Movement between phases

[Nevenall]

The fragmented nature of HS movement has always presented a conceptual hurdle to me. It's hard not to imagine people moving and stopping and moving and stopping, but the other day I realized that you can treat velocity just like the modifiers from combat maneuvers.

 

Meaning that, if a character doesn't end his movement at the end of his phase he will retain the same velocity in the same direction until the start of his next phase.

 

Does anyone else treat movement in this way? And if so, how would you handle it if someone in a later phase wanted to create a barrier directly in the path of the moving character?

Also, what if Barrier Placer Person did it in the same phase as the moving character but a later DEX?

[Sean Waters]

Re: Movement between phases

 

The fragmented nature of HS movement has always presented a conceptual hurdle to me. It's hard not to imagine people moving and stopping and moving and stopping, but the other day I realized that you can treat velocity just like the modifiers from combat maneuvers.

 

Meaning that, if a character doesn't end his movement at the end of his phase he will retain the same velocity in the same direction until the start of his next phase.

 

Does anyone else treat movement in this way? And if so, how would you handle it if someone in a later phase wanted to create a barrier directly in the path of the moving character?

Also, what if Barrier Placer Person did it in the same phase as the moving character but a later DEX?

 

 

it is a bit awkward. It is easier, in some ways, to assume the start and stop motion, as the fact that you have to accelerate and decelerate doesn't actually seem to affect movement:

 

THEORETICALLY if you start at 0" move, and finish at 0" move and have a move of 20" (obviously this is a 5e example ) and you accelerate at +5" per inch, it will take you 4" to get to full velocity (and the same to decelerate at the end), so for 8" in total you will be moving at an average of half your ful velocity, meaning you should not be able to move more than 16" a phase in this way.

 

Like I said: theoretically - I don't know anyone who actually plays that way.

 

Of course start/stop has problems: turn mode becomes much less of a problem if you begin and end your turn stationary.

 

You can and should maintain 'notional' velocity between phases, even if you do not actually move between phases. Of course that is not exactly satisfactory either, but segmented movement is also problematic.

 

You COULD calculate your (MovexSPD)/12 and rule that is the most you can move per segment: you can make a velocity change OR turn (60 degrees) on any segment, even if it is not your phase (but still in DEX order). I suspect the extra effort would not be worth it, but I have not tried.

 

If someone wanted to impose a Barrier/Force Wall in front of a moving target, I'd allow them to abort to decelerate. By the rules if you put up the Barrier after they have moved, tehy will not move again until their next phse - and can react (decelerate/turn) if there is room before moving even if you rule that velocity is preserved between phases.

 

*sigh* I've written a lot but not said much.

 

Perhaps the easiest way to do it is have everyone take the same SPD

[Nevenall]

Re: Movement between phases

 

If everyone had a Speed of 1 things would be just as complicated but in different ways

 

Ah! Per segment movement helps. It determines exactly how far Moving Character has gotten when the Barrier goes up. Moving Character can abort to decelerate/steer around it or crash assuming there's enough room to do so. Which depends on how accurately the barrier is placed.

 

But if the barrier goes up in the same segment at a later DEX then Moving Character can't abort BUT will have only 1 segment's worth of movement to accelerate in so the crash may not be particularly spectacular.

[Sean Waters]

Re: Movement between phases

 

If everyone had a Speed of 1 things would be just as complicated but in different ways

 

Ah! Per segment movement helps. It determines exactly how far Moving Character has gotten when the Barrier goes up. Moving Character can abort to decelerate/steer around it or crash assuming there's enough room to do so. Which depends on how accurately the barrier is placed.

 

But if the barrier goes up in the same segment at a later DEX then Moving Character can't abort BUT will have only 1 segment's worth of movement to accelerate in so the crash may not be particularly spectacular.

 

 

Bear in mind acceleration is not that logical: +5" per 1". that means if you are SPD 4 and have a move of 120" (that is a 30" move) that is 10" per segment: 1st segment you move 2" and have already accelerated to 10" per segment (is THAT your maximum velocity or should it be 30" per 3 segments or 120" per 12 segments - that decision will have a big impact on things - literally) and can spend the next 8" moving at full velocity. Even if your move is 30" per 3 segments then you only take 6" to accelerate to full velocity and spend the next 4" at that velocity. Even with segmented moves you get to full velocity in a single segment in every (or almost every) case.

 

Hmm. Thought.

 

You have a SPD 4, which means that you can act on 3.6.9.12

 

What if you could act every segment, but doing so imposed penalties? Every segment you bring forward an action (or take an action you are not 'entitled' to you suffer a cumulative -1 penalty.

 

So you decide to act on segment 2: you suffer a -1 penalty on all actions for th erest of the turn. If you decide to act on segment 1 then you suffer a cumulative -2 for the rest of the turn.

 

If you act on 2 then take your normal phases, the -1 remains until PS12.

 

If you bring forward another action then you suffer additional penalties from the advanced segment: you want to move on 2.3.9.12? on segment 2 you act at -1, on segments 3.9.12 you take a penalty of -1-3 = -4 (you've brought your actions forward 4 segments).

 

Want to act on 2.3.8.11 AND 12?

 

On 2 you are -1

On 3 you are -4

On 8 you are -5

On 11 you are -6

On 12 you are -7

 

(additional actions always brought forward from PS12)

 

Movement would be segmented: you can only change velocity or direction on a phase though.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Movement between phases

 

I think we accept chunked up movement as a reasonable compromise between realism and playability. D&D characters each take turns moving - do we really think that, in combat, one guy runs 30' and hacks at an opponent, while the other combatants just stand there patiently waiting their turn?

 

Even if you make movement happen every segment, you still have to deal with the fact that all the characters should be moving simultaneously, rather than following one another in a sequence.

[Sean Waters]

Re: Movement between phases

 

True.

[Nevenall]

Re: Movement between phases

 

Bear in mind acceleration is not that logical: +5" per 1". that means if you are SPD 4 and have a move of 120" (that is a 30" move) that is 10" per segment: 1st segment you move 2" and have already accelerated to 10" per segment (is THAT your maximum velocity or should it be 30" per 3 segments or 120" per 12 segments - that decision will have a big impact on things - literally) and can spend the next 8" moving at full velocity. Even if your move is 30" per 3 segments then you only take 6" to accelerate to full velocity and spend the next 4" at that velocity. Even with segmented moves you get to full velocity in a single segment in every (or almost every) case.

 

I don't care if somethings logical as long as it's simple and works well enough for most game situations.

[ghost-angel]

Re: Movement between phases

 

I've always envisioned movement and actions going on across multiple segments.

 

I justify the stagnated way we make combat game-able as a series of fluid events. Take the Force Wall tossed up in a lower DEX from the character running - obviously they just missed being able to stop them - a virtue of them being just a smidge faster.

 

Sometimes, when I GM, I'll recap a Phase or series of close Phases (say Segments 4-6) as a single narrative to get everyone into combat and keep their attention where it should be, on the game.

[Nevenall]

Re: Movement between phases

 

If characters are just moving, like in a chase, then it works fine (in my head at least) for that to be broken into segments and for movement to be interruptible by a sudden change of situation, like a Barrier.

Where it doesn't fit so well is for Move+Attack maneuvers like Move Through. Then it would be possible an action in a later phase interfered with the attack you've already resolved. So this can be explained like ghost-angel said, by the attacking character being just too fast in the heat of combat to be interrupted. Of course the GM could allow a character to abort to raise a Barrier as a defensive action.