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Combat
Page 4 of 11
Close Combat
Weapons Profiles
As with guns and grenades, close combat weapons have their own profiles, with individual characteristics as follows:
Damage
This is the damage inflicted by the weapon. Armour (and in some rare cases, cover) may modify this.
WS Modifier
Some weapons are easier to wield than others. The WS Modifier of a weapon increases a character’s chance of hitting an opponent.
Parry Penalty
Some weapons are better designed for blocking enemy attacks and launching a counter-attack. The Parry Penalty of a weapon reduces a character’s opponent’s chances of getting a successful hit.
Encumbrance
The Encumbrance of a weapon is important if it is to be wielded efficiently. Weapon Skill and damage are reduced, and Parry Penalty increased, if the weapon is too heavy for a character to use properly.
Special Rules
Many weapons have additional rules. For example, some require certain Specialist Weapon abilities, or cause unusual damage.
Initiating Close Combat
In order to initiate close combat, a character must normally charge an opponent. This consists of a running move action, followed by a free close combat attack action (i.e. it does not count against the maximum two actions per round). This attack gains a bonus +10 WS to represent the momentum of the attack.
Close Combat Without Charging
Occasionally, it is possible that two hostile characters will be caught in close combat without either actually deliberately charging the other, for example, they might be wandering blindly through a smoke-filled room before blundering into one another.
In this case, the combat is initiated without either combatant gaining the +10 WS bonus.
Hitting In Close Combat
If a character has a close combat weapon in each hand, he may use them both in the same Attack action, thus gaining two attacks. However, his chances of hitting are reduced as described below.
The procedure for attacking an opponent is simple enough – roll to hit using a Weapon Skill test, applying modifiers as detailed below. If the attack hits, it causes injury as described in the Injuries and Recovery section.
To Hit Modifiers
There are a number of Weapon Skill modifiers when rolling to hit a target. These penalties and bonuses are all cumulative:
Charging
As mentioned earlier, a charging character has enough momentum behind his swing that he gains a +10 WS bonus. The charge bonus only applies to attacks made during the action in which the character charged, and does not apply in subsequent actions – the momentum of the charge is lost rapidly. Note that attacking as part of a charge action does not count as a combined action.
Higher Attacker
If the attacker is on higher ground (a table, slope, stairs, horseback etc.), he gains a +10 WS bonus. This also applies when attacking characters who are lying prone.
Higher Defender
If the defender is on higher ground, the attacker suffers a –10 WS penalty.
WS Modifier
The WS Modifier of the attacking character’s weapon is either added or deducted (as appropriate) from his Weapon Skill.
Defender’s Parry
The Parry Penalty of the defender's weapon is subtracted from the chance of hitting, making it more difficult to hit an opponent with a good parrying weapon. Unarmed characters may not parry. Note that a character may attempt to dodge instead of parry. He may not do both, and may choose to do neither. Parrying is deemed to be the default reaction to being attacked.
Defender’s Dodge
The defending player may announce that he is attempting to dodge, rather than parry. The character takes an Initiative test. If this is passed, the margin of success is deducted from the attacker’s chance of hitting (e.g. passing by 23 would impose a –23 penalty to the attacker’s WS). If the test is failed, the margin of failure is added to the attacker’s chance of hitting, as the defender moves straight into the path of the blade. Note that a character may attempt to parry instead of dodge. He may not do both, and may choose to do neither.
Off-Hand
A right-handed character attacking with a weapon held in his left hand (or vice-versa) suffers a –20 penalty to his WS.
Encumbrance
If the weapon’s Encumbrance value is higher than the character’s Strength (or the Strength in the wielding arm if held in one hand), there is a –1 WS penalty for every point of difference. Damage from a weapon too heavy to be wielded properly is halved.
Two Weapons
As with all combined actions, attacking with two weapons halves the chance of hitting after all other modifiers are applied. Remember that unless the character is Ambidextrous, the weapon held in the off-hand will have a greater penalty.
