The Combat Turn
Each combat turn is 30 seconds long and is divided into six five-second combat phases. A character may perform one action per combat phase, and each action is considered to take the entire phase to complete. An action is a precisely defined activity as listed below.
A combat turn doesn't always have to be broken down into discrete phases, however. Some encounters, such as long car chases with sporadic gunfire for instance, may be better handled by treating the combat turn as a whole. In such a case, the players tell the referee what their characters intend to do during the turn. The referee then determines the activities of the NPCs, resolves fire, and tells the players what their characters see and hear as a result. In many cases, however, it is important to preserve a more rigorous division of time and action.
Characters who are slightly wounded have their Initiative reduced by 1, by 3 if seriously wounded. Characters who have had their Initiative level reduced to 0 may not act at all. (They are not necessarily unconscious, merely too wounded, stunned, and frightened to act effectively.)
Actions in each phase are conducted in a specific order. Characters with the same Initiative as the phase number go first, followed by the next higher Initiative, followed by the next, and so forth. The Handler will moderate this flow of actions by calling out Initiative numbers in the order in which they act. When a character's Initiative number is called, the responsible player tells the referee the action the character is conducting, as in "firing at the creatures in the doorway."
When an NPC's turn comes to act, the Handler will announce that NPC's action provided it is detectable to the characters.
The effect of this sequence is both to limit the number of actions a character can perform to his or her Initiative rating and also to regulate the sequence of actions in a turn.
A typical turn proceeds as follows:
Note that this not only means that high-Initiative characters may attack more frequently in a turn than may lower-initiative characters, it also means that if they choose to move, they can usually move farther. This does not mean that high-Initiative characters could run faster in normal competition, only that they can in a combat situation because they hesitate less. Even lower-Initiative character have the option of choosing movement as a repetitive action, however, and thereby may move as far in one turn as a high-Initiative character.
Agility and Weapon Bulks: If two characters have the same Initiative and are conducting actions at the same time that may interfere with each other (such as firing at each other), the character with the highest Agility goes first. However, for purposes of this determination, subtract the bulk rating of each character's weapon from that character's Agility.
Repetition: A character who decides to do exactly the same thing for an entire turn may conduct that action in every phase of the turn. All repetitive actions are conducted at the beginning of the phase, regardless of the Initiative level of the characters conducting them. However, characters who interrupt their repetitive actions in the middle of a tum may not take any other action until their next regular opportunity to do so in the action sequence, and that next action may only be to go prone or to duck behind cover.
Opportunity Fire: Characters who are aiming in a specified direction or at a specific area may fire immediately upon an enemy who passes through their fine of sight. This fire is resolved as if it happened simultaneously with the target's movement. If the target was visible at the beginning of the aiming character's action, the first shot fired counts as an aimed shot; otherwise all individual shots are considered quick shots. In the case of automatic fire, no shots count as aimed fire.
Characters may fire opportunity fire in a phase in which they would not normally be able to take an action. Once they fire opportunity fire in such a phase, however, they may not do so again until they conduct an additional aim action.
A character who conducts opportunity fire is considered to have taken an action for that phase and may not take another, even if it is his or her normal turn to do so. In the next phase the character is still considered to be aiming at the same point until she or he takes some other action.
A player may only conduct opportunity fire once during a phase.
Ambush: An ambush consists of one or more characters firing at any enemy force from previously undetected positions. Since the ambushers will be undetected, it is probable that the moving force is not conducting combat movement, but simply moving. For purposes of this first combat tum, then, all characters in the moving force with an Initiative other than 6 are considered to be conducting repetitive movement, and thus move every phase. (Characters with an Initiative of 6 may take actions normally.) The ambushers may open fire when one or more of them reach a phase in which they normally can act, or, if they are aiming, when the target enters their line of fire.
A combat turn doesn't always have to be broken down into discrete phases, however. Some encounters, such as long car chases with sporadic gunfire for instance, may be better handled by treating the combat turn as a whole. In such a case, the players tell the referee what their characters intend to do during the turn. The referee then determines the activities of the NPCs, resolves fire, and tells the players what their characters see and hear as a result. In many cases, however, it is important to preserve a more rigorous division of time and action.
Actions
A character may only perform one action per combat phase. Players decide each of their characters' actions only when it is actually time for the character to act. The possible combat actions are explained below:- Fire: The character fires a weapon at any target that is within line of sight or that has been within line of sight at some point during the current phase. With some weapons, this actions can be combined with a walk or trot.
- Aim: Aiming improves the chances of hitting a target. It is done immediately before firing. Aiming at a target or area also enables characters to fire at any target which moves through their line of sight in a later phase. In effect, the firing character is waiting for the target to appear before taking a shot.
- Reload: It generally takes one combat phase to reload a weapon, although some weapons take longer (and thus require several reload actions to finish).
- Melee: This constitutes either an armed attack with a melee weapon (which may be combined with a walk or a trot) or an unarmed or hand-to-hand attack. There are four types of unanned attacks: strike, grapple, escape (any of which may be combined with a walk or a trot), and diving blow (which may be combined with a walk, trot or a run).
