Fudge RPG - Avoiding the Damage Spiral

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From: ShaneKnysh

Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2005 23:21:50 GMT

Subject: Avoiding the Damage Spiral


Greetings All,

I am looking for a damage system that will block or reduce the effects of the damage
spiral or death spiral. I like the Fudge wound track (I actually also use a endurance/stun
track that merges with the wound track), but I have a problem with the damage spiral.
Fudge and other games (Shadowrun comes to mind) that use damage tracks have the effect
that if you are wounded it becomes easier to hit you and harder for you to avoid the damage. 

Has anyone designed something that would get around this damage spiral? An old Fudge
Factor article called "A Non-Linear Wounding System" by Helge Lund Kolstad gets me part
way there by disassociating the levels. But the characters will still get easier to hurt
the more hurt they become. 

The endurance track refreshs at an insane rate, 4 to 6 'wounds' per turn. This allows the
endurance track to fuel special actions and spells. It means that endurance effects only
last a turn or two unless you are really pushing yourselves. I don't want to have a wound
track that refreshs that often. 

Any ideas?
-- -------------------------------------------------------------------
Shane
shane.knysh at YonerDotCom     http://churchofthegame.blogspot.com/

    "If you try and take a cat apart to see how it works, 
    the first thing you have on your hands is a non-working cat." 
    - Douglas Adams
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SequenceFirst LineUsernameDate
0

Irrelevant straw man.

NickMoffitt 2005-06-08 00:09:01
1

Didn't you retire for diverting this thread in your previous post?

DanFrohlich 2005-06-08 14:41:08
2

DF>Didn't you retire for diverting this thread in your previous post?

KarenCravens 2005-06-08 14:56:38
3

> I am looking for a damage system that will block or

I'd suggest something like this:

Health Rolls to Ignore Penalties

Whenever someone is injured by more than a Scratch, he's entitled to a Health roll.

JonathanBenn 2005-06-09 20:03:54
4

> Has anyone designed something that would get around this damage spiral?

BillHamilton 2005-06-07 23:35:25
5

Having been in more fights than I would really care to count (a mis-spent youth), I don't consider the so-called damage spiral to be all that unrealistic. After you've taken a few hits from someone it is harder to avoid being hit, and

ChrisHelton 2005-06-07 23:47:14
6

On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 00:47:14 +0100, Chris Helton wrote:

> --- Shane Knysh wrote:

Whether true or not, isn't that irrelevant?

DarrenHill 2005-06-07 23:52:29
7

Probably no less irrelevant than threadjacking would be, would you say?

ChrisHelton 2005-06-08 00:04:25
8

>Greetings All,
The easiest way to avoid the "death spiral" (and the method I use now in the Fudge games I run -- having encountered that "death spiral" before...) is to not apply wound penalties until after the combatbattle/danger is over

GhostGames 2005-06-07 23:43:01
9

I'd split the difference.

RobDonoghue 2005-06-08 01:12:20
10

>Greetings All,
Is there anything in particular you want this system TO do?

JohnUghrin 2005-06-08 00:54:24
11

> Gamers have this tendency to decry

There has been plenty of evidence for and against the 'death spiral' effect.

BillHamilton 2005-06-08 00:17:54
12

On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 01:04:25 +0100, Chris Helton wrote:

> --- Darren Hill wrote:

That's purely a matter of opinion - personally, I think the "no death spiral" is just as realistic as t

DarrenHill 2005-06-08 11:33:38
13

Greetings all,

On Tue, 7 Jun 2005 19:54:24 CDT, John Ughrin wrote

I hadn't thought about what I want it to do, but rather what I don't want it to do.

ShaneKnysh 2005-06-08 03:41:43
14

On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 01:05:23 +0100, Mitch Williams wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----

And neither does yours.

DarrenHill 2005-06-08 12:16:57
15

>I am looking for a damage system that will block or reduce the effects of the damage

>Any ideas?

As Ann mentioned, a good solution is to ignore the damage penalties till after the fight.

EricPaquette 2005-06-08 13:14:18
16

Don't make me come back there and subnet you two.

ChrisDoherty 2005-06-08 16:05:49
17

> So you could have the option: take a Hurt result (with the -1 penalty)

Especially the last two, since you then have the choice between being taken out for the rest of the fight and then in need of hospitalisation, and being out cold for a littl

HelgeLundKolstad 2005-06-08 14:43:31
18

On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 15:41:08 +0100, Dan Frohlich wrote:

> On 6805, Darren Hill wrote:

:) Actually that's one of the pitfalls of sending simultaneous emails via the inte

DarrenHill 2005-06-08 17:13:49
19

> Another solution comes from the latest Marvel rpg.

DarrenHill 2005-06-08 17:15:01
20

The style was taken from a superhero game.

EricPaquette 2005-06-08 18:12:12
21

Yeah, I agree.

EricPaquette 2005-06-08 18:06:58
22 damage you have three options:
  1. Take it like a man/woman.: Apply wound penalties normally.
JohnUghrin 2005-06-08 19:30:12
23

...or, spend some Fudge points.

MarkPerotti 2005-06-08 20:26:23
24 Yeah, I would. JohnUghrin 2005-06-08 22:05:29
25

Greetings All,

I am looking for a damage system that will block or reduce the effects of the damage spiral or death spiral.

ShaneKnysh 2005-06-07 23:21:50
26

>On Tue, 7 Jun 2005 20:12:20 CDT, Robert Donoghue wrote

The wound penalties shouldn't be cumulative -- not in the sense that for every Hurt wound you receive an additional -1 penalty, at any rate.

GhostGames 2005-06-08 12:01:59
27

I was going to suggest something like this (or rather, a Willpower roll), but it does introduce an extra roll into combat, which is not ideal.

So, then I started wondering about giving the player the choice: let them choose to ignore wound penalties

RobRendell 2005-06-10 00:20:13
28

----- Original Message -----
From: "Darren Hill"

> Whether true or not, isn't that irrelevant?

Mitchw 2005-06-08 00:05:23