System:Combat
From DevilshireWiki
Overview
Combat is something easier shown than told--if it seems confusing don't worry, after you take part in a scene or two everything will make much more sense! The following combat tips are intended to be more of a reference than anything final.
Before combat begins, initiative is usually determined by +rolling the number under 'initiative' on your character sheet. Initiative is the order in which characters act during combat and is determined by halving Dexterity, adding Perception, and then adding any other applicable bonuses, rounded down. ((Dex x .5) + Perception + Bonuses, rounded down.) This math has already been done for you and is the number on your sheet.
Characters act in order of initiative. All characters have one attack action and one defense action per round. Characters with a high dexterity might have more actions. Attack actions are taken during your character's turn. Defense actions are taken in response to an enemy character's attack action.
An attack roll is usually Dexterity + Kung Fu, Getting Medieval, or Gun Fu. This might be altered by combat options, combat manuevers, and combat complications.
Defense actions represent blocks, parries, and dodges. The roll is usually Dexterity + Acrobatics, Getting Medieval, Kung Fu. This might be altered or modified by complications or combat options. When an attack action is opposed by a defense action, the higher roll wins. Ties go to the defender. When an attack action is unopposed (either because the target chooses not to defend or has no defense actions left) the attacker merely needs to roll a single success to hit.
To help GMs run combat faster, NPC characters often have preset stats - either numbers that need to be beat in order to hit them or numbers the players have to beat in order to avoid being hit. This speeds up combat by eliminating dice rolls and extra calculations on the GMs part.
If an attack connects damage is dealt.
In order to preserve system and theme integrity, the policy of Devilshire is to only allow staff and PGMs (see PGM) to run combat scenes. The only exception to this rule is sparring scenes. Two characters may spar, with or without rolls, whenever they desire without supervision.
Actions
All characters get one attack action and one defense action per round without any negatives attached. Characters with a very high dexterity get extra actions each round that can be used for either attack or defense, but come with cumulative penalties. The number of actions your character has is listed on the +sheet. The defense action is not listed, however. So, if the +sheet states your character has three actions it means she has three actions to take (the one attack action plus two extra from dexterity) and one dodge.
When a character uses her extra actions is determined by the GM. Some prefer the extra actions to be used all at once, in a single pose while others prefer they get used after everyone in the scene has performed their first (and possible only) actions. Check with the plot runner if you are unsure how they would like you to proceed.
Each extra action, whether used for attack or defense, is taken at a cumulative -2 penalty. So, a character who has three actions and decides to use those actions to throw three punches rolls the first attack as normal, the next at a -2, and the final punch at a -4. Each action is rolled separately.
Resisted Actions
A resisted roll indicates any situation where the dice you roll are countered either by dice rolled by another NPC or the success pool (Brains, Combat, Muscle) of an NPC.
When two opposed rolls are made to determine success in an action (attack versus dodge, telepathy) even if the aggressor succeeds, the successes of the defender are subtracted from the aggressor's successes to determine total success.
Example: Saint rolls 5 successes on his telepathy check to read Truancy's mind. Truancy rolls 3 successes to resist. As such, Saint only comes away with 2 successes rather than 5. As such, he only gets to ask 2 questions.
Example: Charity goes to punch Rose. Charity earns 7 successes. Rose dodges with 4 successes. Charity succeeds with 3 successes, not 7. As such, her punch does STRx2 + 3 damage, not STRx2 + 7.
Example: A monster has a combat score of 16, which constitutes 4 successes. If it attacks Megiddo with an axe and Megiddo gets a 14, it only figures damage off of 1 success. If Stix then attacks it and gets a 22, 6 successes, she only figures damage off of 2 successes.
Armor
| | ||
|---|---|---|
| Description | ||
| Leather or Tweed Jacket | | Typical biker's jacket with lots of zippers or a Watcher's scholarly jacket |
| Leather Armor | | Breastplate, helmet, and arm and leg protectors |
| Chain Mail | | Second value used against bullet attacks |
| Plate Armor | | Second value used against bullet attacks |
| Bulletproof Vest | | Second value used against bullet attacks |
| Combat Armor | | Worn by combat soldiers and SWAT teams |
Complications
Badly Injured
Your character takes a few good hits that are bad for her health. If you drop below a certain number of Life Points, you are considered so badly injured it starts to affect your performance:
10 or fewer Life Points: -2 to attack and defense rolls.
