Combat

Rounds and Initiative

Combat and other time-sensitive situations are divided up into rounds. Each round is approximately six seconds, during which all participants may act. When everyone has acted, the round ends and a new one begins.

To determine who acts first in a round, each participant rolls initiative. Each rolls 1d8 and adds their Dexterity modifier. NPCs usually have no modifier. The participants then act in order, high roll to low, with PCs winning ties. When everyone has had a turn to act, the sequence starts over again from the top. Initiative is not re-rolled.

Optionally, the GM may choose to use group initiative instead in their campaigns. The PC with the best Dexterity bonus rolls for the party, and the GM rolls one die for the other NPCs. Members of the side that rolled highest may act first in whatever order they wish, and then the next-highest side acts. While easier to manage, it also increases the value of winning initiative, and can leave the heroes in dire peril if a large group of foes wins the roll.

Sometimes a person is surprised or ambushed. Most ambushes involve a contested Dex/Sneak roll against a target’s Wis/Notice check, with the defender winning ties. In other cases the surprise may be practically inevitable, such as a disguised assassin suddenly lashing out with a monoblade in the middle of a society ball. Ambush targets who fail the contested roll are surprised. A surprised target doesn’t get to roll initiative until the second round of combat and can perform only Instant actions while surprised. NPCs with roles relevant to being vigilant or stealthy would gain their skill bonus to these checks, while others would simply roll an unmodified 2d6 for the opposed check.

Most PCs are not subject to surprise unless their guard is genuinely down at the moment of the ambush or attack. Someone walking in a dangerous part of a city or picking their way through a seemingly-abandoned space station is unlikely to be astonished by the sudden appearance of danger, unless the attack is so sudden and from such an unexpected quarter that even their obvious caution is insufficient.

Types of Actions

When an actor’s turn comes up in the round, they may perform actions. Actions are divided into four different types: Main Actions, Moves, On Turn actions, or Instant.

Main Action

One per Turn
Every actor can make one Main Action each round. Main Actions are those deeds that are going to absorb most of the six-second round, such as attacking an enemy, bracing a door, applying first aid to a downed ally, digging a Stowed item out of a pack, manipulating a complex device, or some other activity that takes up their focus. In place of their Main Action, an actor can take a second Move action.

Move Action

One per Turn
Every actor can make one Move action each round, running up to 10 meters. This movement assumes that an actor is dodging enemies, paying attention to the surroundings, navigating awkward terrain, and generally dealing with the hazards of a battlefield. Climbing a surface, swimming, or passing extremely rough terrain halves this movement rate. Actors can’t split their Move action, such as taking part of it before using their Main Action and the rest afterwards.

An actor who wants to disengage from an opponent in melee must use their Main Action to perform a Fighting Withdrawal, or else they suffer a free automatic melee attack from any foe engaged with them. There is no need to spend a Main Action disengaging from enemies who are wielding only ranged weapons. While it’s possible to use a rifle to buttstroke someone or pistol-whip a near combatant, such weapons aren’t as effectively threatening as true melee weapons.

On Turn Action

Any Amount on Your Turn
An On Turn action is some fast, simple act that could reasonably be performed while an actor is doing some-thing else. Dropping an object, falling prone, saying something, drawing a Readied item, or activating a simple device might all be On Turn actions. A PC can perform as many On Turn actions as they want in a round, subject to the GM’s discretion.

Instant Action

Any Amount, Any Time
An Instant action is special, in that it can be performed even when it’s not the actor’s turn, or even after attacks or damage have already been rolled. Some psychic powers are Instant actions, allowing the actor to use them after they decide they don’t like how the dice have fallen. Certain combat actions are also Instant, though they often cost the actor’s Main Action for the round as well. Any number of Instant actions can be performed during a round.

Hitting an Enemy

When an actor wants to hurt a target, they need to use their Main Action to make an attack roll. An attack roll represents not just one shot or swing, but the assailant spending their round trying to get in a good hit or a clean shot at the target.

To make an attack roll, the assailant rolls 1d20 and adds their attack bonus, their applicable skill level, and the attribute modifier most relevant to the weapon. If the total is equal or higher than the target’s Armor Class, the attack is successful.

A PC’s attack bonus is usually equal to half their character level, rounded down. Characters with the Warrior class or an Adventurer with the Partial Warrior class option have higher base attack bonuses. NPCs have their own attack bonus listed with their statistics, which includes any modifiers they might have.

A PC’s skill level is their Punch, Stab, or Shoot skill in most cases, depending on what kind of weapon they’re using. In rare cases, a different skill might be involved, such as Pilot for the guns of a light starfighter. If a PC doesn’t even have level-0 expertise in the type of weapon they’re using, they suffer a -2 penalty on hit rolls for unfamiliarity with it.

A PC’s attribute modifier depends on the weapon. For ranged weapons, this is usually Dexterity, while smaller melee weapons might use Strength or Dexterity, and large ones might rely on Strength alone. If a weapon has more than one attribute listed, use the best.

A successful attack inflicts hit point damage equal to the weapon’s damage die plus the relevant attribute modifier. Thus, a hero with a +1 Dexterity modifier firing a laser pistol that does 1d6 damage would inflict 1d6+1 hit points of damage on a hit. Skill levels do not add to damage unless it is a Punch attack.

Some melee weapons apply Shock, and are guaranteed to do some degree of harm to a target. A weapon’s Shock quality lists the number of points of damage it inflicts on any target with an Armor Class equal or less than the one given. Thus, a primitive knife with a Shock score of “1 point/AC 15” would always do at least 1 point of damage whenever its wielder attacks a target with AC 15 or less, whether they hit or miss.

Shock damage always adds the wielder’s attribute modifier and any other bonuses that might apply from weapon mods, foci, or other advanced tech. Some advanced armor will always protect completely against primitive weapons, however, and some advanced weapons can ignore primitive gear, treating it as AC 10.

A successful attack doesn’t always mean a direct physical hit. A flurry of strokes that force an enemy off-balance, graze him, frighten him, or exhaust him might all drain his hit points, bringing him closer to defeat without actually inflicting real physical harm. Only the last handful of hit points reflect serious bodily damage. It’s up to the GM and player to decide how to describe the effects of a successful hit.

Hit Roll Modifiers

Sometimes it can be easier or harder to connect with a blow depending on the combat situation. The table below offers some suggested hit roll modifiers for common combat circumstances.

Finding cover is often critical in a gun battle. Generally, firing around a convenient corner or shooting over sandbags would qualify as half cover, while firing through slits or from carefully-prepared bunkers would allow for full cover. Melee attackers can usually ignore cover, as they get too close for their target to take proper advantage of it. Being prone doesn’t stack with hard cover, but sometimes the available cover is so low that the hero has to be flat to benefit from it.

A gunman who can set up a prepared firing position can get a significant advantage. Such a position usually requires at least five minutes of sighting and setting up a rest. Most such positions provide some cover.