In the real world, martial arts are made effective through a combination of high level, modern conditioning, mastery of the art's technical repertoire, skilled opponents who actively try to resist, and a high level of competition where the poorer methods are weeded out. The arts that are the weakest place a heavy emphasis on a single dimension: the technical repertoire. These weak martial arts happen to be my favorite: kung fu. It is in my opinion, however, that these complex and elaborate arts, designed through millennia of crystalization, are inherently better than the best of today.
In Nevercast, I posit that these exotic styles are the best the masters have to offer because exponents of these arts train in every dimension. It's also wish fulfillment - who doesn't want to be a kung fu master?? I've made a significant change to the feel of the whole thing, however.
The combat system is based upon my countless hours studying the movements and exchanges of fighters. Even amongst expert fighters, combat is gritty and decidedly un-crisp. This is because combat time is extremely sensitive, and timing everything perfectly is profoundly difficult. So, the system emulates this sensitivity: you lose actions quickly, you lose focus, you'll often be off balance, you'll waste an inordinate amount of energy, you may spend a great deal of time jockeying for position, you'll telegraph your intentions often, and so on. Nevercast assumes a tactical superiority, that is, you typically win fights based upon mastery of these subtleties, as there are no concrete skill levels or hit dice to tell you who's the better fighter. In kung fu movies, the man with the better techniques wins, usually without regard to these subtleties, so when the hero beats the villain who was kicking his ass for the entire first half of the exchange, it seems arbitrary. On the contrary, Nevercast also assumes that any technique is the best when used at the best time. Finally, the system assumes that grappling is a natural progression of fighting as the combat wears on, and so, the mechanics of hand-to-hand/melee combat and grappling are not segregated; all techniques-based skills in Nevercast utilize the same core principles.
There are roughly 25 tactical expressions for each form of close-quarters combat, which may ultimately pare down to 18 each as unnecessary expressions are merged together. Over the course of the month, I plan on posting these lists, along with the mechanics and combat examples to describe how it all works. So many choices sound scary, but hopefully, it will be presented in a way that is not intimidating, like an easy-to-use spell book. Rest assured, that I will not allow my game rules to interfere with fun and fast game play, which is why I need you, the reader, to provide critical feedback without regard to how I may feel about it.
((Preferred styles of the NPCs presented:
Indra - Shaolin Changquan
Meh Kada - Muay Boran
Kanu Gon La Eva - Chen Style Taijiquan "Cannon Fist"
Xiam Archaeon the Cold - Shaolin Xinyiba
Xiam Raqred - Tanglangquan
Lu Ordin - Jun Fan Gung Fu
Kanu Gon Te Ursus - Muay Boran
Pratnavahatdu - Shaolin Wahnam))