Notes

Chapter Three:
Game Rules
It’s time to learn how to actually
play the game. Don’t worry—it’s not
hard! You’ll be ready to go in no time!
Wild Cards & Extras
Your hero (a player character), and unique
villains and monsters are collectively called
“Wild Cards.” These beings have a little
better chance at doing things, are a little
tougher to put down, and are generally more
detailed than common guards, minions, or
lackeys—collectively called “Extras.”
Wild Cards are noted with the picture of
Smiling Jack by their name, like this:
Buck Savage
Besides your own characters, it’s
up to the Game Master to decide
which NPCs are Wild Cards. The sergeant
of the City Watch probably isn’t a Wild Card,
but Sergeant Grimlock of the City Watch,
a veteran of many wars and an important
character in your campaign, certainly is.
Skytch the Dragon is also a Wild Card,
though his three young wyrms aren’t. You’ll
see the difference between Wild Cards and
Extras as you continue to read, but for later
reference, the differences are:
• Wild Cards suffer multiple wounds.
• Wild Cards always roll a Wild Die along
with their Trait die when making tests and
take the better of the two.
Trait Tests
To use an attribute or skill, simply roll the die
assigned to it. If the result is a 4 or better (the
“ Target Number” or TN), you’re successful!
Modifi ers
Circumstances modify your die roll, such
as shooting at something at long range or
fi nding a well-hidden clue. Some things, such
as ranged attacks, have standard modifi ers.
It’s up to the GM to determine any modifi ers
for more subjective tasks, such as spotting an
ambush or eavesdropping on a conversation
through a door.
In general, an easy task, such as fi nding
tracks in the mud, is made at +2. A diffi cult
task, such as fi nding tracks by torchlight,
is made at -2. A very diffi cult task, such as
fi nding tracks in a rainstorm, is made at -4.
The Wild Die
Extras roll a single die as described above.
But Wild Cards roll an extra d6 and take the
best of their normal die or the “Wild Die” when
making skill or attribute rolls. Wild Dice are
rolled just like the Trait die, and can Ace as
well (see below).
The downside is that snake-eyes (double
1s) on one of these rolls is a critical failure
of some sort. The GM gets to make up
something rotten to happen to your character.
That’s the price Fate charges for making
someone a hero.
Unskilled Attempts
If a character doesn’t have a skill for
an action he’s attempting, he rolls 1d4
and subtracts 2 from the total. Wild Card
characters still get their Wild Die for these
rolls (which are also subject to the -2 penalty).
The GM may occasionally decide that a
character has no chance at a particular skill
if he has no training in it—such as performing
surgery or fl ying a plane.
57
Aces
All Trait tests and damage rolls in Savage
Worlds are “open-ended.” That means that
when you roll the highest number possible on
a die (a 6 on a d6, an 8 on a d8, and so on),
you get to roll that die again and add it to the
total. This is called an “Ace.” Any modifi ers to
the die roll should be tacked on after adding
up an Aced roll.
Example: Buck Savage, an
international adventurer, is fi ghting a
group of wild-eyed cultists. He has a
d10 Shooting and rolls an Ace (a 10),
and so rolls again. He gets another
10, then rolls again and gets a 3. His
total is (10+10+3=) 23!
Opposed Rolls
Sometimes rolls are “opposed”
by an opponent. If two characters
are wrestling for control of an
ancient artifact, for example, they
both make Strength rolls and
compare results.
When this happens, the acting
character gets his Trait total fi rst.
If he wants to spend bennies (see
the next section), he does so now.
When he’s satisfi ed with his total,
with no clear victor.
Raises
Sometimes it’s important to
know just how successful a
Trait 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
rolls an 11, he hits with one
raise (and would have two raises
with a roll of 12). Figure raises after
adjusting for any modifi ers.
Cooperative Rolls
Sometimes characters may want to
cooperate and help a friend complete some
kind of urgent task. If two or more characters
want to perform a task together (and the GM
decides it’s possible for them to do so), the
lead character makes his roll and adds +1
for every success and raise his companions
achieved on their own rolls. This has a normal
maximum of +4 for all tasks except those of
Strength, which have no maximum.
Example: Buck and Virginia
research the Eye of Kilquato
together. The GM decides
that’s reasonable. Buck is the
lead character and makes his
Investigation roll. Virginia
makes a roll as well and
gets a raise. She adds
+2 to Buck’s total.
