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CHAPTER 7: COMBAT
COMBAT is one of the most exciting parts of roleplaying. Combat in Space Dominions is no exception: combatants strike and parry, feint and dodge in battles that are as challenging to the players’ minds as they are to the characters’ bodies. Space Dominions Combat strives for a workable mix of simplicity, strategy, realism and fun. |
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CO.01 Order of Play
To understand Combat, you must first understand the Order of Play rules. If you have not already done so, read Chapter 6 “Order of Play” now.
CO.02 The Combat Composite
The actions used in Combatrunning, jumping, lunging, swinging, aiming, and so ontest a character’s strength and nimbleness. In Space Dominions terms, Combat tests a character’s Vigor and Agility. The Skills that Combat requires cannot be said to be exclusively Vigor- or Agility-based; rather, a good sword attack or a successful parry of an opponent’s blow relies on both Attributes. That's why Space Dominions’ Combat Skills are not founded solely on either the Vigor or Agility Attribute, but are based on the Combat Composite.
Every character has a Combat Composite. It is determined by taking the average of a character’s Vigor and Agility stats, and, where needed, rounding the result either up or down according to the rules of Favorable Rounding (see “Favorable Rounding.”) |
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EXAMPLE
Omar Bonnaro has a Vigor of 2 and an Agility of 3. To find out Omar’s Combat Composite, add his Vigor (2) to his Agility (3) and divide the sum (5) by 2. The result is 2.5. But you can’t have a stat of 2.5, so Omar has to round the number up or down. Since Omar’s Luck score is only 2, he does not benefit from Favorable Rounding. Thus, Omar rounds the number down to 2. Omar’s Combat Composite is 2. |
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CO.03 Combat Skills
Combat Skills are simply Skills based on the Combat Compositein the same way that Intellect Skills are based on the Intellect Attribute, Vigor Skills on the Vigor Attribute, and so on. The Combat Composite is the starting stat for all Combat Skillsin the same way that a character’s Attributes are the starting stats for all related Skills. These stats can then be improved in the same way as other Skills (see “Advancement.”)
CO.04 Melee Combat, Missile Combat, and Vehicular Combat
Combat comes in three forms: Melee, Missile, and Vehicular. Melee is Combat using up-close and personal weapons like swords, maces, hammers, and pole-arms. In Melee, the combatants are no more than a sword’s reach (or quarterstaff’s reach, or pole-arm’s reach...) away from each other. But Missile Combat is battle from a distance using missile weapons such as crossbows, pistols, and laser rifles. The combatants may be as far away from each other as the range of their missile weapons allows.
Vehicular Combat is combat between vehicles or between characters and vehicles. Vehicular Combat is a complex subject and is fully treated in the “Vehicular Combat” chapter. The most important thing to remember about Vehicular Combat for the rules presented in this chapter is that Vehicular Combat occurs in the same time frame, using the same Order of Play, as Melee and Missile Combat.
Some Combat Skills can be used only in Melee Combat. Others can be used in both Melee and Missile Combat. Whether a Combat Skill can be used in missile Combat is noted in the Skill’s description. Vehicular Combat skills can only be used in Vehicular Combat, but some Melee and Missile Combat Skills can be used against vehicles.
CO.05 Offensive and Defensive Combat Skills
There are ten Combat Skills: Strike, Missile Strike, Feint, Disarm, Brawling, Parry, Block, Dodge, Evade, and Movement. The first five of these are Offensive, and the rest are Defensive.
Offensive Combat Skills are used to Injure or otherwise harm an opponent. They are aimed at a particular target or opponent, and can be performed more than once in a round. |
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EXAMPLE 1
Omar Bonnaro and Serena Starfire are attempting to apprehend Niles Larsdale, the infamous assassin. Unfortunately, Niles has decided not to “come-along-peacefully” and is putting up a fight.
The three are in Combat. Omar and Serena have declared one Strike each. Niles has declared a Dodge.
A Strike is an Offensive Combat Skill: it is aimed at a particular target, and can be performed more than once in a round. Niles is the target of Omar and Serena’s Strikes. Both attackers declared only one Strike each. But they could have declared two, three, or more Strikes this round. |
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Defensive Combat Skills are used to protect oneself against Offensive Combat Skills. Unlike Offensive Combat Skills, they have no particular target or victim. They affect anyone who attacks them in the current round. But like Offensive Combat Skills, they can be performed more than once in a round. |
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EXAMPLE 2
Knowing Omar and Serena would Strike him (because he had the best Timing Score), Niles declared a Dodge.
A Dodge is a Defensive Combat Skill. It has no particular target. Rather, the Dodge is effective against any attacker. Niles’ Dodge created a Defense Penalty of -4. This penalty applies to both Omar and Serena.
