Chase Combat
in Vehicle CombatWhen a combat situation involves two or more parties
that are all in moving vehicles, the Chase Combat rules
are used instead of the standard combat rules. Highspeed
vehicle chases are incredibly fluid, with the participating
vehicles constantly varying speed and position.
To simulate this, the Chase Combat rules abstract a
great deal of the movement involved in order to focus
on the action of the chase scene. A Chase Combat Turn
has the following steps:
There are four Chase Ranges that correspond to each environment, as seen in the Chase Ranges Table, CRB p. 204.
- Determine Chase Environment for this Combat Turn.
- Establish relative Chase Ranges for participating vehicles.
- Roll Initiative for all characters.
- Take actions in Initiative order. Drivers may perform Chase Actions or regular combat actions on their turn. Passengers may only perform regular combat actions.
CHASE RANGES
Distance between vehicle (or vehicle groups) in Chase Combat is measured in Chase Ranges. Chase Ranges do not represent an exact or constant distance, but rather a bracket or parameters between which the precise distance varies from second to second as the vehicles jockey for position. The ranges between vehicles can be tracked on a vehicle-by-vehicle basis if precision is required, or vehicles that are coordinating their movements or otherwise acting together can be grouped and assumed to all be at the same range for faster resolution. When making a test to Change Range for vehicles grouped in this manner, one vehicle should be selected to act as the leader for the group.There are four Chase Ranges that correspond to each environment, as seen in the Chase Ranges Table, CRB p. 204.
DETERMINE CHASE ENVIRONMENT
Chase Environments define the kind of area in which the current Combat Turn of the chase is taking place. The gamemaster determines when the environment changes. A Chase Environment can either be Speed or Handling.CHASE RANGES TABLE
| RANGE | SPEED ENVIRONMENT APPROX. DISTANCE (M) | HANDLING ENVIRONMENT APPROX. DISTANCE (M) |
|---|---|---|
| Short | 0-10 | 0-5 |
| Medium | 11-50 | 6-20 |
| Long | 51-150 | 21-80 |
| Extreme | 151-300 | 81-150 |
A Speed Environment is a place where the movement
of the vehicle is not significantly inhibited, making
maneuvering minimal and high speeds possible. This
could be a major highway, open field, calm waters, or
clear skies. In this Environment the maneuverability of
vehicles is much less important than raw speed. These
environments can potentially have very long sight lines
(especially on water or in the air), meaning the quarry’s
lead may extend beyond the 300-meter extreme range,
but the pursuer is still back there and in sight.
A Handling Environment is a place where space is limited and quick reflexes and maneuverability are more important than speed. In Handling Environments, top speed is almost never an option. Typical environments of this nature are winding residential streets, rocky foothills and canyons, a crowded harbor, or flying at street level through a city. These tight environments should also be considered when determining modifiers for passenger actions between vehicles because pedestrians, other vehicles, buildings, and a myriad other things can get in the way of a clear shot.
A Handling Environment is a place where space is limited and quick reflexes and maneuverability are more important than speed. In Handling Environments, top speed is almost never an option. Typical environments of this nature are winding residential streets, rocky foothills and canyons, a crowded harbor, or flying at street level through a city. These tight environments should also be considered when determining modifiers for passenger actions between vehicles because pedestrians, other vehicles, buildings, and a myriad other things can get in the way of a clear shot.