Group Rolls
When you want to
make a noncombat Trait
roll for a group of Extras
you don’t have to roll it
one character at a time,
instead roll one Trait die
as usual along with a Wild
his opponent gets to roll. The
highest total wins. In a tie, the
two foes continue to struggle
Die. Take the best of the
two as always and treat
this as the group’s total.
This way you get a nice
average without having to
make Guts rolls for every
NPC who sees a dragon,
or watch one goofball ruin
a stealthy approach for his
49 companions.
58
Bennies
Every now and then the dice may betray
you. That’s why Savage Worlds gives you,
the player, a little control over your hero’s
fate.
Every player starts each game session
with three “bennies,” gaming stones or
other tokens that signify a little bit of good
luck or fate. The Game Master may also
give you more bennies for great roleplaying,
overcoming major obstacles, or even
entertaining everyone with an outlandish
action, side-splitting in-game joke, or other
memorable act. (Tips for awarding bennies
can be found under Advancement.)
You can use bennies to reroll any Trait test.
Make the entire roll from scratch. If you’re
fi ring three shots on full-auto and don’t like the
results, pick up all three dice and your Wild
Die and roll again. You can keep spending
bennies and rerolling as long as you like, and
take the best of your attempts.
If you roll a 5, for example, and a
benny gets you a 4, keep the original
5 instead.
Bennies cannot be spent on tables,
damage rolls (unless a character has
the No Mercy Edge), or any other roll
that isn’t a Trait roll.
Soak Rolls
Bennies can also be used to save your
bacon from deadly attacks. Choose
carefully where you spend them! See
Damage for complete information on
how to make Soak rolls.
Game Master Bennies
Game Masters get bennies too. At
the start of each session, the GM gets
one benny for each player character.
He may use these for any of his villains
throughout the course of the night.
Each of the GM’s Wild Cards also gets
two bennies per game session. They can use
these or 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.
Example: A vile crocodile cult
is led by an evil shaman (a Wild
Card). Buck and Virginia are the
only player characters, so the GM
gets two bennies for the shaman,
plus two more for the pair of player
characters.
The shaman can use any of the
bennies, but his fanatical tribesmen,
crocodile servants, and other minions
can only use the two from the common
pool.
59
Combat
Great heroes must often overcome violent
foes. Here’s how to resolve fi ghts in Savage
Worlds.
Time
When a fi ght breaks out, game time breaks
down into rounds of six seconds each. Ten
rounds, then, is one minute.
The Battlefi eld
In combat with more than a few opponents,
the Game Master should make a quick
map of the terrain on some sort of erasable
surface. Chessex® makes great Battle
Mats™ already marked off with 1” squares or
hexes (visit them at www.chessex.com).
You can then place miniatures on the map
to show exactly where everyone is during
the fi ght.
The terrain can be sketched out quickly and
easily with an erasable marker to make sure
everyone understands the tactical situation.
You can also use miniatures terrain or a plain
tabletop with a ruler. The more detailed you
get, the more likely everyone is to make use
of their surroundings and do more than just
say “I attack.”
Distance
Movement, weapon ranges, and the like
are listed in inches to help when playing with
miniatures. In the “real world,” each inch is
equal to 2 yards.
If the GM needs a different scale to
accommodate a larger battle, simply divide
weapon and movement ranges as needed.
60
Allies
Allied NPCs are divided up among all the
players to control. This is a very important
part of Savage Worlds because our settings
often feature allied bands of skilled hirelings,
fellow grunts, or loyal retainers, and the game
is designed to handle them quickly and easily.
It’s also designed for the players to control
them—not the Game Master.
It doesn’t matter whether or not the
characters control the allies, only that the
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
NPCs when the need arises, but with good,
mature roleplayers, this should rarely be
necessary.
Initiative
The action in Savage Worlds is fast and
furious. To help the Game Master keep track
of who goes in what order and add a little
randomness, we use a single deck of playing
cards with 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 well.
• Each group of Game Master characters,
such as all zombies, all wolves, and so on,
share a card.
Exactly which nonplayer character groups
get their own cards is up to the GM. If he
wants to break his 30 zombies into 5 groups
of 6, that’s fi ne. Your goal is to do whatever
makes running the battle as quick and easy
as possible. Generally, Wild Cards and other
unique characters get their own card.
