Grapple

Grapplehasthefollowingsteps. Awinninggrapplingrollallowsyoutotransitiononestepi nyour
favor,acriticaltwosteps.Whengoingfromdisadvantaget oadvantage,youneedtoimproveonestepat
atimeuntilyouareevenatclinch,fromthereyoucandiseng ageorturnthetideandgainapositionof
yourown.

Disengaged
Needtotackleandgetinside. Roll your Grapple vs defender Grapple Skill or Weapon Skill (defender chooses)

Clinched
Basicallyeven0/*0. From hereon, you can only use Grapple to change your position (or "unskilled" usage at STR/2)

Superior Position
What it says, oraless than hold+5/-*5

Immobilized
Seriousadvantagewithanimmobilizinghold+10/*-10(Youhavehimpinned,sittingonhischestorback,withac hokeholdetc)

Thegoalismostoftentodisable/immobilizeyourenemysoyoucanmakehimyield,finishhimw ith
yourdagger,removehishelmetand/orpunchhimintheface(with/withoutthehelmet)orwhy not justa plainold
strangle or break an arm/leg (either is a grapple attack at -10/+10 from either superior position at (i.e. total -5/+5) or at immobilized at (0/0).
Grapplingismostoftenontheground,butitdoesn'thaveto be,thecombatantsmaystillstandup,orbeagainstawall*o revenstillonhorseback.

1. TackleorengageenemywithaGrapplevsdefendersGrappleO RWeaponSkill.Tacklefrom
horsebacktohorsebackis*-5/0.Foottohorsebackis*-5/+5.Horsebacktofootis+5/0.Awin
meansyouhaveclinchedupyouropponent.Acriticalmeansy ouhavealreadysecuredabetter
position(ahold,fromwhichyoumaythrow/slamorimmobilize).

2. Specialforgettinginsideandwinningthefirstclinch:Yo ucanchoosetoThrow/Slam(nonew
rollifdoneimmediately,1d6damage,moreiffromheight/horseback).
Or2b.Trytogainabetterpositionwith2ndGrapplevsGrapp le(defenderat*-5ifnotlettinggo
ofweaponand-*5moreforshield).DefendermayalsoopttouseSTR/2.Acriticalmeansyou
haveImmobilizedyourfoe.

3. Ifyouhavesecuredabetterposition,youare+5/-*5andyoumayattempttoImmobilize.Ifyou
managetoimmobilizeyourfoeyouare+10/-*10forfurthergrapplerollsfromthisposition.
Fromhereyoumightforinstancebrawl(+5/-*10),attackwithdagger(+5/-*5),removehelmethis
helmet(+5-/*5) or even go for breaking an arm/leg or strangle the bastard!

• Atanypointwhileengagedingrapplinggrapplingratherth anfightingforposition,youcan
choosetotrytothrow/slamat*-5/0.Thiscanbeusedtothrowoffyourenemyanddisengage.
• Atanypoint,eitherofthegrapplersmayattempttousedagg erwhichgivethegrappleopposed
rollareflexive-*5/+5modifier(duetothedifficultyofusingahandheldweapo ninsuchclose
quartercombat)
• Atanypoint,youmaytrytodisarmyouropponentwitharefle xive*-5/+5modifier.
• Atanypoint,eithergrapplermayattempttobrawlfordamag e(punch,knee,elbow,headbutt,
bite,eyegougeetc)insteadofgrappleat-*5/0modifier.

Grapplingcanbeveryeffectiveforindividualcombat,asl ongasyouarereasonablygoodatitandcan
makeitpastthedangerousfirsthurdleofyouropponentswe aponskillandintotheclinch.However,it's
ofcoursefraughtwithdangerinabattleorskirmishsituat ion,sinceyouarebasicallydefenseless
againstanyfurtherenemiessneakinguponyouwhileyou're rollinginthemud.

I'll steal this rule (with a mod that takes STR/SIZ into account)! Thanks! :D

// M

Lets hear about your variation! I'm interested...

