Ear Clap

Ear Clap is a technique on MA70 which can cripple hearing causing hard of Hearing or Deafness.
It might in combination with Gunshots are Loud and B358's table help in establishing more generic rules on noise production.
It's easier to hit (-3) than it normally it with other attacks (-7).
This could partly be due to the damage penalty. It does thrust-3 which is -2 relative to punching, which gives +2 to skill to spend on some kind of benefit. This would only be enough to change -7 to -5 so it's really unclear why it's so super-easy to do.
It seems like they might have used the face (-5) as a basis, but then the deafening effect seems to be a 'free benefit' of targeting the face with ANY crushing attack, which it obviously isn't.
"cupped or open hand" is how the eardrum is damaged like this (punch to ear does not do it).
It inexplicably can't exceed prereq minus 1. That somewhat resembles Targeted Attack but that usually stops at half the penalty.
A similar technique is Eye-Rake which targets the eyes (usually -9) at merely -5 (the penalty to hit the face).
In the case of Eye Rake it completely ignores damage and goes straight to a HT roll.
==Open Hand logic==
Since the technique design does not account for all the benefits, "delivered with open hand" could be considered a 0-point feature (just like "delivered with a closed fist" is considered a 0-point feature of punching) so long as there were different benefits/drawbacks of open/closed fists.
That way, if you had to switched between these states to set up attacks, it would help to explain some components.
You could also have some of these benefits assumed as part of the design of ear clap. Effectively this requires introducing unspoken-of drawbacks to using this technique.
For example:
*no fistloads: open/cupped hands cannot receive a damage bonus from something held in it (although a worn steel guauntlet would, since it retains mass with an open hand)
*knuckles distal to palms: in "Matter of Inches" count fists as the "longer weapon"
**conversely: "fingers distal to knuckles": count fingers as the "longer weapon" in Matter of Inches.
*open hands are bigger targets: assume the -4 penalty to hit extremities is an open/cupped fist: apply an extra -1 to hit the hand (including it's joints) when it is closed. Lacking this benefit is a new drawback to having an open fist.
*
You could require a ready maneuver to automatically close fists with 100% strength (grip ST per TG) which could be a free action with "Fast-Fist" skill, similar to Fast Draw.
Alternatively an 'attack' to roll DX and Control Points to make "partial fists" in quicker time, perhaps as part of a "Rapid Strike" ("make a fist and punch"). A failure, rather than "missing yourself" could reflect forming an improper fist that is more subject to Hurting Yourse.
Since "letting go is a free action" no ready/attack would be needed to shift from fist to open-hand. Unlike Sheating which requires a Ready to Scabbard a weapon (or the Fast-Sheath perk used to lessen that).
Note however that to do a "free action" in response to someone else is effectively a Power Dodge: failure means you still do it, but do it too late to actually prevent whatever holding that thing causes. (for example: you are grappling someone who has a switchable aura currently off, if you are warned they will turn it on, then you can 'dodge' to let go in time). Also applies to: holding a metal cane on a metal floor as it becomes electrified.
How this concept would apply to opening the hand would be for example if you just threw a punch and then wanted to open your hand quickly enough to do a Grabbing Parry or Hand Catch.
You could in theory "let go as a free action" at any time prior to this without rolling a power dodge, but doing so when it isn't necessary would mean 'extra setup' for throwing a punch again, so most would want to aviod it unless they absolutely HAD to grapple.
Category:Techniques