What's up with country music and inordinate amounts of babes? Why does line dance drive chicks crazy? Why doesn't Roleplaying attract flocks of gorgeous girls, and nu-country does?
OK, I'll take a shot at a simple combat example. I'll use some Heroic level types and keep things very simple. We'll skip hit locations, encumberance,knockdown, bleeding, impairment, Endurance tracking, and basically anything that would slow us down. Just barebones stuff, which should be sufficient to run a few sample battles to get the basics out there.
The good guys will be a fighting type and a really crappy mage with one spell. The opposition will be three smelly orcs. We're doing this on the cheap, and groomed orcs simply cost too much.
First, some basic stats:
Fighter Guy
20 STR
18 DEX
15 CON
12 BDY
8 PD
4 ED
3 SPD
7 REC
30 STN
7" Running
Armor: Chain, Def 6, 11- (Helmet and hauberk)
Weapon: Sword, Damage 1d6+1, StrMin 12 (Gets +1 DC for STR, total of 1.5d6)
Levels: +1 w/All Combat, +2 w/Swords (3 pt. level)
Ok, our smelly orcs are walking down the 10 foot wide corridor looking for intruders, and our fighter and magic type are intruding in another 10 foot wide corridor that runs parallel. The two groups each reach the head of their respective corridors at the same time. They look both ways before crossing, and spot each other. No need to roll Perception checks, since featureless ten foot wide corridors are so boring that almost anything stands out like a sore thumb. The two groups are 5" apart (10 meters). The Fighter and Mage are side by side, the Orcs marching in single file.
Combat begins on Phase 12.
Dex order is:
Fighter (18)
Mage (15)
Orcs (12)
Phase 12:
The Fighter decides to wait for the orcs to close before attacking, and holds his action.
The Mage makes a bunch of annoying sounds, hops around a bit, and casts his Fire Wad at the leading Orc. The glowing globe of wizardly flame flies from his hand. He needs to hit a Hex, so the DCV is 3. Since the Range is 5", the Mage has a -2 penalty to OCV. So... He needs to roll 11 + OCV (5-2) - DCV (3) = 11 or less to hit the hex. He rolls a 13, a miss. (I told you he was a crappy mage...). He missed, to the GM decides the shot was a little short, and hit the hex in front of the lead orc. This only took a half phase, but since he attacked, the Mage is done for the phase.
Orc 1 is a bit ticked by the Fire Wad, and decides to advance on the mage so he can chop him up. We're not worrying about which Orc goes first, because they're all minor guys, and it makes sense to move them in their march order. Orc 1 makes a half move and holds his second half phase, putting him 3" closer to the invaders, or 2" away. His companions do likewise, forming an inverted V behind him.
The Fighter decides to step up to the plate and take out the lead orc. He moves up to the Orc, which is a half move b/c he hasn't moved over half his 7" movement (4"), then he takes a swing. The orc decides to use his held half phase action to Block. The fighter puts all of his levels in offense, giving him an OCV of 9 (6 base, plus 3 levels), and a DCV of 6 (base only). The Orc puts his level into OCV, giving him an OCV of 5 and a DCV of 4. Since the Block will negate the Fighter's attack if it succeeds, we'll roll that first:
Orc rolls an OCV vs. OCV attack roll. 11 + OCV (5) - OCV (9) = 7 or less. Orc rolls an 11, and fails to block.
Now, the Fighter rolls his attack: 11 + OCV (9) - DCV (4) = 16 or less to hit. Fighter rolls a 7, which is ironic b/c that'd have worked for the Orc.
Now, instead of hit location, I've given the armor activation values per the armor table in Fred. So, we'll roll to see if the armor "activates," or to determine if the fighter hit an armored or unarmored area on the Orc. Activation roll is... a 5. Whew, good for the Orc.
The fighter rolls damage: A 2 and for the half die a 1 = 3 BODY. Stun multiplier roll is 5-1 = 4, so 12 STUN. The Orc's 4 rPD stops the Body damage, and his total of 9 PD stops most of the STUN. Only 3 STUN get through.
The remaining two Orcs still have half a phase left, and decide to run down the edges of the corridor (squeeeeezing past the Fighter) to flank the Mage. That ends their phase.
POST Segment 12.
Everyone gets a Post Segment 12 Recovery. Since we're not tracking END, we don't sweat it, just Recover STUN. Orc 1 has 3 STUN damage, and a Recovery of 6. So, he's back up to snuff post 12.
The next segment anyone can act is Phase 4. Both the Fighter and Mage can act.
