Exalted style stunts in LL.

[Agrippa]

I've read a few Old School blogs and noticed talk of "role-play vs. roll-play". Basically favoring descriptive play over dice rolling. I sort of agree with the sentiment, but I have to ask, are these styles really all that incompatible? Why not use player skill and descriptions to shape what the characters do and character skill, i.e. dice rolls and game mechanics, to determine success and failure? So with that in mind I've decided to adopt a mash-up of Exalted's stunt system and D&D Next's advantage/disadvantage rules. Just tell me what you think.

Stunts: Some times when playing Labyrinth Lord or Mutant Future a player might want to say more than “[x] attack [y] with with his sword”. Or “My thief tries to open the lock”. This is called a stunt. The out-of-game reason for this is to encourage more descriptive play while still using the game's mechanics. It makes things more interesting. In game stunts represent the careful and deliberate steps a character takes to succeed or balls-out badassery. Take your pick.

All stunts grant an advantage of at least one. At minimum a stunt requires a flavorful description of that character's action, as adjudicated by the DM. This grants a one die advantage. This can allow for exceptional, albeit not impossible feats of skill, such as harmlessly catching an axe blade in your teeth or disarming a trap with a single movement.

Example: The dwarf warrior Ulric Dieffenbach is beset upon by a goblin raider. He sways back his right shoulder, and along with it his arm. Then Ulric places his full strength behind his shoulder as he practically hurls his axe in an upward arc towards the goblin's chest and head. Every bit of rage and strength he can muster is dedicated toward the goblin's death.

Two-dice advantage stunts are a little more involved. With them you actually have to include using the environment in someway. This might mean the actual scenery or knowledge area of the and situation you're in. This can also be used for "creative additions" so long as a) nothing created contradicts pre-existing game, setting or scenario information and b) whatever is created is worth no more than 100 GP and weighs no more than 10 lbs. Any cost for such "creations" are taken from the total treasure value of the dungeon or room.

Example: Ulric sees his magician friend under assault from a brutish ogre. Knowing that bats dwell in this cave he picks up and tosses a loose rock the size of his fist into the air and toward a large mass of bats above, disturbing a small colony of of the flying night dwellers. The bats immediately fly from their roosts in a swarm, disorienting the brutish ogre. Ulric then charges the ogre attacking his magic-user friend. Feeling the uneven cave floor with his feet Ulric propels himself faster and faster using the small mounds and rocks cropping out of the ground. Closing in, Ulric brings his axe to the ogre's shoulder with a swift and cleaving downward swing as he leaps off the ground, followed by two criss crossing hacks to the ogre's leg.

Special: In addition to gaining a two die advantage, Ulric's player causes the ogre to be disoriented by the bats for one round per every hundred bats causing him a two die penalty (one die penalty on a save versus stun) on all attacks. In addition the DM rolls a D6. He rolls a three meaning that three hundred bats fly off distracting the ogre, keeping it disoriented for three whole rounds.

Finally you have three-dice advantage stunts. These are spectacular demonstrations of nigh mythic ability. If the other people at the table aren't staring at you with slacked jaws or in some other way visibly astonished at what you had your PC do, or NPC if you're the DM, then it's likely not worthy of a three-die stunt. Everyone else around the table has to agree that it merits a three die advantage.

Example: The mighty dwarf warrior Ulric Dieffenbach ducks out of the way just as a hill giant's club as it crashes against the ground next to him. He then quickly pounces on the club just as the giant pulls it back to take another swing. Ulric then rides the club upward and leaps just at the giant's back swing. The dwarf warrior soars straight toward the hill giant's face twisting his upper body in mid-flight. Ulric then snaps back, using his shield as a counterweight and letting his axe head careen toward the giant's forehead with enough force behind it to at least make the brute stagger, or better yet knock him to the ground and toppling over his ogrish and orcish thugs.

Special: Not only does Ulric Dieffenbach gain a three die advantage to attack the hill giant he also forces the hill giant to make a Saving Throw vs. Stun at a two die disadvantage or be knocked to the ground, flattening everything beneath him and Ulric Dieffenbach can make his attack against the giant's head, inflicting twice normal damage.

Advantages/Disadvantages: Advantages and disadvantages are pretty simple. Advantages give an extra d20, 2d6 or d% per advantage die. You roll all dice, base die included, and take the better roll. Disadvantages work in the reverse, you make one or more additional rolls and take the worst.

[jcftao]

Interesting!
Would any PC gain a one die advantage anytime he gives a detailed description of combat? Or allow this once per combat?
I see how it would make the combat more interesting and descriptive...but I can also see some players nerfing it.

[greyarea]

This reminds me a bit of "Mighty Deeds of Odds" from Dungeon Crawl Classics. I like it (and I agree with you that roll-play and role-play aren't incompatible, but can become so when one is emphasized too much over the other).

A potential two-dice advantage example: Ulric Dieffenbach notices that a goblin raider is attacking his magic user. He tries to force his enemy into the other goblin to disrupt his attack on the magic user, knocking the goblins into each other.

A potential three-dice advantage example: Ulric Dieffenbach lost his battle axe in the last round. A goblin engages him. Ulric goes for the goblin's wrist, twisting him around impaling him on his own sword.

[Agrippa]

Interesting!
Would any PC gain a one die advantage anytime he gives a detailed description of combat? Or allow this once per combat?
I see how it would make the combat more interesting and descriptive...but I can also see some players nerfing it.

In the game where I got the idea, Exalted, stunts had no real restriction. They could even be used for non-combat action like stealth, picking locks and ect. And they weren't PC only. That's what I'm going for.

[jcftao]

Awesome, thanks!

[Agrippa]

You're welcome jcftao.

[Agrippa]

I just added in the second stunt example last night. To bad I haven't mechanically come up with a way to stunt spells yet. That could be fun.

[Agrippa]

Here's a little challenge for everyone here, try to make stunts for anyone of the following.

• Move Silently and or Hide in the Shadows
• Open Locks
• Pick Pockects
• Find/Remove Traps
• Read Languages
• Turn Undead

[Agrippa]

So then, anymore stunt ideas? Maybe a third one for Ulric. This thread can serve as a guide.

[Agrippa]

Added some details to Ulric's stunts. For stunt number 3 I'm thinking of upping the stakes a bit. I think he should be facing a troll, ogre or demon. Maybe even a dragon. What do you say?