Combat Guide for Players

Combat Basics

The Turn Structure (~3 seconds per turn)

A turn (also called a round, the two mean the same thing) is about 3 seconds. Combat uses a three-phase system where everyone acts simultaneously:

What You Can Do Each Turn

Major Actions (one per turn):

• Attack — fire a weapon, swing a melee weapon
• Reload — reload your weapon
• Use Item — apply first aid, throw grenade, etc.
• Sprint — double your movement speed for this turn (consumes your major action)

Movement: Speed × 5 feet

Free Actions (unlimited, within reason):

• Talking, shouting warnings
• Dropping items
• Drawing or holstering weapons/items

The Three Phases

Phase 1: Intent (Declare Your Action)

Be specific about what you're doing. You commit before knowing results — this creates tension!

Phase 2: Check (Roll Dice & Resolve Skill Checks)

Roll all your dice simultaneously:

• d100 Combat skill — Will you hit?
• 1d6 Speed Die — your initiative this round (rolled fresh every round)
• +Difficulty If GM assigns — Added to your roll

Phase 3: Resolution (Act in Speed Order)

Turn Order:

1. Highest Speed die goes first
2. Continue in descending order
3. Ties: Compare Reflex skill (Guts + Nerve tens)

On Your Turn:

1. Check if your Combat roll succeeded
2. If hit, compare the damage to the target's Tolerance
3. Mark off ammo used
4. Update injuries, Fortune

Attacking & Damage

Making an Attack

Injury Severity

Damage vs Tolerance	Level	Penalty
Equals Tolerance	Level 1	+5 to rolls
Exceeds by 1-4	Level 1	+5 to rolls
Exceeds by 5-8	Level 2	+10 to rolls
Exceeds by 9-12	Level 3	+15 to rolls, often incapacitated
Exceeds by 13+	Level 4	☠️ DEATH

Critical Success

How to get it:

• Roll natural 1, OR
• 5 degrees of success (the maximum)

Benefits:

• Melee: automatic max damage (base + max Brawn die)
• Firearms and bows: damage stays flat. The crit's called shot is the payoff: an unprotected headshot does double damage (see Firearm Damage)
• Knockout: an unarmed or blunt-weapon crit can knock the target out (see Melee Combat)
• Called shot (choose hit location)
• Called shots can target gaps in armor (e.g. a stab to the armpit where a vest doesn't cover). Crits don't ignore armor on their own
• Special effects (if you have traits)

Firearm Damage

A bullet's energy doesn't change from shot to shot, so firearms and bows do flat damage. Dice only decide whether you hit.

Damage	Round
6	.22
9	9mm, .38
10	.40, .45, .357
12	.44 / .50 Magnum, 5.56
13	7.62×39, .30-30
15	.308, .30-06
7 / 8 / 9	Hunting bow / compound bow / crossbow
28 / 14 / 7	Buckshot within 15 ft / 15–90 ft / 90–180 ft
18 / 9 / 4	Birdshot within 15 ft / 15–60 ft / 60–120 ft
14	Shotgun slug

Headshots: a firearm or bow hit to an unprotected head (hit location 1, with no helmet that protects against bullets) does double the flat damage. A 9mm headshot does 18. Buckshot and birdshot pellets don't double.

Shotguns: buckshot and birdshot

Shotgun pellets are powerful but dangerous. The damage depends on the shell and the distance, not on difficulty dice:

• Within 15 ft: every pellet hits the one target, for double damage (buckshot 28, birdshot 18).
• Past 15 ft, up to the shell's range (buckshot 90 ft, birdshot 60 ft): the blast spreads and hits every target in it that isn't under cover, friend or foe (buckshot 14, birdshot 9). A blast in a crowded room hits the shooter's allies too.
• Up to twice the range: half damage, still spread (buckshot 7, birdshot 4).
• Beyond twice the range: out of range, an automatic miss.
• Cover: a target in full cover isn't hit. A target in partial cover rolls Reflex: on a success the cover takes the shot and they take no damage.

A slug is one projectile and works like a rifle round: 14 damage to one target, range 100 ft, with the usual range difficulty below.

Range

Every firearm and bow has a range. Distance makes the shot harder, not weaker (buckshot and birdshot are the exception: see Shotguns above).

Distance	Shot	Difficulty
Within range	Within Range	None
Up to 2× range	Long Shot	+2d6
Up to 4× range	Crap Shot	+3d8
Beyond 4× range	No shot	Automatic miss

Ranges: pistols 50 ft • SMG 75 ft • shotgun slugs 100 ft (buckshot 90 ft and birdshot 60 ft work differently: see above) • hunting bow 100 ft • compound bow and crossbow 150 ft • assault and lever-action rifles 300 ft • hunting rifle 500 ft • scoped sniper rifle 1,000 ft

Long guns in close quarters: firing a rifle, shotgun or bow at a target within 5 feet adds +1d6 difficulty.

Defense & Survival

Static Defense (Default)

Defenders don't roll — your Combat roll determines hit/miss.

Active Defense (With Traits)

Common defensive traits: Dodge Roll, Combat Parry, Uncanny Dodge

Cover & Concealment

Ammunition & Reloading

Track Every Shot

Mark off each bullet/shell fired. Running dry at the wrong moment gets you killed.

