking, Tale Telling, Singing, etc to that really brings into question the familial lineage of the target and perhaps the genetic make-up of the target's mother, grandmother, etc. 

All are very good distraction that may yield an attack bonus for the fighters.

[Hurin]

Great suggestions!

One last one: Delving skills, which include Runes and Attunement, are exceptionally cheap for a Scholar. So, he can buy runes and then read them in combat (no PP necessary), and if the party has any magic items that cast spells, he can use them to cast spells too.

So the Scholar is especially good at scouring libraries and bazaars (2/3 for Social skills like Trading) to find magical scrolls and items, and unlock their potential.

[Cory Magel]

As a scholar could he learn potion making?  You should be able to do all kinds of things with potions... fire, smoke, gas, flash-bang, different kinds of cures.

[Hurin]

As a scholar could he learn potion making?  You should be able to do all kinds of things with potions... fire, smoke, gas, flash-bang, different kinds of cures.

Possibly, but the only way I know how to make potions in RM is through alchemical spells, and he doesn't have spells.

[gog]

Another option is if you have characters with ranged weapons that take time to reload, then the non-combat characters can be reloading and passing over the ready weapons.

[Cory Magel]

As a scholar could he learn potion making?  You should be able to do all kinds of things with potions... fire, smoke, gas, flash-bang, different kinds of cures.

Possibly, but the only way I know how to make potions in RM is through alchemical spells, and he doesn't have spells.

It's too bad RM users never customize their game.

[jdale]

The Scholar PC in my game eventually switched to a semi with a little alchemy for just that reason. It's still a secondary thing for him. He also has some talents and such for boosting others, and I've also let the party acquire some items that are good for the support-style role he wants (e.g. a staff of weather control, a wand of healing). He's also good at Medicine with a specialization in cauterization, which is surprisingly effective. And of course a ton of lore. But he doesn't ever actually attack. The closest he has gotten is a wand that causes stunning, and that gets used very rarely.

[EvilWilliam]

Given the perception action rules in RMU (IIRC characters are only 'aware' of a 10' sphere unless they spend AP on surveying the scene, having the scholar just make that action and 'call' the moves would be inherently useful.

[OLF, i.e. Olf Le Fol]

Possibly, but the only way I know how to make potions in RM is through alchemical spells, and he doesn't have spells.

He's a Scholar, so his spell list cost is merely 4. I'd suggest the GM to create a quest for his group, where the goal is search for some ancient lore and power, to which the Scholar can access. In game terms, the Arcane Coven spell list "Brewing Lore" allows the creation a lot of different potions, including ones embedded with a spell. Since it's an Arcane spell, according to the RoCo. I, a "non-spell user (may use) one spell pick to learn every 2 levels of an Arcane list; i.e., 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, etc. Each spell after level 10 requires a separate pick to learn", so the rules actually allow a Scholar to learn spells from the list, up to level 50. As for being an Arcane Coven spell list, well, Arcane Covens are supposed to be highly secret, ancient, mysterious and all the usual stuff, societies, so I'd say searching for some of their hidden knowledge fits an adventure for a Scholar (and his friends).
Or course, it's up to the GM to customize the  above part, but the rules allow them, so he only needs the flavor text— I mean, the story going with them.

…technically, Indiana Jones is a scholar! Since he's a college professor! :p

[Cory Magel]

Why has no one considered 'low magic' / 'low tech'.

Alchemists in the real world use real ingredients to make what people in historical times would consider almost... magical.

Tech/Trade (whatever the RMU equivalent skill is).  Make skill levels breaks for different types of strengths of potion and make acquiring ingredients part of the game.  What is a grenade but a modern mixture of 'magical' components? What medicine that you drink but a but a modern healing potion?
Get creative by being... maybe less creative than we default to in a fantasy setting.

[Hurin]

RMU would make that all a bit easier with its alchemy spell lists (in Treasure Law). You could even reflavour these to make them alchemical rituals rather than 'spells' per se if you wanted to avoid traditional spellcasting.