Phase 4:
The Fighter goes first again. He decides to shift two of his levels to DCV this turn, and take another stab at Orc 1. That sets his OCV to 7 and DCV to 8. The Orc is still at DCV of 4, so the Fighter needs 11 + 7 - 4 = 14 or less to hit. He rolls a 10. We check the armor activation again an d get a 13! The fighter has landed a shot in an unarmored location. (We'll decide what it is after rolling damage.) The damage roll is (1.5d6) 7 BODY, and the STUN roll is (1d6-1) 4-1 = 3 for 21 STUN. Since the armor doesn't defend against the attack, the Orc takes the full brunt of the damage, dropping him to 3 BODY and 4 STUN. The Orc takes more STUN damage than his CON and is also Stunned. The Orc's DCV is halved to 2, and he cannot act until his next phase(segment 6), which he'll have to burn to recover from being Stunned. Of course, the Orc could have aborted to a Block or Dodge, but the GM (me) decided that his last phase made him a little overconfident, and besides, he's a minor character. Since I've decided the armor doesn't cover the lower arms or legs, and his neck/face, I'll just say the sword ripped a huge gash out of the Orc's thigh, sinking deep into muscle and bone. (Just for the sake of description, since we're not using the options for hit location and impairment. Can still do an on the fly call and say that the Orc's running will be impeded by the wound, but he's likely to die pretty soon anyway, so we won't bother.)
The Mage acts next. He decides to toast one of the orcs with another shot of Fire Wad. This time, he'll be attacking an adjacent hex (DCV 0), and have no range penalty. A smart orc would abort to a Dive For Cover at this point, but these aren't smart orcs and Dive for Cover is an optional move, so we're not using it right now. (But it's handy to keep in mind.) So, the Mage needs 11 + 4 (OCV) - 0 (DCV) = 15 or less. He rolls...11! Orc 2 takes a 6d6 FireWad to the ... well, to the orc, since it fills the hex. So, we roll Activation for the Armor (event though the special effect is partial coverage, the activation roll is still made), and get...11. So, the armor applies. Damage rolled is 23 STUN and 6 BODY, for a total of 13 STUN and no BODY damage. Orc 2 now has 12 STUN left.
Next segment anyone acts is on 6, which is the Orcs' turn.
We'll let Orc1 go first. He uses a full phase to recover from being Stunned.
Orc2, the Orc of Toastyness, decides to Grab the Mage to stop all that hopping around and waving of arms. He needs 11 + (4-1) - 5 = 9 or less to Grab the Mage. The Grab maneuver puts him at a DCV of 3. He rolls an...11. Oops.
Orc3 laughs at his bleeding and toasty partners and takes a swipe at the Mage, putting his level in OCV. He needs 11 + 5 - 5 = 11 or less to hit. He rolls...15. Some days Orcs have no luck.
Next... Phase 8. Fighter and Mage are up.
Fighter goes first, decides to finish off Orc1. Orc1 is bac k up to full DCV, having recovered from being Stunned on Phase 6. The Fighter decides to put all of his levels into OCV, so he needs 11 + 9 - 4 = 16 or less to hit. He rolls...11. Armor activation roll is 9. Damage roll is 5 BODY and for STUN he rolls 1-1 = 0 (minimum stun multiple is 1) for a total of 5 STUN. The Orc takes 1 BODY, dropping him to 2 BODY, and no STUN.
The Mage is next up, and decides to try to take out Orc2. He still needs a 15- to hit, and rolls a 6. Activation roll for the Orc's armor is a 7, so it activates. Damage is 26 STUN and 6 BODY. 17 STUN gets through the Orc's defenses (and no BODY), which is enough to K-O him, dropping him to -5 STUN. The mage has only one shot left of his Fire Wad spell.
Next phase anyone can go is 12. Everyone goes on 12. Everyone always goes on 12. Except Orc 2, since he's out cold. If he was a PC and not a minor Orc, we'd give him a post-12 Recovery, but since he's a bit player, we'll leave him out of the fight.
Fighter goes first, and takes another shot at Orc1, this time putting two levels with Swords into damage and the all combat level into OCV. This gives him an OCV 7, DCV 6, and a damage of 2d6. He needs an 11 + 7 - 4 = 14 or less to hit. He rolls... 8, and hits. Activation roll for the Orc's armor is a 14...going to REALLY suck to be an Orc. Damage roll is 8 BODY and .... well, Stun is immaterial since the Orc was just knocked to -6 BODY. Unless the PCs are really feeling generous and take time out to make a Paramedic roll, we'll just count him as dead. (Even though we're not using the Bleeding rule, common sense says... dead orc bit player, barring generous PCs.)
Mage goes next, and decides to use that last Firewad to soften up Orc3. Orc3 got cocky way back on Phase 6 and took a whack at the Mage, so he's still adjacent. So, that means the Mage still only needs a 15 or less to hit. He rolls...14. Activation for the Orc's armor is...a 10. Damage is 18 STUN and 3 BODY. The roll was three 5's and three 1's and ones don't do BODY. (Sixes do 2 BODY, and 2 thru 5 does 1 BODY, but you knew that b/c you read the book, right?) So, Orc3 takes 11 STUN after applying Armor and ED. That's not enough to Stun him.
Orc3 is up next. If he was a smart orc, he'd probably just surrender or run away, but he's not. He decides to take a shot at the Mage and try to take him out. He uses a Haymaker, which will add 4 DCs to his damage, and give him -5 on his DCV. He puts his level into OCV, giving him: 5 OCV, 0 DCV, and 3d6+1 damage. Orc3 needs 11 + 5 - 5 = 11 or less to hit. He rolls... 7! The attack won't land until Segment 1, however.
