fourcannon new system combat Concept

---Introduction:

This combat system is inspired from the persona series, I played this game and I was surprised to see something quite unique in terms of battles. This game emphasises clever thinking over brute stats, quick and numerous battles over of fewer and longer ones.

Since fighting is something adventurers like a lot but can be bored with if it last for too long, I thought it would be fitting 4c rather well.

Plus, this fighting system also emphasises relations between characters, which I feel like an amazing Idea for a role playing game.

So here's how it would work, according to me, in a chat based rpg.

---Elements

First of all it's element based, elements are the following:

Natural elements (wich I think would be more mage/unicorn oriented:)

Electricity: the power of lightning, electricity
Fire: the power of fire, heat, burning
Ice: the power of cold, water, ice
Wind: the power of air, wind

Non Natural elements:

Physical: wounds, blows
Almighty: this one is tricky, it's like a neutral element which can only have the neutral relation associated
Unholy: this uses the power of hatred, dark powers, despair
Holy: this one is about faith, trust and hope

---Reaction to elements

One must understand, it's like rock paper scissors, there's no "stronger" element, just a system of strengh vs weaknesses. Monster would all have relations to all those elements, Neutral, Resistant, Weak, Null, Reflect and Absorb.

Neutral: the monster will take normal damages
Resistant: the monster will take reduced damages
Weak: the monster will take greater damages
Null: the monster will take no damages
Reflect: the monster will reflect damages to the caster
Absorb: the monster will heal himself based off the damages he should have endured

---Elements purpose

The elements are here to make the players think about what they're doing instead of just abusing their favourite skills, here you got to think, to experiment with each kind of monster, which can make battles pretty quick once a monster is known.

---The Down system

The elements are also what triggers the down system:

A player/creature is "Down" when he/it is hit by the element he's weak to, or a critical hit:

A down character is lying on the ground, unable to react or do anything until it's his turn, then it automatically get up, one player can help another getting up at cost of his turn.

---"All Down"

When All monsters are down, the group can perform a "rush", everyone attacks at the same time, often resulting in killing all the foes, there is no spell to be decided, everyone rushes and hits using weapons or bare hooves, resistances are not taken into account. The gm should shout RUSH!! and everyone should instantly roll damages, the GM decides who hits what, trying to make the rush the more efficient possible.

-players having already played this turn participate to rushes too
-A rush ends the players's turn, if the monsters survived, it's their turn.

---Finish him

When players perform a rush attack and that the monster survives with nearly no HP, the gm can decide of two players with a strong bond to do an extra attack using signature moves, just for the show (and also to prevent an already won battle to last extra time for nothing

---Follow up

When a player puts a monster Down, he earns an extra action right away. So of there are three monsters with weakness to the elements he can use, he could use for example the same spell three times in a row.

---Signature move

When a monster is put Down by a player, this player can choose to give up is follow up to let someone he has a bond with perform an automatic Down on another target. This ends this player's turn but allows a monster who he can't put down because he doesn't have the right element to be down instead.

---Bonds

Bonds are strong emotions that directly connect two characters, like friendship, love, respect, admiration.

Bonds are the opportunity for them to gain extra moves and actions, as well as making the battle smoother and reinforcing characters interactions.

Bonds can be used to:

-Help a down character
-Shield a character
-Perform a finish him move
-Perform a Signature move

---Spells and Stats

Players have two stats: Hp (life) and Sp (mana)

Using natural spells consumes Sp, when Sps are insufficient, one cannot use them anymore.

Using non natural Spells consumes Hp, When Hps are insufficient one cannot use them anymore, if Hp reaches 0, the player is Knocked Down, he cannot participate to the battle anymore, except if he's resurrected.

---Knock Down

A knocked Down player cannot participate anymore, unless he's resurrected (resurrected is different from healed).

Knocked downs players are automatically resurrected at the end of a battle, and they are granted one HP.

This allows players to participate nonetheless, instead of getting bored and inactive, plus, they can be healed even though no one has the ability to resurrect.