Shuffl e
Shuffl e the deck after any round in which
a Joker was dealt (see below).
The Countdown
Once the cards are dealt, the Game Master
starts the round by counting down from the
Ace to the Deuce, with each group resolving
its actions when its card comes up.
Ties: Ties are resolved by suit order:
Spades are fi rst, then Hearts, Diamonds, and
Clubs (reverse alphabetical order).
The Joker Is wild!
What happens if you’re dealt a Joker? Glad
you asked. Jokers act as “wild cards.” You
can go whenever you want in the round,
even interrupting another character’s action
if you want! In addition, you add +2 to all
Trait tests this round, and +2 to damage
totals as well!
61
Hold
A hero may choose to wait and see what
happens by taking a Hold action. He may
then go later in the round if he chooses. A
Held action lasts until it’s used. If a character
has a Held card when a new round starts,
he’s not dealt in.
Interrupting Actions: If a character on
Hold wants to interrupt an action, he and
the opponent make opposed Agility rolls.
Whoever rolls highest goes fi rst. In the rare
case of a tie, the actions are simultaneous.
Surprise
Combat often starts before everyone
involved is prepared. An ambush, a sudden
double-cross, or a trap might all give one side
in a fi ght an edge over the other.
When this happens, the side that started
the fi ght is not dealt cards, but begins the
fi ght on Hold. Victims of the surprise attack
must make Notice rolls. Those who make it
are dealt in as usual. Those who fail get no
card in the fi rst round of combat.
Example: Buck and Virginia are
creeping down the bank of a river
when they’re spotted by two native
warriors hiding behind a tree. The
natives wait until the two are within
striking range to spring their attack.
The two warriors are on Hold and
get to attack immediately. If Buck and
Virginia make their Notice rolls they’re
dealt in normally. If not, they have to
wait until the next round to act.
Standoff!
Occasionally, you might run into a situation
where everyone is effectively on Hold. Maybe
you’re in the middle of a tense negotiation
when one person goes for his gun. In these
situations, everyone should roll their Agility
since they are all on Hold and act in order
of highest to lowest (ties are simultaneous).
Deal everyone in as normal on the next
round.
Actions
Characters perform “actions” when their
card comes up each round. A character
can perform one regular action—attacking,
running, casting a spell, and so on—without
penalty.
Multiple Actions
Characters may also perform multiple
actions such as Intimidating someone while
blasting away with a shotgun, running and
Fighting, attacking with a weapon in each
hand, and so on. A hero can’t fi re more than
his weapon’s rate of fi re in a round, however,
nor may he make more than one Fighting
attack with the same weapon.
In essence, a hero may not perform
the same action twice in a round. The
actions are assumed to take place almost
simultaneously, so a character couldn’t make
two simultaneous Intimidation rolls or cast
two different 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 at the same time.
He could only make two Fighting attacks if
he had a knife in each hand, however (or had
the Frenzy Edge).
Each additional action attempted in a round
subtracts 2 from all the hero’s rolls. If an
adventurer wants to fi re a gun with one hand
and slice at an adjacent foe with the other, for
instance, he subtracts 2 from both rolls. If he
also wanted to make a test of wills against
someone at the same time, he subtracts 4
from all his rolls.
Wild Cards get their Wild Die on each action
as usual.
Example: Backed into a corner,
Buck tries to shoot one cultist and
Intimidate another. Both his Shooting
and Intimidate totals suffer a -2
penalty because he took two actions
instead of one.
62
Free Actions
Some minor actions are “free” and don’t
infl ict multi-action penalties. Speaking a short
sentence or two, moving up to the character’s
Pace, falling 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 for a
single action, such as when fi ring a machine
gun, they roll only one Wild Die. A warrior
with the Frenzy Edge, for example, rolls two
Fighting dice and one Wild Die. He can use
the Wild Die’s total to replace either of his
Fighting dice if he chooses. The Wild Die
must either replace one of the regular dice
or be ignored—it never adds another action
or attack to the roll.
Example: Buck Savage captures a
Tommy Gun from an evil cultist and
turns it on the rest of the vile cabal.
His Shooting is d12 and the weapon
has a rate of fi re of 3. He gets three
d12s for the weapon’s high rate of fi re
plus his Wild Die. Even if all the dice
indicate success, he still only gets
3 hits—the Wild Die doesn’t add an
extra attack.
