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Basic Rules

The document outlines various character traits, hindrances, and edges for a role-playing game, detailing how these affect gameplay. It includes examples of both minor and major traits, such as 'Bad Luck' and 'Blind', as well as skills and abilities like 'Acrobat' and 'Combat Reflexes'. Additionally, it explains the distinction between 'Wild Cards' and 'Extras' in the game, emphasizing the unique attributes of player characters compared to common NPCs.

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aapeck
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32 views14 pages

Basic Rules

The document outlines various character traits, hindrances, and edges for a role-playing game, detailing how these affect gameplay. It includes examples of both minor and major traits, such as 'Bad Luck' and 'Blind', as well as skills and abilities like 'Acrobat' and 'Combat Reflexes'. Additionally, it explains the distinction between 'Wild Cards' and 'Extras' in the game, emphasizing the unique attributes of player characters compared to common NPCs.

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aapeck
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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oes ain Cimbing ‘Stength Bad Eyes. Minor/Major......-2 t0 attack or notice something more than 5” distant 2 Traits oo Bad Luck Major (One less Benny per session Modifiers: Circumstances modify the die ral, ‘such as shooting at something at long range or finding a well-hidden clue. Some things, such as ranged attacks, have standard modifiers. I's up to the GM to determine any modifiers for more subjective tasks, such as spotting an ambush or ‘eavesdropping on a conversation through a door. In general, an easy task, such as fincing tracks inthe mud, is made at +2. Adifficult task, such as finding tracks by torchlight, is made at -2.A very difficult task, such as finding racks in a rainstorm, is made at ~4 ‘Aces All Trait tests and damage rolls in Savage Worlds are open-ended. That means that when you roll the highest number possibie on a die (a6 ‘on a d8, an 8 on a d8, and so on), you get to roll that die again and add itto the total. This is called fan "Ace." Any modifier to the die rll should be tacked on after adding up an Aced rol Raises ‘Sometimes it's important to know just how successful a Trat test was, Every 4 points over what you need for success is called a "raise." If your hero needs a 4 to Shoot an opponent and rollsan 11, he hits with one raise (and would have two raises with a roll of 12). Figure raises after ‘adjusting for any modifiers Unskiled Attompts If character doesn't have a skill for an action he's attempting, he rolls a d4 and subtracts 2from the total Wild Card characters stil get their Wild Die for these rolls (which are also subjectto the ~2 penalty). The GM may decide that a character has no chance ata particular skil fhe has no training init—such as performing surgery or fying a plane. Opposed Rails ‘Sometimes rolls are “opposed by an opponent. If two charactors are wrastiing for control of an ancient artifact, for example, they both make Strength rolls and compare results. eee When this happens, the acting character gels his Trait total frst. f he wants to spend Bennies (s2e the next saction), he dees so now. When he's satisfied with his total, his opponent gets to roll. The highest total wins. in a tic, the two foes continue to struggle with no clear vietor. ‘The winner of an opposed roll considers his opeonent’s total as his TN for purposes of determining any raises, ‘cooperative Rols ‘Sometimes characters may want to cooperate and help a frend complete same kind of urgent task. If two or more characters want to perform a lask together (and the GM decides i's possible for them to do $0), the lead charactor makes his rall dnd adds +1 for every success and raise his ‘companions achieved on their own rolls. This has ‘normal maximum of +4 forall tasks except those of Strength, which have no maximum. Characters may not make cooperative ros if they don't actually have the ski in question. (You can't make default rolls to aid with Boating, for example, if your character doesn't actually have the Boating skil.) croup Ros ‘When you want to make a noncombat Trait roll for a croup of Extras, rll one Trait dis 22 usual ‘along with a Wild Die. Take the better of the two 28 alWays and trea this as the group's total. This way you get a nice average without having to ‘make Individual Fear rolis for every Extra who ees a dragon, or watch one clumsy soldier ruin ‘a stealthy approach for his 49 companions Tha Wild Die Extras roll a single die as described above. But \Wild Cards rol an extra dé end take the highest of theic normal die or the “Wild Die" when making ‘kil or attribute rolls. Wild Dice ara rolled just like the Trait die, and can Ace as wel (see above), > Critical Failure: The downside is that snake- eyes (double 1s) on one of these rolls isa critical failure. The GM gets tomake up something rotten tohappen to your character. That's the price Fate charges for making someone a hero, Example: Buck Savage, international adventurer, faces wild-ayod cultists. He has ‘a df0 Shooting and rolls his a6 Wild Die, The Wild Die comes up 4, but he Aces (a 10) on ‘he 10. He sets the Vd Dio aside and rolls