Note, too, that Niles could have chosen to Dodge twice, or to Dodge once and Parry once. Doubling up like this would have improved his chances of making a successful roll. It could also have produced a bigger Defense Penalty. But it would also have attracted an Action Penalty. |
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If a character rolls two or more successful Defensive Combat Skills in the same round, the Defense Penalty is equal to the sum of the successful rolls. |
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EXAMPLE 2
Let’s imagine that Niles declared two Dodges this round, and that he rolled a 4 and a 2. Both of these were successful Dodge rolls. So the total Defense Penalty created by Nile’s Dodges this round is -6: -4 [first Dodge roll] + -2 [second Dodge roll] = -6. |
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CO.06 Strike
A Strike is an Offensive Combat Skill by which a combatant attempts to hit his opponent with a melee weapon such as a sword, a hammer, or a pole-arm.
To make a successful Strike, a combatant must declare a Strike in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to her Strike stat (subject to any modifiers) in the Resolution Stage. A roll of 12 always fails.
The combatant must have a melee weapon to use the Strike Skill. If he has only a missile weapon, he must use the Missile Strike Skill. If he has no weapon, he can still attack, but he must use the Brawling Skill (see “Brawling.”) |
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EXAMPLE
Omar is about to try to Strike Niles. Omar’s Strike stat is 6. Normally, then, Omar would need to roll 6 or less to Strike. But Nile’s Dodge created a -4 Defense Penalty. So Omar’s Strike stat is 2: 6 [Omar’s unmodified Strike] - 4 [Defense Penalty] = 2.
Omar rolls an 11. He misses. |
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A successful Strike can result in Injury or worse. To learn how this works, see “Injury, Defeat, and Death.”
CO.07 Missile Strike
A Missile Strike is an Offensive Combat Skill by which a combatant attempts to hit his opponent with a missile weapon such as bow or a laser pistol.
To make a successful Missile Strike, a combatant must declare a Missile Strike in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to his Missile Strike stat in the Resolution Stage, subject to any modifiers (notably Range Penalties.) A roll of 12 always fails.
Range Penalties are modifiers to Missile Strike imposed to represent the greater difficulty of hitting targets that are far away. Range Penalties are shown in the table below. |
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Range Penalties |
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Short Range |
No Modifier |
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Medium Range |
-3 to Strike |
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Long Range |
-6 to Strike |
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What counts as short, mid, or long range depends on the type of missile weapon used. See “The Armory” for the ranges of different missile weapons. |
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EXAMPLE 1
Alex declares two Missile Strikes with her shotgun against the alien invaders. The GM determines that the aliens are at Mid Range.
Alex’s Missile Strike stat is 10. This is modified by a -3 Mid Range Penalty and a -1 Action Penalty. So Alex needs to roll 6 or under. |
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A successful Missile Strike can result in Injury. See “Injury, Defeat, and Death.”
Missile Strike (and missile weapons) cannot be used in Melee. To attack someone in Melee, use Strike or Brawling.
Defense Penalties generated by Dodge and Parry Skills do not apply to Missile Strikes. Defense Penalties created by Blocks and Evade do apply, however. Characters who want to defend themselves against Missile Strikes must use the Block or Evade Skill.
A combatant must have a missile weapon to use the Missile Strike Skill.
Characters who improve their Missile Strike Skill must state the kind of Missile weapon they are trained to use. The Missile Strike Skill is broken into three categories: Primitive, Slug Thrower, and Beam.
Primitive weapons are “muscle powered” weapons found in preindustrial societies such as bows, arrows, and slings. Characters created using the Dominion Rules fantasy system are assumed to have specialized in Primitive Weapons.
Slug Throwers are weapons that use a chemical reaction or compressed gases to propel a mass at their target at high speed. Examples of Slug Throwers include muskets, modern assault rifles, “Old West” six-shooters, and paintball guns.
Beam Weapons are futuristic gadgets that harm their targets by irradiating the target with a stream of energy. Beams include blasters, disruptors, lasers, phasers, plasma rifles and other weapons found in science fiction books and movies. Beam Weapons also include modern weapons such as tasers.
If a character attempts a Missile Strike with a missile weapon of a type that she hasn’t specialized in, she suffers a -3 penalty. This penalty cannot reduce the character’s effective skill level below her Unhoned Missile Strike Skill stat. |
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EXAMPLE 2
Alex and her companions stowaway aboard an alien spaceship to escape Occupied Terra. In a daring effort to commandeer the alien cruiser, Alex captures one of the creatures’ matter disintegrator pistols, a Beam Weapon. As she has specialized in Slug Throwers, she suffers a -3 penalty to her Missile Strike stat anytime she tires to use the strange device. |
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Characters can train in the use of more than one type of Missile Weapon by spending Advancement Points to improve their skill in the new types above the modified skill. |
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EXAMPLE 3
Alex’s daring plan pays off and the Terran Resistance has won a valuable asset, the captured space cruiser. After the adventure, Alex is awarded 8 APs for her contributions to the the adventure’s exciting conclusion.
