This is mostly a thought process wanting to check if i'm using the correct rules/math for these actions.

Phys adept with 10 dice for hand-to-hand, and a DV of 10 (20 vs structures) with -3 AP
Powers: Penetrating Strike (L3), Smashing Blow, Killing Hands, Critical Strike (lots)


Action : destroying barrier (brick,plascrete) Armor 12, Structure 11

Resolve normal attack vs barrier (10 no modifiers). Lets say 4 hits so DV 24
Roll twice the barrier armor rating ignoring AP (12 > 24) : Lets say 8 hits so reduce DV to 16
Applied damage of 16 is greater then 11 so a 1 meter section is destroyed (well 1.45 meter if your GM does it that way)


Action : Punching someone through a barrier (brick, plascrete) Armor 12, Structure 11

Blind fire attack (-6 dp) unless material is transparent
Resolve attack test (10 - 6 = 4). Lets say 1 hit
Now here i'm confused as should the smashing blow damage be used or just the raw? Either way the AP applies (12 - 3 = 9)
If raw : 11 DV to target who gets +9 dice for armor
If SB applied : 21 DV to target who gets +9 dice for armor

Most of this is on page 166-167 in SR4 I'm fairly certain i'm doing the destroy correct; but the attacking through a barrier has me a little stumped. Any help/corrections are appreciated.

Well, smashing blow doesn't apply to the guy behind the cover, but to the wall itself. Having it "go through him" like he was part of the wall wouldn't be very nice (nor logical).

But if you think smashing blow should have a higher impact make it only 4 armor more for him: 12 (armor) - 3 ap (penetrating) / 2 (smashing blow)

But i like your thinking.. punching people through walls is fun.

It probably wont get used much; but there is always that scene in an action flick where someone has their back pressed on what seems to be perfectly safe cover... and and arm bursts through and grabs them by the neck.

I have to second summerstorm. The smashing blow doesn't help since you aren't targeting the wall itself, though I also like his idea of making a house rule that having it would reduce the armor given to the person on the other side of it to represent how easily someone with the power breaks through the wall.

especially funny if you make a grapple/subdual attack and do no damage to the person but you headlock her against the wall.
in this case you can treat the attack test almost as normal, but no net hits add to you damage vs the wall.

Maybe you could split your dice pool and attack multiple targets. First target is the wall, you don't need many dice for that it isn't going anywhere. If you punch through, perform the 2nd attack on the target with most of your pool he gets blind fire(assuming you don't have radar or something) but no armor from the wall since you punched through it.

I'd say no. If you do that with other attacks (AFAIK), the situation is 'Blind Fire at the target, with the wall getting in the way'. Maybe that is only for bullets, though.

Rule of cool. It does tons of damage because the guy has concrete flying at him & falling on him, in addition to a fist that just crushed through a concrete wall. 21 DV for awesome.

Well if I had a shotgun of doom that blew movie style shotgun holes in wall and my first simple action was blow hole in wall not shoot target, then my 2nd simple action was shoot target it would work. While rules wise it is 2 SA shots one to destroy the barrier one to shoot the target thematically it could be described as two shots blowing through the wall and killing the target. Similarly if he tries my idea of splitting your dice pool for 2 attacks while technically it is two attacks it could thematically be described as punching through the wall to grab/tag the target in one move.

But yes, normally this wont work as he described. And certainly not hitting the guy for 21 DV.

Robocop. Guy with an Uzi takes over the Mayor's office, and Robocop goes in, uses Thermal to see through the wall, then punches through it, grabs uzi guy and pulls him to other side. The Robo tosses/punches him out a window.

Oh man. This thread reminds me of Bear Who Walks Through Walls.

And by "walk" I mean "dug through concrete at a speed equivalent to a human's walking speed."

Yeah, Shinobi, I certainly see how two separate attacks makes sense (even melee ones), but it's the *splitting* one action that feels wrong.