I've never seen a cataphract in AS&SH, or a cavalier in AD&D for that matter.

It may be because I tend to focus on dungeon adventuring, and my players just don't see any point because horsemanship is useless in that environment.

I give it about a 2-in-6 chance if the target stuck is heavily armoured; otherwise, I let it go. Do what thou wilt! ;)

Even though a megadungeon is central to the campaign I'm running, one of the players has in fact rolled a cataphract. If he lives long enough, maybe I'll let him have a cave lizard or something.

Anyway, as to the question: some quick research shows that medieval lances were designed to be broken off during a charge. But my personal idea of Hyperborea and other sword and sorcery settings is more modelled on the ancient world (bronze-early iron age). So, in my head and at my table, a "lance" is more accurately a kontos (kontoi). Thus, they are unweildly to use on foot, but not totally unusable and probably recoverable after a mounted charge.

Last edited by Jimm.Iblis (7/11/2018 7:54 pm)

Jimm.Iblis wrote:

Even though a megadungeon is central to the campaign I'm running, one of the players has in fact rolled a cataphract. If he lives long enough, maybe I'll let him have a cave lizard or something.

Anyway, as to the question: some quick research shows that medieval lances were designed to be broken off during a charge. But my personal idea of Hyperborea and other sword and sorcery settings is more modelled on the ancient world (bronze-early iron age). So, in my head and at my table, a "lance" is more accurately a kontos (kontoi). Thus, they are unweildly to use on foot, but not totally unusable and probably recoverable after a mounted charge.

Thanks!  I appreciate the research! For others, my concern was the weapon being caught within the target after such a brutal charge not so much breaking, though I like that idea as well.  I think I will give an avoidance save to recover and reset the lance for a new charge with a (one round delay) and a 2 in 6 chance of the lance breaking.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
 

Jimm.Iblis wrote:

Anyway, as to the question: some quick research shows that medieval lances were designed to be broken off during a charge. But my personal idea of Hyperborea and other sword and sorcery settings is more modelled on the ancient world (bronze-early iron age). So, in my head and at my table, a "lance" is more accurately a kontos (kontoi).

I'm sure this is meant to be the case in Hyperborea; why else would Jeff have used the ancient term "cataphract"?

Jimm.Iblis wrote:

Thus, they are unwieldy to use on foot, but not totally unusable and probably recoverable after a mounted charge.

If a cataphract PC in my game wanted to take a lance into the dungeon (the better to make use of that mandatory weapon mastery) I would require him to "cut it down" for foot use, and to acquire another one (or at least a new shaft) before engaging in mounted combat.

Jimm.Iblis wrote:

Blackadder23 wrote:

If a cataphract PC in my game wanted to take a lance into the dungeon (the better to make use of that mandatory weapon mastery) I would require him to "cut it down" for foot use

I wouldn't say he couldn't try. But I would have everyone behind him make an avoidance save or be knocked down every time he turned his body around. Because I still find the Three Stooges funny.
 

As amusing as the slapstick sounds, I eschew anything that adds a lot of extra die rolls to the game. They just annoy me. It's the main reason I stopped running skill-heavy games like Call of Cthulhu.

King Arthur Pendragon has a pretty simple rule for lances breaking: if the damage roll is odd, it breaks.  I don't have a cataphract in my game currently, but I'd probably use that if I did.

ALCAVDON wrote:

I have to say, I spoil my cataphracts. When they charge, I up the damage dice, so a 1d8 spear becomes a 1d10 dice before to double the damage roll.

Anybody else thinks AS&SH is for Berserk manga?

That is interesting (upping the die).

The way I do charge is (and I have been doing this for several years), I just double the damage. Period
And, as far as weapons breaking they only break on a d20 roll of a 1. 

In my current campaign, I had an AD&D paladin charge (with a  heavy lance) and 30' tall, 30 HD zombie construct. If I recall made several passes at the creature doing an amazing amount of damage until he was knocked off his horse.

Iron Ranger can attest to this (and elaborate more probably).

I up the dice for cataphracts only. I think they're the embidoment of horsemanship, so...