Small character bonuses

[mallet]

Hi all,

 

Just wondering about how you handle small characters in your campaigns and the bonuses they get. 

 

As per the rules, characters at 1/2 the normal size are harder to hit, so the attacker gets -2 OCV. 

 

But characters (Players or NPC's or Monsters) that are small buy their smaller size as a Complication and from what I can see this is usually a 5-10 pt. complication, so the free bonus of "giving" the -2 OCV to anyone attacking them is of at least equal (if not more) value then the Complication that provides it. Not much of a Complication (at least in combat) in that regard. 

 

Also, most builds for small characters (gnomes, halflings, etc...) that I see in the books also include a +2 DCV (that the character pays for) for a total "swing" of 4 CV (Character has +2 DCV and Attacker gets -2 OCV).

 

This seems a bit excessive. 

 

What do you do in your games? Ignore the "-2 OCV for the attackers"? Not allow the "+2 DCV" purchase for the characters? Allow both but make the Complication worth 0 pts? Or just allow small characters to be rarely hit? 

[Cantriped]

IIRC the +2 DCV granted by the Small size template is​ representing the "-2 to OCV" from the Target Size modifiers. Similarly the +2 to Stealth represents the "-2 to Perceive" from the Target Size modifiers. 

The complication has nothing to do with the character's Target Size modifier, instead it represents that Small characters also typically suffer more Knockback, and have even shorter Melee Reach, cannot reach the high shelf, may be impeded by terrain larger beings simply step over, etc (none of which are easily represented by existing game elements)...