Lets hear about your variation! I'm interested...
The mod is based on the fact (and I know this because a couple of us in our gaming group are mma:ers/grapplers) that physical weight and strength are fundamental in deciding the outcome of any grappling bout (as in any other combat situation, but the rules cover the importance of STR in melee). Therefore, we also roll damage vs damage in every situation from clinch and on, modded by -/+5 from losing/winning the round. We use [the difference in modded STR rolls]/2 to determine next rounds skill mods.

Example: later...

Yes, I have done a bit of grappling and BJJ myself so I am well aware of the fundamental mechanics (which is why I guess I usually detest RPG mechanics for it).

I have been thinking a little how to get that in (at least you can use STR/2 if it is above grapple in my case) without being overbearing. Especially if there is a great STR and/or SIZ difference. I just sacrificed that in this case for "speed"... Since a good grappler can negate much of the strength/weight advantage.

Now I don't believe knights of the time were very sophisticated grapplers like todays BJJ/MMA artists but their lifestyle was 100% martial, and they probably had lots of tricks we can't even begin to guess. They were generations of specialists, and of course better warriors (and grapplers) than we see in the movies or can imagine.

Anyway, I guess you could play with something like add the difference between raw STR (or STR + SIZ / 2) as a reflexive modifier to grapple rolls? That would make it easy and not require more rolls. Perhaps halve it if it is "too much".

One think to keep in mind, is the difficulty of getting that initial hold, when faced with a weapon as dangerous as a sword or axe - something that most martial artists today don't have a lot of training for. If it's too easy, or even risky but not too impossible, it can render all that trained weapon skill pointless. Someone could spend their glory on just raising STR (and/or SIZ and/or Grapple skill if it's used), and know that they only have to succeed their attack once, get the hold, and the fight is effectively over (given that they'll have a much higher advantage once they get in close).

Now, realistic medieval fights between armoured knights might well have frequently ended that way, but it's not in keeping with the Arthurian genre.

So, in the rules in the first post, I would always apply at least a -5/+5 modifier to grapple v weapon, in the Disengaged step. It's a desperate step, or perhaps an opportunistic one if your opponent has just fumbled, stumbled, or broken his weapon.

Here is the rule, and an example, as promised.

Rules
- first move from disengaged to clinch (unarmed vs hand weapon gives -5/+5 in this phase) – roll opposed skills
- both rolls for damage – whoever won the opposed roll gets a +5, and the loser a mod depending on result (ps -0, f -5, fu -10). (Note, also: if the winner doesn't want to grapple, he avoids clinching here.)
- new round: struggle on; mods are half of the dif in the clinch rounds opposed dmg rolls (half of it as a neg mod for the loser and half as a plus for the winner) (note: holding on to a large hand weapon when grappled gives you a -5/+5.)
- keep going – this means you either continue to struggle for an even better grip or try to damage the opponent, in which case, if you succeed, you lose your grip and the rules work as usual in combat (-1d dmg for dagger, -2d for no dagger (both with armor halved)

Example:
Mattias is grappling Erik
- First we are disengaged.
- Both start to grapple each other, clinching (here we roll for skill; M a partial success, E a critical).
- Then we roll damage, modded by success level (Mattias rolls 14 and Erik rolls 24+5 (a crit, remember?)).
- Next round, since Mattias lost, he is at -8 (from Erik kicking his ass with a crit last round). Erik has +7, from winning the clinch. By now, Mattias must be considered partly immobilized, or at least on his way down.
- Next round, Mattias continues to struggle (stupid), and Erik decides to go for an arm-crippler. We roll again (Erik with +7 and Mattias with -8), and both succeed (with Erik getting only a partial success). No damage to poor Mattias' arm. Instead we roll opposed damage, modded by this rounds results. Mattias rolls 14 again (modded by -8+5), getting a result of 11, and Erik rolls 14, too (modded by +7-0), getting a result of 21.
- Next round, they are at -4 (for M) and +3 (for E), crawling in the mud, I suppose.

A faster version, with a lot less calculating:
- Roll damage only for the winner against the losers SIZ (instead of opposed dmg). This version works better/faster with the other combat rules of the game, such as facing more opponents and such.

// M