Quote from: Chivalric;1142055Realism in simulation is not connected with complexity.  Over the last decade or so I've had the opportunity to work with some professional simulation designers and they simply do not have this strange delusion common among gamers that realism is in any way connected with complexity.  The key to realism in a simulated experience is variable isolation and reduction, not multiplication and conflation.  Define what you are simulating, isolate what is important for that and mercilessly cut anything that is not central to the experience of what you are simulating.

Just out of curiosity, what type of simulation are you talking about here?  I'm a controls engineer, among other things, so I have done a lot of simulation of physical systems, and that does not really describe my approach.

Quote from: Mishihari;1142219Just out of curiosity, what type of simulation are you talking about here?  I'm a controls engineer, among other things, so I have done a lot of simulation of physical systems, and that does not really describe my approach.

Primarily training ones.  Any time where people need to make a decision.  Some first responder stuff, some law enforcement.  Some workflow and logistics stuff.  I edited my post above to be more clear as I was being way too general.  What I said only applies to simulations about decision making (well, like an RPG I guess).  The professional simulators had people on their teams that did indeed try to account for everything when they were simulating a physical system rather than decision making.  Like a production line work flow.  My only involvement in those sort of projects was in training the humans running the line how to navigate the automation, safety, developing a maintenance schedule and what key things they needed to pay attention to in order to keep it all working.

I've never really bought into the notion that the rules for an RPG are the physics engine of the world (not that anyone here is necessarily advocating for that approach).  I think that the rules being a tool for participants to resolve player decisions is far more practical.  Now if you're making a video game RPG with a simulated environment, then I think the physics engine approach is very appropriate.

Quote from: S'mon;1142157When I've seen re-enactors grappling in plate armour with longswords, it's the pommel that they use as a bashing weapon - it seems quite effective for that.

That's why we allow people to use large weapons in a grapple.  We don't reduce the weapon damage or anything; but if you're half as likely to hit you're effectively doing half as much damage, so it largely works out.  More importantly, it provides some mechanical incentives to want to use a small weapon at times.  

With two handed weapons, you use Strength for attack/Damage, getting 1.5x Strength bonus (like 3.5)
For one-handed weapons, you can choose whether to use Strength or Dexterity for attack, but always apply Strength to damage.
For light-weapons, you use Dexterity for attack, but can apply Dexterity as a bonus to damage (in addition to strength) in any situation where a rogue would ordinarily get sneak attack.  This gives them some extra utility in courtly intrigue/assassination attempts.

Quote from: S'mon;1142157When I've seen re-enactors grappling in plate armour with longswords, it's the pommel that they use as a bashing weapon - it seems quite effective for that.

It depends on how one defines "grapple".

When using one minute rounds, many activities occur which may include grabbing, which is not grappling as originally defined, it is merely a level of armed combat minutia not covered in the rules.

Grappling is an unarmed "attack form [which] is aimed at holding the opponent and rendering him or her helpless" (DMG 1e, p. 72); The Strategic Review #2, p. 3, [OD&D] Combat Example, uses the phrase "pinned helplessly". Obviously if someone is in a choke-hold and has their arm bent behind their back, using a weapon is not an option, and putting someone into such a hold requires both hands free. When attempting to grapple an armed defender, the defender can make a free attack roll in order to fend off the attack. If the attack is fended off, then the defender can attack with his weapon "for real".