Simplifying 1-hand/2-hand/1.5-hand/Str Mins.

[BlueBuddha]

So, the rules for using 1-handed, 1 1/2-handed, and 2-handed weapons one-handed and two-handed weapons with either one or two hands with various Strength minimums works well, but can get pretty hard to keep track of spontaneously, like when you peel a sword off an enemy's corpse and try to figure out what your OCV, DCV, and DC is going to be. Hang on, lemme crack open the book to... what page was that again?

So, I think I'm just going to simplify things a bit. I think it's pretty intuitive. Let me know what you think:

• All weapons are either one- or two-handed, depending on how they're intended to be weilded.
• Weilding a one-handed weapon in two-hands, if possible, will lower the Str Min by 5. This allows you to avoid a penalty and possibly do more damage.
• Using a two-handed weapon in one hand raises the Str Min by five for calculating penalties and damage.

...okay. Now that I've written all that and looked back at the rules, I realize all I've done is remove 1-1/2 handed weapons and changed the Str Min modifier from 3 to 5. This is truly a simplified system that writing has helped me to memorize the actual rules. Funny.

What I think it's really worth is for quickly calculating things for players who aren't familiar with the rules.

[SirViss]

I'm setting up a FH game of my own and went through the weapons chart, as some discussion on these very boards had brought to my attention some things that I would want to change for my game. Some of these details was the "number of Hands" and the "Str Min" of weapons.

I almost entirely did away with "1½-H" & "2-H", boosted the Str Min for those same weapons and simply made it a "House Rule" that if you use a weapon with two hands it will be as if you have +5 Str. Some weapons still have "2-Handed", mostly polearm and other weapons that would be truly unweildly for human size characters, no matter how strong they are. But what this means is that some weapons which may a hilt or grip large enough (like longsword) can be used with two hands and boost the damage. Also, I fond it easier to adjusting the STR Min of weapons up or down. You just have one adjustment.

[BlueBuddha]

As much as I don't like D&D, the rules for categorizing and using weapons in one or two hands is fairly slick and easily used. I think the HERO rules make sense, but aren't intuitive and pretty hard to remember.

I'm still not sure if I'm gonna use the rules as-is or simply using 5-point STR increments to adjust OCV, DCV, and DCs. Also, I think the 1-1/2 handed option isn't necessary.

Daggers can only be used one-handed. Every 5 pts of STR add a DC.

Longswords can be used one or two-handed. As an officially "one-handed" weapon, wielding it in two hands will lower the STR Min/ raise your effective STR by 5, so you can eliminate some penalties or add a DC of damage (like dropping your sword and swinging it two-handed for more force)

Greatswords are 2-handed by default, and as normal, every 5 pts of extra STR add a DC. Wielding it one-handed raises the STR min/ lowers your effective STR by 5, thus adding penalties or subtracting damage.

It's basically the same rules but highly simplified. Ideally, I'd use the rules as published, but unfamiliar players, or players too bothered to memorize or continually look up the rules can go with the simplified version.

[Hugh Neilson]

Daggers can only be used one-handed. Every 5 pts of STR add a DC.

So you can't wrap both hands around the hilt and plunge it, with all your strength, into the target to enhance damage?

[BlueBuddha]

Well, you can, but it won't add damage. Or, at the GMs discretion, maybe you can, but you either have to be close, or take a OCV penalty. I've never stabbed anyone like that before, but it seems like an inaccurate attack.

I also forgot to mention that you can only increase damage from a weapon to twice its base damage.

[SirViss]

Well, you can, but it won't add damage...

Sure it does. It called a Haymaker.

[Frenchman]

A character who 'wraps both hands around the hilt of a dagger and plunges it, with all their strength, into the target' should be able to get an extra DC out of it - assuming they aren't allready hitting the doubling cap - which is 14 for knives.

Your first post looks a lot like what our group does. The exception is that, unless its a two-handed weapon by which you exceed the STR Min by 5, you suffer a -1 OCV penalty for wielding it with the wrong number of hands. And of course, some weapons (bows, a bat'leth) cannot be wielded in one hand no matter how hard you try.