Are there rules that cover weapon damage from block actions, when shields aren’t used? Swords getting dinged up, polearms cracking, etc.
I’m pretty sure there aren’t, and I can see lots of reasons why it’d be troublesome to include such rules. It’s important to place more importance on shields for parrying, and reducing a weapon’s power would require a lot of annoying mid-fight math. But it would be nice to have a way to represent dinged up swords and breaking weapons. Realistically, weapons shouldn’t be used for parrying. Such rules would really stress how much better off you are when entering combat with a shield, if you’re not fast enough to duck and weave.
Basically, I’m looking for a less cheesy and more reactive version of D&D 3.5 ed’s sundering rules.
Also, I already considered the Persona Points Complications optional rule. That’s cool, and will be using it, but I’m also looking for something a little more mechanical.
In Blossoms a successful block action can damage the opponents sword (and only sword). The first success lowers VA by 1. Second does likewise (or if no VA left, make the weapon a poor quality blade). Third reduces power by 1 (at power 0 the weapon breaks).
There is also the new skill dealing with repairing damage swords.
Hmm, interesting rule, but I can see why it was only applied in Blossoms. It makes parrying with any weapon useful, makes swords gimpy, and does nothing to emphasize the usefulness of a shield in combat. Good for samurai campaigns, where characters will be regularly dueling with only swords, but so great for a medieval simulation.
I think I’ll just stick with Persona Point Complications. I just re-read the full description, and I like the addendum that the complication for martial-based tests should always be gear-related. That works perfectly.
Weapons were used for parrying routinely, without much issue. As a rule, it is the top half (the weak, using Italian terminology) of weapons used for striking, at most (though which part is the top half varies a bit in armored combat). It is the bottom half (the strong) used for parrying, with the idea being you parried with a significant leverage advantage which you could use to try and control your opponents weapon long enough to strike them without also getting hit. Weapons were pretty durable as a rule, and its a safe assumption that those who own them also maintain them within the game. That isn’t to say that they can’t break, but merely that the Persona Points Complications rule can handle it. The only place I’d even consider weapons breaking on blocks would be if you tried to parry a weapon of a shade greater than your own.