[PapaRob]

Hi,

I would like to hear how you rule on the throw person martial art skill as I can interpret it in many ways with regards to the damage dealt.
Rules say: "The opponent suffers damage equal to the net successes of the test."
This skill:
A requires a successfull block
B gives 10 initiative
C requires another successful unarmed attack, Meaning with reasonable opponents we talk about maybe 1-3 hits on a success.

What damage do I do?
1. 1-3 soakable damage, meaning 0 damage on anything but an unarmored pixi nerd.
2. unarmed damage (since it is an unarmed attack success in C) + successes damage. Meaning actual normal unarmed damage.
3. 1-3 unsoakable damage, meaning always some but not really dangerous.
4. other???

Personally I am about to argue for 2. since comparing this attack with Counter Strike, it does alot the same with the difference:
I. -10 instead of -7 initiative
II. possibly displaces/prones the opponent

What is your ruling?

[Jack_Spade]

It's falling damage, so you could argue that you get -4 AP added.

But you are missing the utility aspect - it's not meant to do lots of damage, or rather it is meant to do damage in other ways:
Chuck someone down a flight of stairs, into his buddies, on a grenade one of his other buddies threw, or - my personal favor - throw a dual natured critter into a mana barrier.

[PapaRob]

I Agree that it has utility but it is allready a very situational tool and I think the -3 extra initiative easily matches the increased utility. Also the damage from throwing someone down a flight of stairs or into a wall etc creates another question.
- what is the damage of a wall hitting you in mid 3m uncontrolled flight?
- what is damage of getting thrown down a flight of stairs?

[Jack_Spade]

Just reread the rules:
First off: You don't have to spend -10 ini - that's strictly optional. You can use a simple action clinch action, followed by a simple action throw person perfectly normal

- pretty much the same damage you'd take from landing on the floor - your momentum is after all, the same
- you add the additional fallen distance to your damage in 1P per meter + the AP-4 from falling long distances

Getting thrown through a window is likely equivalent to climbing past a razor wire fence, so 5P to 4P damage

[PapaRob]

I kind of agree with you on rules readong but believe that it is quite expensive in comparison with other skills.
-5 initiative and then another -10 (or is that a total of -10?) (which practiaclly means that you get to do this throw and nothing else).

Going into clinch takes your action if I am correct, meaning it is basically a -10 initiative without any interupt which seem to be very situational and basically an expensive shove.

Damage is so low that only the most skilled and evil ninjas going around and throwing toddlers will ever give damage. Basically it should say that it doesn't do damage. And the idea of getting thrown into a wall by a troll doing 0 damage on a normal person is wierd. Actually even wierder is that the amount of damage done has 0 to do with the trolls strength and that a really agile pixie would hurt you much much more.

All these wierdness makes me think that perhaps they meant it differently than I read it. And I was hoping someone else had found a better answer.

[Jack_Spade]

I think you should take a look at the rules again: Spending Ini to do all that is strictly optional:

THROW PERSON
Simple Action
If the character has successfully engaged in a Clinch
or Subduing action against an opponent, he may then
attempt to throw their opponent. Throw person can
also be done as an Interrupt Action (–10 from Initiative
Score) after successfully blocking an opponent’s attack.

CLINCH
Simple Action
A Clinch is a grappling position in a stand-up fight,
where the opponent’s effective Reach has been neu-
tralized. [...] With a successful opposed Gymnastics + Agility
[Physical] vs. Reaction + Intuition Test, the character has
clinched their opponent.

Two simple action = one complex action.
You can do that all in your first combat pass.

Using -10 Ini is entirely optional.

[Marcus]

To me the wording in throw 123 R&G and Sacrifice throw 125 R&G seems fairly clear.
You do damage equal to net hits, stun unless your unarmed attack do physical as generally the case with unarmed attacks, soaked as normal. To me the interrupt things is whatever, the option exists but I doubt it will be done often. In general it's simple action clinch, simple action throw. The issue being it can be seriously hard, Str+Body can be a big number if your trying to toss a troll, so having sacrifice throw as a backup is handy.

[kyoto kid]

...working up a Troll (Giant variant) former sumo wrestler for Missions season 9, and throwing person as a means of attack (as in the example throwing the opponent into his buddies) would not only fit the character's style but be colourful as heck.  The difficulty is how to determine the damage of a thrown metahuman against someone else.  In 3e there was a base damage rating for such an attack but not in 5e.  Also, would it require the throwing (non-aerodynamic) skill to use it as an attack?