Matched Failure – Counter-Attack
If a character overreaches himself when attacking, he may leave himself exposed to an easy thrust beneath his guard. To represent this, if the character rolls a matched failure when attacking, not only does he miss, but his opponent gets to immediately make a free attack.
This attack is resolved exactly as normal, although a matched failure will not result in the original attacker getting another chance to hit the counter-attacking defender.
Firing Pistols In Close Combat
A character fighting in close combat can fire a pistol at point-blank range. A cool head is more useful in this situation than accuracy, so Weapon Skill is used instead of Ballistic Skill. A WS test is made to determine if the shot hits. This test can be modified if the defender attempts to dodge, but the attack cannot be parried, and no other modifiers apply.
A hit is resolved exactly as if the attack had been a normal ranged shot. The Deadeye Shot ability cannot be used to make placed shots in close combat.
Breaking Off From Close Combat
Instead of attacking, a character may spend an action to attempt to escape from a close combat by making an Initiative test. Several modifiers apply to this test:
| Factor | Modifier |
| Character Prone | If the character breaking off is prone, he suffers a –20 I penalty. |
| Opponent Prone | If the character is breaking off from a prone opponent, he gains a +20 I bonus. |
If the Initiative test is successful, the character immediately makes a free run action directly away from the enemy (or in a GM-determined direction if this is impossible or impractical – into a horde of other enemies, for example).
A break off move cannot be used to charge another character. The enemy combatant may, if he wishes, allow the breaking off character to flee, negating the need for an Initiative test.
If the Initiative test is failed, the character does not find the opportunity to get away and the action is wasted.
If the Initiative test is a matched failure, the break off goes horribly wrong. Not only is the character still locked in close combat, but his opponent also gets an immediate free attack.
Shooting Into Close Combat
This is not normally to be advised, unless a character doesn’t give a damn about the lives of any of the combatants, or is forced to try what is an extremely risky last resort.
Roll to hit as normal, but if the BS test is successful, the actual character hit should be determined randomly. The GM can determine the actual probability of hitting each character, depending on the number and size of the characters and the distance they are from the intended target, although two equal-sized characters in close combat have a 50/50 chance of being hit.
Grappling
Unarmed characters may attempt to restrain an opponent, rather than cause damage through punching, kicking and biting.
This works as normal close combat, but if the character hits, roll on the Hit Location table. The opponent must pass an Initiative test or be immobilised in a hold on that location.
Once an opponent is held, neither character can defend against attacks from other characters, and any close combat hits inflicted from outside the grapple count as critical hits. Neither character may take any actions other than maintaining or resisting the hold. The holder has the option of releasing the hold at any time, but while the hold is maintained each combatant must make a Strength test every round:
If both combatants succeed or both fail, the hold is maintained for that round, and nothing else happens.
If the holder succeeds and the victim fails, the holder has the option to apply pressure, causing damage as for a normal unarmed blow to the held location.
If the holder fails and the victim succeeds, the hold is broken and the victim escapes.
Backstabbing
Attacks against opponents who are unaware of a character’s presence hit automatically, in a location chosen by the attacker, and may count as a critical hit, should the attacker so wish.
Other Actions In Close Combat
Because of the risk of being stabbed, it is highly unwise to do anything other than fight while in close combat. However, sometimes a character may want to draw a weapon, cast a psychic power, call out to a friend, or perform some other action. The character attempts to back away as best he can, which requires an Initiative test. If the test is failed, the character is unable to carry out the action and it is wasted. If the test is passed, the character may perform the action as normal. If the test fails, the action is wasted. A matched failure results in the opponent getting an immediate free attack action.
Ending A Combat
Combats can normally end in one of two ways – one combatant breaks off and flees, or is defeated. If at any time, all of a character’s opponents are stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise incapacitated or killed, he may simply move away from the combat. Sometimes two combatants may agree (via body language or shouted negotiations) to back away from one another, ending the combat mutually.
More commonly, brutal or thorough PCs will continue attacking their incapacitated opponents, making sure they pose no further threat. That’s roleplayers for you. If this becomes a problem, make it so that the PCs eventually twig that if they are willing to butcher defenceless opponents, then so are certain NPCs…
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