The need for a better Brad

Submitted by Quercus on Thu, 07/28/2011 - 11:58

Two months on the job and I can definitely tell that I am not quite up to the rigors of this assignment.  It seems that no matter how hard I try to keep things light, balanced and under control, things just seem to go horribly awry.  I didn't sign up for street gun battles in Minneapolis/St. Paul.  The good people of Minnesota should be able to walk the streets without worrying about being caught in a crossfire.  Particularly one that was instigated by me.

This last job was, on paper at least, a success.  Helen got her award and survived her visit to the USA so that she could return home and continue the good work that she has dedicated and now risked her life for.  Being around her was very moving, but since her departure I have been sad that I have done so little good in comparison.

But I am reminded of a line from Max Ehrman's poem Desired Things that warns us against comparing ourselves to others.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Sadly my path is not Helen's, my opportunities to do good are not as noble as hers.  So all I can do is set aside my seemingly continuous misgivings and throw my whole heart into becoming the best Brad that I can be: One who is capable of doing this job so well that the need for gunplay is reduced and perhaps even removed.

So here is a pledge, never again will I need to resort to firearms when faced with those who do not bring guns to the fight.  I will bring fists to the fistfight and save my murderous skills for the thugs who have lived and now will die by the gun.

It is time that I got serious about the hard work of becoming a better Brad.

/que training montage

Groups:

Clarifications on unarmed combat for Clay

Submitted by Quercus on Thu, 07/28/2011 - 12:22.

I looked up a few things for us.  Here are some of the big points.

A grapple attempts are parryable if the target has acted in a way that allows him a defense.  Negatives to the parry are applicable in some cases. (an error by Jim on that one)

Throws after a successful parry are also parryable if the target has preserved his defense.

Maintaining grapples is a quick contest of skills and only defaults to attributes if no skill is present. (gives a slight nerf to the big guy template)

If the grapple is maintained then you can takedown or pin depending on the posture of the fight.  In fact, grapple, takedown and then pin is a logical progression.

It seems that the best grapples are the ones applied to a specific target.  The negative for grappling a body part is only 1/2 the normal negative, so neck is at -2, arm is at -1, ect.  Fortunately these negatives can be bought off with the techniques for that specific type of attack.

Finally, damage from grapples is negligable, they are merely an avenue to better things.  However, many (but not all) grapples provide a bonus against the quick contest after the first round.  So you are more likely to hang on, after you have already hung on, if you know what I mean.

Page 403 and after are a great place to get the specifics.  The MA book obscures the matter somewhat, but to Basic Set Campaigns book has it all.

Thanks for the clarifications

Submitted by Clay Dowling on Wed, 08/10/2011 - 14:09.

I'm pretty weak on a lot of the more detailed specifics, so having somebody know this stuff is very helpful.  I should do some review this weekend to see if I can get that stuff straightened out better.  Although the creative cabal around here is shooting for something more in the lines of a con than a straight up fight.