Saturday, December 1, 2018

Mighty Deeds of Firearms and Firearm Fumbles

I don't see any reason that any class shouldn't use any given firearm.  Sure, most of them aren't going to want to lug around a musket, and thieves would just find matchlocks inconvenient for sneaking around, but in the right circumstances, any class should have the ability to use any firearm.  But it's warriors (and dwarves) that really should get the most out of them.

Of course, they already get quite a lot out of firearms.  Their deed dice give them greater chances of hits and more damage when they do, and they can use existing Mighty Deeds to make Precision Shots, Disarm a foe, or even make Pushbacks or Throws if appropriate.  But gunpowder weapons are slow to reload, and a pistoleer or musketman is vulnerable to enemy attack while reloading.  These new Mighty Deeds aren't meant for attacking, per se, so no attack roll is needed while attempting them.  Only the deed die needs to be thrown.



Mobility - Rather than having to stand in one spot receiving no Agility bonus to Armor Class while reloading, the warrior may move and dodge.

3 Character can either retain his Agility bonus to Armor Class or move up to 5' per round while reloading
4 Character can either retain his Agility bonus to Armor Class and move up to 5' per round or move up to 10' per round (without Agility bonus) while reloading
5 Character can retain his Agility bonus and move up to half his normal rate per round while reloading
6 Character can retain his Agility bonus and move up to ¾ his normal rate per round while reloading
7+ Character can retain his Agility bonus and move up to his full normal rate per round while reloading

Speed - The character is able to reload faster than lesser trained marksmen.

3 Reloading takes the normal amount of time (4 rounds, or 5 for rifles), but the character automatically wins the initiative on the round he is able to fire
4 Reloading takes one less round than normal
5 Reloading takes two less rounds than normal
6 Reloading takes three less rounds than normal
7+ Reloading takes three less rounds than normal, and the character automatically wins the initiative on the round he is able to fire




Fumbles are different for firearms.  Armor worn doesn't matter; just roll 1d10 and modify with the firer's Luck modifier.

1- Misfire: weapon doesn't go off, try again next action
2-3 Pan flash: the priming goes off but doesn't light the charge. Spend 1 round repriming and try again.
4-5 Hang fire: weapon doesn't go off yet, but will in 1d4 rounds. If the character isn't still aiming the weapon, roll randomly to see where the shot goes.
6-7 Hang fire: weapon doesn't go off yet, but will in 2d6 rounds. If the character isn't still aiming the weapon, roll randomly to see where the shot goes.
8-9 Squib: the charge wasn't strong enough to propel the bullet from the barrel. It'll take some out-of-combat time to dig it out.
10+ Explosion: the charge bursts the weapon open, destroying it and inflicting its damage on the firer.

At the Judge's option, fumbles may be rolled as normal in the DCC rules 50% of the time, and using this table the other 50% of the time.  Also, this table may be used for weapons that have been double charged or double shotted.  In this case, a roll of 8+ with a double shotted weapon with a single powder charge will always be a squib, and a roll of 8+ with any double charged weapon (regardless of whether it has a single or double shot) will be an explosion.