Alex dedicates seven APs to improve her Missile Strike, Beam stat, representing her growing familiarity with the aliens’ advanced technology. (Alex’s Missile Strike, Slug Thrower stat is 10, so her initial Missile Strike, Beam stat is 7. It costs 7 AP to raise a Skill stat from 7 to 8.) |
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Missile Strikes work just like Strikes, except for the differences described here. Unless otherwise noted, rules that apply to Strikes also apply to Missile Strikes.
CO.08 Called Shots
Strikes (including Missile Strikes) are attacks made without aiming for any particular part of the opponent’s body (i.e. the guard’s left hand) or any particular spot on the general target (i.e. the small hole in the tree trunk). When Strikes against people or creatures are successful, they are deemed to hit their victim’s torso (if the creature has a torso!) When Strikes against targets are successful, they are deemed to hit the target’s most exposed spot (i.e. the tree’s trunk, but not the hole.)
A Called Shot is a more specifically aimed Strike. To make a Called Shot, a player simply declares in his Strategy that he is aiming for a particular target, such as the guard’s left hand or the hole in the tree trunk. The GM will assign a Called Shot Modifier reflecting the extra difficulty to Strike it.
If the character rolls equal to or less than her modified Strike stat, she hits her target (i.e. the left hand; the hole in the tree trunk.) If she rolls equal to or less than her unmodified Strike stat, but higher than her modified Strike stat, she hits the general target but not the particular target (i.e. the guard, but not the guard’s left hand; the tree, but not the hole in the trunk.) If she rolls higher than her unmodified Strike stat, she misses altogether (i.e. misses the guard or the tree entirely.)
A Called Shot counts as an action for the purposes of Action Penalties. So a character who declares a Strike with a Called Shot makes his Strike with a -1 Action Penalty. A character may declare 2 Strikes, one with a Called Shot and one without (-2 Action Penalty), 2 Strikes both with Called Shots (-3 Action Penalty), etc. |
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EXAMPLE 1
Alex is firing at an alien battle drone. She is at short range from her target. She declares a Called Shot on the drone’s optical sensor. Alex’s Missile Strike is 10, so she needs to roll a 9 or under to hit the target: 10 [Alex’s Missile Strike] - 1 [Action Penalty] = 9. But to hit the optical sensor, the GM assigns a Called Shot Modifier of -7.
If Alex rolls over 9, she misses the target altogetherthat could be really bad. If she rolls between 3 and 9, she hits the drone but does not hit the optical sensor. If she rolls 2 or less, she hits the optical sensor. |
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EXAMPLE 2
No one was injured in the first round of Combat between Niles and the bounty hunters. This round, Niles gets the lowest Timing Score, and Serena gets the highest.
Niles declares a Disarm attack against Serena. Omar declares a Feint. Serena declares a Called Shot to Niles’ head.
(In the Modifier Stage, Omar makes a successful Feint roll and Serena makes a successful Grip roll. We will explain both these rolls below.)
Serena’s Strike stat is 5. The GM assigns a Called Shot Modifier to Strike Niles’ head of -3 (based on the Called Shot Modifier diagram, below). So Serena must roll a 1 to hit the assassin’s head: 5 [Serena’s Strike] - 1 [Action Penalty for the Called Shot] - 3 [Called Shot Modifier] = 1. If she rolls between 2 and 5, she misses Niles’ head, but makes a normal Strike (her Strike falls on the assassin’s torso). If Serena rolls higher than 5, she misses Niles altogether.
Serena rolls an 11. She missed the assassin completely. |
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Diagram 1 shows the Called Shot Modifiers to Strike for commonly aimed-for body parts. In the case of parts of the body with modifiers of -3 or greater (head, eyes and neck), special Injury rules apply (see “Combat Injury: Called Shots to Vulnerable Areas.”) |
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Called Shot Modifiers are suspended against Defeated characters. See “Defeat.”
CO.09 Feint
A Feint is an Offensive Combat Skill. It consists of a pretended blow, evasion, or attack intended to confuse an opponent. To be effective, a Feint attack must be used in conjunction with a Strike. This is because a successful Feint attack enhances the Feinting character’s Strike stat that round. (A Feint cannot be used to enhance a Missile Strike.)
To make a Feint attack, declare both a Strike and a Feint in the Strategy stage. (Note that declaring two or more actions in the same round gives rise to an Action Penalty; see “Action Penalties.”) In the Modifier Stage, make your Feint roll. If your Feint fails, roll your Strike normally. If your Feint roll is successful, make your Strike roll with a Feint Bonus to your Strike stat equal to your Feint stat. Note that the Feint Bonus is equal to your Feint stat, not your Feint roll; the Feint roll only determines whether the Feint is successful. As always, a Feint roll of 12 automatically fails. |
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EXAMPLE 1
Omar (Strike 6 Feint 4) declared a Feint and a Strike against Niles. Because of the -1 Action Penalty Omar incurs for taking two actions this round, Omar must roll 5 or less to Strike and 3 or less to Feint.
In the Modifier Stage, Omar makes his Feint rolls a 3, a successful Feint.
