Combat

COMBAT (Designer's notes are in italics)

Founding Principles:

1. Combat should be fast and abstract rather than specific (so no hit locations)
2. Combat should have room for stunts, manuevering, and have a pulp/high adventure/action movie feel.
3. Combat should be simple (but not so simplified that it has no room for occasional complexity)

The combat system in torglike is based off the ore combat system but is heavily modified to better support the above principles. Therefore a number of modifications have been made (note that the drama deck has yet to be incorporated into this system, so the system as it stands is so far just an ORE combat variant).

A NOTE ON SPECIAL DICE Expert dice no longer are available (can't see the need as hit locations are now removed). Master Dice are also no longer available as fixed dice that can be bought with experience and added to a character's skill permanently. The master dice concept has mutated into possibility dice (a torg concept).

Here is the combat system. Still a work in progress. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

INITIATIVE

The largest Area set now goes first, though if this is too unwieldly in playtesting, then it may return to widest sets go first (Why should wide sets go first however? Can small widths go first in combat? If they do, then this would be more reflective of how combat is shown in action films - eg in a combat such as the troll combat in fellowship of the ring, the small hits happen first (the glancing blows), and then the killing blows act last.) The only other alternative (and a compromise) is to make the largest AREA go first (width x height). This would increase the chance of smaller hits going first, which i think is a good thing.

HITTING

Every character has a defense value (similar to Reign's threat value). The defense value changes according to circumstance. Nb - When averaging, always round down (GM's revenge...that'll piss off the players)

• For Melee Combat: Defense = Average of body + Melee skill (if in armour) OR Average of Coord + Melee skill (if in non-bulky/no armour)
• For Projectile combat: Defense = Average of Coord + Dodge

Also note that cover modifiers also are accounted for here. Hiding behind a barrel offers a cover rating (say 7). If cover is great than Defense, use the better/higher number.

To hit in combat Every combatant rolls a dice pool as normal at the start of the round.

• Width 2 sets hit only if they are greater than the enemy's defense value. Eg. a 2x6 set will hit someone with a defense of 6 or less. It won't hit the guy hiding behind the barrel (cover 7)
• Width 3 or greater sets do NOT need to roll over the defense number. They are sufficiently good enough to hit. (Otherwise, defense is too good, and width greater than 3 sets are rare enough as it is. However, this changes when actively defending, as shown below)

ALSO, hitting an opponent does NOT knock out one die from the opponent's set. (the reason for this change is that i have changed the damage system. Width 2 hits now only do a little shock damage as they are just glancing blows).

ACTIVE PARRY AND DODGE

Actively parrying or dodging does not involve dice (I am not a big fan of gobble dice in combat. I think it complicates things a bit too much.), it is a full round action, and cannot be used in a multiple-action. It increases the chances of not being hit by forcing any sets of any width that attack the defender this round to be greater or equal to the defense roll. This includes widths of 3 or greater (which means that critical hits are less likely. In effect, actively defending doesn't do anything in reducing the chance of glancing blows, but has a huge effect on minimsing the chance of getting critical hits on you)

DAMAGE RESULTS

The quality of a success is different in Torglike Combat (in combat anyway, not sure whether this should carry over to non-combat situations...Probably not). Width 2 = minimal success, Width 3 = adequate success, Width 4 = Good success, Width 5 = Spectacular success

In combat, there are a few options of what you can do based on the degree of success of your set (this is still all work in progress)

• Width 2 = minimal success (glancing blow) = 1 shock point and either

1. 1. an additional shock point
   2. manuevering to a better position (+1 dice to dice pool next round)

• Width 3 = adequate success (a solid whack) = 1 wound level and either

1. 1. Use other successes in your dice pool as attacks (effectively a multiple action attack without first declaring and the -1 dice penalty)
   2. manuevering to a better position (+3 dice to dice pool next round)
   3. Knockdown opponent

• Width 4 = Good success (critical blow) = 2 wound levels and either

1. 1. Disarm opponent
   2. manuevering to a better position (+5 dice to dice pool next round)
   3. Degrade armour by one level (hard armour now becomes light for the rest of the combat, light armour provides no protection).

• Width 5 = Spectacular success (crippling blow) = 3 wound levels and either

1. 1. Knockout opponent for height rounds (the height of the spectacular success)

WOUNDS

There are 3 types of damage in torglike - shock, knockdown, knockout and wounds.

1. SHOCK

• A character can take a maximum of Body + armour worth of shock before being knocked out.

1. KNOCKDOWN

• All attacks from any foe on a fallen opponent have a +1 die bonus while they are on the ground. Opponents on the ground have a -1die to dice pool and -1 defense until they stand up.

1. KNOCKOUT

• Knocked out for x rounds

1. WOUNDS

Wounds are different too. There are no hit locations and no wound boxes per location. Instead, fusing the storyteller system and TORG, there are now a number of wound levels.

• [Hard Armour]
• [Light Armour]
• Unharmed/Superficial
• Serious
• Critical
• Out of Action (instantly out of combat)

Note that the wound experienced is not evaluated until a later date. In combat, it isn't the wound that is important, it is the effect this wound has on your ability to continue fighting. Only when first aid, or vigor is rolled is the severity of the wound finally determined.

When you hit, you start from the top(for those not wearing armour this would be the unharmed wound level), and count off the damage of the hit. A width3 set (causing 1 wound) moves an unarmoured character from unharmed to serious. Width 4 (2 wounds of damage) moves a character from unharmed to critical. A width 5 hit (3 wounds) moves a character from unharmed straight to Out of action. Note that every hit starts again from the top. If you keep on getting damaged with width 4 sets and are unarmoured, you will only ever experience serious hits. (i'm trying to engineer it so that characters exit combat mainly due to knockout).

ARMOUR

There are 2 basic types of Armour, light and hard. Also, armour is bulky or non-bulky. Generally, light armour is non-bulky and heavy armour is bulky. Armour degrades when sufficiently hit, reflecting that weak spots have become exposed. (certain types of armour will provide other bonuses and have certain penalties as well)

WEAPONS

To be completed. (Weapons generally do not increase the damage in combat (such as shock or wounds). Instead they offer benefits to dice pool, or do other things, such as provide additional options when a wielder successful hits (for example, a fighter with a man-catcher has the option of grabbing an opponent on a successful width 3 hit.)