Shields Shall Be Splintered!

[jcftao]

For those of you familiar with the house rule, Shields Shall Be Splintered, how do you handle this?

Give the ability to only characters trained to use a shield?
Or anyone that can hold up a shield?
How about NPCs and monsters?
Do you give the ability to all monsters and NPCs or just the more important ones ... main villain?

Give me some of your thoughts on the rule and if you have had success in running it.

Thanks!

[Blood axe]

Can you post the entire rule? Ive heard of this.

[merias]

It's simply that a PC can opt to have his shield take the force of what would otherwise be a damaging or fatal blow, but the shield is destroyed in the process.

I would allow all NPCs and monsters with shields to use it if I allowed PCs to use it. If there were some training involved (like only fighter-types could use the rule), that might limit it's use to NPCs with equivalent training. But I think the original house rule allowed anyone with a shield to use it.

[Blood axe]

FOUND IT!!

Shields shall be splintered: Anytime a PC is about to take damage and has a shield equipped, he may choose to sacrifice the shield in order to avoid incurring the wound. The shield is sundered by the blow and destroyed, but the PC takes no damage. In the case of spells that allow a saving throw for half damage, this rule may be invoked if the save against the spell is failed. Doing so successfully reduces the damage by half. If the saving throw is successful, the shield can be sacrificed to avoid taking the half-damage. In the case of magical shields, invoking this rule means that the PC takes no damage from the blow but the shield loses one "plus" from its enchantment.


So the PC can wait until the hit is achieved & damage is rolled to decide to sacrifice the shield? So as not to "waste" a shield on a 2 damage strike.

[jcftao]

That's it!

I ran across it here http://trollsmyth.blogspot.com/2008/05/shields-shall-be-splintered.html

Trollsmyth created this house rule and when I read it, I thought it would be interesting to implement.

Next question, does this create an overwhelming advantage for shield users vs two handed fighters? By this I mean, who would want to use two-handed weapons if they give up this huge bonus. It really does make as a good life insurance policy to carry a shield.

[elf23]

I tried this rule out, and in my experience it gives PCs a really big power boost. I didn't really like it. You're right about it undermining two-handed weapons.

[Blood axe]

I tried this rule out, and in my experience it gives PCs a really big power boost. I didn't really like it. You're right about it undermining two-handed weapons.

It probably does. Trollsmyth has other house rules going, so his experience might be different.
Maybe knock it down to only taking half damage?

[petespahn]

I tried this rule out, and in my experience it gives PCs a really big power boost. I didn't really like it. You're right about it undermining two-handed weapons.

It probably does. Trollsmyth has other house rules going, so his experience might be different.
Maybe knock it down to only taking half damage?

Or just rule it applies to any weapon or shield. So you can opt to have your two-handed sword be shattered by the blow rather than take damage.

[jcftao]

Or just rule it applies to any weapon or shield. So you can opt to have your two-handed sword be shattered by the blow rather than take damage.

Interesting idea...

I think that if I were to allow that, I might limit the houserule to PCs and more important NPCs.

It may get too complicated if every minion gets a "do over" on damage.

My sword arm would be worn out, hacking away at a phalanx of kobold shield bearers!

[petespahn]

Or just rule it applies to any weapon or shield. So you can opt to have your two-handed sword be shattered by the blow rather than take damage.

Interesting idea...

I think that if I were to allow that, I might limit the houserule to PCs and more important NPCs.

It may get too complicated if every minion gets a "do over" on damage.

My sword arm would be worn out, hacking away at a phalanx of kobold shield bearers!

Yes I would definitely limit it to PCs and major villains.