- Ready/Change Equipment: This can consist of putting down your rifle and taking out a knife, drawing a pistol, linking two ammo belts together, readying a radio to transmit, etc.
- Crawl: The character moves two meters (one small grid square) in a prone position.
- Walk: The character moves eight meters (roughly four squares).
- Trot: The character moves 15 meters (roughly 8 squares).
- Run: The character moves 30 meters (roughly 16 squares).
- Go Prone/Stand Up: A crawling character is prone. A prone character may stand up at any time, either as an action by itself or as part of a walk, trot, or run action. Standing up cuts the distance moved in an action in half.
- MountIDismount: Get in or out of a vehicle (on or off a mount such as a horse).
- Talk: During combat, players will often want to discuss their plans. But for realism's sake, the Handler is encouraged to keep these discussions to a reasonable length and complexity. Since each action is only five seconds long, players should not say more than one sentence or so during a combat phase. Note that while talking can be combined with most other actions, it cannot be combined with firing.
Initiative
The number of actions that characters may conduct in a combat turn, and the order of their actions, is determined by Initiative values (as explained under "Sequence," below). These numbers range from I to 6 initially, but they can be reduced due to panic or wounds.Characters who are slightly wounded have their Initiative reduced by 1, by 3 if seriously wounded. Characters who have had their Initiative level reduced to 0 may not act at all. (They are not necessarily unconscious, merely too wounded, stunned, and frightened to act effectively.)
Turn Sequence
The six phases of a turn are numbered in reverse order, with phase 6 coming first, phase 5 second, and so on. In each phase all characters with an Initiative equal to or greater than the phase number may conduct an action. In phase 4, for example, all characters with Initiatives of 4, 5, and 6 conduct actions.Actions in each phase are conducted in a specific order. Characters with the same Initiative as the phase number go first, followed by the next higher Initiative, followed by the next, and so forth. The Handler will moderate this flow of actions by calling out Initiative numbers in the order in which they act. When a character's Initiative number is called, the responsible player tells the referee the action the character is conducting, as in "firing at the creatures in the doorway."
When an NPC's turn comes to act, the Handler will announce that NPC's action provided it is detectable to the characters.
The effect of this sequence is both to limit the number of actions a character can perform to his or her Initiative rating and also to regulate the sequence of actions in a turn.
A typical turn proceeds as follows:
- Phase 6: 6 acts.
- Phase 5: 5 acts, 6 acts.
- Phase 4: 4 acts, 5 acts, 6 acts.
- Phase 3: 3 acts, 4 acts, 5 acts, 6 acts.
- Phase 2: 2 acts, 3 acts, 4 acts, 5 acts, 6 acts.
- Phase 1: I acts, 2 acts, 3 acts, 4 acts, 5 acts, 6 acts.
Note that this not only means that high-Initiative characters may attack more frequently in a turn than may lower-initiative characters, it also means that if they choose to move, they can usually move farther. This does not mean that high-Initiative characters could run faster in normal competition, only that they can in a combat situation because they hesitate less. Even lower-Initiative character have the option of choosing movement as a repetitive action, however, and thereby may move as far in one turn as a high-Initiative character.
Agility and Weapon Bulks: If two characters have the same Initiative and are conducting actions at the same time that may interfere with each other (such as firing at each other), the character with the highest Agility goes first. However, for purposes of this determination, subtract the bulk rating of each character's weapon from that character's Agility.
Repetition: A character who decides to do exactly the same thing for an entire turn may conduct that action in every phase of the turn. All repetitive actions are conducted at the beginning of the phase, regardless of the Initiative level of the characters conducting them. However, characters who interrupt their repetitive actions in the middle of a tum may not take any other action until their next regular opportunity to do so in the action sequence, and that next action may only be to go prone or to duck behind cover.
Opportunity Fire: Characters who are aiming in a specified direction or at a specific area may fire immediately upon an enemy who passes through their fine of sight. This fire is resolved as if it happened simultaneously with the target's movement. If the target was visible at the beginning of the aiming character's action, the first shot fired counts as an aimed shot; otherwise all individual shots are considered quick shots. In the case of automatic fire, no shots count as aimed fire.
Characters may fire opportunity fire in a phase in which they would not normally be able to take an action. Once they fire opportunity fire in such a phase, however, they may not do so again until they conduct an additional aim action.
A character who conducts opportunity fire is considered to have taken an action for that phase and may not take another, even if it is his or her normal turn to do so. In the next phase the character is still considered to be aiming at the same point until she or he takes some other action.
A player may only conduct opportunity fire once during a phase.
Ambush: An ambush consists of one or more characters firing at any enemy force from previously undetected positions. Since the ambushers will be undetected, it is probable that the moving force is not conducting combat movement, but simply moving. For purposes of this first combat tum, then, all characters in the moving force with an Initiative other than 6 are considered to be conducting repetitive movement, and thus move every phase. (Characters with an Initiative of 6 may take actions normally.) The ambushers may open fire when one or more of them reach a phase in which they normally can act, or, if they are aiming, when the target enters their line of fire.
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