Qs: Crane/Monkey/Tai Chi DMA in N&SS

[Grimlock]

Hey all,

I'm creating a Dedicated Martial Artist as an NPC character for my Rifts Campaign and I have a few questions about Martial Arts Forms and Powers:

The character will have the following three Forms:
1) Tai Chi Chu-an: focusing on Chi Mastery/Zenjoriki abilities;
2) Monkey Style: focusing on Arts of Invisibility, and possible Special/Monkey Katas;
3) Bok Pai/Crane Style: focusing on Body Hardening Excercises, and possible Specia Katas.

Tai Chi Chu'an (N&SS pg. 104-105) Questions:
a) The "Push Open Hand" Attack will knock an opponent back a number of feet equal to their Chi. Does it matter if that Chi is Positive or Negative? I take it 40 Chi and -40 Chi will be treated the same in this instance;

b) If the character gets ambushed while using a Chi Mastery Power, then, for the first melee round, the Martial Artist is forced to defend himself with the Tai Chi Chu'an form as he was using a power from that form when the ambush occurred. Correct?;

Monkey Style (N&SS, pg. 97):
c) This style lists "Automatic Dodge" as an "Advanced Defense", yet "Automatic Dodge" is also listed under the "Drunken Monkey" Kata. Does the character always have "Automatic Dodge", or is it only available when using the "Drunken Moneky" Kata?;

d) As with my questions "b", I take it if the character uses "Art of Invisibility" powers to set up an ambush and attack an opponent, he's forced to use the Monkey Style Form to attack because it was the powers from this Form that allowed the ambush to occur. Correct?;

Bok Pai/White Crane Style (N&SS, pg. 85):
e) Is the "Crane Stance" Kata an option when selecting among "Special Katas", or does a Bok Pai practitioner get the Kata automatically?

f) All the Strike bonuses for this Form are listed specifically as a "+X to Crane Fist Strike", with the exception of a "+1 to Strike" at 2nd level. Does this "+1 to Strike" also apply to the Crane Fist Strike? By that I mean: At level 1, a character has "+2 to Crane Fist Strike"; At 2nd level, does the character have "+3 to Crane Fist Strike" and "+1 to ALL OTHER Strikes"?

g) Can the Martial Art Technique "Tamashiwara" (N&SS, pg. 87) be used with the Crane Fist Strike, utilizing the Strike and Damage Bonuses for the Crane Fist?

General Questions:
h) When a form allows for Standard Dodge, Multiple Dodge, and Automatic Dodge, I understand there are different circumstances in which each type of Dodge can be used, but does a form's Dodge Bonus apply to all three types of Dodges?

i) Does the above also apply to Parry Bonuses with regards to "Automatic Parry" and "Circular Parry"?;

j) Some forms will, at specific levels, "Double (the) Existing Chi" of a character. What happens to Chi when two different forms grant the "Double" on the same level?

k) The "Hardened Chi" Ability (N&SS, pg. 120) is unchanged according to the Rifts Conversion Book (pg. 49). "Hardened Chi", used defensively, provides 5 additional SDC points for every Chi point expended to the character. How does this change when Body Hardening Exercises transform a character into a Mega Damage entity on Rifts Earth?

Thanks in advance,

Grim

[drewkitty ~..~]

While this topic would of been more properly asked in the N&S forum....

a) no

b) It does not matter what MAF they use. ( viewtopic.php?f=14&t=118249 )

c) With the N&S book they list all of what the form gives to start out with. Some of which are not available till that are listed in the leveling table.

d) Once a MA skill is learned, the MA can use it with what ever form they wish. Only Katas are specifically limited to the MAF they are acquired with.

e) Like the open hand push from Tai-chi it is gained with the MAF unless it is traded away for a skills package.

f) You would list the specific attack bonuses separately.
Depending on how you want to do things, you would ether add the normal strike bonus to the attack bonus to get a totaled strike bonus under the attack listing, or you would keep them separate and add them together during play.

g) strike bonuses yes, damage bonuses no.

h) each dodge has their own bonuses that do not add together with each other. They do add together with any PP bonus.

i) each parry has their own bonuses that do not add together with each other. They do add together with any PP bonus.

j chi x3, each MAF only doubles the base amount if the doubling occurs at the same level.

k) good question, and unanswerable with canon,
I would ether let the Chi power when used defensively to ether have MDC = chi used or MDC = Chi used x5. Depending on the power level of the game.

[Mantisking]

g) strike bonuses yes, damage bonuses no.

Damage bonuses are added to Tamashiwara as well.

h) each dodge has their own bonuses that do not add together with each other. They do add together with any PP bonus.

Maybe in Rifts, but in Ninjas & Superspies a Dodge bonus is a Dodge bonus and can apply to Standard , Multiple Dodge, and Automatic Dodge.

i) each parry has their own bonuses that do not add together with each other. They do add together with any PP bonus.

See above.

[drewkitty ~..~]

It does not specifically say the regular D & P bonuses are added to the other types of D & P. There are also the bonuses that are applied to each of the other types of D & P. So I've been keeping them separate.

[Grimlock]

It does not specifically say the regular D & P bonuses are added to the other types of D & P. There are also the bonuses that are applied to each of the other types of D & P. So I've been keeping them separate.

I was going to reply to your previous post regarding this, but Mantisking beat me to it.

None of the Martial Arts list separate bonuses for the different Parries and Dodges, so I'm guessing they are all lumped together.

