Mighty Deeds and Shadowdark
We mostly play 5e, but I have that Dungeon Crawl Classics tome on my shelf. Just sitting there. I hear the faint siren song of playing a D&D-like game that reaches toward speed metal, frank frazetta posters, and wizard art from the 70s that should be on a bong. I am pretty sure my players will never jump for it, which is too bad.
I absolutely love their take on the fighter (called a warrior), and the inclusion of Mighty Deeds of Arms. First, the warrior rolls an additional die, called their deed die, for their to hit and damage bonus. This starts as a d3, but levels up with the warrior. This isn’t all that special, however, that is when the Mighty Deeds of Arms kicks in.
Prior to any attack roll, a warrior can declare a [. . .] Deed. This Deed is a dramatic combat maneuver within the scope of the current combat. [. . .]
The warrior’s deed die determines the Deed’s success. [. . .] This is the same die used for the warriors attack and average modifier each round. If the deed die is 3 or higher, and the attack lands [. . .], the Deed succeeds. If the deed die is two are less, or the overall attack fails, the Deed fails as well.
--Dungeon Crawl Classics, p42
Simple enough. Roll a 3+ on your deed die and make sure you hit the target. The Might Deeds of Arms is then adjudicated by the DM by looking at the warrior’s level, the level of their target, logic, the roll of their mighty deed dice, etc. A level one warrior probably can’t shove an arch-demon off a cliff, an ogre might get a save, and your mundane, 1HD bandit is gone.
I like this. Because they don’t have to sacrifice their normal attack, it encourages fun, narrative play. Deeds permit your “person with a sword” class to do interesting maneuvers only limited by their imagination. It’s so simple. Your deed die determines your to hit bonus, your extra damage, and your special maneuver, in a single roll. You can see how this has worked its way into other systems. The Battlemaster in 5e sort-of replicates this idea, but only through the use of pre-selected maneuvers and a pool of dice that refresh on a short rest. Plus you have to play around with the complexity of 5e.
Shadowdark
My latest obsession is Shadowdark, (again will we ever get to play?) and I think a deed dice and Mighty Deeds of Arms mechanically fits with the fighter. Just remove the Weapon Mastery trait and swap it for a deed dice.
More images of charts. What am I doing with my life?
Swapping to the deed die preserves the even level increases that Shadowdark fighters get from Weapon Mastery, plus we don’t have to use any of those funky DCC dice (d7s anyone?).
It buffs the Shadowdark fighter a little, with a bit more damage and attack bonuses, although I am not sure anyone would notice that 0.5 bump. The real question is will fighters throwing pocket sand, buffing AC, or slicing a ‘z’ in a monster’s chest, outshine the rest of the party?
If you have thoughts on this, let me know.