the d10 again, He gets another 10, then rolls again and gets a 3, His totals (10+ 10+3=) 29! ry now and then the clice may not work for you. That's why Savage Worlds gives you, the player, 2 litle contro! evar your hero's fate, piayer starts each game session with Jennies’ (American slang for “benefits"), represented by gaming stones or other tokens that signify a litle bit of good luck or fata, The Game Master may also give you more Bennies for great roleplaying, overcoming major obstacles, or even entertaining everyone with an outlandish action, side-spiiting comment, or other memorable act. (Tips for awarding Bennies can be found in the Game Master's section on page 145,) You can use Bennies to reroll any Trait test, Make the entire roll from scratch, If you're fring three shots on full-auto and don't ke the results, pick up all three cice and your Wid Die and roll again. You can keep spending Bennies and reroling as long as you like, and taka the best of Your attempts. Ifyou roll a 5, for example, and a Benny gets you 2 4, keep the original 5 instead Bennies eannotbe spent on tables, damage rolls (unless a character has the No Mercy Edge}, or ‘any other roll thet isnt a Tait rll. > Soak Rolls: Bennias can also be used to save. your bacon trom deadly attacks. Choose carefully ‘where you spend them! Ses Damage for complete information on how to make Soak rolls Game Master Bennias Game Masters get Bennias too. At the stat of teach session, the GM gels one Benny for each Player character. He may use these for any of his, villains throughout the course of the game. Each of the GM's Wild Cards also gets two Bennies per game session. They can use these Cor any of the Bennies in the common pool to save their evil skins, but they can't share their own Bennies with other nonplayer characters. As with heroes, Bennies are not saved between sessions. ourthing, see th > Distance: are using terrain or a battie~m: 26mm miniatures, movement and weapon ranges are listed in inches. I you need to translate that to regular distance, each Inch is equal 102 yards. ifthe GM needs adlifarent scale to accommodate f largar battle, such as a long-range firefight between tank platoons, simply divide weapon and movement ranges as needed. > Time: When a fight breaks out, game time breaks down info rounds of six sec rounds, then, is one minute, ‘Using Alles ‘Alied Extras are divided up emong al the to control. This isa very important part of Sava Worlds because our settings often feature allied bans of skilled hirelings, folow grunts, oF loyal retainers, and the game is designed tohanle them uickly and easily. Is also designed forthe players to control them-—not the Game Master. It doesn't matter whether or not the characters control the allies, only that tne players do. This keeps everyone involved in the action even if his hero is out of the fight, and makes running large ‘combats much easier and fun for everyone. Of ‘course the GM can always take charge of Extras when the need arises, but with good roleplayers, this should rarely be necessary. Some tins for the Game Mastar on using Allies can be found on page 148 snot and standard Initiative The action in Savage Worlds fast and furious, To help the Game Master keep track of wo goos in wnat order and add a itl randomness to the gama, we use a single deck of playing cards wth both Jokers left in to determine everyone's initiative, Deal in characters as follows: + Every Wild Card is dealt a single card. Any allies under that player's control act on his initiative card as wel, dC own caxd. > Shuffle: Shutfle the deck after any round which a Joker was dealt > Large Groups: In very large groups, or time: sensitive games, the Game Master might want io try dealing a single card per side (heraes and vilains). On the heroes’ tur, simply start at one fend of the group and work quickly around. This wil speed things up dramatically if important than varying iniative order more characters have Level Headed or hat apply to the draw (but only once). The Countdown Once the ca tats the round by counting down from the A the Deuce, with each group resolving its actions when its card comes up. > Tiee: Tios are resolved by suil order: Spades are first, then Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs (raverse alphabetical ord). Jokers When a player draws 2 Joker, his ccan go whensver he wants in the round, e interrupting another character's action he wants. in addition, add #2 to all Trait tess this round, and +2 to damage totals as welll Hold ‘A hero may choose to wait and see what happens by taking a Hold action. He may then go later in the round ifhe chooses. AHeld action jastsuntii's used. Ifa character has a Held card when a new round starts, he’s not dealin Ifa character is Shaken while on Hold, he Immediately loses his "Hold" status and any remaining actions for the round. If the victim soaks the attack and avoids the Shaken resut he remains on Hold. > Interrupting Actions: If @ character on Hold wants to interrupt an action (including a rival who was also on Hold), he and the opponent make ‘opposed Agilty rolls. Whoever rolls highest goes first. In the rare case of 2 tle, the actions are simultaneous. are dealt, the Game Master ‘Some new playars have been hesitant nitfatve. Wo've presented 1g systems in previous e th is, the card-base: iniiatve system works