I have a Saracen and a Byzantine in my campaign, and they're both inclined to shoot with compound bow during battle. My current solution is to allow them two attacks, one melee preceded by one missile attack. That seems pretty straight forward, but is that a good solution? Should I allow the Saracen the ability to fire while retreating, as flee fighting is used by Saracens?

While I realize the BoB is designed for use in Pendragon 5ed with knights, I'd also like to use it with other role playing systems. Any suggestions on what modifications may be necessary?


Edit - title changed to reflect content, Merlin

The two questions asked here shouldn't be dealt with one thread.




While I realize the BoB is designed for use in Pendragon 5ed with knights, I'd also like to use it with other role playing systems. Any suggestions on what modifications may be necessary?



This is about other systems.

One way to limit the bow shooting is to give negatively modified horsemanship rolls to shoot from horseback and also to treat them as an extra action ( -5). in fact... shooting and another attack might require you to average your skills then half them. also can u switch between bows and swords( or whatever)? isnt switching from bow to melee weapon on a horse kinda combersome? just my random thoughts. good luck with an overall solution. :)

I haven't given it much tought beyond the initial "this should be used in other systems because it's a good system"

I think for the historic pre-gunpowder era the system functions well as it is now, all it needs it new army lists for the appropriate eras. Adding fantasy should be fairly straight forward as well, again just requiring new and appropriate lists. The historic ones might require a little work, but I have most of the research materials I need. In the short run it would be easy to base historic armies on the relevant lists in the DBA and/or DBM miniature rules (which I also have on hand).

The main question to me is how to continue the system into the era of guns and gunpowder. Greg's already given a good start with the Swiss pike and the Landsknecht, which is a extraordinarily helpful. I think the enemy's lists for black powder armies will be fairly straightforward, but the real question, to me at least, is how to handle fact that later combat is primarily at range and in an environment where the players are not competing with their enemies directly (at least most of the time) but shooting back and forth at formed bodies of soldiers.

I did think of a few things that seem straight forward, such as Napoleonic infantry being in "square" gives +10 against mounted.

In the 20th century and onward, I'm inclined to believe (most) combat is best dealt with under the normal combat system (whatever that is in the RPG being used) and treating battles as effectively a series of normal fights. Even then it seems the battle system might be suitable for things such as human wave attacks and banzai charges.

Ideas? Comments? Criticism?