PHB of Exalted Deeds

[Korgoth]

The Amazons delivered my C&C PHB 2nd Printing today. Korgoth is pleased! I like what I'm seeing. This is fantasy roleplaying from the good old days... but cleaned up and improved.

I like the way the bard class is handled: a normal class (unlike 1st ed), and more of a skald than the hybrid mage/thief of 2nd ed.

One question: given that I haven't read the book through yet... I saw rules for Helmet AC, but no rules for Called Shots to the head. Did I just miss them?
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[serleran]

No. There are no specified called shots. Personally, I find them to be useless. I mean, at low levels, there is no reason to not use a called shot, especially if you need a 20 to hit, anyway....

[moriarty777]

There is no mechanic that uses the AC adjustment of helms... yet. If you did decide to implement your own house rules for called shots, then they could come quite handy!

Moriarty the Red
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[Philotomy Jurament]

I like this approach to Helmets, presented by Elfdart on Dragonsfoot (note that this is for 1E, so the AC values of the helmets would need to be modified for C&C):
HELMETS

if Helm AC is better than the base AC then improve the latter by one point;

if Helm AC is worse than the base AC by two or more, then penalize the latter one point

Type of Head Protection(AC)

None (10)

Padded/ Leather (8) *

Studded/Ring/Hide/Skullcap (7) +

Open Helmet/Mail Coif (6) #

Helmet/Scale or Lamellar Coif (5) ++

Helm/Bascinet (3) **

Great Helm/Tournament Helm (2)

* includes padded or leather coifs, thick cloth headwear, etc.

+ the skullcap is either a small helmet that only covers the top of the head or is an open helmet made of weaker materials than metal, such as boiled leather

# open helmet refers to either a basic Spagenhelm or other simple helmets with little or no protection for the face, sides or back of the head or is a regular helmet made of weaker materials

++ this includes the closed-face Spagenhelm, later model Roman helmets, Vendel-era and similar helmets that offer substantial, but not total defense for the face, sides and back of the head

** assumes the face plate is closed, otherwise treat as a regular helmet

[Metathiax]

Quote:
if Helm AC is better than the base AC then improve the latter by one point;

if Helm AC is worse than the base AC by two or more, then penalize the latter one point

Although I do find this approach to be interesting, I do not like the fact that not wearing a helm hurts characters wearing lighter armor much more than those wearing heavier armor (someone wearing leather armor gets his AC reduced by 50% while someone wearing full plate armor gets a reduction of around 10%...). From my perspective, wearing no helm at all while in heavy armor is a strong incentive for opponents to try to strike the head area (ask yourself where you would strike if you were fighting a helmless foe clad in full plate armor...). Also, wearing a helm, even an inadequate one for the armor type, should give off some kind of benefit over not wearing a helm at all (someone wearing a full plate and a mail coif would get the exact same protection value than if he didn't wear his coif...).

I have ruled that helms help avoid critical hits. A second successful attack roll is needed in order to get a critical hit while a failure on the second one means that a regular successful attack has been obtained instead. I have divided the helms in 3 categories : light (+1 AC), medium (+2 AC) and heavy (+3 AC). The AC bonus is only added for this second attack roll, all other adjustments stay the same.
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[BASH MAN]

I would just do called shots to the head the way they were in AD&D 2nd Ed: -8 to hit. This means if you have an opponent with a suit of +3 platemale, and innexplicably not wearing a helmet, a called shot to the head is actually more likely than trying to strike the body.

I have a fond memory of this in AD&D when the GM threw a similarly armored Githyanki at us. I remember saying, called shot to the head

"You realize that has a -8 penalty to hit?"

"Yes, a -8 penalty to hit AC 10 is better than no penalty to hit AC -2".

After that encounter, all enemies we faced wore helmets!
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[PhreakinDeacon]

What exactly is new in the 2nd printing? Is it worth getting if you have the 1st printing, or is it mostly just updated layout and artwork?

[serleran]

Mostly cleaned up layout and editing, but the errata was added so some issues have been explained. Also, there is a section on poisons, "expert weapons" and the encumbrance system has been "fixed." For some, the layout (especially for spells) was worth getting the 2nd printing. Overall, the 2nd print is just a lot "cleaner" making it easier to use, but if you're content with the 1st print, you wouldn't "need" to buy the 2nd print.

[Omote]

I personally think the 2nd printing is cleaned up to the point that it's almost a new book. For $20.00 in today's gaming market, I think the 2nd print is well worth the cost.

The organization in the new print is worth the headache-less referencing alone, IMO.

.............................................Omote

FPQ
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[Tadhg]

Greetings and welcome to PhreakinDeacon.

Enjoy the game!
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