D&D 5E The Magical Martial

[nevin]

but mortal combat doesn't say they're not regular humans, and it doesn't say they learn special supernatural variants of those mundane fighting styles, you're making those answers up yourself, it's exactly the same situation as with DnD, why can't you just quietly make up your own excuses to yourself in your own game rather than telling us over and over 'it has to be this way' (fun fact: it doesn't)

Seriously?


Sub Zero/Frost- Ice powers, can make himself a clone made of ice to avoid death. Can also create protective ice barriers.

Scorpion- Teleportation, easy access to the Neatherrealm. Immortality, fire powers, can summon demons.

Shinnok- God of death. Can summon weapons made of bones, and strange mystical balls of fire.

Raiden- god of lighting. Teleportation, lighting strikes, flight, very fast, can produce chain lighting and attack his opponents from multiple angles.

Fujin- wind god. Can summon small tornadoes, also has very strong wind blasts that can blast back opponents.

Tremor- rock and other powers related to certain materials. I’m not entirely sure, but I think he can absorb certain materials and then gain their characteristics, like he can go from throwing normal rocks to throwing magma, diamond etc.

Reptile- invisibility, acid spitting/puking, can throw balls of acid.

Triborg- invisibility, teleportation, fire powers, smoke powers, ice powers, can create weapons out of their body, etc.

Rain- water powers, giant water bubbles, teleportation etc.

Jade/Mileena/Kitana- evasion, teleportation.

Kenshi- telekinesis, has a spirit he can use to attack.

Goro- can shoot fire out of his hands and his mouth.

Liu Kang- can shoot fire out of his hands, extremely fast.
Ermac- telekinesis, flight.
Sindel- sound/Sonic related powers, also has magical hair (she can toss her enemies around with it, trip them etc.)
Shao Kahn-superhuman durability, stamina strength, dark magic. Powerful charge attacks, wrathhammer, soul spear, energy absorbiton etc.
Blaze-most of his powers are pretty straightforward, flame ball, flame charge, flame uppercut, quake slam, melting lava teleport.
Khameleon-a lot of her moves are borrowed from Mileena and Kitana, but here are her signature moves: yellow surge, square wave, venom from above, serpents shadow.
Kabal-raging Flash, charge, gas blast, sawblades, nomads touch, tornado slam.
Night wolf-tomahawk swing, reflector, spirit arrow, red spirit arrow, shoulder charge, lighting from above.
Smoke-teleport punch, spear, smokeycut, air throw, invisibility, teleportation, toxic smoke clouds, smoke cloud.
Jason Vorhees-teleportation,regeneration, super strength, strength amplifiers, durability amplifiers, resurrection, fast shoulder charges.
D’Vorah-Control Over Insects, Giant Stingers, Venom, Flight, Venom traps, bug swarms.
Baraka-can shoot some type of charged energy out of his arms, retractable blades, fighting skills.
Noob Saibot-
Shadow-based powers, Fighting skills, Ninja stars, Scythe, Murderer skills, Troll hammer, Noob Shotgun, also has most of not all of Subzeros abilities.
Shang Tsung-Sorcery, Soul absorption, Skilled martial artist, Shapeshifting, pyromancy, Teleportation, Swordsmanship, Cunning, Great fighter with his Jian Straight Sword
Quan Chi-Sorcery, Necromancy, Illusions, Fighting skills, Manipulation, Tang Soo Do fighting style, Skilled fighter with his Dao Broadswords, can open portals/rifts.
Kotal Kahn-
Superhuman strength, Accelerated healing, Power from sunlight, Blood magic, Cunning, Swordsmanship, can summon empowering tombs and flaming discs.

 

[Micah Sweet]

But you getting your explanation means other people aren’t allowed theirs, why are you more important than they are?

Again, there are plenty of things in D&D that have clear supernatural explanations. Why are we inventing things that absolutely cannot have such in the text, even as an option, but nonetheless are there and are clearly supernatural by the standards of real world humans, which we all are? Can you answer that question please?

To answer yours, of course I'm not more important than anyone else, but there is an impasse here. I want there to be explanations, at least options for them, in the text, and you seem to absolutely not want those options to exist. We cannot both have what we want. What you seem to be asking me for here is to not disagree with a take on the game you and others are making that I clearly do disagree with. Does that seem fair to you? Am I asking you to stop disagreeing with me on this or any other issue? I'm not. Talk about whatever you want.

 

[Minigiant]

Want an excuse?

Healing potions are magic steroids.

Martial characters drink so many potions over their lives and are so much more active than casters that their bones, nerves, and muscles are supercharged.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Want an excuse?

Healing potions are magic steroids.

Martial characters drink so many potions over their lives and are so much more active than casters that their bones, nerves, and muscles are supercharged.

