Re: ARENA: parry query, and other questions

From: srt@sun-dimas.aero.org (Scott Turner)

Date: Mon, 05 Dec 1994 18:35:40 +0000

>If I have a fighter with a weapon and a shield, and I have parry
>skill with both.  So the guy I'm duelling with takes a swing at
>me, which item do I parry with?  Do I get to chances to parry, one
>with each?

One parry chance with each (provided you have the stamina, that is).

>The War Axe -- it is 2 handed, but still is -MG, it can't be used as
>  a Main Gauche, so how can it be -MG?

That's a bug in the RULES.  It's been fixed.

> Why ever buy a broadsword, when the scimitar, at identical cost,
> doesn't have a parry penalty?

Given the choice, you should take the scimitar.  But a scimitar may
not always be available.

>What happens if a fighter has both a ring mail vest and a
>ring mail coat in use?  Do both armors protect, or does only
>the first one listed in the inventory get used, and the second
>get lugged about as spare?

The second one is lugged about as a spare.  This is explained fairly
well in the rules.

>Does a vest and coat actually overlap (as the names would suggest) or
>do they cover different areas?

Again, this is in the rules.  The vest covers only the torso.  The
coat covers the torso and the arms.

>A Comment: money costs of different things obviously have no
>relation to real life, but seem intended to be game balance.
>(For instance, Chain Mail coat: $25, Club: $38.  If you have
>ever tried to make both chain mail and a club -- a decent
>club can be made in an hour.  A chain mail coat generally takes
>at least a week, often longer.)

Yes, costs are intended to promote game balance.  I don't think it
would be interesting to have everyone running around in the same armor
and weapons just because they were the most cost-effective.

Note, however, that the costs shown in the rules are only guidelines.
In stores you will often find things selling at higher or lower
prices.

-- Scott T.

References

ARENA: parry query, and other questions
dagibbs@qnx.com (David Gibbs)
Thu, 01 Dec 1994 20:04:45 +0000