Omar now needs a 9 or less to Strike Niles: 6 [Omar’s Strike] - 1 [Action Penalty] + 4 [Omar’s Feint stat] = 9. Omar rolls a 10. Bad luck for Omar! |
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EXAMPLE 2
Had Omar’s Feint roll failed, he would have needed to roll 5 or less to Strike Niles this round: 6 [Omar’s Strike] - 1 [Action Penalty] = 5. |
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A successful Feint roll modifies only one of the Feinting character’s Strikes that round. If the Feinting character declares one Feint and two or more Strikes, the Feint (if successful) modifies only the first Strike. If the Feinting character declares two Feints and three or more Strikes, the Feints (if successful) modify the first and second Strikes, respectively. And so on. |
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EXAMPLE 3
Frederic the Faker (Strike 8 Feint 6) declares one Feint and two Strikes. Frederic needs a 4 or less to Feint: 6 [Frederic’s Feint] - 2 [Action Penalty] = 4.
In the Modifier Stage, Frederic rolls 4a successful Feint.
In the Resolution Stage, Frederic’s modified Strike stat for the first Strike is 12, i.e. he needs to roll 12 or less to Strike: 8 [Frederic’s Strike] + 6 [Feint Bonus] - 2 [Action Penalty] = 12.
But for Frederic’s second Strike, he needs to roll 6 or less: 8 [Frederic’s Strike] - 2 [Action Penalty] = 6. The Feint Bonus applies only to the first Strike.
To enjoy Feint Bonuses on both his Strikes, Frederic needed to declare two Feints: one for each Strike. |
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A character can declare no more than one Feint for each Strike she declares. She may not, for instance, declare three Feints and one Strike. |
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EXAMPLE 4
While Frederic can declare one Feint and two Strikes (as he did in the previous example), he cannot declare two Feints and one Strike. He can never declare more Feints than Strikes in the same round. |
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Strike attacks improved by successful Feints remain subject to Defense Penalties (see “Defense Penalties.”) |
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EXAMPLE 5
Frederic the Faker is attacking Dodgy Dirk.
In the Timing Stage, Dirk gets the best Timing Score.
In the Strategy Stage, Frederic (Strike 8, Feint 6) declares a Strike and a Feint. Dirk (Dodge 9) declares a Dodge.
In the Modifier Stage, Dirk makes a successful Dodge roll of 6 and Frederic makes a successful Feint roll with a 3.
Finally, the Resolution Stage. Frederic’s Strike stat is 8. So Frederic needs to roll 7 or less to Strike Dirk this round: 8 [Frederic’s Strike] - 1 [Action Penalty] + 6 [Feint Bonus] - 6 [Dirk’s Dodge] = 7. |
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Feints are generally performed by armed combatants only. It is possible to Feint without a weapon, but the unarmed attacker is subject to a -5 Weaponless Penalty to his Feint roll. This is because unarmed Feints are less convincing. |
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EXAMPLE 6
Had Omar (Strike 6, Feint 4) attempted to Feint without a weapon, the Feint would have become impossible. This is because he would have needed to roll -2: 4 [Omar’s Feint] -1 [Action Penalty] - 5 [Weaponless Penalty] = -2. You can't roll less than 1 on a twelve-sided die. So the action is impossible. |
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CO.10 Disarm
A Disarm attack is an Offensive Combat Skill by which an attacker attempts to knock his opponent’s weapon out of his hand(s). The attacking character can attempt to Disarm his opponent with or without the use of a weapon, but there is a penalty for weaponless Disarm attacks.
To make a successful Disarm attack, a combatant must declare a Disarm attack in the Strategy Stage. The intended victim of the Disarm attack then rolls his Grip Skill in the Modifier Stage. (Grip is a Vigor Skill: see “Vigor Skills: Grip.”) If the Grip roll is successful, it produces a Grip Penalty equal to the Grip roll. The combatant attempting to Disarm must then roll less than or equal to his Disarm stat in the Resolution Stage, subject to any Grip Penalty. A roll of 12 always fails. |
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EXAMPLE 1
In the Strategy Stage, Niles declares a Disarm attack against Serena.
In the Modifier Stage, Serena rolls her Grip Skill to defend against the Disarm attack. Serena’s Grip stat is 7an excellent grip! If Serena rolls higher than 7, she fails her Grip roll and Niles suffers no penalty to his Disarm stat. If Serena rolls 7 or less, the result of that roll becomes a Grip Penalty that is deducted from Niles’ Disarm stat. Serena rolls a 3: a successful Grip roll.
In the Resolution Stage, the assassin must roll a 4 or less to Disarm Serena: 7 [Niles’ Disarm] - 3 [Grip Penalty] = 4. Niles rolls 2: the Disarm attack succeeds and Serena loses her stun baton. |
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EXAMPLE 2
Had Serena rolled a 7 for her Grip roll, it would have been impossible for Niles to Disarm Serena this round. Why? Because 7 [Niles’ Disarm stat] - 7 [Grip Penalty] = 0, and you can’t roll less than 1 on a twelve-sided die. |
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Note that the defending character does not incur an Action Penalty for using his Grip Skill against a Disarming attacker.
