003: ACTIONS
Over the course of a game, your character will do many things. Some of these tasks are considered actions, while others are not. Speeches and conversations are not considered actions as such, but about everything else from throwing to trying to decipher a code is an action. One action typically takes one turn of game time to complete.
Actions that have no special effects associated with the action itself. Single attacks, blocking, parrying, casting a single spell are all examples of simple actions.
A type of simple action that takes an insignificant amount of time to achieve. Examples are shouting a warning, opening a door, etc. A character may perform one free action per turn.
An action that requires a trigger to activate. Once activated, the triggering action is completed, then the Reflexive Action immediately takes place. Examples include Blocking, Parrying and Spell triggers.
A series of actions that happen back to back. To perform multiple actions you will take your first action and subtract 3 dice from the dice pool. Each successive action will subtract an additional dice from the dice pool. If the reduction in dice reduces the dice pool to zero, then no more actions can be achieved. Characters may only perform as many actions as they have dots in Dexterity. Examples include rolling under a ledge while attacking a foe. Attack twice in a single action.
ie. Herzod is surrounded by 4 Gretch. He wishes to attack each of them. His Dexterity (4) + Weaponry (4) Pool is 8 dice. His first attack will start with 5 dice after the -3 penalty. His second attack will be 4 dice after the -4 penalty. His third attack will be 3 dice after the -5 penalty and his fourth attack will be 2 dice after the -6 penalty.
An action that is being countered by an opponent. Examples are forcing a door closed while someone is trying to force it open or trying to seduce someone who is reluctant to being seduced. All resisted actions have a target number equal to an opponents Attribute or Attribute + Skill.
You are considered to score only as many successes as the amount by which you exceed your opponent’s successes. In other words, the opponent’s successes eliminate your own, just as 1s do. If you score four successes and your opponent scores three, you are considered to have only one success. These leftover successes are called your net successes.
Some actions (tug of war, following someone who is trying to not be followed) may be both Extended Actions and Resisted Actions. In such cases, one or the other of the opponents must achieve a certain number of successes to win the contest. Each turn, the opponent who achieves net successes adds them to a running tally. The first to achieve the designated number of successes achieves her goal.
An action that needs multiple successes over successive turns. For example, you might have to spend all night tracking down obscure occult references in a library, or climb a cliff face that is impossible to scale in a single turn. When you need more successes than can be rolled in a single turn, you are undertaking an extended action.
The Storyteller will tell the target number needed when you roll and how many successes you need to complete the task. You will roll each turn until you accumulate the required amount of successes or you Botch! You can usually take as many turns as you want to finish an extended action. (Of course, this is not always the case!) If you Botch! a roll, however, you will have to start over again from scratch. Depending on what you are trying to do, the Storyteller may even rule that you cannot start over again at all; you have failed.
Characters can work together to collect successes. If the Storyteller decides that teamwork is possible for the task in question, two or more characters can make rolls separately and add their successes together. They may never combine their traits into one dice pool, however. Each character will roll their dice pool on their turn until the required amount of successes is achieved. A Botch! rolled by any character in the team will cause a failure of the action.
Simple Actions
Actions that have no special effects associated with the action itself. Single attacks, blocking, parrying, casting a single spell are all examples of simple actions.
Free Actions
A type of simple action that takes an insignificant amount of time to achieve. Examples are shouting a warning, opening a door, etc. A character may perform one free action per turn.
Reflexive Actions
An action that requires a trigger to activate. Once activated, the triggering action is completed, then the Reflexive Action immediately takes place. Examples include Blocking, Parrying and Spell triggers.
Multiple Actions
A series of actions that happen back to back. To perform multiple actions you will take your first action and subtract 3 dice from the dice pool. Each successive action will subtract an additional dice from the dice pool. If the reduction in dice reduces the dice pool to zero, then no more actions can be achieved. Characters may only perform as many actions as they have dots in Dexterity. Examples include rolling under a ledge while attacking a foe. Attack twice in a single action.
ie. Herzod is surrounded by 4 Gretch. He wishes to attack each of them. His Dexterity (4) + Weaponry (4) Pool is 8 dice. His first attack will start with 5 dice after the -3 penalty. His second attack will be 4 dice after the -4 penalty. His third attack will be 3 dice after the -5 penalty and his fourth attack will be 2 dice after the -6 penalty.
Resisted Actions
An action that is being countered by an opponent. Examples are forcing a door closed while someone is trying to force it open or trying to seduce someone who is reluctant to being seduced. All resisted actions have a target number equal to an opponents Attribute or Attribute + Skill.
You are considered to score only as many successes as the amount by which you exceed your opponent’s successes. In other words, the opponent’s successes eliminate your own, just as 1s do. If you score four successes and your opponent scores three, you are considered to have only one success. These leftover successes are called your net successes.
Some actions (tug of war, following someone who is trying to not be followed) may be both Extended Actions and Resisted Actions. In such cases, one or the other of the opponents must achieve a certain number of successes to win the contest. Each turn, the opponent who achieves net successes adds them to a running tally. The first to achieve the designated number of successes achieves her goal.
Extended Actions
An action that needs multiple successes over successive turns. For example, you might have to spend all night tracking down obscure occult references in a library, or climb a cliff face that is impossible to scale in a single turn. When you need more successes than can be rolled in a single turn, you are undertaking an extended action.
The Storyteller will tell the target number needed when you roll and how many successes you need to complete the task. You will roll each turn until you accumulate the required amount of successes or you Botch! You can usually take as many turns as you want to finish an extended action. (Of course, this is not always the case!) If you Botch! a roll, however, you will have to start over again from scratch. Depending on what you are trying to do, the Storyteller may even rule that you cannot start over again at all; you have failed.
Teamwork
Characters can work together to collect successes. If the Storyteller decides that teamwork is possible for the task in question, two or more characters can make rolls separately and add their successes together. They may never combine their traits into one dice pool, however. Each character will roll their dice pool on their turn until the required amount of successes is achieved. A Botch! rolled by any character in the team will cause a failure of the action.
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