and is a ot of fun. If you're new tof try it We've found the excitement of drawing 3 ‘oftha game and those who give ky realize how well it w 1° Savage Worlds—pariculariy when it 188 to keeping track of large groups of heroes and vilains. Without Miniatures @ situations that ar ly ent oi table-top measu > Range: The GM st far away targets are. M o thinkin yards. Remember that uid simply decide how tally, it's much easier y Wo yards is one inch on the table-top, so ia target is about 20 yards away, i's 10" away. > Templates: Without exact placement o} miniatures it's tricky to know how many foes rmight be caught ay an areaveffect attack (Ike a grenade). For these occasions, figure a Small Burst Template affects 143 foes, a Medium Burst cr Cone Template affects 204 foes, and a Large Burst Template catches 248 opponents Allies adjacent ar in combat with these foes less the attack hits with ‘Movement joesntt in actions, such as fring a weap > Crawling: A character may This counts as being prone when bei > Crouching: A crouching at half P crouched (halve his total Pace af running). Ranged attacks against =1 penalty. > Going Prone: A charactor may fall prone at ‘any time during his action. Getting up costs 2° of movement. See Prone on page 85 for the benefis of being prone. > Difficult Ground: Difficult ground such as ‘mud, steep hil or snow, slows characters down. Count each inch of dificult round as two inches {or purposes of movement > Jumping: A character can jump 1" horizontally from a dead stop, or up to 2° with a "run and go.” A successful Strength roll grants one extra inch of distance. ‘Running ‘A character may run an 146" during his turn if ha wishes, Characters suffer a-2 penalty (the standard multi- action penalty) to all ccther actions made . while running nim suffer a additional o save a litle time in the heat of battle Actions Characters perform “actions” when their cars ‘comes up each round, A character can mo: (see Movement) and perform one regula’ ‘ction—attacking, running, casting a spell, a 80 on—without penalty Characters can perform a multitude of actions when their card comes up in combat. The most common actions are making Tests of Will, using & power, of attacking with the Fighting or Shooting ski, These are all covered on the following pages. Simpler actions such as readying an item, crawing a sword, or other quick tasks usvally take tne action. More complax actions, such as lighting torch, digging through a backpack tofind a smal! iter, and so on, might require a random amount of time (such a8 106 rounds). The Game Maste has the final say > Readying Weapons: Drawing a weapon Usually takes an entire round, but a character can ‘it fastarifshe wants, This is an action, however, and so inflicts the standard muit-action penalty of “20 the characters attack rll. Drawing two weapons at once, drawing @ weapon from a dificult location (such as an ankle holster or inside a coal), or drawing a large or roll is fale the character may not attack that rou Multipla Actions Chi may perform multiple actions su as intimidating someone while blasting away with }tgun, runni ighting, attacking with a weapon in each hand, and so on. Two import rules apply + Acharacter can't fire more than his weapon's Rate of Fie in one round + A character may not make more than one Fighting attack with the same weapon in fone round in essence, a hero may not perform the same action twice in a round—he can't make two simultaneous Intimidation rolls or cast two diferent spells. He could make a Fighting and a Shooting attack if he had a gun in one hand and a knife in the other, however, and could even issue a Taunt atthe same time. He could only make two Fi attacks if he had a knife in each hand, bi (or had the Frenzy Edge). Each additional action attempted in a round subtracts 2 from all the haro’s rolls. if an adventurer wante 19 fira a gun with one hand and slice at an adjacent foe with a sword in the other, for instance, he subtracts 2 from both rolls. Ife also wanted to make @ Test of Wills against someone at the same time, he subtracts 4 from all his rols. Wild Cards get thelr Wid Die on each action as usual ‘A moving character may perform these actions atcifferent points in his movernent, but sil suflers the mult-action penalty. This might seem a litte dd in practice—a character might shoot a pisto move @ few inches, than issue a Taunt—suffering a -2 ponalty to both even though the Taunt rol has yetto be resolved—so make sure the players committed to Both actions before resolving ether. > Froo Actions: Some minor actions are “free” ‘and don’ inflict mult-action penalties. Speaking fa short sentence or two, moving up to the character's Pace, faling prone, resisting opposed rolls, or dropping an item are all examples of free actions. > One Wild Die Per Action: When Wild Cards roll multiple dice fora single action, such as when firing a machine gun, they roll only ane Wild Die ‘Awartior with the Frenzy Edge, for example, rolls 's everything you need to know to and keep your hero alive Molea Attacks The Target Number to hit an opponent is equal the opponents Parry score (2 plus half his Fighting abiity: thats a 2 ifhe has no Fighting sil), > Bonus Damage: If your attack hits with a raise, add +166 to your damage total as welll ‘The d6 may Ace just like any other damage rol, Ranged Attacks ‘The