Parry Missile Weapons

DX/Hard

Defaults: None.

This skill lets you parry thrown or missile weapons with a ready melee weapon. If you are wearing wristbands or gloves with DR 2+, or have at least this much natural DR, you can also parry with your hands. Your Parry score is (skill/2) + 3, rounded down – but based on Parry Missile Weapons skill, not your Melee Weapon or unarmed combat skill.

Modifiers (to Parry): +4 to parry large thrown weapons (e.g., axes and spears); +2 to parry small thrown weapons (e.g., knives and shuriken); no modifier to parry arrows; -2 to parry smaller low-tech missiles (e.g., crossbow bolts and blowpipe darts). You cannot parry bullets or similar high-tech projectiles! (Exception: Enhanced Time Sense allows you to parry bullets at -5.)

Martial Arts

Parry Missile Weapons isn’t a cinematic skill, but it’s far more effective in the hands of martial artists who enjoy cinematic abilities. For one thing, since fighters with DR 2+ on the hands can use this skill to parry with their hands, those who have DR 2 or more from “iron hands” (see Damage Resistance, p. 43) don’t need weapons or armor to parry projectiles. Other “iron body parts” may parry, too, at the GM’s discretion.

Warriors with both Enhanced Parry and Weapon Master for a weapon gain their Enhanced Parry bonus when using Parry Missile Weapons with that weapon. Those with Trained by a Master and “iron hands” likewise get a bonus for any Enhanced Parry that includes bare hands. The GM may also permit an Enhanced Parry variant that benefits attempts to parry ranged weapons by any means; see Enhanced Defenses (pp. 43-44).

Those with Enhanced Time Sense (ETS) can actually parry bullets, blaster bolts, and other slower-than-light firearms attacks; see Enhanced Time Sense (p. 44). Such parries are at -5. ETS doesn’t normally allow parries against light-speed weapons such as lasers . . . but the GM may allow this, still at -5, if the defender also has Precognition (p. B77). For another option, see Precognitive Parry (p. 62).

The penalties for multiple parries in a turn are halved as usual for those with Trained by a Master or Weapon Master; see Parrying (p. B376). Don’t roll separately to parry each hit from a rapid-fire attack, though. Roll just once. Success means you deflect one hit plus additional hits equal to your margin of success. Critical success parries all the hits!

This page has not been finished up!