Movement
Most humans can move their Pace (usually
6”) in a round. This is considered a “free
action.” Other types of movement are
covered below:
Crawling: A character may crawl 2” per
turn. This counts as being prone when being
fi red upon.
Crouching: A character may move while
crouching at half Pace. He may run while
crouched (halve his total Pace after rolling
for running). Ranged attacks against him
suffer a -1 penalty.
Going Prone: A fi gure may fall prone at any
time during its action. This usually counts as
Medium Cover as well (see Cover).
Getting up costs 2” of movement. Smart
characters in settings where lead is fl ying
move, shoot, and then get prone behind
cover before their action is over, forcing
attackers to go on Hold to attack them.
Diffi cult Ground: Diffi cult ground such as
mud, steep hills, or snow, slows characters
down. Count each inch of diffi cult ground as
two inches for 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 additional 1d6”
during his turn if he wishes. Characters
suffer a -2 penalty (the standard multi-action
penalty) to all other actions made while
running.
Group Running Rolls:
When rolling for
a group of nonplayer characters,
villains, or monsters, the GM
or controlling player makes a
single running roll. The whole
group doesn’t actually have to
run—it’s just a convenient way
to save a little time in the heat
of battle.
63
Combat Actions
Characters can perform a multitude
of actions when their card comes up in
combat. The most common actions are
making tests of wills, using a power, or
attacking with the Fighting or Shooting
skill. These are all covered on the following
pages.
Simpler actions such as readying an
item, drawing a sword, or other quick tasks
usually take one action. More complex
actions, such as lighting a torch, digging
through a backpack to fi nd a small item,
and so on, might require a random number
of rounds—say 1d6 rounds. The Game
Master has the fi nal say.
Readying Weapons
Drawing a weapon usually takes an entire
round, but a character can do it faster if she
wants. This is an action, however, and so
infl icts the standard multi-action penalty of
-2 the character’s attack roll.
Drawing two weapons at once, drawing a
weapon from a diffi cult location (such as an
ankle holster or inside a coat), or drawing a
large or unwieldy weapon (a rifl e, a shotgun,
etc.), follows the same procedure as outlined
above but requires an Agility roll.
Example: Buck draws his machete
and hacks at the spear-wielding
cultists surrounding him. Buck doesn’t
want to take a full round to draw his
weapon, so he takes the -2 penalty
to his Fighting roll instead.
If Buck wanted to draw his machete
and his pistol, he could do so, but
he’d have to make an Agility roll fi rst.
If he managed to do so, he’d suffer
a -4 penalty to both his Fighting
and Shooting (–2 for drawing and
attacking, and another –2 for the
additional attack).
Attacks
The heart of Savage Worlds is its fast,
furious combat. Here’s everything you need
to know to decimate your foes and keep your
hero alive.
Fighting
A character may make one hand attack
per round. The Target Number to hit is equal
to the opponent’s Parry score (2 plus half
his Fighting ability; that’s a 2 if he has no
Fighting skill!).
Bonus Damage: If your attack hits with
a raise, add +1d6 to your damage total as
well! The d6 may Ace just like any other
damage roll.
Example: Buck slices at a croc with
his machete and hits with a raise. He
makes a Strength roll and adds +d6
for the machete. Then he adds +1d6
to the total for his raise.
64
Shooting & Throwing
The Shooting skill covers everything from
pistols to rocket launchers. The base TN to
hit 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 +1d6 to the damage total. This roll
may Ace just like any other damage roll.
Range Modifi ers
Range Modifi er
Short -
Medium -2
Long -4
Rate of Fire
The Rate of Fire is how many Shooting dice
the character rolls when fi ring the weapon.
Many submachine guns, for example, have
a Rate of Fire of 3, and therefore let the
player roll up to 3 Shooting dice at once, at
up to 3 different targets. These shots can be
desires, but must all be taken at the same
time. A shooter with an Uzi can’t fi re one shot,
then move and fi re two more, for instance.
Wild Cards roll one Wild Die as usual with
the Shooting roll, and can use it in place of
one of the Shooting dice if they choose.
Real automatic weapons can fi re hundreds
and even thousands of rounds per minute.
