Our group was wondering if there was anything in the system to account for a B6 rider with B4 lance fighting a B2 rider with B4 lance. Can riding fork into lance?
It would depend on the situation, and the player would have to sell me on it, but it potentially, yes.
If it was a jousting tournament match I may even be inclined to have a Riding-Lance Linked Test.
The linked test sounds better than just FoRKing it, since both riders could FoRK their riding skill in for an extra die, and they’d still have the same dice.
If one rider had B7 in their ride skill, then they’d get two dice. So there’s that.
Linked test for Riding. Totally.
No fork.
Probably yeah. Unless this was a Test just another [Strike/Great Strike/etc.] action as part of a Fight!, then FoRK is entirely appropriate. In that case I suspect that Riding is what would have already been factored in because of the Positioning (I think, without doing any really close reading of the Fight! chapter…anyone?)
thanks that all sounds about right.
I don’t have a page number handy, but in Fight, you need to make a Ride test to get your mount to join battle or it balks and you need to fight on foot. I think I’d be cool with the FoRK in a versus or Bloody Versus test, but in Fight, the benefit of the Ride test is getting to use your mount’s Stride for engaging, so FoRKing it seems like double-dipping to me.
It’s not just the horse’s stride you gain. You get it’s speed for Positioning and Avoids, and power for Charges. Plus your riding skill can help with those tests…BWG pg 533. Powerful stuff, so definitely no FoRK in Fight!, and probably reasonable in a Vs/Bloody Vs test.
My vote: Linked test, if BV. RAW, if Fight.
Actually, I don’t think it’s fully accounted for by positioning. then 2 lancers on horseback, one with riding B2 and one with riding B6 would have equal shots at each other with lance, as the positioning would be moot. same applies to them attacking a spear wielder.
After giving it some thought, for a skill so intrinsically tied to the movements of your horse, i’d say FoRK or link riding in every time you can narrate it properly.
example: “His steed fell into step, and while deftly guiding its steps, feeling the rhythm of its gait, he leaned his body in for the strike at just the right moment.”
After all, i feel like that is what BW mechanics ultimately motivate, colorful narratives and logical explanations for rolls.
Pg533 specifies which tests you get to help with your ride skill. I’d take that to mean you can’t help with others.
In a lance versus lance Fight!, I’d say that since you’re both charging towards one another, your riding skill is moot, it’s solely about where and when you aim your lance that’s important…unless you’re trying to Avoid or Charge, which is covered by the RAW.
Same with a spear wielder. That’s why cavalry avoid them.
You guy with Ride B2 would be lucky to get his horse to stay in the fight at all.
I always took those to be more like suggestions of skills that you can probably FoRK in pretty easily, regardless of the situation. I mean, I wouldn’t want to deny an inventive FoRK just because it wasn’t in the book, right?
At the very least, surely Wises should always be FoRKable when relevant. Horse-wise, for instance.