Combat

Basics

Most of the time combat has two opposing factions; the PC’s and hostile enemy NPC’s. In some cases there might be a third actor or an outside factor.

When the combat begins, the GM rolls a D4 to determine which side begins the first combat round; if the result is 1-2 the enemies act first, if the result is 3-4 the PC’s act first. The order of actions within those parties are then determined by their Agility skill value after any modifiers.

Once the second combat round, and any subsequent combat round after that begins, the order of actions is determined by the Agility skill value after any modifiers of all PC’s and NPC’s.

Note that some skills or special rules might affect the order of actions during combat rounds.

The combat round ends when all the participants have had their own turns. Most of the time the participants have only one turn per combat round and they are able to do one action during their own turn, but some skills and special rules might affect that amount.

Doable actions include, but are not limited to;

• Melee attack (Strength DR12)

• Ranged attack, including throwing items (Agility DR12)

• Magic attack, i.e. casting a spell (Presence DR12)

• Using a special, active skill (skill specific roll and DR)

• Using an item

• Moving

In some situations the needed skill roll and the DR may vary.

If a PC/NPC has a melee weapon in both hands, they have to have Strength +2 to use both weapons effectively. Additionally, if they wish to do a dual wield attack in melee combat, they have to do two Strength rolls to succeed. The first one is DR12 and the second one is DR15.

If a participant wants to move a short distance to get into the desired range, for example melee range, to do an action, they have to succeed in an Agility DR12 roll before that. If the Agility roll fails, they still succeed in the movement but cannot do their desired action.

If a participant wants to flee, or otherwise move away from melee combat, they have to succeed in an Agility DR12 roll to move without the enemy to have a chance to have an offensive action.

Defending

When a PC or NPC is under attack, they most likely want to defend themselves one way or another. The PC/NPC defending themselves has to state their intentions before any skill rolls have been made.

Only one maneuver can be done when defending and once per combat round.

If the attacker rolls a natural critical success, no defending maneuvers can be made.

Dodging; to dodge the upcoming attack and to take no damage at all.

Dodging can be made against;

• Melee attacks; Agility DR12.

• Ranged attacks; Agility DR15.

• Magic attacks; Agility DR15.

If both the attacker and the defender succeed in their skill rolls, the defender wins and dodges successfully.

Blocking; to defend with a shield.

Blocking can be made against;

• Melee attacks; Strength DR12.

• Ranged attacks; Strength DR15.

• Magic attacks; Strength DR15.

If both the attacker and the defender succeed in their skill rolls, the attacker rolls for damage and the defender rolls for the block value.

Note that defending and blocking with armor doesn’t require any skill rolls. Only the block value has to be rolled.

Fighting Back; to cause damage with a melee/ranged attack or an offensive spell on the attacker. If the defender wishes to use a melee attack against a ranged attack or a spell, they have to be in the melee range. When fighting back, the defender cannot use Agility rolls to get in the melee range.

Fighting back can be made with;

• Melee attacks; Strength DR12.

• Ranged attacks; Agility DR12.

• Magic attacks; Presence DR12.

If both the attacker and the defender succeed in their skill rolls, they both proceed to do damage.

Critical Rolls

When a combat roll of any kind is a critical success or a critical failure, the outcome can be determined with appropriate dice rolls and consulting the following tables.

If the outcome for the critical combat roll cannot be applied, reroll the outcome or come up with your own.

Melee attack, critical success:

01: max damage.

02: normal damage; the target’s armor tier (see Base Gear, Armor) drops by one point.

03: normal damage; inflicts Faint.

04: double damage roll.

Melee attack, critical fail:

01: the weapon is lost and must be fetched back; getting the weapon back takes at least one combat round.

02: the weapon’s damage tier is dropped by D3 points; if the damage tier drops to zero, the weapon breaks.

03: damage your party member instead.

04: damage yourself instead.

05: the weapon gets stuck; Strength DR12 roll to get the weapon loose.

06: the enemy gets a free attack.

Ranged attack, critical success:

01: max damage.

02: normal damage; inflicts Bleed for D2 combat rounds.

03: normal damage; inflicts Faint.

04: double damage roll.

Ranged attack, critical fail:

01: the weapon’s damage tier is dropped by D3 points; if the damage tier drops to zero, the weapon breaks.

02: damage your party member instead.

03: damage yourself instead.

04: the weapon falls; picking up and readying the weapon takes one combat round.

Magic attack, critical success:

01: max damage.

02: normal damage; any possible status effects are applied and maxed; otherwise max damage.

03: normal damage; inflicts Faint.

04: double damage roll.

Magic attack, critical fail:

01: damage/cast the effect on your party member instead; if the spell does not do damage or negative effects, the effect is reversed.

02: damage/cast the effect on yourself; if the spell does not do damage or negative effects, the effect is reversed.

03: the scepter falls; picking it up takes one combat round.

04: inflicts Mutism on the caster for D3 combat rounds.

Dodge, critical success:

01: get a free attack.

02: act first when the next combat round begins.

Dodge, critical fail:

01: the attacker does max damage.

02: fall on your face and lose your next turn.

Block, critical success:

01: get a free attack.

02: disarm the attacker.

Block, critical fail:

01: the attacker does max damage.

02: the shield’s blocking tier (see Base Gear, Shields) drops by one point.

Chasing

There is no precise definition of distance during chases, as it can vary between a meter and ten meters, depending on the situation. The distance is simply expressed as points of distance and in order to have a chase, there has to be at least one point of distance.

During chases all of the participants roll for Agility DR12;

• A successful roll gains one point of distance.

• A critical success roll gains two points of distance.

• A critical fail roll loses two points of distance.

If the distance is >4 points, the one being chased gets away.

Dying to Death

If a PC loses half or more of their max HP on one hit, they fall unconscious for D3 combat rounds.

When a PC’s HP reaches 0, they don’t necessarily die immediately. Upon such an event, roll for D5 and consult the following table. However, if the PC’s HP falls below -2 they die without a chance of being saved.

01-02: instant death.

03: fall unconscious for D3+1 combat rounds. After that, wake up with 1 HP.

04: throw D4 to determine which limb you lost; 1 is the left arm, 2 is the right arm, 3 is the left leg, 4 is the right leg. Then fall unconscious for D3+1 combat rounds. After that, wake up with 1 HP.

05: internal bleeding; you die within an hour if you don’t get into a hospital; all skill rolls during internal bleeding are DR18.