Shooting skill covers everything from pistols to rocket launchers. The base TN tot something at Short range is 4 as usual. Shots at Medium range subtract 2 from the Shooting roll, and shots at Long range subtract 4 from the roll > Bonus Damage: If you hit your target with a raise, add +146 to the damage total. This rll may ‘Ace just ike any other damage rol Range Modifiers Range Modifier Short = Medium 2 Long 4 > Rate of Fira: The Rate of Fite Is how many ‘Shooting dice the character rolls when fring the weapon. These additional shots must be taken at the same time, and each point of ROF grants the hero another Shooting die. A pistol with @ RoF of 2, for example, gives a character two Shooting ica, which may be aimed at ho different targets. ‘Asubmachine gun with a RoF of3, for example, allows the player to rollup to three Shooting dice at once at up to three different targets. These shots can be split among all possible targets as, the player desires, but must all be taken at the ‘same time, A shooter with an Uzi can't fi one shot, then move and fire two more, for ingance. Wild Cards roll one Wild Die with the Shooting roll, and can use itin place of one of the Shooting dlee if thay choose. Example: A special agent fires a submachine gun (ROF 3) at hwo terrorists. The agent is a Wild Card with a Shooting of a8, so he rolls 348 plus 2 Wild Die (A). Ths player decides to put two shots into the closest terrorist and one atthe further target. He rolls the two at the closest terrrist frst, then rolls a third d8 for the second. He also rolls his Wild Dio. He scores a hit on each with his Shooting dice and misses with the third, but his Wire Die hit so he replaces one of the failed ‘Shooting dice with it and gets his maximum three hits (since that was his RoF}. > Firing Blind: Sometimes a character may want to fire at targets they have no fix on ‘whatsoever. In these cases, allow the attacker ta make @ Shooting roll at ~4 as above. Should he hit, the target may make a simple Stealth roll ta ignore the attack (it misses). The Stealth roll is made at -2 ifthe attack was made with a ROF of 3ormore. ‘Attack Modiiers > Cover: Attackers suffer a penalty whan attempting to hit @ target behind cover: + Light Cover: Characters subtract 1 from their attack rolls if half or less of thelr target is obscured. + Medium Gover: The penalty is increased to =Zitmore tnan nalforihe targets hidden fiom view, This is the usual penalty for attacking a prone charactor (s90 Prone). + Heavy Cover: The penalty Is~4 only a small part ofthe targets visible (prone beside a tree, behind a high wall, peeking around the corner of a building, et.) ‘+ Noar Total Cover: Attacking through a very tight opening that provides near total cover, ‘such as an arrow sii, subiracts 6 from enemy attack rolls > Illumination: Attacking a poory-iluminated target is more dificult than a similar attack with {good lighting, and incurs the following penalties: * Dim: Twilight, light fog. night with a full moon, land 80 on sublract 1 from combatants’ attack rolls + Dark: Normal darkness with some ambientlight (staright, partial moon) inflicts a-2 penalty, and targets aren't visible outside of 10" + Pitch Darkness: Targets arent visible at all in pitch blackness, but if a character knows roughly where a vietim is (he can hear him, target is in a confined space, a glint of ight shines off his blade, ete), he may be attacked at-4 Damage [After @ successful close combat or ranged hit the altackar ros damage. Ranged weapons do fixed camage as istad in the Gear section. Most pistols, for example, cause 248 damage, Hand weapons cause damage equal to the attacker's Strangth die plus a second die, which ‘cepancs on the weapon. A barbarian with a d12 Strength and a long sword (48 damage) rolls 12408 damage. Even though Strength is used to determine melee damage, tis isnt a Trait rll Wild Cards don't add a Wild Die to the roll and thay can’t spend Bennies if they're unhappy with the results. All damage rolls can Ace. > Unarmed Combat Damage: An unarmed ‘combatant rolls only his Strength die. > Bonus Damage: Well-piaced attacks are more likely to hit vital areas, and so do more ‘damage. If your hero gets a raise on his attack roll (regardiess of how many aises), he adds +146 10 the final total. This roll may also Ace! ‘Applying Damaya ‘The damage of an attack is compared to the Victim's Toughness just like a Trait rll (though it isnt one go you can't spend a Benny on it). With 19 suoce0e, tho vietim ie Shaken. For each raise: over his Toughness he suffars 2 wound as well, as shown below: + Success: The charactor is Shaken. If he was already Shaken, he suffers a wound and temains Shaken, To cause a wound, the latter Shaken result must come from a physical attack of some kind—not 2 Tast of Wills of other maneuver. + Raise: The character suffers a wound for every raise on the damage rll, andis Shaken. (When wounds are caused, t doesn't matter if the vietim was already Shaken beforehand.) Example: A barbarian hits an ogre with Toughness of 11. The barbarian’s fiend, & rogue, has already tauntad the beast (a Test ‘of Wills, s9e page 86) and Shaken i Ifthe barbarian’s damage is 11-14, that's @ ‘success and would normally Shake the ogre. Since it's already Shaken, he suffers a wound ‘and remains Shaken. Ifthe barbarian's damage is 15—a raise or ‘more—e'd simply