Penalty Skill Levels - could they be used vs. the penalty from Pulling a Punch?

[Hyper-Man]

3 Penalty Skill Level +1 to offset penalty from Pulling a Punch

[Grailknight]

I'd allow it in my campaign. At the 2 pt level it's the same cost as buying +OCV with a single manuver.

[Hyper-Man]

I'd allow it in my campaign. At the 2 pt level it's the same cost as buying +OCV with a single manuver.

 

I'm hesitant to use the straight CSL approach because of this text:

 

6e2 page 88

Characters may use Pulling A Punch with other Combat or Martial Maneuvers (though in most cases they simply use it with Strike).

 

It seems counter intuitive that it would be legal to have +3 CSL's w/Pulling a Punch (@2 points/level) usable with any attack as long as they are Pulling their Punch with it.

As written it means that the character gets a net positive bonus to OCV if the attack is 10DC or less.

[Grailknight]

So buy it as 2-pt or 3-pt PSL's to reflect the utility with multiple attacks without the ability to be increase OCV on lesser DC powers.

[Christopher]

3 Penalty Skill Level +1 to offset penalty from Pulling a Punch

Ambidexterity is build as: "1-3 Penalty Skill Levels; for these purposes the Off Hand penalty is considered a 'single attack' for PSL purposes even though it can apply to many different types of attacks."

The same way "Pulling a Punch" can be added to a lot of Maneuvers/Attacks. So I would say there is clear precedence for this in the Rules.

[psyber624]

6e1 pg 84 specifically states that you cannot buy OPSL's to counteract the standard OCV penalty imposed by a Combat Maneuver. Pulling a Punch is a Combat Maneuver, therefore, RAW, you cannot do that.

 

I don't see how its all that unbalancing tho so if you wish to allow it I'd say go for it, although I would probably set it at the +3 level since in that interpretation your not treating it like a "Combat Maneuver" but like a combat modifier and since you can apply the "Pulling a Punch" modifier to any combat maneuver +3 is the appropriate category, YMMV of

course.

 

As far as buying CSL's only with Pulling a Punch, why not? I would at least require them to be 3pt CSL's because of the text about 2 pt CSL's with Strike (applying the same reasoning).

Of course you might want to make them 5 pointers but I think that's more a matter of taste. I can easily envision a character that is so adept at pulling punches that he actually has a

BETTER chance to hit when doing so than if he is going all out, of course if he wants the full BODY damage he can't use the CSL's so that's the balancing factor.