Lets have a thread about combat philosophy

Lets have a thread about combat philosophy.

What sort of philosophy does your character follow, Veeky Forums? Is it what-a-mole?

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>is it an enemy?
>kill enemies
Simple.

Efficient.

>don't die
>complete the objective if there is one
>kill the enemy
In that order, actually.

A victory is not a victory unless it was done in such a fashion that it could be quantfied as CUHRAYZEE!!

One character saw it as a means to prove their worth and strength, but also recognized the necessity of tempering it with efficient teamwork and logistics, so they would often fight in a skirmishing style - attack from a range with javelins, let an enemy draw closer, and then join in melee.

Another character focused solely on combat as a means of defense, or perhaps retaliation. Combat for them was quick and precise, without much fancy footplay or techniques. Think like Bruce Lee.

Bob is a lawful neutral pest control expert.
His ideology is a 90% decrease in Kender related problems or your money back!

Been DMing in the last part of my RPG career, but my last PC was a rogue. He started off as rather daring at low levels (relatively speaking for a rogue, of course) but then something big happened: a crossbow armed enemy was targeting the fighter every chance he got, shit would have gone bad fast if no one did anything. So the rogue slipped past the front line and attacked the enemy sniper. The enemy wizard cut him off from the rest of the party with a magic wall. After that it was just a matter of time before the rogue died. And he did.

After being resurrected he never again moved into melee if he could help it, and would always think about surviving himself first. Later on, he and the same fighter were alone, trying to infiltrate a mercenary camp to investigate. Their cover was blown and the enemy leader attacked them. He was much higher level and they were disarmed, they had no chance. The rogue distracted the enemy and hid in the shadows of the command tent. The figher died alone.

First step: Get deep enough into enemy territory that we can't accidentally our squishy allies.

Second step: Go hog wild.

>Attack the enemy in the front
>Enter defensive stance
>Keep attention to your frontal attack
>Hope this time the others realise that they should go around the corner and flank the enemy
>Lose all hope once they follow you for another suicide charge

I call it "Sharp Spear, Dull Spearman"

>Serves with honour and fidelity.
>Shows to his brothers in arms the close solidarity that links the members of the same family.
>Finds strength in respect for traditions, devotion to leaders, discipline and comradeship; finds virtues in courage and loyalty.
>Displays his pride in his status in his always impeccable uniform, his always dignified but modest behaviour, and his clean living quarters.
>Trains rigorously as an elite soldier, maintains his weapon as his most precious possession, and takes constant care of his physical form.
>Considers the mission as sacred, carries it out until the end and, if necessary in the field, at the risk of his life.
>In combat, acts without passion and without hate, respects defeated enemies, and never abandons his dead, his wounded, or his arms.

It's a last resort for when diplomacy no longer is an option. Even then, only knock out the enemies through calculated strikes, it makes it easier to turn them over to the authorities or carry out a vigilante execution if evidence shows up that really pisses him off.

If the enemy is something that cannot merely be reasoned with or locked up, then you can kill it as efficiently or flamboyantly as you want, so long as they cannot harm anyone afterwards.

“If it has a pulse,
Take its skull!
If it builds a house,
Smash it flat!
Strength is my God,
The God of Shapes,
If my God should fail me,
I will kill him too.”
– Sword Law Mantra of the Knights Belligerent

>our Wizard
Wait until your foe is distracted then light him on fire
(cast grease while no-one is looking, light it when the time is right)
>our Fighter
Anything that can't be fixed by friendship can be fixed with a bag of axes
(Diplomacy first, commanding strike second, battle/great axe or tomahawks third, shield bros whenever you can)
>our Mystic
As long as we have more blood insides of us than they do, victory is assured
(run in like a dumbass, get shit kicked, use psychic powers until back at full health, repeat until one of us dies)

Never bring a knife to a gun fight, never bring a gun to a bomb fight.

Regardless of one's feelings on the matter, every fight is a bombfight.

Enemy cannot effectively fight back if ground on which they stand is bomb.
Army marches on stomach, so poison enemy foods.
Bad people are hated by many, and the enemy of my enemy is useful fodder.

>Why fight an enemy yourself when its friends are in a better position to land the killing blow.
>When fighting a foe that is strong of body, play upon its mind and strength becomes its weakness.
>Obstacles don't exist when you shape reality.
Because Magic.

There are lots of combat parables about agile and magical combatants taking down the stereotypical big brute.

But what would be some good tips for a combatant who relies on strength and toughness to fight wizards and rogues and the like?

Try to kill it before I have to reload.

Trap them in a small area? I guess if the Rogue can't run and hide and if the Wizard cam't get far enough away then you can pummel them 6 ways to Sunday.

Avoid fighting whenever possible--it is an absolute last resort.

When fighting is necessary, end the fight as quickly as possible with devastating powerhouse offense, for the longer a battle lasts the greater the risk of collateral damage.

Good tips for the guy who is bigger, stronger and better trained? "Smash" comes to mind.