cause wounds. The ogre is already Shaken, and since a wound was ‘caused, there's no further effect. CR ‘One of the core principles of Savage Worlds is that figures are up, down, or off the table. This assumes you're using figures, bbut the concept applies even if you're not Up, down, or off the table means the Game Master can hava dozens of actors (ales, ‘enemies, etc) and easily keep track of them all because those that are up are fine and ‘operating normally, thase that are down are Shaken, and those who are incapacitated are removed. Understanding that may help you better understand why the Shaken rules work the way they do. Of course the Game Master shouldn't fil the table with miniatures simply because he ‘can. Instaad, the ably tohandle such large fights is a too! fo let the player characters adopt diferent strategies than they would in most games where thisjust isn't practical Want to recruit a warband to hele you take down that orc horde? No problem! Want fo ‘dk several platoons of tanks to help storm that enemy trench? Can do! One of our most infamous convention scenarios is a dozen tanks and 50 soldiers per side supporting a raid by the player characters—al| nandled Jn about two hours with roleplaying, puzzie- solving, and a massive combat. The power ‘and flexibilty to do that, wile stil maintaining 2 high level of charactor customization and dotail, is one ofthe features we think makes Savage Worlds so special. Damage Effects Damage can result in three effects: Shaken, \wounds, and incapacitation. ‘Shaken the damage of an attackis a simple success (0-3 points over Toughness), tne target s Shaken ‘Shaken characters are rattled, distracted, or momentarily shocked, They arent stunned but are temporarly suppressed enough that they must ‘make a Spi rol to be effecive. On their action, @ Shaken character must altempt to recover from being Shaken by making 2 Spirit ro: + Fallure: The character remains Shaken. Ho an only perform trae actions (see page 75), + Success: Tha character is no longer Shaken, but can stil only perform frag actions. + Raise: The charactar's no longer Shaken and ‘may act normally. > Spending Bennlas: A player may spend @ Benny at any time to remove hls Shakan status. If it's currenty his action, ne may act 2s if he gained ‘raise on the Spirit rol, Wounis Every raise on the damage rll inficts a wound. ‘Wounded Extras are removed from play. They're ‘dead, Injured, or otherwise out ofthe fight Wild Cards can take three wounds and stil {unetion. I'anather wound would be caused after that, they're Incapacitated (see below). Wild Cards never have more than three wounds—anything bayond that just considered three wounds and Incapacitated (see below). > Wound Penalties: Each wound a Wild Card suffers causesa—1 cumulative penaly ohis Pace (minimum of 1) and tall further Trait tests—up to tha maximum of @ hero's 3 wounds. Ahero with 2 wounds, for example, suffers a ~2 penalty to his Pace and any Trait tess. > Timing: Characters sometimes take multiole hits on the same Action Card, Resolve eacn damage roll separately and completely before ‘moving on to the next (including any Soak rolls). ‘meapacttation Incapacitated characters aren't necessarily dead, but are generally too beaten, battered, or bruised to do anything useful. They may not perform actions and are not dealt Action Cards in combat. incapacitated Extras are removed from play. Wild Cards are incapacitated if hey suffer more than three wounds (cumulatively or ail at once). When a Wild Card bacomes incapacitated, make an immediate Vigor roll oO * Total of 1 or Less: The character dies. ‘= Failure: Roll on the Injury Table. The Injury | permanent and the vitim is. Bien Out (390 bolow), '* Success: Roll on the Injury Table. re hry goes away when all wounds are healed. ‘© Raise: Roll on the Injury Table. The Injury goes away in 24 hours, or when all wounds are healed. | Injury Table 26 Wound 2 Unmentionabies: ithe ‘magic. There Is no other effect ‘rom this resut 3-4. Arm: Rol left or right arm randomly; it's ‘unusable Ike the One Arm Hindrance (though fhe priary arm's afected onan pelos st poly othe omen Ss Guts: Your hero catches one Somewhere between the crotch and tho chin Rol 126 | 12 Broken: Agity reduced a dle | type (inirum 8), | 2 Bator: Vigo reduced a dia | type (inirum d), | 36 Busted Strength reduced a cio type (irimum d), a 40 Leg: Gain he Lame Hindrance (or the | One Leg Hindrance if already Lame). | | 41-12 Head: A grievous injury to the head. Roll 16: 1-2. Hideous Sear: Your hero now has the Ugly lindranes. ‘3-4 Blinded: An eye is damaged Gain the One Eye Hindrance (or the Blind Hindrance if he only had one good eye). ‘5-6 Brain Damage: Massive trauma to the head. Smarts reduced one die type (min 44) > Bleeding Out: The injured character must make a Vigor roll al the start of each round after the one in which he was injured and before Action Cards are dealt + Success: The victim must roll again next round, ar every minute thereafter if not in ‘combat. = Raise: The victim stabilizes and no further | rolls are required, + Failure: The character dies from blood loss. Other characters may stop a victim's bleeding by making a Healing roll f successful, the victim stabllzes immediately and no further rois are required. This use ofthe Healing ski ust stops the bleeding. See page 87 for the use of the