5 or fewer Life Points: -4 to attack and defense rolls.
Blind
Due to magic blindfold, darkness, or just a regular old bag over your head you can't remove for some reason, your PC cannot see anything going on around them. As a result, all of your dodges will be at a -5 until you can see. On top of that, there are two ways you can deal with attacks:
1. Make a perception/notice check that is your only action for one round, then get all your attacks (at a -5 plus any accumulating penalties) the next round.
or
2. Make a perception/notice check and get one action that round at the -5 penalty.
You must succeed on the perception/notice check to attack the person you wish to target. If you do not succeed and decide to attack anyway, it's up to the plot runner who you get! After you've made your attacks, you will need to choose one of these options again if combat is still going when it gets to be your turn in next round.
Bound
There are a large variety of ways to be tied up. If your character's arms are tied but her legs are free, she can kick at no penalty. If her arms are tied in front of her she can punch at a -2 penalty. If she is completely tied down she can't defend or attack until she escapes. Escaping bondage requires a Dexterity + Acrobatics roll.
Consciousness Test
If your character reaches 0 or fewer life points, you must make a Constitution/Willpower test with a penalty of -1 per point below zero. So, if you have -3 life points you must succeed on a Con/Will/-3 roll. Failure means your character is knocked out. Success means your character stays awake. A new consciousness test must be made each time your character takes additional damage until her life points rise above 0 again. Resistance (pain) helps with a consciousness tests.
Fear
In some cases the GM might call for a Fear check, especially when someone is facing the unknown and scary for the first time. The player makes a Willpower/Willpower roll with a penalty based on the level of scariness. A vampire with game face on isn't as scary as a twenty foot tall shambling mound of death. If the player succeeds on the check, there's no problem. If the player fails, her character might be shaken, frozen in panic, or running for her life!
Knocked Down
When a character is knocked down she cannot attack for the rest of the round and defends with a -4 penalty. After that she suffers a -4 to defense and attack rolls until she gets up. Standing requires a full round unless the character gets two successes on a Dexterity/Acrobatics roll to kiyup, in which case they get their normal actions for the round (the kiyup does not count as an action).
Survival Test
If your character reaches -10 of fewer life points, there is a danger of death. The character makes a Constitution/Willpower test with a penalty of -1 per every 10 points below zero. So, if your character has -43 life points she must succeed on a Con/Will/-4 roll or die. Levels of Hard to Kill aid in survival tests. Without medical attention your character is still dying. She must make a new survival test anytime she takes additional damage and once per minute after the initial wound at an additional -1 penalty per minute that has passed.
Damage
Damage on this game can be a bit confusing. Here's the algebraic formula for determining damage:
(Base Damage + Attack SLs - Dodge SLs - Armor Value) x Damage Multiplier
Here's the break down:
Base Damage is determined by your attack type. Most attacks using the Kung Fu and Getting Medieval skills (see skills) have a base damage based on strength. A punch, for example, does a base damage of your character's strength x 2. For a listing of attack types and their damage see weapons.
You add the number of success levels you roll minus the successes of your opponent's defense action to the base damage.
After that, subtract your opponent's armor value. For a listing of armors and their value see armor.
Finally, take that number and multiply it by the attack type's multiplier. There are four types of damage.
Bash Damage: Fists, maces, baseball bats, and so forth. The multiplier is x 1.
Slice Damage: Daggers, swords, arrows, and so forth. The multiplier is x 2.
Bullet Damage: Guns. The multiplier is x 2.
Fire Damage: The multiplier is x 1. A person set on fire takes 3 points of damage every turn until the fire is extinguished.
Damage multipliers might be altered by certain combat maneuvers or a character's special traits.
Maneuvers
Aiming
This delays your attack action until the end of the turn, but is a 'free' roll--it does not take up an action. Roll Perception + the appropriate combat skill. Add the success levels of the aiming roll to the actual attack roll. Note you can only aim on one action per round.