My character is a disciple of a human who got so strong that he crushed his own mortality and became a god.
His fold constantly build their bodies through sustained expert training, turning their backs on anything that does not optimize their physical might, in the hopes of attaining a higher state of being through embodying strength like their master-god.
If he had to boil down his combat philosophy in words, it'd be something similar to:
>I ain't no bitch.
He believes strength is fortitude as well as exertion.
He prefers melee combat as it is naturally the best approach for crushing with brute strength. He forgoes the finesse of advanced martial arts for its most fundamental techniques: the straight punch, the downward slash, the takedown, etc. and follows through with brute simplicity.
Equipment varies, as he mainly relies on his strength.

Summoner's got something along the lines of...

>send Toffee to eat their armor
>have him spit the enemies at me
>stab armorless enemies
>adapt as needed

SR Old School decker, on the other hand...

>is it cybered up?
>if yes, is it cyberpsychotic?
>If no, try reasoning. IF this fails goto next
>if yes, hack in, zero out any sensors and send wild sprite in to fuck things up. watch fireworks.
>if not cybered up, hack surroundings to help with the fight, stay out of their sight.

>Good tips for the guy who is bigger, stronger and faster, too
Your coconut gun can fire in spurts.

Exercise caution, and watch your party do the opposite.

When you're in better physical shape than your opponent, attrition is your best friend. They'll tire faster than you, so wear them out. Adopt a defensive fighting style and draw out the battle until they're exhausted, then switch to pure offense and batter them into chunky salsa.

Practical

When you're in better shape than your opponent, hitting them in the face is your best friend.

A battle of attrition is for losers. Hit them, really hard. Then they don't stand up, and you win.

>Attrition
>vs magic
Yeah, nah. What you wanna do vs a mage is blow your load on them before they get a chance to realize whats happening. Preferably before they even realize a fight is going on.

Technique will beat strength. Strength and technique will beat pretty much everything.

A warrior is made greater by the challenges they face or accept. Facing or accepting worthless challenges is... well, demeaning is a way to put it. (So for example, you might kill a warrior from a rival tribe, but kill his/her children? that's just gauche, senpai)

A warrior's choice in enemies* reflect upon them; great enemies is flattering to both you and them; after all, if they're great and your enemy, and you're still alive, that reflects well on you. If you're great, and they're you're enemy, and they're still alive, ditto.

*note: this applies only to people and maybe gods. Animals, nature, and the world itself are excepted.

Battle (and especially dueling) is the most elemental and atomic enterprise. Engaging in it is practically holy. You can judge someone by the way they face mortal danger, how they weather pain, their temper and skill as they fight. If you wish to know someone's character, beyond any lies or dissembling, fight them.

Everyone should be willing and able to fight, to put their life on the line for their beliefs. Not everyone is expected to be equally effective or capable- and there are things besides raw combat skill that matter. Knowledge, skills, etc. are all valuable and useful and to be respected- but most important of all in an individual is combat ability and capability or willingness to risk life and limb for your honor and pursuits.

Unless that individual is a leader, in which case there are some other things that are equally vital- given the above culture - like ability and willingness to realize other people know more than you and should be listened to (and championed) for their knowledge/wisdom. Leaders, traditionally, are badasses who surround themselves in a coterie of specialists whose wisdom they trust and are willing to defend themselves.

This seems like something you and your comrades should plan out ahead of time.

We do. Problem is that the players always panic when combat starts and then just do whatever. I gave them a light scolding last week along with a proper approach to battles on our current party composition, so tomorrow is the moment of truth.

They'll probably run ahead of me and attack the people on the sides. They are a great bunch, but goddamn they are a bunch of dumbasses in-game.

When you're facing a smug DEXfag who prides himself on using speed to defeat foes thrice his size, that's a good way to get yourself killed. That's fighting on his terms. Never fight on your enemy's terms.

Pic related; a smug DEXfag who uses speed to defeat foes thrice his size.

>Hit it till it stops moving.
>Don't die in the process.
>Kill 'em all, god will sort them out.

Sometimes when you win, you actually lose - Rosie Perez

> A brain is useful only up until the point when you are faced with your enemy. Then it is useless. The only truly useful thing in this cursed world is will. You must suffuse your worthless body with its terrible heat. You must be so hot that even if your enemy should strike your head off, you shall continue to decapitate ten more men. Your boiling blood must spring forth from your neck and mutilate the survivors


>You must never make 'multiple' cuts. Each must be singular in its beauty, no matter how many precede it. You must make your enemies weep with admiration, and likewise should your head be shorn off by such an object of beauty, you must do your best to shed tears of respect.


killsixbilliondemons.wikia.com/wiki/Meti's_Sword_Manual

Do not draw your sword.
Do not force him to draw.

Pic related.

>Go fucking nuts all the time and worry about who these people are and what they're doing afterwards
I know this sounds like a generic murderhobo crazy 'im gonna shove my sword in anything i dont like because im so cool' thing but hear me out
Every single party member has merciful enchanted weapons, and the spellcasters always prepare merciful spells. We can be as violent as we want and things will always work out.
You can count on your fingers the number of beings we have actually killed