We don’t want to roll that many dice, track
how many rounds are “lost” between
targets, and so on, so each Shooting die
actually represents several actual bullets.
Each die rolled for a fully-automatic weapon
represents a number of actual bullets
equal to its rate of fi re. An Uzi with a Rate
of Fire of 3, for example, uses 3 rounds of
ammunition per shot (or 9 bullets if it fi res
with all 3 dice). Don’t worry about these “lost”
bullets—they’re already accounted for in the
way autofi re works in the game.
Most automatic weapons can be set to fi re
full-auto or single shot. Unless a weapon
says otherwise, you can fi re a single shot
(and thereby ignore the automatic fire
penalty of -2—see Automatic Fire on the
next page).
Automatic weapons may also use the
s u p p r e s s i v e f i r e
maneuver.
Example: Buck
Tommy Gun with
a rate of fi re of 3.
That gives him
3 dice plus his
Wild Die, though
he can still only
nominate and hit
three possible
split among all possible targets as the player
fi res off his trusty
targets. Firing all
three pos s ibl e
shots uses up 9
actual rounds of
ammunition.
65
Special Rules
Below are a number of rules for special
maneuvers characters might perform during
furious combat.
Aim
A character who spends a full round aiming
(no movement allowed) may add +2 to his
Shooting or Throwing roll in the following
round versus whatever he aimed at (a
person, vehicle, etc). 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 Small, Medium,
and Large Burst Templates, found on our
website at www.peginc.com.
To attack with an area effect 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 as usual. If the attack is successful, the
blast is centered where desired. Everything
under (or partially under) the template is
affected. Roll damage separately for each
target affected.
Failure means the blast deviates. Just how
far depends on whether it was thrown or
launched, and what range bracket the target
was in (Short, Medium, or Long). Roll 1d6”
for thrown weapons (such as grenades) and
1d10” for fi red projectiles. Multiply by 1 for
Short range, 2 for Medium, and 3 for Long.
Next roll a d12 and read it like a clock facing
to determine the direction the missile deviates.
A weapon can never deviate more than half
the distance to the original target. That keeps
things from going behind the thrower.
Unlike other attacks, raises on the attack
roll do not add to damage to area effect
attacks.
Cover: Targets who are prone or behind
cover still get some protection from areaeffect
attacks. In these cases, the modifi er
they would normally receive against ranged
attacks acts as that many points of Armor
instead. A character in major cover, like a
foxhole, negates four points of damage from
a blast if he’s caught within it.
Diving for Cover: Thrown weapons with
a blast effect (such as grenades) and most
artillery allow potential targets a chance to
move out of the area of effect. Give targets
who saw the danger coming an Agility roll
at -2 to jump out of the way and avoid the
damage. If successful, move the character
just outside the template (his choice exactly
where). Grenades can be thrown back as
well (see below).
Automatic Fire
Fully automatic fi re (anything with a Rate
of Fire of two or more) is less accurate than
usual. The fi rer subtracts 2 from his Shooting
rolls when fi ring such a weapon. Each die
rolled on full-auto represents a number of
bullets equal to the weapon’s Rate of Fire.
Breaking Things
Occasionally a character may want to
break something, such as a weapon, a lock,
or a door. Use the Toughness values below
for these kinds of objects. Use these rules
for solid objects. Larger objects with many
components (such as vehicles) take multiple
hits as per the vehicle 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 roll,
nor Aces (even on Strength rolls in melee).
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 shattering swords with
a feather and a lucky Strength roll.
66
If the damage roll equals or exceeds
the object’s Toughness, it’s broken, bent,
shattered, or otherwise ruined. The GM
decides the exact effects—such as whether a
good strike opens a hole in a door or knocks
it off its hinges.
See Obstacles to attack through objects.
Damage Types: After the type of Object
and its Toughness is the type of damage
that can affect the object. Swords do cutting
or piercing damage, spears are piercing
weapons, and so on. Bullets are considered
piercing weapons, though shotguns do blunt
damage at close range for the purpose of
this table.
The type of damage is important for objects
because shooting a single bullet through a
door, for instance, may penetrate it, but won’t
destroy it. Only a blunt or cutting attack is
likely to destroy a door in one shot.
