Combat

When things get a bit out of hand and it all hits the fan, combat is the only resolution. Combat is held in a sequence of turns with each individual acting according to their reaction speeds. A combat turn is roughly three seconds in length. There is much more to combat than meets the eye, it's not just shoot the gun and the bad guys fall over. A lot more goes into resolving combat than you might think.

The sequence of a single turn of combat is as follows:

1. All characters determine their reaction rolls.
2. The character with the highest reaction result selects which action they wish to attempt.
3. The chosen action is resolved if it has immediate effect.
4. The character with the next highest reaction roll goes next.
5. Repeat step 3 and continue until all combatants have had a turn.
6. Begin the next turn of combat.

To determine the order in which characters will act in combat, each character needs to make a reaction roll. To determine the reaction result, roll 1d10 and add the character's reaction score. For example, a reaction roll of 7 with a reaction score of 2 would give a reaction result of 9. Some types of magic and organiware may modify reaction rolls.

A character who has the tactics skill may use their skill to determine reaction. They make a skill roll based upon their tactics skill and then add their reaction score to the total. This is done for only the first round of combat, aftet the first round they make reaction rolls as normal.

The character with the highest reaction result acts first. In case there is a tie, the person with the highest perception score acts first. All actions are done in order and not considered to be simultaneous, unless the actions occur on the same round. The effects of all actions are applied immediately.

A character may attempt to try more than one action in a combat turn. No one can ever have more than three actions in a single combat round. To determine when a second action takes place you simply divide your reaction result in half and act upon that segment of the turn. For a third action you divide the reaction result by four and act again on that turn. So a reaction result of 9, the first action is on 9, the second on 4 and the third on 2. Always round down. Each extra action incurs a penalty to the number of dice rolled. For a second action there is a penalty of 2 die and for a third action there is a 4 die penalty.

Characters may also decide to wait before they act. You can pass on your reaction result and act later or not at all.

An action is defined by what a character wishes to do, whether it be move across the room, pick an item up, or fire a weapon. An action should not be too complex, and some actions may take more than one combat turn to complete.

When attempting to move during combat, the character can move a number of meters equal to 5 plus their coordination score. There are modifiers if the character tries to move while doing something else. If the character wishes to run, the normal movement rate is doubled.

When a successful attack roll is made the target may be able to attempt to dodge. A dodge roll may be made if the target has a reaction roll equal to or above the attackers. Also, a dodge roll may not be made if the target is engaged in an activity that would not allow them to dodge, such as running blindly, attention fixed elsewhere, and so forth.

A dodge roll is made using the dodge skill, or if the dodge skill is not possessed then an unskilled roll. The total of the dodge roll is subtracted from the attackers roll. If the dodge roll exceeds the attack roll then the attack fails. If the attack roll exceeds the dodge roll, then apply damage as usual using the new attack roll total.

For every dodge a character attempts per round, they suffer a minus 1 die penalty on any other actions they perform during that round. The one exception to this are other dodge attempts, but any other skill roll suffers this penalty.

Target numbers for combat are determined by range. All weapons have a different range which is shown on their individual weapon charts. Below are the target numbers based upon range.

There are many modifiers which can change the base target number. Also, nothing can ever be closer than point blank range and anything beyond extreme range is too far away to attack. Melee weapons are slightly different because they only exist at point blank range.

Many things can affect the accuracy of attacks. Weapon accessories, magic, and the health condition of the character can all affect the base target numbers. A small list of common modifiers is listed below. This list is only a sample, the GM may decide that other modifiers are neccessary due to the circumstances the charcter is facing.

Recoil can ruin your aim when using a weapon that fires more than once in a round. This rule is clarified more in the projectile weaponry section.

Recoil compensators counter the effects of recoil. Each comes with a specific rating which indicates the amount of recoil they can counter. These are also discussed more in the projectile weaponry section.

Blind fire means that attacker cannot see his target, whether this is due to darkness, blindness, or a hidden enemy.

Impaired vision is different from blind fire. This refers to only partial obscurement, such as darkness, Mists, or smoke.

Cover is when the target is partially concealed from view. Partial cover is when over half of the target is in view, full cover is when less than half the target is visible.

Target running refers to anyone who is moving quicker than their normal rate.

Target not moving refers to someone standing still, paralyzed, or in some other way unaware of the attack.

Attacker in melee refers to when the attacker has been engaged by someone with a melee based attack. This only applies when trying to use a projectile weapon against the target.

Attacker running or walking is when the attacker tries to fire while moving.

Called shot refers to when the attacker tries to hit a specific area of the target.

Melee combat is slightly different from projectile combat. All melee combat is at point blank range, and the base target number is 6. The attacks are made with normal skill rolls.

Melee weapons are broken into major groups. The major groups are swords, axes, spears, knives, and clubs. Many weapons fall into each group, and there will be a few weapons that don't fall into any group.

Instead of dodging a melee weapon attack, you may choose to parry. A parry is made with a normal weapon skill roll. Every success made is then subtracted from your opponent's success total. Of course, one can only parry if they have a melee weapon in hand.

Calculating Damage

There are several things that must be done in order to calculate how much damage is done in combat. Every weapon has a damage code which is listed on the individual weapon charts. The damage code is a multiplier based on how much you surpass the target number by. For example, a light pistol may have a damage code of 2. This means that the weapon delivers 2 points of damage if the target number is met, and 2 more points for every point above the target number.