Healing skill to recover actual wounds Soak Rolls A character may spend a Benny to make a ‘oak’ rol, which is a Vigor check. A succes and each rais 3 the number of woul nat attack by one. ks all of the wounds an attack, ne removes his Shaken condition too (even from a previous soures). Don’ the wound madifers he's about to suffer when making this rol > Timing: Acharacter may only make one Soak toll per attack. i a Soak roll eliminates 2 of 3 wounds, for instance, a hare can't make another Soak roll to eliminate the third wound. (The hero ‘ould spend a second Benny to rerall the Vigor roll as usual, however.) > Shakon: A character can also spend a Benny to immediately eliminate a Shaken condition (and act if it's his action), This can be done at any time—even just after a failed Spirit rll to recover. | ware a num rs characters might perfor bat. nt allqwred) may add +2 to his Shooting for Throwing rollin the following round versus Whatever ha aimed at (a person, vehicle, et. Aiming for multiple rounds has no extra effect ‘Area Effect Attacks Grenades, spell effects, and other attacks that cover a large area are “area effect attacks.” The three most common size attacks have been made into Smal, Medium, and Large Burst Templates, found on page 180 and on our website To altack with an area affect weapon, the character places the template on the table (or picks where he wants the center of the blast to be) and makes a Shooting or Throwing roll. Ifthe aitack is successful, the blast is centered where desired, Everything under (or partially under) the template is affected, rolling damage separately for each Wild Card or group of Extras. Failure means the blast deviates. Just how far depends on whether it was thrawn or launched ‘and what range bracket the target was in (Shor, Medium, of Long). Roll 166" for thrown weapons (such as grenades) and 1410" for fred projectiles. Multiply by 1 for Short range, 2 for Medium, and 3 for Long. Next roll a d12 and read it ike a clock facing to determine the direction the missile deviates, ‘A weapon can never deviate more than half the distance to the orginal target. That keeps things fom going behind the thrower. Targets use their lowest armor value against area effect damage—armor must cover the entre body witnout gaps to provide any protection at al. > Cover: Targets who are prone or behind cover stil get some protection from area affect attacks. In these cases, the modifier they would normally receive against ranged attacks acts as that many points of Armor instead. A character in major cover, kee foxhole, negates four points of damage from a blast if he's caught within it. > Diving for Cover: Thrown weapons with & blast effect (such as grenades) and artillery allow potential targets a chance to move out of the ‘area of effect. Give targets who saw the danger ‘coming an Agilty roll at -2 to jump out of the way land avoid the damage, If successful, move the aractar just exactly where ‘Astomatie Fire 2 or higher) Fire ciffarantiy—tha To attack with a fll-auto weapon, rolla number of Shooting dice equal to the weapon's Rate of Fire. Compare each die separately to the Target Number to see ift hit Ifthe weapon has a RoF of 3, for example, a Wild Card rolls three Shooting dice plus @ Wild Die and uses the best three results ‘Note that Wild Cards roll their Shooting dice plus ‘a Wild Die, They still can't itwith more shots than the weapon's Rate of Fire, however, > Recoil: Fully automatic fire is typically inaccurate because of the recoil between each shot. Subtract 2 from the Shooting roll when fring full-auto (ignore the penalty whon firing a single sot with such a weagon), > Full-Auto and Ammo: This system is somewhat abstract so that we don't have to rall dice for every single bulet (though we treat them as such for game purposes). This means that ‘each die rolled on ful-auto represents a number ‘of bullote oqual to the weapon's Rate of Fire when ‘counting ammo, evan though only one “bullet” ‘can hit and cause damage ftom that die. Firing all thro® dice with a Thompson gun (Rate of Fire 3), for example, consumes 9 bullets. Most automatic weapons can be set to fie ful auto of single shot. If @ weapon has selectable ‘automatic use (Auto), you can fre a single shot {and also ignore the full-auto penalty of -2) > Suppressive Fire: Insiead of attacking specific targets, characters with fully automatic weapons can "spray" an area with lead in hopes of killing or suppressing a larger number of Victims. To suppress an area, the attacker places the Medium Burst Template on the battlefield ‘and makes a single Shooting roll (regardless of the weapon's Rate of Fire). Include the standard modifiers for range, the full-auto penalty, and any other miscellaneous factors, but ignofe the larget’s modifiers if any (such as being’brone or in cover—these come into playin another way as youll see below). Ifthe attack misses, the spray is offtarget and has no effect, Ifthe attack is successtul, all possible targets, within the area make Spirit rolls, adding any cover modifiers they would normally have against anged attacks to this roll. Those who fail Shaken. Those who roll a 4 on their Spiri (regardless of any Wild Dice) are actually hit the attack and suffer damage normally ‘Suppressive fire uses five times the weapon's Rate of Fira in bullets. A weapon with a Rate of