POST-Segment 12:
Mage Recovers 5 STUN, putting him at -8.
Orc3 Recovers 6 STUN, putting him at 20.
Segment 1, Haymaker Lands:
The Mage rolls activation for his Magic Robes...9. Damage is 11 Body and 44 STUN. The Mage takes 7 BODY and 35 STUN. Mage folds up like a cheap tent, and is at -13 STUN and 3 BODY.
Next Phase is 4. We'd probably want to stop the Mage from bleeding out at this point, but we're not using Bleeding rules, so...
Fighter decides to hack up Orc3. He moves 2" or so, and then Haymakers with his attack, throwing all three levels into DCV. This gives him an OCV of 6, DCV of 4, and Damage of 3d6+1 (Total of five DCs added. The sword is 1d6+1, which is 5 DCs, so the max that can be added is another 5 DCs from all sources, so Fighter can't use levels to boost damage since his STR and the Haymaker add up to 5 extra DCs) So, he needs... 11 + 6 - 0 = 17 or less. He rolls...8. Orc's armor activation roll is 15. Ouch. Going to suck to be him. Damage roll is...11 BODY and ... well, STUN doesn't matter, since the Orc is now at -1 BODY and out of the fight.
Fight's over. Time to bandage up Gimpy the Mage and hole up for a while...
Of course, that was way simplified and not terribly interesting from a game standpoint, b/c it was just a straight up head to head brawl. But combat can go pretty quick without all of the optional rules and by not tracking END. You can add in rules as you get used to the system to spice things up. Instead of armor based on Activation rolls, you can easily roll Hit Location and apply modifiers based on where the blow lands, though that requires a bit more looking up.
Knowing me, I made some stupid error in here, so if that happened, someone will hopefully correct it.
AT&T is allowed to go local again. A friend signed up for the deal, rates were better... or so she thought. Turns out, she asked the guy "Is that 28.95 per line?" She was told it wasn't per line. The salesman either lied, or didn't know the details. She just found out it's per line, and now has to cancel this in three days or get shafted.
Thought I'd just post this as part musing, part warning to others.
I watched Gibson's "Passion" with a Japanese friend of mine. Throughout the second half, she was weeping all the time. Not for the reasons I would expect, though. As we left the cinema, she told me she was expecting an happy end and was upset they didn't find Jesus innocent and release him!
Darnit, now I know why my echinaecia/vitamin C routine didn't really work - when I started taking them again I forgot it's TWO a day, not ONE. I think it would have worked again otherwise.
This overlap more than I'd like but... here are some seeds for Dr. Destroyer's right hand man
Gigaton
1) Never Leave a Man Behind: After studying Gigaton all this time, Dr. Destroyer feels confident he can take the remaining coma victims of Project Sunburst and awaken them. Soon he'll have an entire squadron of atomic powered beings. He chooses to send Gigaton to break into the area they are held, and retrive them. Inside of Tom Colt's subconcious is concern for these men. He wants to help them, but he doesn't want to see them reduced to fodder. For the first time in a long time, Gigaton is suffering a crisis of loyality. Given his total dedication to Destroyer, he'll end up carrying out this mission, unless the PCs can stop him, and sense this chance to sway him.
2) Thin Line: Gigaton is about in his secret identity, when he spots the woman who was once his fiance. She sees him as well, and begs him to stay with her. He has a duty to the Doctor first and foremost, yet her presence sends out messages at odds with his brainwashing. He flees her, and over the next few nights tries to resolve what to do about her before finally deciding she must die, she's causing him to fail the Doctor. The PCs will recieve a phone call from this woman later, "He's after me, help..." and find that one of the most powerful and reclusive of Dr. Destroyer's servants is out to kill what seems to be a perfectly ordinary woman. Why she's not dead already is a mystery, for Gigaton seems suddenly incompetent when it comes to the coup de grace. Could it be some part of him within resists this? And what will the Doctor think of this?
3) Mentonian Canidate: Dr. Destroyer has methods to protect his own mind from Menton's attacks, but his Lackey is not so guarded. Menton has a proposal for the PCs. He reccomends they help him distract Gigaton in battle. During this, Menton claims he'll undo Dr. Destroyer's brainwashing. What Menton really wants to do is turn Gigaton into a time bomb ready to betray the Doctor when he appears weakest, but it will be up to the PCs to prevent their rescue from turning into a double dupe. It's entirely possible that Menton will free Gigaton, but not have time to do the rest. Used by Destroyer as a pawn, betrayed by the Military, and having lost years of his life, Gigaton maybe come an independent threat to society out of sheer bitterness.
Could one of you pinheads negatively review this post for me? I want to see what happens. I couldn't bear to do it to anyone else just out of curiosity, so I offer myself up as an experiment. All in the interests of science, of course.
EDIT - three of you have already been very helpful. Thanks?
2d EDIT - Five now. Please stop. This is like taping a kick-me sign to my own back.
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