The Grip Skill is not the only defense a character has against the Disarm Skill. The Defense Penalties created by Blocks and Dodges are deducted from the Disarming character's Disarm stat, too. Furthermore, Defense and Grip Penalties are cumulative in effect. |
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EXAMPLE 3
Had Serena declared a Dodge this round, producing a Defense Penalty of -2, Niles would have needed to roll a 2 or less to Disarm Serena.
Here's the math: 7 [Niles’ Disarm stat] - 3 [Grip Penalty] - 2 [Defense Penalty] = 2. |
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The Parry Skill is not effective against a Disarm attack. Rather, a character attempting to Disarm an opponent who is Parrying enjoys a +1 bonus to his Disarm stat. This is because using a weapon to Parry oncoming blows exposes that weapon to Disarm attacks. Clever combatants will take advantage of good Timing Scores by attempting to Disarm those who Parry unwisely. |
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EXAMPLE 4
Charles the Clever is dueling Bruto the Brash. Bruto’s Timing Score is lowest, so he declares first. He unwisely declares a Parry. “Ah, ha,” thinks Charles, and declares a Disarm attack.
Charles’ Disarm stat is 5, but because Bruto is Parrying this round, Charles gets a +1 bonus to his stat. So Charles’ Disarm stat (for this round only) is 6. |
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When a combatant is Disarmed, his weapon falls to the ground. It is for the GM to determine exactly what happens to it (for instance, perhaps it falls over a nearby cliff), but usually it will fall somewhere nearby where it can be retrieved. To retrieve a lost weapon, the combatant must declare this action in his Strategy. Any other combatant (notably the one who Disarmed the character!) may also attempt to retrieve the weapon. Of those characters who attempt to retrieve the weapon, whoever has the best Timing Score that round will get to it first. Retrieving a weapon is an action for Action Penalty purposes. It takes place in the Resolution Stage. |
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EXAMPLE 5
Next round the assassin and the bounty hunters make their Timing rolls. The resulting Timing Order is Niles, Omar, Serena.
Since Niles’ Timing Score was lowest, he has to reveal his Strategy first. He knows he hasn't been fast enough to beat Serena to the fallen stun baton, so he declares a Strike on Serena. Omar declares a Strike on Niles, and Serena declares she will Dodge Niles’ Strike and retrieve her weapon.
In the Modifier Stage, Serena fails her Dodge throw (which was lowered by a -1 Action Penalty).
In the Resolution Stage, Serena acts first and retrieves her weapon. Omar misses his Strike. Niles then attempts to Strike Serena. But he rolls 12, an automatic miss. |
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EXAMPLE 6
Imagine for a moment that Serena had the lowest Timing Score this round, and so had to declare her Strategy before knowing what Niles was going to do. Had Serena declared she would retrieve her stun baton, Niles would most likely have declared the same thing, and since Niles had the better Timing Score this round, he would have beaten Serena to it. Given this, Serena would probably be forced to consider some other option: drawing another weapon (if she had one) or Retreating, or anything else she could come up with! |
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A Disarm attack is only possible using a melee weapon. A character can attempt to Disarm an opponent armed with a missile weapon, but only if that opponent is in melee. |
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EXAMPLE 7
An alien armed with a force blade proposes to Disarm his opponent, Alex. Alex is armed with a hunting rifle. But Alex is standing 50 meters away! The alien cannot Disarm her; she’s not in melee. But were Alexstill armed with her hunting riflein melee, the alien could attempt to Disarm her. |
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In all of the examples above, the Disarming character carried a weapon. It is possible, however, to Disarm an opponent without using a weapon. But it is harder to do. Unarmed characters attempting to Disarm their opponents are subject to a -3 Weaponless Penalty. |
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EXAMPLE 8
In Example 1 (above), had Niles attempted to Disarm Serena with his bare hands, he would have been subject to a -3 Weaponless Penalty.
This would have lowered Niles’ Disarm stat to 1. Here’s the math: 7 [Niles’ Disarm] - 3 [Grip Penalty] -3 [Weaponless Penalty] = 1. |
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CO.11 Brawling
Brawling is an Offensive Combat Skill by which a combatant attacks without weapons. Punches, kicks, wrestling moves of all types, even bites and head-butts: these are the sorts of actions covered by the Brawling Skill.
To make a successful Brawling attack, a combatant must declare a Brawling attack in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to his Brawling stat (subject to any modifiers) in the Resolution Stage. A roll of 12 always fails.
A successful Brawling attack can result in Injury. To know how Injury works, see “Injury, Defeat, and Death.” |
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EXAMPLE
Bully (Brawling 4) attacks Yobbo with his bare hands. Yobbo takes no defensive action, so Bully needs a 4 or under to attack Yobbo successfully. He rolls 3: a successful Brawling attack. |
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CO.12 Parry
A Parry is a Defensive Combat Skill that consists of countering a Strike with one’s weapon. For example, a character may avoid being struck by her opponent’s quarterstaff by Parrying the blow with her broadsword.
