Initiative
To reiterate from the Storypath chapter: At the start of a combat encounter, roll initiative to determine who acts first. Each player rolls for their individual characters and the Storyguide rolls for hers. Groups of Storyguide characters with similar statistics may share an initiative roll.
A character’s initiative pool is equal to the character’s best combat-related Skill + Cunning. This pool represents a character’s martial acumen and mental presence in the fight. Tally the total number of successes for each character, and rank them from highest to lowest. Results generated by player characters become PC slots; results generated by SGCs become SGC slots. This is the initiative roster.
The players choose which of them gets to take the first PC slot, then that player decides which of them takes the next slot, and so on. Similarly, the Storyguide determines which order her characters act in. In the event of a tie between Storyguide and player, favor the player.
Once initiative is rolled, the round begins. When it is a character’s turn to act, they can take either one simple or one mixed action, though they may only attack once per turn. Reflexive actions can be taken at any time, even if it’s not your character’s turn.
Reflexive actions are done automatically, and often do not require any kind of roll. Activating a Knack is reflexive unless stated otherwise. They represent activities that take little to no time to perform. Actions such as looking around, retrieving objects from a holster, moving no faster than a character’s maximum speed, or standing up from a prone position, are all considered reflexive actions and do not require a roll, but do count towards action limits for mixed actions.
Simple actions cover anything that would occupy a character’s full attention, such as stabbing an ice golem in the heart.
A mixed action is what characters use when doing two things at once, such as climbing up a really big ice golem while trying to stab it. Mixed actions use the lower of the two involved pools, and split the successes between the two actions.
Example: Vera, playing Sigrun, is trying to keep her balance on a soaring winged beast while also trying to stab it through the heart. Her Dexterity + Athletics is 4 and her Close Combat + Might is 6, so she must use the lower pool. She gets 2 successes. The creature has a Defense of 2, so she must choose between falling off the monster or missing the attack.
A character’s initiative pool is equal to the character’s best combat-related Skill + Cunning. This pool represents a character’s martial acumen and mental presence in the fight. Tally the total number of successes for each character, and rank them from highest to lowest. Results generated by player characters become PC slots; results generated by SGCs become SGC slots. This is the initiative roster.
The players choose which of them gets to take the first PC slot, then that player decides which of them takes the next slot, and so on. Similarly, the Storyguide determines which order her characters act in. In the event of a tie between Storyguide and player, favor the player.
ACTION PHASE
Once initiative is rolled, the round begins. When it is a character’s turn to act, they can take either one simple or one mixed action, though they may only attack once per turn. Reflexive actions can be taken at any time, even if it’s not your character’s turn.
Reflexive actions are done automatically, and often do not require any kind of roll. Activating a Knack is reflexive unless stated otherwise. They represent activities that take little to no time to perform. Actions such as looking around, retrieving objects from a holster, moving no faster than a character’s maximum speed, or standing up from a prone position, are all considered reflexive actions and do not require a roll, but do count towards action limits for mixed actions.
Simple actions cover anything that would occupy a character’s full attention, such as stabbing an ice golem in the heart.
A mixed action is what characters use when doing two things at once, such as climbing up a really big ice golem while trying to stab it. Mixed actions use the lower of the two involved pools, and split the successes between the two actions.
Example: Vera, playing Sigrun, is trying to keep her balance on a soaring winged beast while also trying to stab it through the heart. Her Dexterity + Athletics is 4 and her Close Combat + Might is 6, so she must use the lower pool. She gets 2 successes. The creature has a Defense of 2, so she must choose between falling off the monster or missing the attack.
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