HYPERBOREA / Combat actions

**Posted by Vetus Miles** 4/14/2024 8:17 am

How do you guys handle PC’s or even enemy NPC’s/Monsters who critical miss and drop their weapon (Xathoqquas Woe)? Do you use an entire action for the next round to retrieve their weapon or only penalize movement in order to pick it up and still get a combat action minus the movement?

**Posted by gizmomathboy** 4/14/2024 9:39 am

It's an action for me.

I guess you can rule they can pick it up and do another action but I might rule they are at some disadvantage that round. Maybe -1 to hit by them and enemy combatants get a +1 to hit. They aren't paying attention to combat is my idea behind this.

**Posted by rhialto** 4/14/2024 6:50 pm

It's an action for me too: it's Xathoqqua's Woe for a reason...allowing a move to pick it up and then attack just doesn't seem woeful enough to me.

**Posted by Caveman** 4/15/2024 4:02 am

Well, yes be spontaneous, GM with the facts.

Did the weapon fall at his feet, or 6 to 10 feet away. He needs to move to it (1 action) and pick it up from the ground (second action).

If at his feet: To retrieve a weapon makes him vulnerable, grant a penalty of -/+4 to AC or a bonus to his opponent's attack.

Reduce his Initiative, -2 to his 1d6 roll?

Perhaps reduce their use of their shield, etc.

**Posted by Blackadder23** 4/16/2024 12:16 pm

I would require a full round to retrieve the weapon. It's supposed to be a penalty.

**Posted by Vetus Miles** 4/19/2024 11:08 pm

Picking up the weapon would be on the subsequent round. I rule that critical misses ruin all of your attacks in the case of multiple attacks in a round.

Would you use the whole action to pick up and ready the weapon and attack on a subsequent round, or just charge the PC movement cost to pick up and ready the weapon then attack with half or whole movement gone?

**Posted by rhialto** 4/20/2024 4:58 am

I'd probably give the player the option of cautiously retrieving their weapon (i.e., use their action to pick it up, and no AC penalty) or quickly retrieving it (Test of Dexterity, no AC penalty) in order to attack in that round. Fail the test, it's still on the ground and they can try again the next round. I suppose they could also decide to pick it up nonchalantly, in which case they'd be treated as stunned (+4 to-hit) or at best fleeing (+2 to-hit).

**Posted by Vetus Miles** 4/20/2024 10:12 am

rhialto wrote:
I'd probably give the player the option of cautiously retrieving their weapon (i.e., use their action to pick it up, and no AC penalty) or quickly retrieving it (Test of Dexterity, no AC penalty) in order to attack in that round. Fail the test, it's still on the ground and they can try again the next round. I suppose they could also decide to pick it up nonchalantly, in which case they'd be treated as stunned (+4 to-hit) or at best fleeing (+2 to-hit).

I like the test of dexterity idea! Adds some gravitas to the action and you get the attack on that subsequent round but if you fail you are kinda screwed again. I believe I will implement that idea, thank you!

**Posted by Osric_of_O** 8/16/2025 4:52 pm

Page 263's examples of OTHER COMBAT ACTIONS includes "Sheathe a weapon, draw another weapon" as an Action. So my group rule that careful swapping of weapons costs you your round – and therefore no one does this! We say that just dropping your current weapon instead of sheathing it allows you to draw another without it costing you your full Action, and therefore that you can attack with the newly drawn weapon on the same round.

By extension, I would say that picking up a fallen weapon whilst still defending/evading normally would require a full Action. If one or more foes are effectively standing over it, knowing how important it is to you, this might require a test rather than being automatic – maybe a standard Test of Dexterity, or maybe something based on your FA.
A character who doesn't want to have to make such a test might be allowed to automatically succeed, but at the cost of being at -2 AC, like a Hindered defender or a Reckless attacker.

**Posted by rhialto** 8/17/2025 8:47 am

I wouldn't argue with any of that; the only clarification I'd wonder at is why FA to pick up a weapon. My guess: higher FA indicates more combat expertise, so would differentiate between someone who knows how to feint-and-grab and someone who doesn't, whereas a test of DX is purely speed/coordination based. Both work, depending on circumstances.

**Posted by Ghul** 8/20/2025 4:02 pm

It's an action for me, too. The woe must be woeful! ;)