What about the Drunken Monkey Kata? It says that Monkey Style Kung Fu gets Automatic Dodge, but it lists under the Drunken Monkey Kata that it "includes an Automatic Dodge". They wouldn't mention Automatic Dodge under Drunken Monkey Kata if it was already available normally, and if you already get Automatic Dodge anyways, it would make the whole Drunken Monkey Kata just a few bonuses to Hand Strikes and Parry. I take it having Automatic Dodge under "Advance Defenses" is just a typo, right?

[Mantisking]

It does not specifically say the regular D & P bonuses are added to the other types of D & P. There are also the bonuses that are applied to each of the other types of D & P. So I've been keeping them separate.

I was going to reply to your previous post regarding this, but Mantisking beat me to it.

None of the Martial Arts list separate bonuses for the different Parries and Dodges, so I'm guessing they are all lumped together.

Why are you guys making me dig out my notebooks? As far as I can tell, the only specific Parry/Dodge bonus is a bonus to Circular Parry in Tall Monkey Kata. Which, as it is a Special Kata, is limited anyway.

What about the Drunken Monkey Kata? It says that Monkey Style Kung Fu gets Automatic Dodge, but it lists under the Drunken Monkey Kata that it "includes an Automatic Dodge". They wouldn't mention Automatic Dodge under Drunken Monkey Kata if it was already available normally, and if you already get Automatic Dodge anyways, it would make the whole Drunken Monkey Kata just a few bonuses to Hand Strikes and Parry. I take it having Automatic Dodge under "Advance Defenses" is just a typo, right?

Looking at the original rules, it looks like Automatic Dodge is included in Drunken Monkey Kata as an option. Look at the other Monkey Kata and they limit what type of defense you can use. Drunken Monkey Kata allows you to Automatic Dodge or Parry, it's just Parry that gets the bonus though.

Oh, and thanks to these questions, I just noticed a sentence in Crane Stance that I never noticed before. Makes me want to build a Crane Stylist now.

[drewkitty ~..~]

There are some hand to hand (including both the basic four h2h and MAF in all game settings in this) do give bonuses to individual dodges and individual parries. Thus the separate listing for each in the combat bonuses.


drunken monkey: I'm of 1/2 the mind it might be the kata is what gives the MA the Auto-dodge.

So the direction I am thinking is that "If" that MAF has a Kata that gives a move that is listed in what moves the MA gets from the MAF, then it is that Kata is what gives that move.

However, the N&S MAF are sometimes needing a person dedicated to MAF research. I would use to defer to KS, but Manty here is there resident "know it all" since KS left.

[Mantisking]

There are some hand to hand (including both the basic four h2h and MAF in all game settings in this) do give bonuses to individual dodges and individual parries. Thus the separate listing for each in the combat bonuses.

In settings other than N&S it may be so, but the question specifically references N&S and in N&S a Parry bonus is a Parry bonus and a Dodge bonus is a Dodge bonus.

drunken monkey: I'm of 1/2 the mind it might be the kata is what gives the MA the Auto-dodge.

So the direction I am thinking is that "If" that MAF has a Kata that gives a move that is listed in what moves the MA gets from the MAF, then it is that Kata is what gives that move.

I'd disagree. Usually Special Kata are limited in what they can do and sometimes they are used to represent knowledge/combat skillls that come from outside the actual system they are gained from -- i.e. Drunken Monkey Kata. So while skills might sometimes filter down into kata the reverse is not always true. Really though, it all depends on how the background for a particular style is written and implimented by whomever is running the game.

However, the N&S MAF are sometimes needing a person dedicated to MAF research. I would use to defer to KS, but Manty here is there resident "know it all" since KS left.

Heh.

[Grimlock]

drunken monkey: I'm of 1/2 the mind it might be the kata is what gives the MA the Auto-dodge.

So the direction I am thinking is that "If" that MAF has a Kata that gives a move that is listed in what moves the MA gets from the MAF, then it is that Kata is what gives that move.

I'd disagree. Usually Special Kata are limited in what they can do and sometimes they are used to represent knowledge/combat skillls that come from outside the actual system they are gained from -- i.e. Drunken Monkey Kata. So while skills might sometimes filter down into kata the reverse is not always true. Really though, it all depends on how the background for a particular style is written and implimented by whomever is running the game.

So what you're saying is that a character who uses Monkey Style Kung Fu, and engages the Drunken Monkey Kata, will ONLY be able to defend using Automatic Dodge and Automatic Parry, while all other types of of Parries and Dodges are disabled for the time being?

[Mantisking]

drunken monkey: I'm of 1/2 the mind it might be the kata is what gives the MA the Auto-dodge.

So the direction I am thinking is that "If" that MAF has a Kata that gives a move that is listed in what moves the MA gets from the MAF, then it is that Kata is what gives that move.

I'd disagree. Usually Special Kata are limited in what they can do and sometimes they are used to represent knowledge/combat skillls that come from outside the actual system they are gained from -- i.e. Drunken Monkey Kata. So while skills might sometimes filter down into kata the reverse is not always true. Really though, it all depends on how the background for a particular style is written and implimented by whomever is running the game.

So what you're saying is that a character who uses Monkey Style Kung Fu, and engages the Drunken Monkey Kata, will ONLY be able to defend using Automatic Dodge and Automatic Parry, while all other types of of Parries and Dodges are disabled for the time being?

The only dodge you have available in Drunken Monkey Form is Automatic, because that's what it lists. You can use both Automatic and Circular Parry though because it gives a "+2 to Parry" which doesn't specify what kind of parry it is.