Getting the Scene Down

There are a few basic rules to this mental landscape. First, if your Character can see something with the naked eye or the scope of a weapon, you can interact with it. If there's anything in the way, it's considered to be blocked and you can't interact with it. If it's positioned forward of your shoulders, you can face it and possibly interact with it. Last, if it's within your reach (2 m/yds), you can also touch it; otherwise, you'll need to use a longer tool, weapon, or some other method to extend your reach. That brings us to the subject of measurement. In Cyberpunk RED, we measure everything in both meters or yards (and treat them interchangeably; the difference is only about 2 inches). One reason we do this is that it means we don't have to change measurements around between Metric and English systems. It also corresponds pretty well to a generic 6-foot Character. If you are using a grid and miniatures, each 1-inch square corresponds to 2 meters/yards

Distance and Movement

As a rule, there are three scales of movement used in Cyberpunk RED.

▶ Narrative Movement ◀

The first scale is narrative movement. This means movement that is described in real-world terms as part of the narrative of a story. For example, cars move at miles or kilometers per hour, walking is measured in similar, but smaller, distances. For most game purposes, we classify these types of movement by categories. Below, you can find the movement categories for the average human. In the Vehicle Combat section on Friday Night Firefight you can find the narrative speeds of the various vehicles.

▶ Figurative Movement ◀

The second scale is Figurative Movement: comparing one MOVE STAT to another MOVE STAT to see who is faster overall. This is best for simple sustained speed contests, like the outcome of a footrace. This is where you compare the Lamborghini to the Volkswagen; one has a higher MOVE STAT than the other, and this is used as a basis of comparison.

▶ Literal Movement ◀

Finally, there's Literal Movement: a measurement of actual distance, used in combat and when using miniatures. Every Turn, a Character gets a Move Action, which can only be used to move a number of m/yds equal to their MOVE x 2, or a number of squares equal to their MOVE, which can include moving diagonally. Move Actions, along with all other Actions a Character can do on a Turn are explained later in the On Your Turn Section

Time and Initiative

Cyberpunk RED uses two ways of measuring time. The first, Roleplaying Time, works just like it does in real life. The second, Combat Time, is far more exacting. Combat Time is divided into Turns, each of which takes approximately 3 seconds. The amount of time it takes each entity involved in the combat to take a Turn is a Round. Because Actions happen roughly simultaneously in game, one Round is also approximately 3 seconds long.

▶ Initiative ◀

But who gets to go first? For that, we need to determine Initiative; basically, a Character's place in "line" relative to everyone else doing something in the Turn. The "line" is what we call an Initiative Queue; a mental lineup of who goes when.

All participants in the combat place themselves according to their Initiative result into the Initiative Queue in descending order from highest score to lowest score. Resolve ties by rolling again. Combat proceeds in Initiative Queue order, with each entity in the Initiative Queue getting a Turn. When the bottom is reached, the Initiative Queue is repeated from the top in the same order.

On Your Turn

Every Turn, a Character gets one Move Action and one Action. In this section we will describe the most common Actions in brief. In the Friday Firefight Section (on pg. 167) we will give you a more in-depth, full list of Actions. Many of those Actions will only happen during or directly after a combat.

Actions in Brief

▶ Actions in Detail ◀

▶Move Action

Every Turn, a Character gets a Move Action, which can only be used to move a number of m/yds equal to their MOVE x 2, or a number of squares equal to their MOVE, which can include moving diagonally.

▶ Attack

Use an Action to make an attack with Ranged Combat or Melee Combat. Check out the Combat System (Friday Night Firefight) for information on how to make an attack.

▶ Get into a Vehicle

Use an Action to get into an unlocked vehicle or a vehicle you have the physical/biometric key for.

▶ Get Up

Use an Action to get up from being on the floor (aka Prone). While Prone you cannot use a Move Action until you first use this Action.

▶ Grab

Grab and hold someone, take an object they are carrying, or escape a grapple. Check out the Combat System (Friday Night Firefight) for information on how to grapple people.

▶ Hold Action

In combat, a Character can use this Action to Hold off on one specific Action until a designated number in the Initiative Queue comes up, or a specified event occurs. When that time comes, they can choose to either go through with their chosen Action or forgo it entirely. You can’t Hold an Action across multiple Rounds. You can’t change your mind about when the action triggers, either. Move Actions and NET Actions cannot be Held at all.

▶ Run

Use an Action to take an additional Move Action. If you can't use a Move Action right now, you can't use this Action.

▶ Stabilize

Use an Action to stabilize a target to begin the natural healing process or pull them out of the Mortally Wounded Wound State to save their life. For more on stabilization and healing see Trauma Team.

▶ Starting a Vehicle

Use an Action to start a vehicle that you are already in. This requires the physical/biometric key for the vehicle. Check out the Vehicle Combat System (Friday Night Firefight) for information on car chases.

▶ Throw

Throw a person you are grappling or an object you are holding. Check out the Combat System (Friday Night Firefight) for information on how to throw items and people.

▶ Use NET Actions

Use an Action to make multiple NET Action such as running Programs. Only a Netrunner can make use of NET Actions, which they can take instead of another Action on their Turn. NET Actions are covered in the Netrunning Section. ▶ Use a Skill Use an Action to use one of your Skills to attempt to accomplish a quick task (3 seconds max). If the GM determines your proposed task would take more than 3 seconds, and you still want to do it, you can spend your Action every Turn to attempt to accomplish it, at a rate of 3 seconds per Turn, making your Check only when you've finished the duration of the task. Task resolution is covered in Resolving Actions with Skills later on this page.

▶ Use an Object

Use this Action as a catch-all for using/manipulating/ picking up an object in ways that wouldn't require using a Skill and aren't covered by other Actions, but would still require a quick 3 seconds of effort. Use this for things like opening up a door, switching your held shotgun out for an assault rifle slung on your back, picking up an unattended weapon off the floor, pressing the button on a detonator, or biting into a slice of pizza. If the GM determines your proposed task would take more than 3 seconds, and you still want to do it, you can spend your Action every Turn to attempt to accomplish it, at a rate of 3 seconds per Turn. Drawing an easily accessible weapon isn't an Action if you have a free hand.