|
Post by Mayor on Dec 20, 2013 0:06:19 GMT -5
So hey guys, Serk and I were discussing combat on MSN earlier, and about how our combat tends to kill momentum rather than create it. If you think about it, no character ever actually completes a combat action in their own post. Rather, because of the no auto-hit policy, the person playing the character receiving the action gets to choose the resolution 100% of the time, regardless of context. And while we do tend to play nice this way, it also means our combat posts always fall into a similar formula: "Block / dodge / get hit, think / talk for a while, then try to attack." Not only is the result a predictable and stale combat model, but one which ruins the entire fluidity of our posting structure, and removes a lot of the creative writing freedom from the person creating their combat post. So, for this thread only, we're going to test removing the "auto-hit ban."
To this end, Serk and I are going to do a single combat scenario, using a character representing two different bio styles. Serk will be using Vydunas, whose actions are all dictated entirely by how Serk writes / decides to play him, while I'll be using Oryand, who is bound to the Tzengoa stats rankings, providing me with a bit of a restriction. Now ultimately, both systems should work, and the differences shouldn't matter. But if either of us has a problem with how the other is playing, it does provide us a potential variable flaw in this test, and then we can go from there. As is though, provided a reasonable context is there, characters will be able to create situations where a blow is made that makes sense, and it will hopefully both accelerate the combat process and create an engaging unpredictability.
Setting: A clear night, in a well lit city marketplace. Uneven brick creates the foundation for the streets, while numerous streetlights ensure no shadowy areas in which to hide. The streets are lined with various small shops and services, but all civilian life has fled this district for either home or drink tonight.
As the hulking Oryand strolled through the streets, he enjoyed a brief reprieve from his typical hunt. For as much as he enjoyed a good hunt, so too was it nice to see calm peace. This city had seemed to have done well, with the various shops all fun to peek in. A choclatier's shop, a couple bakeries, a carpenter's, all little reminders that everything wasn't about the good fight. Until Oryand passed the small weaponry shop, that was. Though Oryand wasn't in any mood to replace his Espadolor anytime soon, he always appreciated fine weaponry, because in someone's hands, it could mean great strength. "Bah, garbage, all of it," he lamented aloud to the empty streets, "Not a one of these would be worthy to cross blades with."
|
|
|
Post by Shin RyuKen on Dec 20, 2013 0:19:20 GMT -5
Taking step after cautious step, Vydunas was well aware that most of the city had gone out for a beer or bonfire. It was an unusual sight, at least for this kind of town, but also one that Vydunas could actually travel in. Whenever he traveled during the daytime, he was always the target of petty glances and criminalizing side stares from the denizens of the local district.
It was odd to see this large, banana yellow giant lurking around the streets, but maybe his blade told more of a story. As Vydunas approached the hulking swordsman, the blade of Metus resounded with a gradual buzz that started to chirp with the cicadas of the nighttime. The wolfen put his right foot forward, halfway at a right angle, before dragging his body quietly towards Oryand. Vydunas, with an awkward discomfort as he rotated his blade to the left and extended his arm out, lept forward and swung vertically across Oryand's forearm and up his tricep. The blade's sharp edge was tempered by the blood of hundreds of victims, enough to sear right through the chain mail below Oryand's elbows. The blow would end by tearing through his right arm and wounding his grip enough to stagger him, allowing the wolfen to aim for the killing blow.
|
|
|
Post by Mayor on Dec 22, 2013 23:44:54 GMT -5
Oryand was taken off-guard by his sudden assailant, though not necessarily surprised by the attack. For one of his kind and size, Oryand had often found himself subject to random blows, and had learned to act accordingly. As the blade peeled into his flesh, Oryand slid his right foot back and twisted his hips, leaning his left arm in towards the blade. Covered fingers to elbow in dense platemail, Oryand's fist met with katana, pushing back the assault. Oryand's large frame provided far more bulk than the wolfen's lithe form, and pushed both katana and owner a half step back.
With his fist continuing on its course, Oryand's left hand continued across his chest, rising some towards his back, grabbing the handle to his immense blade. Quickly, Oryand pulled it over his right shoulder and into a diagonal slash at the wolfen with shocking speed.
|
|
|
Post by Shin RyuKen on Dec 23, 2013 0:45:06 GMT -5
Vydunas was astonished at how well the giant could wield a weapon with such stature. He was unusually fast to swing a sword, much less a very unpolished one. The wolfen was certain that impact from this weapon wouldn't quite chop off his arm, but it would surely bruise it enough to incapacitate his blade arm for the rest of the fight. And soon enough, as Vydunas drew his blade back into his sheath, the giant blunt sword met the wolfen's right arm, boasting force to interrupt his nimble physique. An echoing crunch soon followed, dulled by the bloodthirsty katana's exposure to flesh, but nonetheless numbed his arm to the point of not being used effectively.
