To get back to the original topic:
For once, I actually like the change in the errata, because it brings a consistent use for Strength to all forms of melee combat. Yes, itīs a nerf to Hi-Strength Unarmed Combat, but that nerf was absolutely justified. Unarmed outclassed most
melee weapons even at relatively tame Strength ratings. In fact, Iīd actually say that the current fixed Damage of 2 is already quite high, considering the fact that batons, saps and small pistols have the same Damage Code. And not to speak of the bone augmentations (which are weirdly unbalanced as well, but thatīs a thing for another thread...)
However, I do see that thereīs a general shortcoming of the current solution (apart from how sloppily itīs executed in the updated CRB
): It doesnīt scale well, because itīs prone to all the problems of the Edge system and the AR/DR system. If you already got your Edge - or denied the edge to a highly armored target - more Strength doesnīt help. Also, thereīs the dreadfull Limit of 2 Edge per round and other edge-denying factors. Thatīs why it feels like
yet another nerf to strength instead of a buff for armed melee to many players. If high-Strength melee fighters could use the benefit from Strength in a more flexible way, that wouldnīt be such an issue. Two suggestions:
- Allow Melee fighters to trade off AR for increased Damage, similar to firing additional bullets in ranged combat: 3 AR for +1 Damage, with a limit of STR/3 additional Damage seems reasonable, maybe with an additional minor action to activate. This is my current homebrew solution, because it merges my previous houserule ("Reduce unarmed combat to Strength/3 (round up), add Strength/3 (round down) to all melee weapons") with the new official rules. Note that this tradeoff is deliberately worse than the tradeoff for shooting: Apart from balancing issues, you have to take into account that firing more bullets, well, uses more bullets.
- An alternative idea that I currently donīt use: Allow melee fighters to flip Strength and Agility for the whole attack: You roll Strength + Close Combat for the attack, but you add Agility to the DR (or Reaction) to determine the attack rating. The "flip" could be announced for each attack or it could require an additional Minor Action to "switch the stance".
Both of these ideas can theoretically be combined, allthough that might be a little bit too messy. Nevertheless, they add some depth, solve the issues at hand and could be easily "patched on" with Supplements/Updates/Errata. They can also be further elaborated with some fitting MA rules. F.i., if one of these options requires an additional minor Action, a MA technique might remove that requirement and allow it for free.
I donīt know whatīs coming up in the combat supplement, but thereīs definetely some opportunities for improvement. I just hope it doesnīt turn out like in 5th Edition, where most of the MA techniques are just underwhelming dice pool bonuses for underused combat tricks.
