Friday, November 15, 2013

ACKS Surprise and Sneaking



There is a school of thought in roleplaying game design that once you define something as a “skill”, you restrict that action to only characters that have that skill. Designers and Judges have wrestled with this issue over the years, with a general trend toward unified mechanics, comprehensive skill lists and defined, default “everyman” use of certain skills. The weight of this approach can become quite heavy.

The Adventurer, Conqueror, King System core rules on Surprise and Sneaking demonstrate how we can have our cake and eat it too. The Thief Skills of Hide in Shadows and Move Silently are just one, additional approach to sneaking. A Barbarian’s bonuses to surprise are another path to effective sneaking, and even the Fighter in plate armor can sneak up on an inattentive monster.

When I first read this handful of paragraphs on Surprise and Sneaking in the core rules, I was struck by how simple the approach was to understand. However, it can be difficult to explain to a new player without saying “read this”. I wanted to be able to reference the process quickly. I re-wrote the descriptive text of the core rules into a series of Yes|No questions and answers, to lead a new player through the process. I fear it comes out looking more complicated than it is really is in play, but I hope the use of color and indentation improves the presentation.


Is(are) target(s) attentive?
    Yes
        Is concealment applicable?
            Yes
                Hide in Shadows (or similar) successful?
                    Yes
                        Move Silently (or similar) successful?
                            Yes
                                Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
                            No
                                Target(s) Hear Noise successful?
                                    Yes
                                        Target(s) surprise roll successful?
                                            Yes
                                                Initiative ...
                                            No
                                                Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
                                    No
                                        Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
                    No
                        Target(s) surprise roll successful?
                            Yes
                                Initiative ...
                            No
                                Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
            No
                Target(s) surprise roll successful?
                    Yes
                        Initiative ...
                    No
                        Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
    No
        Target(s) Hear Noise successful?
            Yes
                Target(s) surprise roll successful?
                    Yes
                        Initiative ...
                    No
                        Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).
            No
                Surprise! Or sneak by (move for one round).



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