To make a successful Parry, a combatant must declare the Parry in the Strategy Stage, then roll less than or equal to his Parry stat in the Modifier Stage. As always, a roll of 12 automatically fails.
Recall that because Parry is a Defensive Combat Skill, it is effective against all attackersit is not necessary to declare whose attack one is Parrying. See “Offensive and Defensive Combat Skills.”
A successful Parry imposes a Defense Penalty on the Striking character (see “Defense Penalties.”)
Parrying is effective only against Strikes and Brawls. It has no effect against Feints or Missiles Strikes. For the effect of Parrying Disarm attacks, see “Disarm.”
If a combatant declares a Parry, and that Parry becomes unnecessary because the Parrying combatant is not attacked that round, the Parry is simply ignored. Action Penalties apply normally, however. |
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EXAMPLE 1
This round, the Timing Scores produce the following Timing Order: Serena, Omar, Niles.
Both the bounty hunters declare a Strike against Niles. Niles declares a Parry.
Niles’ Parry stat is 5. If Niles rolls higher than 5, he fails to Parry, and the bounty hunters make their Strike rolls without the hindrance of a Defense Penalty. Niles rolls a 5! So Serena and Omar’s Strikes are subject to a -5 Defense Penalty this round.
Omar’s Strike stat is 6. But it is subject to the -5 Defense Penalty. So Omar needs a 1 to Strike: 6 [Otto's Strike] - 5 [Defense Penalty] = 1. Otto rolls a 3: his Strike was Parried.
Serena’s Strike stat is 5, and since 5 [Serena’s Strike] - 5 [Defense Penalty] = 0, Serena’s Strike automatically fails. |
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A Strike cannot be Parried unless the Parrying character has a weapon with which to Parry the attack. Some weapons cannot be used to Parry; the wielder must change weapons to use his Parry Skill, or go without it. Furthermore, some weapons grant their wielders bonuses to Parry, while others impose penalties. See “The Armory” for details. |
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EXAMPLE 2
Imagine that Serena declared a Strike and a Parry, that Omar declared a Strike, and that Niles declared a Parry. In that case, Serena’s Parry is totally unnecessary: she expected the assassin to attack her, but the assassin did not. In such a case, Serena’s Parry is simply ignored, and no Parrying Penalty applies. However, Serena’s Strike is still subject to a -1 Action Penalty because Serena took two actions this round: a Parry (which turned out to be unnecessary) and a Strike. |
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A Brawl can be Parried with a weapon or without one.
There are four Combat Skills that create Defense Penalties: Parry, Block, Dodge, and Evade. You may wonder why you should choose Parry over the others (or, for that matter, why you should avoid Parry in favor of the others). Here's a summary of Parry’s pros and cons.
PROS AND CONS OF THE PARRY SKILL
Pros
- Some weapons give characters a bonus to their Parry stat. This means that you can improve your Parry stat without APs by picking a good Parrying weapon. The same is not true of Dodge, Evade, or Block.
- You can Parry with both hands engaged. By contrast, Blocking requires that at least one hand carry a shield. This rules out two-handed weapons for characters who want to Block.
Cons
- Parrying Strikes requires a weapon. If you have no weapon, you can’t Parry Strikes. (But you can Parry Brawling attacks with your bare hands.) By contrast, you can Dodge or Evade with or without a weapon.
- You can’t Parry Missile Strikes. But you can Block or Evade them.
- Some weapons impose penalties to Parry. If your favorite weapon is among them, you may prefer to Dodge, Evade, or Block.
- Parrying doesn't work against Disarm attacks. And there's always the risk of being Disarmed if you Parry foolishly.
CO.13 Block
A Block is a Defensive Combat Skill whereby the Blocking character attempts to counter a Strike, Missile Strike, Brawling, or Disarm attack with his shield. You must have a shield, or some shield-like object, to use the Block Skill.
To make a successful Block, a combatant must declare the Block in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to his Block stat in the Modifier Stage. A roll of 12 always fails.
Because it is a Defensive Combat Skill, a Block is effective against any attack received that round; it is not necessary to declare whose attack one is Blocking. See “Offensive and Defensive Skills Combat Skills.”
A successful Block imposes a Defense Penalty on the attacking character equal to the Block roll. |
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EXAMPLE
Next round, the Timing Order is Niles, Serena, and Omar.
Niles declares a Strike on Serena. Serena declares she will try to Block the Strike with her shield. Omar declares a Strike.
Serena’s Block stat is 4. She rolls a 1: a successful Block, creating a -1 Defense Penalty.
Omar rolls a 7: his Strike misses.
Niles’ Strike stat is 9, but is lowered to 8 this round by the -1 Defense Penalty. Niles rolls an 11. Another miss! This is not Niles’ day. |
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If a combatant declares a Block which becomes unnecessary because there is no attack to Block, the Block is ignored. Action Penalties apply normally, however.
