Heroic Martial Arts, weapons, and Damage Classes in 6E

[Eodin]

In a 6E Heroic campaign, such as Fantasy Hero or Star Hero, are the Martial Arts damage classes exempt from the "double weapon base damage" rule? 

Example, my Viking character has a 2D6K Battle Axe and 20 STR and Martial Arts. Without any extra DCs, he can do 4D6K with a Cleave attack.  Now he buys +2 Damage Classes with his Martial Arts. Does he now do 4 1/2 D6 with the Cleave, or does he only do 4D6?  If he puts his +4 Combat Levels into additional damage, that according to the rules exceed the 4D6 K, and buying Weapon Master exceeds the 4D6 K, so it seems to me as the DCs would also increase damage regardless of the double damage limit in Heroic campaigns.  For that matter a fist is a real weapon, and with Martial Arts and Levels in a Heroic Campaign a 2d6 N punch (Strike) can become a 6D6 N Punch (Strike). 

 

Trying to figure this out so we know whether to spend 12 points for +3 DC in the MA, which may not help at all, or spend the same 12 points for Weapon Master, which does, and is confusing.  Part of the problem is the text for "real weapons" limitation that says a weapon with this limitation - which basically means every weapon that's not Champions and not a magical creation in Fantasy Hero - can't do more than double it's base damage. But if I spend points for the maneuver Offensive Strike with a 1d6K dagger, that's +4DC with a 3DC weapon and thus the damage using the maneuver is more than double. If I take Offensive Strike in Gun Fu, and we all know that extra STR does not add damage to guns, that +4 DC makes my .38 Llama Comanche (1d6K) do more than double. And that's without buying any *extra* Martial Arts Damage classes.  That's why it doesn't make sense to *me* that extra Martial Arts DCs would be affected by the "Real Weapon" limitation, which is what some have interpreted "Real Weapon" to mean.

Edited January 2, 2021 by Eodin
Additional information

[Chris Goodwin]

In a heroic campaign where no points are paid for weapons (and where they have the STR Minimum and Real Weapon Limitations by default), the "base damage" for the weapon is its listed damage value (6e2 p. 99 under Toolkitting); its maximum damage is limited to double its base damage no matter how many methods are used to add damage (6e2 p. 199 under STR Minimum and 6e2 p. 201 under Real Weapon).  

 

Since you mention that it's a Heroic campaign, I'm starting with the assumption that the weapons in question are taken from a list (either in one of the books or provided by the GM), that the characters don't pay points for them, and that they include the STR Minimum and Real Weapon Limitations.  The base damage would therefore be that of the weapon (2d6 in our case), and damage added by all other sources (including STR, Martial Arts Damage Classes, maneuvers, Skill Levels, Weapon Master) count toward its doubled maximum (which would be 4d6).  The GM is given the option to allow more than double, at the risk of damaging the weapon; both STR Minimum and Real Weapon specify that the weapon would take the full amount of damage the weapon does to the target, and so would probably break.  

 

(A fist does not count as a Real Weapon for purposes of that Limitation, and is typically not considered to fall under the "double base damage" rule in any case; a fist's "base damage" is equal to the character's STR, along with any purchased Martial Arts DCs or Hand-to-hand Attack.)

 

I hope this answers your question; if not, feel free to follow up with another Rules Question.   

Edited January 5, 2021 by Chris Goodwin
Clarifying all other sources even more