Brain Shot
The idea is to put your weapon or missile inside the other gal's head. Roll the appropriate combat maneuver (Dexterity/Getting Medieval or Gun Fu) with a –4 penalty. Damage Multiplier is x2 for Bash, x3 for Slicing, and x4 for Bullets.
Catch Weapon
Make a Dexterity/Kung Fu/–5 roll. If you get more successes than the shooter/thrower you catch the weapon. Otherwise it does an additional +5 base damage to you.
Decapitation
Take sword. Slice sword through neck. Cut off head. Roll Dexterity/Getting Medieval/–5. The damage multiplier becomes x5 if successful. If the target is reduced to –10 life points she must make a survival test. Failure means her head comes off.
Disarm
To take away someone's weapon, roll Dexterity/Kung Fu/–3 or Dexterity/Getting Medieval/–2 against the target's Dexterity + Getting Medieval. Success means you knock the weapon out of her hand. Three or more successes means you've taken the weapon from her.
Dodge
This is all about getting out of the way. Roll Dexterity/Acrobatics, Dexterity/Kung Fu, or Dexterity/Getting Medieval (whichever is appropriate). If dodging a distance attack take a –2 penalty to the roll. Bullets are dodged at a -6, unless there is cover available in which case they are dodged at a -4.
Double Jump Kick
You leap up in the air and do the splits, putting each foot into someone's face. This works like a regular jump kick but with a –4 penalty instead of a –3. Roll Dexterity/Acrobatics. If you fail this roll, the whole plan goes out the window and you lose the action you would've used for the kick. If you succeed, you then roll Dexterity/Acrobatics/-4. Base damage is 3 x (STR – 1). Add to that a bonus equal to the number of successes you got on your Dexterity/Acrobatics roll. You can also hit two targets at once as long as they are close together, but if you successfully Double Jump Kick you cannot perform any other actions during the round.
Feint
With a feint you fake an attack in order to trick the opponent into blocking or dodging something that isn't there. This leaves them open for the real attack. To make a feint roll Intelligence/Kung Fu or Getting Medieval vs. the target's Perception/Kung Fu or Getting Medieval. If you win, add your successes to your next attack roll against that target.
Grapple
Grab your opponent and hold on. To initiate a grapple roll Dexterity/Kung Fu/2 vs. your opponent's dodge. If you succeed decide if you're grabbing the limbs, body, or neck. When grappled the target is at a –2 to all actions involving the grappled limb or, if body grappled, a –1 to all actions (excepting Headbutt). A neck grapple allows for special maneuvers listed below. The victim can try to break free with a Strength (doubled) roll against the original grapple roll. This costs an action for them, but nothing for the grappler.
Break Neck
You must initiate a successful grapple before you can attempt this maneuver. To break a neck, roll Strength/Kung Fu vs. the defender's Strength/Constitution. If you succeed, base damage is (STR x 4) Bash. If this reduces the target to –10 life points she must make a Survival test with an added penalty of the success levels of your initial Strength/Kung Fu roll. The target dies if she fails. Vampires also make the Survival test but without the added penalty. Failure means the vampire's head is ripped off.
Choke
You must initiate a successful grapple before you can attempt this maneuver. To choke, roll Strength/Kung Fu vs. the defender's Strength/Constitution. If you succeed, base damage is (STR – 1) Bash. Also, your target is choking. She is at a –2 to all actions until she frees herself. If she is still choking after 12 turns she must make a consciousness test each round with a cumulative –1 penalty per round.
Head Butt
You must succeed with a grapple before you can attempt this maneuver or be grappled. Roll Dexterity/Kung Fu. If you succeed you do base (STR x2) damage. If you miss, however, you take the damage instead. Because this is such a close quarters move, a person who is grappled takes no negatives to this roll. Also note that it can't be done if your neck is being grappled.
Toss
Pick up your enemy and throw them away from you. You need a minimum of a 4 in Strength to perform this maneuver. To perform this maneuver you must first initiate a grapple. Then make a Strength (doubled) – 4 roll against the victim's Strength (not doubled) roll. Base damage is Strength, bash. The target is also thrown one yard per success on the Strength (doubled) roll and is knocked down.