Called Shots
Use the following modifi ers 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
Disarm 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): Attacks against small
targets such as the heart of a vampire 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 instantly,
the missing scale may mean the dragon gets
no armor, etc. If the GM has no particular
effect in mind, it adds +4 damage just like a
shot to the head or vitals.
Tiny Target (-6): Particularly small or
narrow targets, such as the eye-slit of a
knight’s helmet, carry a -6 modifier. The
effects of a hit depend on the target. In the
case of the knight, the blow ignores armor
and infl icts +4 damage because it’s a head
shot (as above).
Cover
Light Cover: Characters subtract 1 from
their attack rolls if half or less of their target
is obscured.
Object Toughness
Object Toughness Damage Type
Light Door 8 Blunt, Cutting
Heavy Door 10 Blunt, Cutting
Lock 8 Blunt, Piercing
Handcuffs 12 Blunt, Piercing, Cutting
Knife, Sword 10 Blunt, Cutting
Rope 4 Cutting, Piercing
Small Shield 8 Blunt, Cutting
Medium Shield 10 Blunt, Cutting
Large Shield 12 Blunt, Cutting
67
Medium Cover: The penalty is increased
to -2 if more than half of the target is hidden
from view. This is the usual penalty for
attacking a prone character (see Prone).
Heavy Cover: The penalty is -4 if only
a small part of the target is visible (prone
beside a tree, behind a high wall, peeking
around the corner of a building, etc).
Attacking through a very tight opening that
provides near total cover, such as an arrow
slit, subtracts 6 from enemy attack rolls.
Darkness
Darkness has a great effect on what can
see and be seen.
Dim: Twilight, light fog, night with a full
moon, and so on subtract 1 from combatants’
attack rolls.
Dark: Normal darkness with some ambient
light (starlight, partial moon) inflicts a -2
penalty, and targets aren’t visible outside
of 10”.
Pitch Darkness: Targets aren’t visible
at all in pitch blackness, but if a character
knows roughly where a victim is (he can hear
him, target is in a confi ned space, a glint of
light shines off his blade, etc.), he may be
attacked at -4.
Defend
If a character’s only regular action is to
defend, his Parry is increased by +2 until
his next action. The defender may move
normally while performing this maneuver, but
no running or other actions are allowed.
Disarm
A character can try to make an opponent
drop a weapon (or other object) with either a
close combat or a ranged attack. To cause a
disarm check, the attacker must fi rst hit the
opponent’s arm (-2, see Called Shots). The
defender must then make a Strength roll. If
the roll is less than the damage, he drops
his weapon.
The attacker may choose to make this
a nonlethal attack with a melee weapon.
Ranged attacks can be nonlethal if the
attacker targets the weapon instead of the
limb (generally -4 instead of -2).
Double Taps & Three Round Bursts
A character with a semi-automatic weapon
(such as a Colt .45, an M1 Carbine, or even
an M-16) can fi re two shots in one action
by “double-tapping.” Double tapping is a
single Shooting roll that gives the user +1 to
Light (-1)
Medium (-2)
Heavy (-4)
Cover
Illumination
Dim (-1) Dark (-2)
68
hit and damage but expends two rounds of
ammunition.
Many modern automatic weapons, such as
the M16A2, have a selector switch that allows
the user to go from single shot, to burst fire,
to fully-automatic as a free action. Burst fire,
or three-round bursts, gives the user +2 to hit
and damage, and uses exactly three rounds
of ammunition.
The 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 it’s when the victim is
in the classic hostage pose, is completely
unaware of the danger, or has been caught
unarmed by an armed foe.
The attacker is considered on Hold and
adds +4 to his attack and damage rolls
should he decide to strike.
Finishing Move
A completely helpless victim (bound,
unconscious, etc) may be dispatched with a
lethal weapon of some sort as an action. This
is automatic unless the GM decides there’s
a special situation, such as a particularly
tough or naturally armored victim, a chance
for escape, and so on.
The killer must usually dispatch his foe
up close and personal, but the GM may
occasionally let finishing moves be performed
at range.
Firing Into Melee
Occasionally heroes have to fire into the
middle of hand-to-hand fights. The trouble
is that even though we might see figures
standing perfectly still on the battle mat, in
“reality,” they’re circling each other, wrestling
back and forth, and moving erratically.
For that reason, firing into a tangle of
people, such as a melee, is quite dangerous.
Use the Innocent Bystander rules when this
occurs (see below).