Alliance-Wide Rules Changes

[Polare]

Good morning,

The Alliance has published several rules changes which will be in place for the upcoming April event. The biggest one is battleboards instead of tags. The post explaining these changes can be found here: http://alliancelarp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=10102 and our local Logistician Seth is on the national Logistics Committee so he knows all about them and can answer any questions that come up

In addition, a new rulebook Addendum has been posted here: http://alliancelarp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=10118 - we're still trying to get it up on the Alliance website proper with coloring for the changed/new sections; if anyone would like a copy of it with new stuff in red just send me an email and I'll shoot you that copy. Mostly it's just collecting changes from the national rules clarification board, but there are a few brand-new changes that might affect you. New stuff includes:

- Tracking Resurrection is done slightly differently, and (depending on Logistics' preferences) we may or may not need to turn in Life tags at the end of each event
- Magic Augmentation now costs 2 High Magic points
- <Effect> Shield is now <Type> Guard; if you didn't know what this was, don't worry about it - it's a rarely used Monster ability
- Reagents now last 5 years (just new ones, sorry)
- Dominate will now force people to do things like cast Necromancy if they are Dominated by Undead and asked to heal them.

I encourage everyone to at least skim through the new Addendum. Note also that as previously posted blue packets without tails are now the only packets allowed for archery, and blue packets are no longer allowed for spellcasting.

Feel free to post here if you have questions.

-Bryan Gregory
Alliance Seattle Head of Rules

 

[obcidian_bandit]

- <Effect> Shield is now <Type> Guard; if you didn't know what this was, don't worry about it - it's a rarely used Monster ability

Actually...
There's at least one monster (potentially more, depending on PC and NPC actions at the event) that will have the ability "<Type> Guard" at the April event.

69: <Effect> Shield: Replace this ability with the following:
<Type> Guard
This monster ability will stop the first applicable attack that would affect the creature. This is a "dumb defense" in that the monster cannot choose when to use it. Any attack that falls under the listed Effect, Delivery, or Qualifier will be stopped. For example, a "Poison Guard" would stop a "Laugh Gas Poison" or a "30 Nausea Poison", while a "Nausea Guard" would only stop the latter of the two. A "Magic Guard" would stop either a Flame Bolt or a swing for "2 Magic", while a "Spell Guard" would only stop the Flame Bolt. When used, the monster should call "<Type> Guard".

The biggest difference (which isn't noted in the addendum, and may need to be addressed) between <type> Guard and other "dumb defenses" like a Spell Shield or Magic Armor is that creatures might have more than one <type> Guard for the same thing. For example, the following is perfectly legitimate:

PC: "4 Normal"
NPC: "Normal Guard"
PC: "4 Normal"
NPC: "Normal Guard"
PC: "4 Normal"
NPC: "Taken" (assuming that the creature is now out of "Normal Guard"s, otherwise they would have to use them.)

Basically, a <type> Guard is like a Resist, but the NPC is required to use it versus the first applicable thing that gets them, rather than save it for something bigger or more powerful. (For example, a creature with "Eldritch Force Guard" would have to call it versus a Light spell if they were hit with one, and not save the ability for defense against a Prison.) Experimenting while fighting NPCs with this ability will force them to use it, and you may therefore be able to figure out how often they can do it and what it specifically defends them against (because the type will be in the defensive call).