Wall Smash
You grab your opponent and swing her, smashing her into a wall. Hence the name of the maneuver. To perform this maneuver first succeed in a grapple. Then roll your Strength/Acrobatics against the target's Strength/Acrobatics. If you win the target hits the wall and takes (Strength x 3) base damage, bash. If the wall has spikes she also takes damage from that.
Wrestling Hold
With this maneuver you grab your opponent from behind and immobilize one or both arms. First make a grapple maneuver and succeed. Then roll Strength/Kung Fu/–2. The defender resists with Strength or Dexterity/Kung Fu. If you win your target is at –1 per your wrestling hold roll's success levels for any action until she breaks free or is let go.
Groin Shot
Roll your appropriate combat maneuver (kicking, punching, baseball Batting…) with a –3 penalty. If you succeed the target takes normal damage and must make a Willpower (doubled) roll. Men make the roll with a penalty equal to twice the success levels of your attack. Women make it with a –1 penalty. If the target fails the Willpower (doubled) check he or she goes down whimpering. Each round after he can make another Willpower (doubled) check with a cumulative +1 bonus per round to get over it.
Jump Kick
Run, leap, impact. The jump kick looks wicked. You need two rolls for this: The first is a Dexterity/Acrobatics roll. If you fail at this roll you fail at the jump part of the jump kick and the whole mission gets scrubbed. Then roll Dexterity/Kung Fu/–3. Base damage is 3 x (STR – 1). Add to that a bonus equal to the number of successes you got on your Dexterity/Acrobatics roll. If you jump kick you can't perform any other attack actions during the round.
Kick
A regular old kick is Dexterity/Kung Fu/–1. Football and soccer players can roll Dexterity/Sports/–1 and ballet dancers can roll Dexterity/Art/–1. Base damage is 2 x (Strength + 1) Bash.
Knockout
Knockouts must be bash based attacks (punches, kicks, clubs, saps, etc.). Roll Dexterity/Kung Fu/–2 or Dexterity/Getting Medieval/–2. Damage is halved but the target has to succeed at a Constitution (doubled) roll with a penalty equal to the successes of your attack. If she fails, she's out cold.
Parry
Can be used in place of Dodge, this is using your weapon or body to block shots or knock them away instead of just moving aside. Make a Dexterity/Kung Fu or Dexterity/Getting Medieval roll. Thrown weapons can be parried at a –2 penalty. Arrows and crossbow bolts are parried at a –6 penalty. You can't parry bullets. Don't try. If you are using a sword or other weapon to parry an unprotected fist, the attacker will take the base damage from the weapon if the parry is successful.
Punch
Fist meet face. Roll Dexterity/Kung Fu. Base damage is Strength x 2.
Slam-Tackle
Bullrush 'em. Knock 'em down. Roll Strength/Sports. If your sport specialty isn't one that involves some sort of physical assault then make the roll at a -2. Football players get more practice at this than baseball players do. The target can dodge but not parry. Damage is Strength x2 bash. If your target doesn't make a Strength (not doubled) check she goes down hard. You can choose to grapple a successfully tackled target's legs or torso at the end of the attack. You can't perform any other attack in the same round you slam-tackle.
Spin Kick
A classic move. Pivot on one foot and kick while turning. Dexterity/Kung Fu/–2. Base damage is 2 x (Strength + 2) bash.
Sweep Kick
This one's about knocking the other guy down. Roll Dexterity/Kung Fu/–1. The base damage is Strength x2 bash. If you succeed, the defender must also resist with a Strength/Acrobatics check against your attack roll or fall down and be considered prone.
Takedown
Tackling knocks someone down. Sweep kicks throw people off balance. This maneuver is all about throws and wrestling flips and trips. Roll Strength/Kung Fu vs a normal dodge or parry. If the target loses she goes down to the mat, is considered prone and takes a Strength x2 base damage, bash.
Target Limb
Leg breakers break legs. Sometimes you want to go for the hurt instead of the kill. To target a limb for breakage, make the appropriate attack at a –2 penalty. If you do over half the target's life points in damage, the limb is crippled. Damage beyond the half-way mark is lost.
