Things that make me go Hmmmm.
There are plenty of ranged threads going but I have been thinking about the “issue” of firing into melee combat. One of the previous characters was heavily range focused and I pretty much allowed him to fire into melee with only a single increase in difficulty, I think. This was obviously no deterrent to a master archer as himself! Secondary target was a frequent spend for him as he rained volley after volley upon his foes!
But wouldn’t it be ok for me to add secondary target to a PC’s ranged attack upon a melee and apply damage to the another engaged who happens to be a PC? Obviously I will allow my players to reciprocate such manuevers back upon the NPC’s, but I feel like it is kind of appropriate and fits right in to my feel of the game, even if not as written. Thoughts?
Perhaps only as a complication.
When firing into melee, and as long as the PC has an unobstructed view, I too allow with only a one step increase in difficulty but a complication results in a hit on a PC. If the PC must shoot past another plus into melee, I may increase the difficulty by two or three steps. Also a complication is a hit on a friendly target. After a hit or two that usually discourages shooting into melee.
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One of Runequest’s old editions had a neat rule for shooting in melee : you could either pick a target with a penalty, or get a bonus by aiming at the group. With the caveat that the target was picked at random…
Something similar could be applied to the secondary target, get a discount on the momentum/doom cost but just roll who gets hit. Including your buddies…
And dont forget complications!