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In Thunder's Echo (Legend of the Five Rings Quest)

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Burning 2/4 Free Raises and a Void point, assuming we can't charge the arrow full-tilt for some reason, just means it's 6k4 to hit TN 20. Which is still essentially in the bag for us.
 
I don't think Full Attack applies here. It's not an attack. It's a straightforward roll. I'ts not even agility+kenjutsu - it's reflexes+kenjutsu. Given that, I'm willing to toss my free raise in as well (bringing the total down to DC 15). We might *still* want to spend a void point.

Also, I'm *very* glad we decided to start investing in reflexes... and further combat-applicable investment might likewise be appropriate.

[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[x] Burn Sirrocco's free raise
-[x] Spend a void point
 
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Rook said:
... can we use the Full Attack Stance to charge the arrow? :D
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No. For much the same reason as you cannot aggressively compose poetry in order to get +2k1 on it. An arrow is not an enemy, and while you can totally throw yourself at it screaming 'BANZAI', doing so will not offer any actual advantages.

Jaertin said:
That changes things a bit, I'd though we were in town for some reason. Being incapacitated is less of an issue then, since it's unlikely the assassins will get a second shot. I'll probably switch to interposing and trying to cut down the arrow.
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You are in town. But this is the town attached to Shiro Matsu, home to the single largest family of samurai in the Emerald Empire. There are literally thousands of Matsu within a mile radius of you, and some of them have their own reasons for being in town at the moment.
 
Well I suppose it depends on what you consider an "attack" to be. Given that our QM's just ruled on it, though, the point's moot. (I also don't quite agree with the ruling from a pure mechanics standpoint but hey what 'cha gonna do. Oh well.)

With that in mind:

[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[X] Spend a Void Point

[X] Burn Rook's Free Raise

Our odds here are sitting on about 93% with three Raises spent. I feel safe without the Void Point.
 
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[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[X] Spend a Void Point

Just to be safe, though I would suggest one of the three Free Raises offered so far be held onto due to being harder to come by than a Void Point.
 
Sirrocco said:
I don't think Full Attack applies here. It's not an attack. It's a straightforward roll. I'ts not even agility+kenjutsu - it's reflexes+kenjutsu. Given that, I'm willing to toss my free raise in as well (bringing the total down to DC 15). We might *still* want to spend a void point.

Also, I'm *very* glad we decided to start investing in reflexes... and further combat-applicable investment might likewise be appropriate.

[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
If it's down to 15 then we'd have to average less then three on each dice (and if we roll a single 10 then we immediately pass 9999 times out of 10000). That's improbable enough that I'm comfortable not spending Void to enhance it. Also I think just screaming "Assassin!" would be enough for people to get our message here.
 
Burning the Void point and only 2 Free Raises is entirely viable and probably, in all honesty, the smarter option here.
 
Winged Knight said:
I'll be honest, this is smelling a bit like a set up.

Otomo Kairyu seemed confident, I would say almost eager, that he would be attacked as he performed his duty. He then choses Naoto, a man who has made a mixed impression on the Lion, as his Yojimbo just in time for all this to happen? It's just a hunch on my part, but this event seems almost tailor made to bring great shame to the Lion, the Matsu specifically.

It doesn't change what we do now any, but after the dust settles I think we should keep our eyes peeled to ensure we don't get dragged too deeply into any schemes. We're walking a fine line, and a gentle push could send us tumbling into commitments we do not want or need.
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This makes far too much sense for it to be comfortable. Not a certainty by any degree, mind you, but given the general ineptitude of the assassination attempt (we spotted him on a 21), it's not something we can rule out for now. We should see if we can secure the arrowhead later as well, see if it's actually poisoned (with something that's actually likely to cause death at that) or if it wasn't even likely to kill him.

Another possibility is that this guy is the distraction and the actual assassin is somewhere else. We should be doubly alert after parrying the arrow, and in no way pursue the archer. In fact, we should get Otomo-sama somewhere else, covered and unexpected, at least if we do manage to wrangle him into listening to his bodyguard when his body needs immediate guarding.
 
Yeah I'm convinced. Editing to include spending the Void point. We're gonna look so fucking badass :D
 
Rook said:
Well I suppose it depends on what you consider an "attack" to be. Given that our QM's just ruled on it, though, the point's moot. (I also don't quite agree with the ruling from a pure mechanics standpoint but hey what 'cha gonna do. Oh well.)

With that in mind:

[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[X] Spend a Void Point

[X] Burn Rook's Free Raise

Our odds here are sitting on about 93% with three Raises spent. I feel safe without the Void Point.
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To explain my reasoning in a bit more depth...

The Full Attack stance comes with some serious mechanical downsides and restrictions. You cannot take any simple or complex actions other than attacking. You can only move directly towards an enemy by the shortest available route. You cannot make ranged attacks and your defenses are impaired.

What you are trying here is fundamentally a defensive action - deflecting the arrow before it can hit its target. You cannot make that into an attack just by saying you're attacking the arrow, any more than striking the enemy's sword allows you to frame a parry as an attack. Thus, the Full Attack stance is not applicable here.
 
Maugan Ra said:
To explain my reasoning in a bit more depth...

The Full Attack stance comes with some serious mechanical downsides and restrictions. You cannot take any simple or complex actions other than attacking. You can only move directly towards an enemy by the shortest available route. You cannot make ranged attacks and your defenses are impaired.

What you are trying here is fundamentally a defensive action - deflecting the arrow before it can hit its target. You cannot make that into an attack just by saying you're attacking the arrow, any more than striking the enemy's sword allows you to frame a parry as an attack. Thus, the Full Attack stance is not applicable here.
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This makes sense but the reason I thought it was just fine is because, in my head, I envisioned it as: "Okay Naoto sees an arrow coming. He's got to draw his sword and rush forward to where it's going to hit. He needs to cover that distance and hit this thing first."

That's about it, really. I just imagined the situation differently :oops:
 
One thing to consider...that there's two assassins, and this one is meant to draw us out of position so the other one can go to work, it's how I'd do it.
 
Maugan Ra said:
No. For much the same reason as you cannot aggressively compose poetry in order to get +2k1 on it. An arrow is not an enemy, and while you can totally throw yourself at it screaming 'BANZAI', doing so will not offer any actual advantages.

.
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[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out " BANZAI! That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[X] Spend a Void Point
 
[x] Cut the arrow out of the air.
-[x] Holler out "That bowman is attacking Otomo-sama! Try to take him alive!"
-[X] Spend a Void Point
 
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