006: RANGED COMBAT
Not all combat takes place when the combatants are within arm’s reach. Though disdained by many nobles, knives, spears, and bows are a staple of many armies, providing a means of projecting a unit’s reach. The main limiting factor on the use of missile weapons is the need to reload. The base difficulty of all missile attacks is 6, though they are subject to range combat modifiers (see chart). The dice pool to strike is Dexterity + Archery. Most missile weapons take one action to fire and another (or more) to reload. In most cases, this means that weapons cannot fire every round.
Several weapons can be thrown, including knives, hatchets, spears, and rocks. Like missile weapons, the base difficulty for thrown weapons is 6 (modified by the ranged attacks table) but the dice pool used is Dexterity + Athletics. Unlike regular combat, additional successes on the attack roll do not increase the damage. Damage and other game statistics for common thrown weapons appear in the weapons charts Other weapons (such as swords) may be turned into ad hoc missiles, but they are ill suited to such forms of attack. The basic range of such attacks is three yards per point of the thrower’s Strength. These weapons also suffer a flat +2 difficulty penalty as indicated on the “Ranged Combat Modifiers” table. Furthermore, at least two successes are needed for the blade (rather than the hilt or haft) to strike the target and inflict lethal damage. If the attack achieves a single success, any damage inflicted is bashing. Non-weapon items (such as chairs or plates) may also be used as ad hoc missiles, but they only inflict bashing damage. The Storyteller should determine the number of damage dice for the item (and its potential range) depending on its size and nature. For example, a plate can be thrown much further than a chair but is much less likely to inflict damage.
• Aim: By carefully aiming before loosing her shot, an archer can increase her chances of striking the target. For every full turn spent aiming, the archer adds a die to her attack pool. The maximum number of dice that can be added in this way equals the character’s Resolve. The character must have Archery 2 or greater to use this maneuver, and she must have a clear line of sight to the target in each turn she is aiming. If the attacker does anything but aim in this time, the benefits of the aiming are lost immediately. The target of the aim must also be stationary or moving no faster than walking speed.
• Quick Reload (Dexterity + Archery): Reloading a bow usually takes one turn, but a skilled archer may hasten the process, allowing her to fire every turn. To do so, she must make a Dexterity + Archery roll (difficulty 7) and gain at least two successes. Crossbows cannot be reloaded quickly in this manner. A quick reload does count as an action, so to fire every turn, a character must take multiple actions.
• Sidearm Throw (Dexterity + Athletics): Over-arm is the most common technique for using thrown weapons, simple and accurate, but is not the deadliest. Sidearm throws use more large muscle groups and thus results in a longer, harder throw. The attacker must have sufficient space to swing her weapon though (usually several arm’s lengths), and accuracy of the throw is much reduced. Standard throwing rules apply but the difficulty of the attack is increased to 8 and the thrower’s effective Dexterity decreases by one. Even still, though, her effective Strength increases by one when determining damage dice.
Difficulty: +2 Accuracy: -1 Damage: Normal +1
• Shooting two arrows (Dexterity + Archery): A trick shot for sure, but in an emergency it can be effective. This action can only be performed at short range. Long and short bows can be used to perform this maneuver. To perform this maneuver, the player splits the dice pool for the attack. Each attack suffers a +2 Difficulty and a -2 Accuracy, but if they both hit, you have something to brag about back at the tavern!
Difficulty: +2 Accuracy: -2 Damage: Normal against two adjacent targets
THROWN WEAPONS
Several weapons can be thrown, including knives, hatchets, spears, and rocks. Like missile weapons, the base difficulty for thrown weapons is 6 (modified by the ranged attacks table) but the dice pool used is Dexterity + Athletics. Unlike regular combat, additional successes on the attack roll do not increase the damage. Damage and other game statistics for common thrown weapons appear in the weapons charts Other weapons (such as swords) may be turned into ad hoc missiles, but they are ill suited to such forms of attack. The basic range of such attacks is three yards per point of the thrower’s Strength. These weapons also suffer a flat +2 difficulty penalty as indicated on the “Ranged Combat Modifiers” table. Furthermore, at least two successes are needed for the blade (rather than the hilt or haft) to strike the target and inflict lethal damage. If the attack achieves a single success, any damage inflicted is bashing. Non-weapon items (such as chairs or plates) may also be used as ad hoc missiles, but they only inflict bashing damage. The Storyteller should determine the number of damage dice for the item (and its potential range) depending on its size and nature. For example, a plate can be thrown much further than a chair but is much less likely to inflict damage.
RANGED MANUEVERS
• Aim: By carefully aiming before loosing her shot, an archer can increase her chances of striking the target. For every full turn spent aiming, the archer adds a die to her attack pool. The maximum number of dice that can be added in this way equals the character’s Resolve. The character must have Archery 2 or greater to use this maneuver, and she must have a clear line of sight to the target in each turn she is aiming. If the attacker does anything but aim in this time, the benefits of the aiming are lost immediately. The target of the aim must also be stationary or moving no faster than walking speed.
• Quick Reload (Dexterity + Archery): Reloading a bow usually takes one turn, but a skilled archer may hasten the process, allowing her to fire every turn. To do so, she must make a Dexterity + Archery roll (difficulty 7) and gain at least two successes. Crossbows cannot be reloaded quickly in this manner. A quick reload does count as an action, so to fire every turn, a character must take multiple actions.
• Sidearm Throw (Dexterity + Athletics): Over-arm is the most common technique for using thrown weapons, simple and accurate, but is not the deadliest. Sidearm throws use more large muscle groups and thus results in a longer, harder throw. The attacker must have sufficient space to swing her weapon though (usually several arm’s lengths), and accuracy of the throw is much reduced. Standard throwing rules apply but the difficulty of the attack is increased to 8 and the thrower’s effective Dexterity decreases by one. Even still, though, her effective Strength increases by one when determining damage dice.
Difficulty: +2 Accuracy: -1 Damage: Normal +1
• Shooting two arrows (Dexterity + Archery): A trick shot for sure, but in an emergency it can be effective. This action can only be performed at short range. Long and short bows can be used to perform this maneuver. To perform this maneuver, the player splits the dice pool for the attack. Each attack suffers a +2 Difficulty and a -2 Accuracy, but if they both hit, you have something to brag about back at the tavern!
Difficulty: +2 Accuracy: -2 Damage: Normal against two adjacent targets
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