this post was submitted on 23 Sep 2026
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GURPS

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A question: Does GURPS have any rules for slapstick brawls, like those in a Bud Spencer movie? In such fights, the brawlers constantly use their environment for comedic effect, and they only ever fall unconscious if they lose the fight (maybe with the addition of some bruises), with no real lasting injuries.

I am asking because while I like the setting of Brancalonia, I don't think Dungeons & Dragons is a good fit for it - but default GURPS brawling rules strike me as too lethal.

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[–] juergen_hubert@ttrpg.network 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Unfortunately, I am not a fan of narrative games.

I like GURPS - it's a long-running favorite, and its sheer range of character options is fantastic. But I need to tone down the lethality for brawls a bit.

[–] aronza@social.tchncs.de 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

@juergen_hubert
ok then basically notice how Acheron "solved" the self-inflicted problem.

They a) created new mechanics for this particular minigame and b) set the principle that the brawl outcome should not result in the death/injury of people (which is a clear narrative constraint). b) is needed because several people would play with dnd rules and they expect to be able to kill people with fireball spells.

You can adapt a) to your needs, but at the end of the day you need to decide what to do with b) in a classic ruleset approach.

It is totally ok not to be a fan of narrative systems, but recognize that b) is a narrative problem. Does GURPS give you effective tools to address it?

[–] juergen_hubert@ttrpg.network 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

That's precisely what I am trying to find out here. GURPS has a lot of stuff published for it over the years.

[–] aronza@social.tchncs.de 1 points 1 week ago

@juergen_hubert

If you find some interesting solution i am really curious to hear it.

In general it is a very interesting problem, how mechanics can enforce (railroad?) narrative, and also whether this is considered a violation of the simulationist principle.