How Much Assistance/Automation with Combat Resolution?

[kronovan]

I'm interested in acquiring this ruleset, as I bought the BRP:UGE book and as of late have been homebrewing with it. In regards to my question, I'm curious how much assistance/automation there is in this ruleset with the Attack and Defense Matrix? I'm curious what it has for assisting the GM and players with navigating it? I.e. are Critical Successes, Special Successes, Successes, Failure and Fumbles clearly reported in the chat window? Are there prompts for parry and dodge rolls? Is some of this automated?
I ask, because I have more experience with the Mytrhas TTRPG and have had players struggle with differential rolls (equivalent to Atk & Def matrix) in combat encounters. There's no special successes in Mythras though, so in some regards that aspect of its combat is a bit simpler.

[superteddy57]

Well it covers I'd say about 50-60% automation which was close to what was expected when it first came out. This is one of the oldest systems and the combat fits that time frame as well. So you may expect quite a bit of a table top feel more than other rulesets. I am sure others who have used it more fully can relay their experience, but it does have areas that could see expansion to make it more on par with our newer systems. We do offer the option of a 30 day return policy if purchased through our store, so you could buy it and give it a spin.

[kronovan]

We do offer the option of a 30 day return policy if purchased through our store, so you could buy it and give it a spin.

The 30 day policy doesn't really work for me, as being a buyer in a non-USA location the Steam store is almost always cheaper - especially during a sale. The only problem with Steam is they won't let customers refund DLC, so I try to be sure about any FG product I buy. So far, I haven't boughten any FG DLC I'd want to refund.

[peterb]

All skill rolls results and so on are reported. It's possible to use "targeting" which will automate the damage and hitlocation roll. Also, this ruleset is, IMO, one of the easiest to modify to your specific needs. Changing the default skills, how you calculate HP's, etc. is very easy. Finally, and this is also IMO of course, BRP as such don't need that much automation. When I run games I roll all my NPC related rolls manually. Not because this ruleset lacks automation but because using a GUI is always slower than doing things manually. Moving your mouse pointer (or using keyboard shortcuts) is never going to beat rolling dice by hand and jotting down notes on papers, and that goes for any VTT solution.

I'd also like to say that of the several VTT's that I have tried Fantasy Grounds (FGU) is (again IMO) the one with the best GM facilities. If you want to store information in the VTT, I have found that FGU is the easiest to work with.

[peterb]

I'm interested in acquiring this ruleset, as I bought the BRP:UGE book and as of late have been homebrewing with it. In regards to my question, I'm curious how much assistance/automation there is in this ruleset with the Attack and Defense Matrix? I'm curious what it has for assisting the GM and players with navigating it? I.e. are Critical Successes, Special Successes, Successes, Failure and Fumbles clearly reported in the chat window? Are there prompts for parry and dodge rolls? Is some of this automated?

The targeting feature I mention automatically makes a hit location and damage roll but before that, you would need to manually determine if actor A's attack roll would have defeated actor b's defence roll. I suspect that there might be some effects or such in 5E that might be automated so that they trigger an response in the target which would be needed if you want an automated attack-defense resolution flow. That could perhaps be used as an inspiration. I would argue though, that time would be better invested in creating a good visual help feature for the players to do this manually, like they would at the table.

[kronovan]

All skill rolls results and so on are reported. It's possible to use "targeting" which will automate the damage and hitlocation roll. Also, this ruleset is, IMO, one of the easiest to modify to your specific needs. Changing the default skills, how you calculate HP's, etc. is very easy.

Many thanks for the reply Peterb. I'm fairly comfortable modifying rulesets, having done that for MoreCore, D&D 5e and Savage Worlds. The homebrewed campaign I have in mind would be a simple use of BRP. It was using the Attack & Defense matrix where I was most concerned. I don't know if this is possible via an extension and I haven't done anyting equivalent in another ruleset, but removing Special Success results is something I might consider. Mostly because I've become comfortable with their absence in Mythras and know that d100 rules like it and BRP can work fine without them.

One thing I'm curious about is whether there's an Attack & Defense table in this ruleset? Even just something in a Library rules reference, if such a reference exists, would be fine. Not a deal breaker if one doesn't exist, as I've built many a table in FGU, but I would like to avoid the effort.

Finally, and this is also IMO of course, BRP as such don't need that much automation. When I run games I roll all my NPC related rolls manually. Not because this ruleset lacks automation but because using a GUI is always slower than doing things manually. Moving your mouse pointer (or using keyboard shortcuts) is never going to beat rolling dice by hand and jotting down notes on papers, and that goes for any VTT solution.

Yep, there's many a time when I manually roll and are comfortable with it - actually mandatory with Savage Worlds for players and GMs making weapon attacks with a 2+ Rate of Fire.

I'd also like to say that of the several VTT's that I have tried Fantasy Grounds (FGU) is (again IMO) the one with the best GM facilities. If you want to store information in the VTT, I have found that FGU is the easiest to work with.

I've used a handful of VTT too and have left some behind - currently only use FGU and Foundry. Foundry I need for The Dark Eye ruleset and 5E when my players are also D&D Beyond subscribers. I agree that FGU is the best for the GM - especially customization.

[kronovan]

The targeting feature I mention automatically makes a hit location and damage roll but before that, you would need to manually determine if actor A's attack roll would have defeated actor b's defence roll. I suspect that there might be some effects or such in 5E that might be automated so that they trigger an response in the target which would be needed if you want an automated attack-defense resolution flow. That could perhaps be used as an inspiration.

Or perhaps something like the delayed wound system in Savage Worlds. The SW rules allow a player or GM to spend metacurrency to make a roll to soak up immediate damage. So consequencly the FGU SW ruleset delays the wounds and allows the GM to do the final application of them via the Combat Tracker. I could envision a variation of that potentially working for the BRP Atk & Def matrix, but would also expect that to be a heckuva lot of work to code in an extension.

I would argue though, that time would be better invested in creating a good visual help feature for the players to do this manually, like they would at the table.

Hence my question about the matrix as to whether there's a existing table on an illustration in a library reference.

[peterb]

Hence my question about the matrix as to whether there's a existing table on an illustration in a library reference.

There is. Here's a screen-shot (reduced in size, looks much better in-game) using the default theme.
Attack_defense_maatrix.png

[peterb]

Many thanks for the reply Peterb. I'm fairly comfortable modifying rulesets, having done that for MoreCore, D&D 5e and Savage Worlds. The homebrewed campaign I have in mind would be a simple use of BRP. It was using the Attack & Defense matrix where I was most concerned. I don't know if this is possible via an extension and I haven't done anyting equivalent in another ruleset, but removing Special Success results is something I might consider. Mostly because I've become comfortable with their absence in Mythras and know that d100 rules like it and BRP can work fine without them.

Removing special success is simple. I done so myself in an extension that implements (some of) the rules of Mythras. I've even toyed with moving from d100 resolution to a d20 resolution.

[peterb]

One thing I'm curious about is whether there's an Attack & Defense table in this ruleset? Even just something in a Library rules reference, if such a reference exists, would be fine. Not a deal breaker if one doesn't exist, as I've built many a table in FGU, but I would like to avoid the effort.

Here's a PNG version of the matrix. The original is made in Excel.
Attack_defense_matrix_2.png