Blocks are impossible without a shield or some shield-like object. Shields do not give bonuses to Block, though they do increase characters’ Withstand Injury stats. Shields require a free hand. So characters who want to use two-handed weapons cannot use the Block Skill. See “The Armory” for details.
Blocking and Parrying are quite similar: both are means of countering an oncoming attack, one with a weapon or hand, the other with a shield. But there are three important differences between Block, Parry and Dodge. To help explain these differences, here is a summary of Block’s pros and cons.
PROS AND CONS OF THE BLOCK SKILL
Pros
- It is effective against Disarm attacks. The same is true of Dodges, but not of Parries or Evade.
- It is effective against Missile Strikes. Dodges and Parries do not work against Missile Strikes.
Cons
- It requires a shield or some shield-like object. If you don’t have one, you can’t Block.
- Shields never give Block bonuses the way some weapons give Parry bonuses.
- You need a free hand to hold your shield. This means that you can't use a two-handed weapon and Block.
CO.14 Dodge
A Dodge is a Defensive Combat Skill to avoid enemy Strike, Brawling or Disarm attacks by moving out of their path.
To make a successful Dodge, a combatant must declare the Dodge in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to his Dodge stat in the Modifier Stage. A roll of 12 always fails.
Recall that because Dodge is a Defensive Combat Skill, it is effective against all attackersit is not necessary to declare whose attack one is Dodging. See “Offensive and Defensive Combat Skills.”
A successful Dodge imposes a Defense Penalty on the attacking character equal to the Dodge roll (see “Defense Penalties.”) |
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EXAMPLE
The Timing Order this round is Omar, Serena, and Niles.
Omar and Serena both declare one Strike against the assassin. In response, Niles declares a Dodge.
Niles (Dodge 8) rolls a 5: a successful Dodge. Serena and Omar’s attacks are now modified by a -5 Defense Penalty.
Serena’s Strike stat is only 5, and Niles’ Dodge created a -5 Defense Penalty. So Serena can’t hit the assassin at all this round. Omar needs to roll 1 to Strike: 6 [Omar’s Strike] - 5 [Defense Penalty] = 1. Omar rolls a 6: his Strike is Dodged. |
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If a combatant declares a Dodge which becomes unnecessary because there is no attack to Dodge, the Dodge is ignored. Action Penalties apply normally, however.
Dodges are not effective against Missile Strikes.
There are three important differences between Block, Parry, Evade and Dodge. To help explain these differences, here is a summary of Dodge’s pros and cons.
PROS AND CONS OF THE DODGE SKILL
Pros
- It is effective against Strikes, Brawls, and Disarms. The same is true of Blocks, but not of Parries or Evades.
- You can Dodge without a weapon or shield. (Blocking requires a shield, Parrying against Strikes requires a weapon.)
- You can do it without hands. Blocks require one hand holding a shield. Strike Parries require at least one hand on the weapon being used to Parry.
Cons
- It is not effective against Missile Strikes. Only Block or Evade can protect you from arrows and other missile weapons.
- You can’t get Dodge bonuses from weapons or other items. But you can get Parry bonuses from some weapons.
CO.15 Evade
Evade is a Defensive Combat Skill to avoid enemy Missile Strike attacks by moving rapidly in order to throw off your opponent’s aim. You cannot Evade if you are engaged in Melee combat.
To make a successful Evade, a combatant must declare the Evade in the Strategy Stage and roll less than or equal to her Evade stat in the Modifier Stage. A roll of 12 always fails.
Recall that because Evade is a Defensive Combat Skill, it is effective against all attackersit is not necessary to declare whose attack one is Evading. See “Offensive and Defensive Combat Skills.”
A successful Evade imposes a Defense Penalty on the attacking character equal to the Evade roll (see “Defense Penalties.”) To successfully Evade, the character must move as many meters as the Defense Penalty that will be imposed upon the attacker. The Evading character can chose to move a shorter distance, but the Defense Penalty applied will be less than that rolled. |
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EXAMPLE
Alex is being fired upon by a remote controlled sentry laser in the aliens’ research lab. In the Strategy phase, Alex declares an Evade. Her Evade stat is 5. Alex rolls a 3, so she can apply a penalty of -3 against the sentry laser. If Alex takes the full -3 penalty, she must move 3 m. She can chose to move only 1 or 2 meters, but she would only impose a -1 or -2 penalty. |
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f a combatant declares an Evade which becomes unnecessary because there is no attack to Evade, the Evade is ignored. Action Penalties apply normally, however.
Evades are not effective against Strikes, Brawling, or Disarm attacks.
There are three important differences between Block, Parry, Evade and Dodge. To help explain these differences, here is a summary of Dodge's pros and cons.
PROS AND CONS OF THE EVADE SKILL
Pros
- It is effective against Missile Strikes. The same is true of Blocks, but not of Parries or Dodges.