Through the Heart
Take stake A. Insert into heart B. This works well on humans and on vampires. Roll Dexterity/Getting Medieval/–3. Damage to non-vamps gets a x4 multiplier while against vampires the multiplier is x5. If the vamp is reduced to 0 life points or fewer she's dust. If not, apply the regular x2 damage modifier instead. You didn't hit the heart right.
Thrown Weapon
Throwing a weapon uses a Dexterity/Getting Medieval/–1 roll. Damage is determined by the weapon.
Wall Flip
Run up to the wall, then run up the wall, kick off, flip and land behind someone. Make a Dexterity/Kung Fu/–3 roll or a Dexterity/Acrobatics/-3 roll. If you succeed you get +3 to your defense rolls for the rest of the round. If you fall you suffer Strength x2 (your strength), bash damage and fall down like a moron. Which is hilarious.
Options
Attacking from behind
If your opponent is unaware of your existence they cannot defend against your attack. If they are aware of your existence but you are out of their line of sight they defend with a -2 penalty. Situational Awareness negates both these penalties.
Full Defense
At the top of the combat round you can choose to go full defense. This gives you an extra defense action during the round, at no penalty. It also gives you a +3 bonus to all defense actions during the round. On the downside, you cannot attack during the round.
Full Offense
At the top of the combat round you can choose to go full offense. This gives you a +2 bonus to all attack actions during the round. However, you cannot perform defense actions during the round.
Multiple Attackers
You get a bonus when you have allies attacking the same target as you during the same round. For each ally you have joining your attack you get a +1 bonus. The maximum bonus that can result from this option is a +4 bonus. You cannot receive a bonus from someone that has not attacked yet. For instance: if Anne attacks Frank, she has no bonus. If Jim then also attacks Frank, he gets a +1 to his attack because Anne is distracting Frank. If John also attacks Frank, he is at a +2. When it gets back to be Anne's turn, she will then attack at a +2 because Jim and John are helping her.
Firearms
In the Buffy RPG system guns weren't really meant to be used often, as it is Slayer-centric tabletop and the Council does not approve of guns. The way the book system handled guns made them unbalanced for this environment. Devilshire MUX has decided to handle gunfire in the following manner. Someone wielding a gun can choose to fire in one of two ways:
Firing at a specific enemy:
The character can make a single shot per action per turn at normal bonuses and penalties. They may apply maneuvers to these shots with the requisite penalties or bonuses they confer. Characters with multiple actions based on dexterity can fire a single shot per granted action in this manner.
Firing at an enemy's location:
The character has the option, regardless of # of actions per round, to empty up to a small clip in the 5 second span of a round (6 shots). This is because most human beings, even if they aren’t Olympic level athletes, dexterity-wise, can pull a trigger 6 times in a few seconds. However they fire rapidly at the expense of accuracy because of it. To do this they must make their /single/ roll at a penalty equal to (# of bullets being fired) x2. They cannot apply any combat maneuvers to it. All bullets from this barrage are dodged with a single roll. This takes into consideration that when firing rapidly you are firing at an "area" rather than something specific; so a player can get out of the line of fire with one movement. Note, this will also mean a player may need to reload far more often if they go about firing 6 bullets per turn.
Weapons
Not every weapon a person could use is accounted for in this chart. Do your best to give approximate values to things when PCs get creative--like when using a chair to bash something you might pretend it has the same damage as a club, etc.
