Liver Punch

[Steve]

I was doing some research on Boxing and came across commentary on how devastating a Liver Punch was. In looking at Hero, I'm uncertain how to best replicate it. There is nothing like a Liver Punch in the Hero System Martial Arts book that I could find.

 

It seems to function like an Impairing shot to the Chest or Vitals but am wondering how to do it without requiring the target take half their BODY in a single hit.

 

Maybe build a maneuver that targets area 11 with the Disable element? Per page 96 there is text that "At the GM's discretion, a character can define a single specific non-limb target (say, the Chest) for use with the Disable Element if he can use the maneuver only against that hit location and no other." Because it would have the Disable Element, it then doesn't take any hit location penalties.

 

Maybe another way?

[Derek Hiemforth]

I agree that a Martial Maneuver with the Disable element targeting a location is the cleanest way to model this (though I'd probably use 12 for the liver instead of 11).  However, while this could work fine for normal human boxers, it could also quickly become a game balance worry in other circumstances.  It might be worth considering an additional restriction like Reduced Penetration, to make it clear that even a little armoring will go a long way in mitigating the effects of such a punch.

[Duke Bushido]

Going further with Derrick's suggestion of backing away from accurate realism in favor of game balance, you might consider building it as a nerve strike, with perhaps a small amount of penetrating Body (deoending on the power levels in your game).  Still pretty brutal, but perhaps not as table-tilting as the real thing.

 

 

[Christopher R Taylor]

That sounds like a really disgusting recipe

[unclevlad]

And the liver's in the torso, where armor MUST be located...except when there's basically none, as in martial sports.  In part exactly to *avoid* the potential consequences. Hit the solar plexus, force the diaphragm and jangle all those nerves.  Even square on the sternum with a blunt weapon can bruise the heart, which is potentially lethal.  Lower down...blows to the stomach/intestines are NO fun.  Even if it's a blunt weapon, and CLEARLY, if we're getting into pointed or edged, the situation is much worse.

 

Building it as a nerve strike has a big drawback:  STR doesn't apply.

 

[Steve]

I’m wondering if it could be a 1 pip Killing Attack maneuver with the Disable element, but that would quickly get pretty lethal once extra 4-point Damage Classes start getting bought.
 

The chance of rib breakage seems higher than just a straight up punch to the chest, since it’s lower down in the floating ribs area.

 

This is for a Heroic campaign, so defenses will be staying lower.

[Ninja-Bear]

I thought the killing attack in the dirty martial arts was a liver punch.  Depending how custom you want it, you could buy it as a small killing attack with a high stub multiplier or NND with Does Body.

[Steve]

11 hours ago, Ninja-Bear said:

I thought the killing attack in the dirty martial arts was a liver punch.  Depending how custom you want it, you could buy it as a small killing attack with a high stub multiplier or NND with Does Body.

That’s a Kidney Punch, but I guess a Liver Punch could be built the same way. I was hoping to avoid making it too lethal though which is why I was looking at other options.

 

The Liver Punch comes in around the ninth and tenth ribs, so low in the Chest area or maybe the Stomach area, but to the side. In boxing, it’s usually done with a left hook since it has to hit the lower right side of the opponent at the bottom of their ribcage.