That works, provided it's actually true.

 

[Chaosmancer]

As I've said, not the way I see it. It doesn't have to be the same explanation for everything, of course (that would be pretty boring), but it needs to be something specific to satisfy me. Just going with, "people can do amazing stuff or whatever, because FANTASY. It really doesn't matter what" is simply not good enough for me, and it never will be. Its also not good enough for the vast majority of fantasy literature.

Right, you won't accept anything except the specific things which will satisfy you, no matter what anyone else wants or is willing to accept. You can't leave it vague, you can't accept there was potentially multiple explanations, it must be the specific thing you want, or it isn't "honest" or "good"

I'm not familiar with Dragonball Z (I know if it, but the style is really not my cup of tea), but I am familiar with Mortal Kombat. My explanation for that is either that they aren't really humans despite appearances, or there is supernatural training not being called out as such (messy incoherent worldbuilding in my opinion, but to each their own). In the case of Mortal Kombat, this is understandable for a fighting game that doesn't really care all that much about its own lore, and certainly less than they care about gameplay. I feel quite the opposite.

Really. Your explanation for why humans from Earth in Mortal Kombat are capable of fantastical acts, is that despite looking human and being from Earth... they are some sort of supernatural humans. Or that, despite being told that they are studying martial arts from earth, their training is somehow special to allow it.

But neither of those explanations will work for DnD because.... reasons. Something something the ongoing story of mortal Kombat doesn't care about lore something something.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Seriously?


Sub Zero/Frost- Ice powers, can make himself a clone made of ice to avoid death. Can also create protective ice barriers.

See, that is my entire point. The Bunshinjutsu is a REAL technique REALLY taught to REAL practitioners of Ninjutsu. It doesn't allow you make an ice clone, but the "Clone jutsu" is a a real thing. IRL, it is a much more grounded, psychological tactic mostly involving making your opponent believe you have cloned yourself. The Kawarimi no jutsu or "substitution jutsu" is the same thing.

In fantasy martial arts world, it is a literal ice clone.

Just like I could write a fantasy story where someone learns the Shaolin TIger Style, but they create claws of golden energy when using it, because it is a fantasy story and I've decided that learning to emulate the tiger gives you supernatural powers. I could even have the training be the EXACT SAME, with all the mystical talk... only it actually works on a mystical level.

 

[Chaosmancer]

That works, provided it's actually true.

And here we go again. It isn't enough that we finally cave and offer to give you what you want, an explicit explanation for why these things work. Then we have to prove that it is ALREADY true, despite not yet even having created the abilities. AGAIN, we are being forced to provide current textual evidence for abilities that DO NOT yet exist.

 

[W'rkncacnter]

See, that is my entire point. The Bunshinjutsu is a REAL technique REALLY taught to REAL practitioners of Ninjutsu. It doesn't allow you make an ice clone, but the "Clone jutsu" is a a real thing. IRL, it is a much more grounded, psychological tactic mostly involving making your opponent believe you have cloned yourself. The Kawarimi no jutsu or "substitution jutsu" is the same thing.

...uh...all i could find on bunshinjutsu or kawarimi no jutsu was the naruto wiki...

 

[Micah Sweet]

Right, you won't accept anything except the specific things which will satisfy you, no matter what anyone else wants or is willing to accept. You can't leave it vague, you can't accept there was potentially multiple explanations, it must be the specific thing you want, or it isn't "honest" or "good"



Really. Your explanation for why humans from Earth in Mortal Kombat are capable of fantastical acts, is that despite looking human and being from Earth... they are some sort of supernatural humans. Or that, despite being told that they are studying martial arts from earth, their training is somehow special to allow it.

But neither of those explanations will work for DnD because.... reasons. Something something the ongoing story of mortal Kombat doesn't care about lore something something.

I would be fine with those explanations. But one (or both!) In the book. It's this insistence that some things be left vague while others can be concrete, even though either kind generates supernatural abilities, that I have a problem with.

 

[Micah Sweet]

And here we go again. It isn't enough that we finally cave and offer to give you what you want, an explicit explanation for why these things work. Then we have to prove that it is ALREADY true, despite not yet even having created the abilities. AGAIN, we are being forced to provide current textual evidence for abilities that DO NOT yet exist.

Well, let's be serious. Do you want that to be the explanation for all fighters and rogues, requiring them all to have a healing potion addiction? Probably not. So that explanation, while neat, cannot account for everyone. Unlike, say, sorcerer powers, which have several explanations in the books that collectively can apply to any sorcerer. Why are fighters and rogues different? More specifically, why do you and others insist that fighters and rogues have to have a power source that both allows for (from the real world perspective) superhuman abilities and has no clear explanation or explanations like all the other supernatural PC stuff has? Why are they different in your view?