Reloading (One Action)

Weapon Jamming

3+ Degrees of Failure: GM may declare jam

• Uses 3 degrees (not Dread)
• Mechanics roll to clear (one action)

Natural 100 (Critical Failure): Weapon breaks

• Unusable until repaired

Automatic Weapons

Aimed Shot

Fire Mode	Ammo Used	Effect
Full-Auto	10 rounds	Every round fired is a hit: apply damage for each, can move normally
Burst	3 rounds	Counts as 3 hits: apply damage for each, can move normally

Suppressive Fire

Fire Mode	Ammo Used	Area
Full-Auto	30 rounds	20-foot area
Burst	6 rounds	15-foot area

Effects:

• Forces enemies to take cover
• Move at half Speed while firing

Enemies in suppressive fire:

• Already in cover: Safe, but +1d6 to actions
• Not in cover: Must make Reflex roll
  • Success = Reach cover safely
  • Failure = Take damage, then reach cover

Special Situations

Grenades

Throwing:

1. Athletics roll to place accurately
2. Detonates after 1 turn
3. Everyone in radius takes same damage

Cover reduces damage:

• Full cover: 50% reduction
• Partial cover: 25% reduction

Grenade	Effect
Frag	6 + 2d8 damage, 15-foot radius
Flashbang	Blind/deafen (Reflex resist)
Smoke	20-foot concealment

Melee Combat

Within 5 feet = melee range. Melee damage = weapon base + your Brawn die: 1d4 (Brawn 15–24), 1d6 (Brawn 25–34), 1d8 (Brawn 35–45).

Base	Weapons
+0	Unarmed (fists, kicks)
+2	Brass knuckles, wooden plank
+3	Knife, baton/club, staff
+4	Baseball bat, crowbar, hammer, combat knife
+5	Lead pipe, machete, hatchet, spear
+6	Pipe wrench, mace, one-handed sword or axe
+8	Sledgehammer, fire axe, two-handed sword
+10	Chainsaw

Knockout: on a Critical Success with an unarmed or blunt attack, the attacker may knock the target out, even if the damage causes no injury. The target is unconscious (see Unconsciousness in the Injury Guide).

Grappling: Opposed Athletics rolls — winner controls (pin, disarm, throw). Fortune/Dread have no effect on opposed rolls

Multiple Injuries

Penalties stack from different locations:

• Broken arm (+10) + Concussion (+5) = +15 total to all skill checks

A new injury to an already injured location makes that injury worse instead (see Multiple Injuries in the Injury Guide).

Fortune in Combat

When to Spend Fortune

Spending Fortune

Turn a failed roll into a success by spending degrees of failure + 1 Fortune. A natural 100 can never be saved.

Opposed rolls (e.g. grappling) neither earn nor spend Fortune, and Dread has no effect on them. Tick Opposed on the dice roller.

Gaining Fortune

Every degree of success adds 1 Fortune, on every roll (degrees max out at 5):

Medical Treatment

Field Medicine (During Combat)

One action to stabilize ally:

• Medicine roll
• Success = Stabilized: bleeding stops and the injury stops getting worse
• Requires first aid kit

Limitations:

• Does not lower the injury level; it keeps its level and penalty
• Lowering the level takes proper treatment after combat (see the Injury Guide)
• Full healing requires rest

Unconscious Allies

Medicine roll to stabilize. An unconscious ally cannot wake until stabilized:

• Can be dragged: the carrier becomes Encumbered (half Movement), or Over-Encumbered if already Encumbered by gear
• Continue to worsen if untreated

Hit Locations

d10	Location	Common Effects
1	Head	Concussion, vision problems
2	Neck	Arterial bleeding, suffocation
3	Chest	Broken ribs, difficulty breathing
4	Abdomen	Internal bleeding, organ damage
5	Back	Spinal injury, paralysis
6	Left Arm	Can't use arm, drops items
7	Right Arm	Can't use weapon
8	Left Leg	Movement reduced
9	Right Leg	Movement reduced
10	Hands/Feet	Can't grasp/run

Quick Reference

Attack Sequence

1. Roll Combat (d100)
2. Work out damage if hit (melee: base + Brawn die; guns: flat)
3. Compare to Tolerance
4. Apply injury penalties

Injury Penalties Quick Reference

• Level 1: +5 to rolls
• Level 2: +10 to rolls
• Level 3: +15 to rolls, often incapacitated
• Level 4: ☠️ Death

Tactical Checklist

Before Combat

• Know your weapon's effective range
• Identify cover locations
• Check ammo count
• Coordinate with team

During Combat

• Use cover religiously
• Track your ammo
• Focus fire (kill one enemy > wound three)
• Retreat when necessary

Common Mistakes

❌ Mistake	✅ Fix
Standing in open	Move to cover
Wasting active defense	Save for big hits
Ignoring injuries	Get treatment ASAP
Shooting beyond range	Close distance first
Not tracking ammo	Reload during lulls

Survival Priorities

• 1 Don't get hit — Use cover!
• 2 Hit them first — Initiative matters
• 3 Know when to run — Live to fight another day
• 4 Work as a team — Coordinate fire
• 5 Track resources — Ammo, Fortune, injuries