How to get Hit in Combat Quicker

You win this time, land-beast.

One of the things I dislike is having to roll to beat a target AC. I've had many a session where a combat encounter loses all sense of tension and drama as it devolves into everyone failing to hit AC values. I had one duel between two characters go on for 8 rounds before anyone landed a blow, it can be highly frustrating and ends up being farcical.

To that end I've been thinking for some time about how to improve combat (with my focus on Lamentations of the Flame Princess) in a way that makes combat more dramatic but still keeps it easy to rattle through at the table. Obviously if the rules are too complex then you're just moving the frustration to another part of the combat process. Have a read, tell me how wrong I am and suggest better ideas! I'm still not 100% happy with what I've come up with but I'm keen to see some solutions.

Idea #1

After a number of rounds equal to the character level, if a character is attacked but the opponent fails to beat the character's AC, the defender's AC drops by 1 point.

This reflects the fact that the character has taken steps to dodge the blow; they're starting to get tired.

The AC can drop by a maximum of 12 points, 12 being the average un-armoured AC value.

This reflects the fact that if a character is wearing plate mail for example then they'll have a minimum AC of 6, the armour is still doing its job of taking hits despite the character being worn out.

William and Norman, both level 3 fighters, are scrapping and have been for three rounds. On the fourth round William rolls 19, beating Norman's AC of 16 - Norman takes damage, but his AC remains at 16.Norman retaliates, he rolls an 8 which fails to beat William's AC of 14. William takes no damage, but his AC drops to 13.

Idea #2

After a number of rounds equal to the character level, a character begins to lose a temporary point of Constitution each round (regardless of if they get hit or not, so long as an attack was made against them).

This reflects the general energy expenditure to stay involved in combat.

Upon reaching 0 Constitution, their AC value ceases to be of use and they take hits automatically.

This will cause characters (particularly low-level ones) to avoid staying in combat too long if they can see their constitution dropping.

Elizabeth and Alice, both level 4 specialists, are brawling and have been for four rounds. On the fifth round, Elizabeth attacks Alice (beating her AC) and deals 4 HP worth of damage. Alice loses the 4 HPs and her Constitution drops from 10 to 9.Alice attacks back, but misses. Elizabeth takes no damage but her Constitution drops from 11 to 10.

Constitution is restored to full after a rest, taking time to eat and drink, that sort of thing.

Aim of these Ideas

This should cut down on the potential stalemate that can develop. Long bouts of "I miss... miss again... missed..." will be cut down as opponents get tired and find it easier to hit each other. It should make combat a bit more involved without lumbering a string of complex rules onto the game. The second idea in particular should help make your Constitution a bit more relevant to the game beyond being a source to boost your starting HP.

Personally I'm leaning towards Idea #2, I think that is the easiest while being the most 'accurate' in terms of combat. Even if you're in full plate you can still be taken out easily if you're knackered and unable to move. It could be that maybe Fighter's get an additional bonus to reflect their inherent ability to fight, or perhaps Idea #2 applies to every other class while Idea #1 applies to Fighters?

Keen to hear your thoughts, improvements, feedback etc on this one. Could well be that I'm overcomplicating a thing that no one else has any issue with, or solving a problem already solved elsewhere - please let me know if so! In the meantime, I highly suggest you check out my favourite combat rules by +Daniel Sell that I use in my games, "How to Die Properly".

Alternatively if you really hate AC, check out +Chris McDowall's "Into The Odd" - a hit's a hit, no mucking around. It could well be that the solution is simply to use Chris's method! The only issue I see with that is it makes combat a death trap for early-level characters, at least with a slowly decreasing AC it gives the players a fighting chance.

Image used from AVoiceForMen, found via a Google Image search. FToaMG do not own the knight, the cow, or the photo.