Vydunas knew even though he was a giant, a one-eyed giant still made a vicious cyclops. Oryand surely could afford less intuition if he had enough muscle to snap the wolfen like a twig. Vydunas decided to play off instinct and go for what was vulnerable. The wolfen took a step back before switching the grip of the scabbard to his other arm, and slowly drawing the first inch of his blade. The dark metal of the katana was slowly ensorcelled by the dense winds of the night, and at the full extension of his blade, his left arm brought the katana down and released a shockwave that emerged forward and bore into the open flesh wound in Oryand's blade arm.
|
|
|
Post by Mayor on Dec 23, 2013 1:19:23 GMT -5
There was a focus on the exposed wound that Oryand wasn't finding too exciting, particularly as the blasts from the grounded waves tore into his exposed arm once more. Grunting as the blow hit, Oryand pushed forward as the brief blast broke, taking a large stride forward to bring his foe back within Espadolor's long range. With his left leg heaving forward, Oryand matched the momentum by swinging his left arm across his body, hauling the sword in a horizontal slash towards Vydunas' midsection. As the blade began crossing his body, Oryand latched his right hand onto the large handle, not so much to add force to the strike, but rather to prepare it for better defense the next time the wolfen attacked.
As Oryand's blade once more made slammed into Vydunas' body, striking his foe's formerly good arm, Oryand noticed he pushed the wolfen with the blade slightly. It had a bit more of an effect than the last blow, to Oryand's delight. As the swing finished, Oryand let the blade rest to his right side, with his armored left arm taking lead towards his foe, leaving Oryand in his preferred form, protecting his exposed right arm.
|
|
|
Post by Shin RyuKen on Dec 23, 2013 18:29:22 GMT -5
The shadow-enshrouded Vydunas was quick to react to the frightening poise of his opponent. Taking a bow with his blade as he retracted it back towards his sheath, he found that further pressure was going to be applied to his injured region. Going for what was vulnerable no longer seemed like an effective strategy since the firepower behind his opponent's arm clearly was able to outstrip what Vydunas compensated for in raw technique. Barely able to react, the wolfen attempted to lean back with his midsection being grazed by the sword, but not before the blade bashed his arm further, the numbness difficult to avoid; it was now beginning to eat away at him, making it harder to fight without focusing on the sheer pain.
Vydunas decided to watch and wait. He was skilled at mitigating his expression under the influence of intense pain, but the scowl in his teeth was hard to miss. The wolfen began to turn his frame away from Oryand and place his left foot forward, deviating the right side of his body squarely away from Oryand's range. He kept a grip on the scabbard and waited for his opponent to make a move as he started a slow circle around him, disregarding Metus and its hunger for the giant's valiant spirit.
|
|
|
Post by Mayor on Jan 6, 2014 19:16:41 GMT -5
Was his foe now too trying to take up a defensive stance? Oryand looked the wolfen's stance and positioning, wisely maneuvering outside of Oryand's range, ostensibly looking to strike a counter blow when Oryand would inevitably whiff a swing with Espadolor. Oryand's pressure had worked, and he had now struck two solid blows to the lithe combatant. Forcing the wolf to pause meant only one thing: time to reapply the pressure.
Disregarding the wolfen's stance, Oryand took a stride forward, leaning into the movement to swing his broad blade horizontally at his attacker. The wolfen followed suit with a quick backstep, remaining outside Oryand's range. This assault was followed by a quick raising of the blade, to bring down diagonally in a second rapid swing, which was once more sidestepped. Oryand had perhaps underestimated the capability of his assailant.
|
|
|
Post by Shin RyuKen on Jan 10, 2014 21:20:53 GMT -5
Vydunas was far more than capable of dodging Oryand's solid swings. He was no doubt being pressured into moving away from him, seeing as his offense was at a disadvantage. However, Vydunas had agility as an asset and it was going to push him into figuring out this beast's defenses. Vydunas couldn't keep playing defensively for long; it was only fair for the wolfen to game this fight more strategically.
Vydunas skidded away from Oryand and remained out of range of Espadolor's swing. The wolfen rolled around to the backside of Oryand and found that the previous swing must have curled his back forward in a way that provoked a vulnerability. Vydunas began to leap onto Oryand's spine and outpaced the friction of his armored surface by running towards his neck. With a solid shot at Oryand's unarmored head, the wolfen took full advantage of the moment and immediately struck Oryand by injecting the katana straight through the back of his next. Vydunas felt the life force rapidly return to him as the power of the katana gathered in the previous turn, as the katana strove through flesh and sinew effortlessly.
|
|
|
Post by Mayor on Jan 11, 2014 21:56:04 GMT -5
Oryand would have roared in pain were not likely a terrible idea, given the injury. The wolf was a slick one, Oryand certainly had to recognize that. The way he had evaded Espadolor and then rapidly maneuvered to Oryand's exposed neck indicated a state of injury lower than what Oryand had assumed. That said, Oryand was thankful for his foe's precision and blade maintenance. The katana had slid cleanly through, severing only flesh in its direct path, resulting in minimal collateral damage.
Indeed, when Oryand's left hand dropped from Espadolor's handle and gripped the katana's blade at the front of his throat, the pain was far less than what a jagged or worn blade would bring. Firmly grasping the katana, Oryand swung his torso left roughly and swiftly, catching the wolfen slightly off guard. The twist hurled his adversary past Oryand's right side and in front of the giant. Oryand quickly swung Espadolor with his right hand, catching the wolfen in the back with a shallow blow. Though it did little damage besides a light blow to Vydunas' back, it brought about a noticeable change in Espadolor.
The sword's blunted edges seemed to have finally developed a blade, and though Oryand could only wield the sword with his right hand, the left pre-occupied by holding the katana in his neck firm, it meant an offensive boost for Oryand's attacks. Keeping the blade crossed in front of his body, Oryand assumed a defensive stance, intent on not letting the wolfen get behind him, the obvious goal to separate katana and wielder.
|
|