Fire of 3, for example, uses 15 bullats for suppressive fre. ‘Example: Buck and Virginia, two pulp- ‘era adventurers, are escaping from ancient ruins in a stolen biplane. Suddenly, they're ‘swarmed by an evil alligator shaman and iis brainwashed minions. Viginia spins the plane's Maxim gun around and fires. She tusas suppressive fire fo slow them down. ‘She places a Medium Burst Template 16° away-—that's Medium Range for the Maxin— and rolls her Shooting. She gets a 13, ~2 for ful-auto, 2 for an unstable platform (the plane), and ~2 for Madium range, for 2 total fof 7, Suecass! The tribesmen inthe template ‘must oll their Spirtorbe Shaken. Those wito ‘make Rt charge on through, but those wiho roll a 1 are hit! ‘Broaking Tings ant to break Ue te Toughness vies bolw for these kinds jects. Use these rules for solid objects. Larger objects with many components (such as vehicles) take multiple hits as per the vehicie rules. ‘Most anything can be broken given enough time and effort, so use this system only when attempting to break things in a hurry (such as during combat rounds), The Parry of an inanimate object is 2. The catch is that damage rolls against them don't ‘count bonuses from raises on the attack rol nor Aces. Unlike a person or even a vehicle, an attack cannot hit a “vital” area on a lock or a door and thus do more damage. If an attack ‘can't do enough damage to destroy an object, it can't destroy it (at least not quickly). This keeps characters from shaltering swords with a feather and a lucky Strength rol If the damage roll equals or exceeds the object's Toughness, it’s broken, bent, shattered, of otherwise ruined. The GM decides the exact effects—such as whether a good strike opens a hole in a door ar knacks tof its hinges. See Obstacles to attack through objects. » Damage Types: ‘Swords do fa plarcing weapons, and do blunt damage at cosa range far the pui ofthis table, ‘The type of damage is Important for objacts because shooting a single bullet through a door, for instance, may penetrate it, but won't destroy i Only a blunt or cutting attack is likely to destroy ‘a doar in one shot. Object Toughness Object Toughness Damage Type Light Door 8 Blunt, Cutting Heavy Door 10-—_—Blunt Cutting Lock 8 Blunt Piercing Handeuffs 12 Blunt, Piercing, Cutting Knife, Sword = 10——_Blun, Cutting Rope 4 Cutting, Piercing Small Shield 8 +~——_Blunt, Cutting Medium Shield 10 Blunt, Cutting Large Shield 12,-—_Blunt. Cutting Called shots Use the following modifiers and effects when characters wish to target specific locations: Limb (-2): An attack to a limb causes no additional damage but may ignore armor or have some other special effect (see the rm maneuver). + Head or Vitals (~4): The attacker gains +4 damage from a successful attack to these critical areas. The target must actually have Vital areas, and the attacker must know where they are to gain this advantage, + Small Target (-4): Altacks against small targets such as the heart of a vampiro or a missing scale on a large dragon's chest are made at—4, The effect of success depends on the situation—the vampire might die instant, the missing scale may mean the dragon gets no armor, ete. the GM has no particular eect in mind, t adds +4 damage just lke a shot to the head or vitals, + Tiny Target (-8): Particularly small or narrow targets, such as the eyersit of a knight's helmet, carry @ -8 modifier. The effects of a hit depend on the target. In the case of the knight, the blow ignores armor and inficis +4 damage because i's a head shot (as above). his Parry Is increased by +2 until his next action. The defender may move normally while performing this maneuver, but no running or other ‘A character can try to make an opponent drop ‘a weapon (or other object) with either a close combat or @ ranged attack. To cause a disarm check, the attacker must first hil the opponent's arm (-2, see Called Shots). The defender must then make @ Strength rol Ifthe rolls less than the damage, he drops his weapon. The attacker ‘may choose to make this a nonlethal attack with a rmelee weapon. Ranged attacks can be nonlethal ifthe attacker targels the weapon instead of the limb (generally ~4 instead of -2) Double Taps & Three Round Bursts ‘Acharacter wit a semi-automatic weapon (such as aColt 45, an Mt Carbine, oraven an M16) can fire two shots in one action by “double-apping ” Double tapping s a single Shooting roll that gives the user +1 fo hit and damage but expends two rounds of ammunition, Many modem automatic weapons, such as the Mi6A2, have a selector switch that allows the user to go from single shol, to burst fie, to fully ‘automatic as a free action. Burst fire, or a Three Round burst, gives the user +2 to ht and damage, and uses exactly three rounds of ammunition Tha Drop ‘Sometimes an attacker is able to catch a foe off-guard and gets “the drop” on him, This usually happens at a distance of only a few feet, but other situations may occur (a sniper on a nearby rooftop) ‘Only the GM can determine when one character has obtained this kind of advantage over another. Usually its when the victim is in the classic hostage pose, is completely unaware of the, danger, orhas been caught unarmed by an armed foe, The attacker is considered on Hold and adds +4 ois attack and damage rolls should he decide to strike oF Finishing Move ?, ‘A completely helpless victim (bound, unconscious, ete.) may be dispatched with a lethal weapon of some sort as an action. This is ‘automatic unless the GM decides there's a spocial situation, such as a particularly tough or naturally armored vietim, a chance for escape, and so on, The killer must usualy dispatch his ‘ring ata Mateo hanel-to-hand fights. Tl though we might see sill on the table-top, in wrestling ba people, such as a melee, is qu tha Innocent Bystander rules when this (s6e below), Fall Dofensa In addition to the usual Defend option, a character can go for a full defensive action. He makes a Fighting roll at +2 and uses the result as his Perry unti his next action. This is a trait test, so he gets to roll his Wild Die as well. And, ‘of course, the dice can Ace, and yau can choose to use Bennies on the rol if you want to. the full defense maneuver conn! move at al, however. He's doing everything he can fo fend off whatever is attacking him, If he Sanging Up Ganging up on @ foe allows attackers to flank, exploit openings, and generally harass their outnumbered opponent. Each additional adjacent foe adds +1 toallthe attackers Fighting rols, up to ‘a maximum of #4. fthree warriors atack a single hero, for example, each of the three warriors gets a +2 bonus to thelr Fighting ras, ‘rapping Sometimes it's best to restrain an opponent rather than beat him o albloody pulp. That's where grappling comes in. tion. Both the attacker pick either thelr Strength nan opposed roll is made. if defender is free but the attempt is action. If he does so with a raise and may act normally. Failure means he is stil entangled, Instead of breaking free the defender ‘may altempta different action but at a~4 penalty. ‘Alter grappling, the attacker may atiemat to damage his victim on subsequent rounds by king an opposed roll as above. On a success he does his Strength in damage (gaining the. 6 for a raise as normal) Impravisad Weapons Heroes often find themselves fighting with jects that aren't intended for use as weapons. Torches, vases, chairs, tankards, botles, tools, and other mundane items are frequently presses into service in combat. And sometimes characters ind themselves using existing weapons in improvised ways, defending with a ranged weapon in melee or trying to throw a hand weapon not designed to be thrown, ‘Such improvised weapons cause thu wells to suffera—1 Fighting or Throwing penalty, as well as 1 to Parry, The Game Master the final judge of an imerovised weapon's effectiveness + Small Weapons: Range 2/6/12, Damage Str+d4, ROF 1, Min Str d4, —1 attack and Parry + Medium Weapons: Range 2/4/8, Damage Strtd6, RoF 1, Min Strd8, —1 attack and Parry + Large Weapons: Range 1/2/4, Damage Strt08, ROF 1, Min Strd8, —1 attack and Parry Iimocent Bystanders When an attacker misses a Shooting or Throwing roll, it may sometimes be important (0 $90 iFany other targets in the line offre were hit. The GM should only use this rule when its dramatically appropriate—not for every missed shat ina hail of gunfire Each miss thal comes up a t on the Shooting de indicates a random adjacent character was hil Ifthe attacker was fring on full-auto or with & shoigun, a roll of 1 of 2 hits the bystander. Roll damage normally ed characters as well using this quick system y realistic, bt it's fast ang sinerable of finng at opponents locked in melee with the tacker's alles. Mounted Combat Characters fighting from horseback (or other ‘ange beasts) have certain advantages and disadvantages in combat, as described below. ‘Mounts aren't dea Action Gards—they act with their riders. Animals specifically noted as being trained to fight (such as warhorses) may attack any threat to their front during their riders’ act Untrained horses do not ight unless rderless, and ‘even then usually only if comnered. > Horsemanship: Characters who wish to fight from horseback must use the lowest of their Fighting 0 Riding skils. This makes it important for cavalrymen to actually be able to ride well > Collisions: Ifa mounted character runs into something solid—such as 2 wall—oth he end the mount suffer Collision Damage as explained in the Vehicle Rules on page 115. © Running: Riders auffor tho ueual running penalty (-2) to attacks ifthe animal runs, > Falling: Anytime a character is Shaken or suffers a wound while on horseback he must make a Riding roll to stay horsed. If he fails, he falls the horse is moving, the rider suffers 206 damage (ne's merely Fatigued forthe rest of the fight if the horse was stl) > Firing on Mounted Targets: Shots directed at mounted characters use the Innocent Bystander rules to see ifthe norse was hit Of course, an attacker can always alm for the horse instead > Charging: A rider on a charging horse adds +¥4 to his damage roll with a successful Fighting attack. To be considered charging, the rider niust have moved at least 6" or more in a relatively straight line towards his foe. > Setting Weapons: Aweapon with a Reach of 4 or greater can be “set” against a cavalry attack / ‘Todo s0, the attacker must be on Hold when he's attacked by a charging mount (see above). if s0, ne rolls to interrupt as usual, but each ‘combatant adds +2 to his Agility roll for each point of his weapon's reach, The winner attacks first, ‘andadds the +4 chargelvonus to his damage; the loser gains no bonus.

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