| | Weapon | Damage | Description | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axe* | | Used by fire departments and medieval knights, although for different purposes. Long-handled axes can be wielded two-handed. | |||
| Axe (Thrown) | | ||||
| Baseball Bat* | | Sports skill can be substituted for Getting Medieval for bat only. This damage rating also applies to things like sledgehammers and coat racks. | |||
| Baton/Club | | Things like police batons, belaying pins, rebars, or the heavy half of a pool cue. | |||
| Bow | | Maximum damage before multiplier is 20. Ancient weapon for killing at distance. Now comes in composite and high tech materials. Ranges: Short (under 5 yards) no penalty, Medium (under 20 yards) -1, Long (up to 50 yards). | |||
| Brass Knuckles | | You thug, you. | |||
| Crossbow | | Maximum damage before multiplier is 16. Smaller and more manly than a bow. Ranges: Short (under 5 yards) no penalty, Medium (under 20 yards) -1, Long (up to 50 yards). | |||
| Crossbow (Pistol) | | Base damage 10. Maximum damage before multiplier is 14. 'Bow' part folds against stock; can be holstered like a gun. | |||
| Knife | | Switchblades, easily concealed knives. Used by thugs, lowlifes, and the Iron Chef. | |||
| Knife (Thrown) | | ||||
| Knife (Shiv) | | Also called 'pigstickers'. | |||
| Knife (Shiv/Thrown) | |||||
| Knife (Big Ass) | | Requires strength of 4 or better to throw. Called shortswords way back when. | |||
| Pepper Spray | | Willpower (Doubled) roll required to act. Victim can make new roll each round w/cumulative +1 roll per round. -2 for 4 rounds even w/success. Does not work at range. Uses Kung Fu skill. | |||
| Pistol | | Standard size. Ranges for all pistols, regardless of classification: short (under 5 yards) no penalty, medium (under 20 yards) -1, long (up to 50 yards). | |||
| Pistol (Small) | | Small caliber, easily concealed pop guns. | |||
| Pistol (Big) | | Guns like .357 Magnums and .45 Colts. | |||
| Pistol (Big Ass) | | Your .44 Magnums and Eagle.50 styles of gun. | |||
| Rifle | | Ranges: short (under 20 yards) no penalty, medium (under 100 yards), long (up to 300 yards). These are hunting rifles and the like. | |||
| Shotgun | | Trespassers will be shot. Ranges: short (under 5 yards) no penalty, medium (under 20 yards) -1, long (up to 50 yards). | |||
| Shotgun (Sawed Off) | Suffers -2 to attack roll but much easier to conceal. | ||||
| Spear* | | A stick with a pointy thing at the end. Almost always used two-handed; if not, damage drops to 3xSTR. | |||
| Spear (Thrown) | | ||||
| Staff* | | Basically a long stick, but useful. Used two-handed. A pool cue can double as a quarterstaff as well as a stake on the narrow end. | |||
| Stake | | Usually wood, usually home-made, and often improvised. | |||
| Stake (Thrown) | | It's not as effective as when it's used close up, but desperate times call for desperate measures. | |||
| Submachine Gun | | This is basically a pistol that shoots lots of bullets very fast. Can autofire or burst fire. Ranges: short (under 5 yards) no penalty, medium (under 20 yards) -1, long (up to 50 yards). | |||
| Sword* | | Rapiers, broadswords, katanas, things like that. Not all swords can be wielded two handed. | |||
| Sword (Big Ass) | | Two handed damage bonus already included. Bigger and heavier than regular swords (what a surprise), these can only be used two-handed. | |||
| Taser | | CON/CON – (3+SL) to stay conscious. -1 for 4 rounds even with success. Does not work at range. Uses Getting Medieval. | |||
| Taser Rifle | | CON/CON -(5+SL) to stay conscious. -2 for 4 rounds even w/success. | |||
| Tranquilizer Gun | | Ranges: short (under 20 yards) no penalty, medium (under 100 yards), long (up to 300 yards). A typical dose of tranquilizer is a narcotic poison with Strength 6. Each success level in the poison roll reduces the victim's Strength by one; if reduced to zero, the victim falls unconscious for one hour. Vampires and some supernatural beings recover faster; reduce unconsciousness time by 10 minutes per Constitution level to a minimum of 10 minutes. | |||
| Devilshire News File Topics | ||
| News Files | Building Guide • Copyright • Policy • Resources • Staff | |
| New Player Information | Application Procedure • Census • Character Types • Playing Villains • Restricted Concepts • Sample Character Background | |
| Game System | Attributes • Combat • Drama Points • Drawbacks • Fear • Global Commands • Experience Points • Human Qualities • Human Drawbacks • LP & Healing • Magic • Magic Spells A • Magic Spells B • Note • Package Qualities • Rolling • Skills • Supernatural Qualities • Supernatural Drawbacks • Superscience | |
| Setting and Theme | Overview • History • Folktales • Speech • The Four Families • Town • Conflict • Theme | |
| Characters | Casting • NPC Casting • The Devlin Family • The Harget Family • The Moore Family • The Swann Family | |