- You can Evade without a weapon or shield. (Blocking requires a shield, Parryingat least against Strikesrequires a weapon.)
- You can do it without hands. Blocks require one hand holding a shield. Strike Parries require at least one hand on the weapon being used to Parry.
Cons
- It is not effective against Strikes, Blocks, or Disarms.
- You can’t get Evade bonuses from weapons or other items. But you can get Parry bonuses from some weapons.
- You cannot use Evade if you are engaged in Melee, even if you are also the target of a Missile Strike. (You are just too concerned with the psycho waiving a knife in your face to worry about the lone gunman on the grassy knoll who’s aiming at you.)
CO.16 Movement
The Movement Skill determines how far a character can move in one round. Characters can move a number of meters equal to their Movement stat per round. Characters moving at this rate incur no Action Penalty for doing so while using another Skill; the movement is not considered an action. Furthermore, characters move at this rate even if they suffer from Injury Penalties. A character’s Movement rate, as determined by her Movement stat, is not subject to Injury Penalties. |
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EXAMPLE
Law Enforcement Android Model IX/N(a) (Movement 5) can move up to 5 m this round. This is true even though it has a -1 Injury Penalty. It does not incur an Action Penalty for moving like this. |
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There are two variations on the Movement Skill: Sprint Movement and Retreat Movement. These are not separate Skills; they are simply types of Movement.
Movementwhether used normally, or in its Sprint and Retreat formsis a Defensive Combat Skill.
CO.17 Sprint Movement
Characters who need to move faster can attempt Sprint Movement. To Sprint, declare a Sprint and roll less than or equal to your Movement stat, subject to any modifiers (including Action Penalties and Injury Penalties). If successful, add the result of your roll to your (unmodified) Movement stat. The sum is the number of meters you move this round. Sprint Movement counts as an action for Action Penalty purposes. |
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EXAMPLE 1
IX/N(a) (Movement 5) wants to Sprint this round.
In the Strategy Stage, it declares a Sprint. It declares no other action, so it incurs no Action Penalty.
In the Modifier Stage, it needs to roll 4 or less to Sprint: 5 [IX/N(a)’s Movement] - 1 [Injury Penalty] = 4. If it fails, she will only move 5 m this round. If it succeeds, she will move 5 + X m, where X is its Sprint roll. It rolls a 2success! So it moves 7 m this round: 5 [IX/N(a)’s Movement stat] + 2 [its Movement roll] = 7. |
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Sprint Movement occurs immediately, i.e. before the start of the Resolution Stage of the current round. Usually it will not matter when the movement occurs. But sometimes it can be important. |
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EXAMPLE 2
IX/N(a)’s 7 m Sprint takes place immediately, i.e. before the start of the Resolution Stage. So what? So nothing, usually.
But the reason IX/N(a) wanted to Sprint was because it was within long range of an attacker’s blaster shot. By Sprinting 7 m this round, IX/N(a) got out of the attacker’s range. That means that the shots the attacker declared in the Strategy Stage, and which occur in the Resolution Stage, cannot possibly Strike IX/N(a) this round. It Sprinted out of range. |
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Characters cannot Sprint out of melee (though they can Sprint out of missile range, as the example above illustrates.) To flee melee, characters use another variation on the Movement Skill called Retreat.
CO.18 Retreat
To Retreat, declare Retreat Movement in the Strategy Stage. Then, in the Modifier Stage, roll less than or equal to your Movement stat, subject to any modifiers (including Action Penalties and Injury Penalties.)
If you make a successful Movement roll, your character moves out of melee immediately (i.e. before the Resolution Stage) and moves a number of meters equal to your Movement stat plus your Movement roll.
Retreating in the Modifier Stage nullifies all melee actions (melee Strikes, Feints, Brawls, and Disarm attacks) declared against you that round. Missile Strikes remain possible so long as the Retreating character is within range. See “Missile Strike.” |
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EXAMPLE 1
Serena is starting to think she has made a mistake! The assassin is too hard to hit. So Serena decides to Retreat.
The combatants make their Timing rolls. Serena gets the best Timing Score. Niles’ Score is the second best, and Omar’s is the worst.
In the Strategy Stage, Omar declares a Strike against Niles. The assassin declares two actions: a Parry and a Strike against Serena. So his actions will be subject to a -1 Action Penalty. Serena declares a Retreat.
In the Modifier Stage, Niles fails his Parry roll. Now Serena rolls her Retreat Movement. Her Movement stat is 4. She rolls a 3: success! Serena breaks off melee and moves a total of 7 m: 4 [Serena’s Movement stat] + 3 [Serena’s Movement roll] = 7.
Now the Resolution Stage begins, but with one less combatant than it had last round! The Strike Niles declared against Serena is nullified, because she’s no longer there. However, there is still Omar’s Strike against Niles. It misses. |
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If you fail your Movement roll, your character remains in meleeand thus may be exposed to more attacksuntil the end of the Resolution |