---Actions in battle

When one's turn is up (after an initiative roll)

He can choose to:

-Attack: simple attack using a weapon or bare hooves, no cost, physical element
-Use a spell (Physical elements spells are "skills" but works like spells, they do the same type of damages as attack but with enhanced damages, at the cost of HPs)
-Guard: (All damages to a guarding characters are considered "weak" in the resistant table, even if it was an element the character is weak to)
-Use an Item: (to heal, reinforce, resurrect or whatever)


-Bond actions are only possible when the conditions are right: (meaning being bond to the concerned player, and having the opportunity to take this action, for example, if my lover is down he couldn't possibly help me even if all the other conditions were right)

If a character is about to get Knocked Down, the GM says so, the bond character can decide to take the blow for him/her.

If a bond character is down, you can decide to give up other actions and help him getting up.

If a monster is put down, you can give up your extra attack to let a bond character perform a signature move, resulting in an auto Down on another target (only if there is another target)

to sum up choices:

Attack
Spell
Guard
Item

Shield (only when proposed to)
Help (only when a fried is down)

(a follow up can lead to any of these + letting a bond character to use a signature move)

---Player resistances

Players should choose between:

Nullify one element

Resist to two elements (one natural and one non natural)

Circumstances and gear could give more resistance or the absorb/reflect status on one element

---Other way of using elements

Some weapons can be element based, thus turning attacks from physical to whatever the element is.

---Holy and Unholy

Those two are special, players and monsters can only have the Weak, Null or Neutral resistance to them.

Holy and Unholy cannot be applied to weapons, and they don't inflict damages, instead they have a chance of instantly kill a monster which hasn't the Null Status toward the one used.

A lvl1 Holy has 20% of succeeding, a lvl2 Holy has 30% chances and a lvl3 has 40%chances

A monster Weak to Holy is instantly killed when Holy is used on them, no matter the chances. same thing with unholy.

---Indications

When a player uses an element on a monster, the GM tells if this attack was effective or not, letting know the player of this monster's resistance to this element.

---Monster example

Name: Shadow
Hp:200
(monsters have no SP)

Attacks:
Burning strike (Fire)
Claws (physical)

Resistances:

Fire:Resistant
Ice :Neutral
Wind:Weak
Lightning:Neutral
Physical:Null
Holy:Neutral
Unholy:Null
(almighty cannot be resisted so it's not listed)

---notes

That system emphasises thinking and logic over numbers, many short battles over fewer and longer ones.
The only battles which should last for a bit are bosses, in that regard all bosses should be immune to holy and unholy, and have no more than one weakness, or no weakness at all.

At first, one could think that the follow up system (attacking several times in a row) would lead one character to do everything by himself, but one should keep in mind that this is ok, because the battles are supposed to be numerous, and if a character tends to overdo it, he will quickly run out of Sp and Hp, even if he's never hit.

about Sp and HP regen, there should be really limited ways and items to replenish them without using spells, an exhausted party will have nearly no Sp, thus being unable to heal themselves, to use element based spells efficiently, and so being compelled to use them wisely.

A gm should have a variety of different monsters, and should not hesitate to have several versions of known monsters with different weaknesses (but those monsters MUST look different, in order to make it clear that it is NOT the same kind of monster, despite looking a bit like a known monster: like a slime, neutral to physical attacks and a fire slime, absorbing fire attacks etc), so that players still have fun trying to understand what is weak to which monsters, as well as rewarding them for remembering what were those resistances when meeting already known monsters.

Damages should be based on rolls, this is yet to be done, but it should be as simple as possible, since this system is more about clever choices than numbers.

A good battle with known enemies would have players not being hit once and only last one turn, ending up in a final rush. It is ok because Hps and Sps are consumed anyway, leading the team to be more and more tired.

There seems to be a lots of possibilities, but it is in fact really simple and way faster than a traditional fighting system, choices are logical and after a few battles it is easy to understand how to act so to be the most efficient possible, this system should be regarded as a "puzzle", because there is almost always a way to make a battle rally short and easy as long as players use logic and smart thinking.

This system is linear in terms of choices but in fact allows players to interact way more often out of their normal turns thanks to the bond system, the signature move system and especially the rush system. It is way easier to have everyone doing something, actually participating or even giving someone else the opportunity to act, it makes the battles smoother and quicker. "I just put two of the three foes down,I am ineffective for the last one, I can let my friend perform a signature move instead, so all enemies are down and then we can all rush!". I think it is more suited for Roleplay and more fun for everybody.

-Duskie