A character's strength can also affect the amount of damage dealt. For melee or hand to hand combat your strength acts as a modifier. Having a strength of +2 means you deal an extra 2 points of damage per melee or unarmed combat attack. Low strength scores can make your attacks less effective.

There is always a possibility to reduce or eliminate damage taken in combat. Armor is one way to avoid damage. All armor types have an Armor Value (AV). This rating determines how much damage the armor can absorb. The AV will decrease as the armor soaks up damage. Generally the AV decreases by one point whenever the armor absorbs its Max in one hit. For example, an armored vest has an AV6, when the vest takes 6 points of damage it becomes AV5. The exception to this rule is natural armor. Natural armor does not decrease with damage. When a person takes damage, subtract the AV of their armor from the total number of damage taken, the remaining damage is the number of life points lost.

If the damage hasn't been eliminated, then the victim suffers the effects of a wound. Every character has body levels. There are three body levels. The categories are minor wound, moderate wound and heavy wound. Each body level has a certain number of life points. The number of life points is equal to 10 plus the character's CON score. Once a character receives enough damage to take them from one body level to the next they incur penalties. Once they take enough damage to pass the heavy wound body level, they lose consciousness.

Some types of damage are worse than others. This depends on where the damage is dealt. Any head wounds are automatically doubled when applying damage, and this is done before armor is considered. Below is a chart to determine where the damage is dealt.

There are penalties when a character becomes injured. Moderate wounds causes a penalty of 2 dice on all actions, and heavy wounds causes a 4 die penalty.

Recovering from damage is not as easy as obtaining damage. A character can recover one lost body point per day of mild activity. Two body points can be recovered per day of complete rest. First aid and healing medicines can also heal lost body points, as can magic. How these work are covered in their respective areas.

Whenever a body part absorbs over half of your total body points in damage from one attack, there is a chance of a permanant or serious injury. There is a 5% chance for every point over half of your body point total of an injury being permanent or serious. This is left up to the GM what the injury should be; it could be a major scar, a broken bone or even a lost limb.

The victim of a suprise attack suffers a 2 dice penalty on any dodge or parry attempt.

One can choose to fight to subdue as opposed to kill. In order to inflict non-lethal damage one must declare so before they make their attack. Any damage done this way is divided in half. Once the target has received their entire body point total in non-lethal damage they are rendered unconscious unless they can make a save roll of 1d10, adjusted by Constitution. The target number for the save roll is the amount of damage over their body point total.

There are many weapons available that can fire a projectile. Most projectile weapons are single fire, however some do allow a higher rate of fire. Each weapon has a rate of fire code, and the number of rounds fired can never exceed that number in one turn.

When firing more than one shot, the character suffers from recoil, or the backlash of the gun. Recoil compensators can help reduce this effect. Otherwise the character will suffer a penalty of +1 to the target number for each shot fired after the first. A small price to pay when you need to hit a lot of targets. The only problem here is if you sweep your fire across several targets, you have to be careful not to hit any allies that may be engaged with them.

There are three base types of projectile weapons. The first are slug weapons, sometimes called powders. These weapons fire metal slugs, or bullets, propelled by gunpowder. Second are bolt weapons, more advanced versions of the crossbow. They fire small bolts much like a crossbow, but at a much faster rate and with better accuracy. The third group are incendiaries, weapons that fire explosives or incendiary projectiles. These weapons cause the most damage, but they are also the most dangerous to use, plus the weapons and their volatile ammunition are the most difficult to find.

Grenade is the generic term for all area effect type weapons. A thrown weapon relies either upon an athletic skill roll or a COR attribute roll. The higher the die roll, the more accurate the throw.

When throwing a grenade, a set target point must be designated. Grenades can always go off course if the throw is poor. The game master should determine how far the grenade can go off course. Generally the throw will be short, long, or wide to either side if it lands other than where desired. All grenade type weapons have a range which is described on the individual weapon charts. If the attack roll is unsuccessful, use the table below to determine the grenade's path.

Once determining which direction the grenade has gone, roll 1d10 to see how many meters off course the grenade was. A grenade can miss its target and still be somewhat effective.

While Mistrunner is not a vehicular combat game, there may arise the occasion that characters must either fight from or against vehicles.

All vehicles have different ratings detailing their maneuverability, speed, and the damage they can withstand. All of this is covered in Valerun's Pocket Trading Post Catalog.

Characters who are on board a vehicle can perform one of several actions. Someone must be driving or piloting the vehicle. A rider may be a gunner. Other characters can choose to simply be a passenger and do nothing, or offer technical aid by trying to repair vehicle damage.

The driver should possess the pilot skill in order to keep the vehicle under control. Continuous skill rolls must be made every time the driver tries to maneuver the vehicle, or when the vehicle suffers damage.

The gunner functions under normal combat rules as does a technician. However, because of the movement the target numbers should be based upon a higher level of difficulty.

Different vehicles will provide varying degrees of cover, depending upon any armor they may have installed. This is also covered in Valerun's Pocket Trading Post Catalog.

A turn in vehicle combat is longer than a normal combat turn. A vehicle combat turn is approximately 30 seconds in length, to take into account all the special maneuvers and turns of the vehicle. All target numbers should be treated as normal except with an increasing factor of +1 for every 20kph the vehicle is traveling at. Maneuverability ratings may help reduce this penalty for the driver.