SoSy:Weapons And Armor
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Weapons and armor
Ah, weapons and armor - the love of any player, and an oft-fetishized part of any role-playing game. In this game, harm is, as shown above, an erosion of a character's ability to get his way, instead of always being physical pain and suffering. Therefore, weapons aren't just swords, knifes, clubs, and the like, and armor isn't just padding a character wears on his body. Anything can be a weapon - but only in certain situations.
When using a weapon, if your character is successful in an action, you can add the weapon's rating to your success level. If you are unsuccessful, the weapon does nothing. Your success level cannot go above Ultimate (6) because of a weapon. Armor substracts from the success level of actions taken against you. Armor cannot lower a success level past Marginal (1). In both cases, the items can have +1, +2, or +3 ratings. The level of the rating is determined by the speciality of the harm or protection.
- Weapons and armor with a +1 rating work in specific situations determined by action taken, and often ability used. Examples include:
- A sword that gives +1 harm in combat.
- A royal crest that provides +1 protection when involved in diplomacy.
- A lute that deals +1 harm in attempts to win a crowd while playing it.
- Weapons and armor with a +2 rating work in situations with a specific type of people, environment, or other restrictions. Examples include:
- A mace that gives +2 harm against "hard" armors, like plate or chain.
- The Seal of Maldor, which provides +2 protection against the law in Maldor.
- A set of snowshoes, which deal +2 harm in attempts to race across snowy areas.
- Weapons and armor with a +3 rating work in rare situations or against particular persons. Examples include:
- A dagger forged to kill the Potenate of Ammeni, which deals +3 harm in attempts to kill him.
- A writ of birthday immunity, which gives +3 protection against any attempt to prosecute a person for crimes committed on their birthday.
- A set of goggles which give +3 harm while trying to see motion during an eclipse.
An item can have more than one bonus - it can have up to three +1, two +2, and one +3 bonus.
Weapons and armor can occur in the game in two ways. The Story Guide can declare any item in the game to give +1 harm or protection in a particular situation. For example, someone using a sword to fight an unarmed person could be given +1 harm to all her attacks, or someone with a sack of gold could be given +1 harm to influence someone else. Alternatively, any player can declare his character's equipment to have a bonus with the Secret of Imbuement. This purchase is subject to Story Guide approval.
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