HA/HKA No STR Bonus and martial arts

[unclevlad]

So, the notion is a healer with a nasty streak too...4d6 HKA, conceived as literally unweaving flesh.  The power to help is the power to harm.  Ergo, I decided...No STR Bonus seems to fit that.  OK, that's fine.

 

Now, the character also has some martial arts, mostly with a defensive focus, but with a couple strikes and a couple bonus DCs.

 

So...when using the HKA with a Defensive Strike, where I've got +4 DCs coming...do I get those, when I'm not using any STR?  Because it feels like, yeah, the OCV and DCV adjustments make perfect sense...but the extra DCs don't.

[Steve Long]

First off, even if the rules allow you to do something — add damage, in this case — you don’t necessarily have to do it. It’s all up to the circumstances and the GM. If you don’t feel as if the character should get Extra DCs due to special effects, common sense, and dramatic sense, then don’t take them — after all, 6E2 92 specifically states that a character doesn’t have to use all of his Extra DCs if he doesn’t want to. That’s working within your character conception, and I think most GMs would approve.

 

I want to restate the central part of your question, to make sure that I understand what you’re asking, and so that other readers also follow along. If I’ve misunderstood you, please post a follow-up.

 

Q:  If a character has an HKA with the No STR Bonus (-½) Limitation, can he still use a Martial Maneuver to add damage to that attack?

 

A:  Yes, but he may not add his STR to the Martial Maneuver when determining how much damage it adds to the HKA; he can only add in the damage from the Maneuver itself. For example, suppose that Bruiser McGee (STR 20, Martial Strike +2d6, HKA 2d6 No STR Bonus) wants to use his Martial Strike with his HKA. (I’m assuming here that he’s paid for a Weapon Element that lets him do this, or has the GM’s permission.) Ordinarily, his Martial Strike would add 6 DCs:  4 from his 20 STR, and 2 for the Maneuver itself. But since the HKA has the No STR Bonus (-½) Limitation, his STR doesn’t apply, and he only gets the +2 DCs from the Maneuver itself (increasing his KA to HKA 2½d6).