My system (reposted into one post rather than 3 pages of fragmanted posts on the
original thread:
This combat system uses the UGM task system (Universal Game Mechanic), which was devised by WJP and revised by me; you could download the system in PDF-form
here. In a nutshell, you roll 2D for 8+; DM+Skill and DM+/-Difficulty. If the "natural" (i.e. before applying the skill or difficulty DMs) 2D roll is equal or lower than the linked acharacteristic, add another DM of +1. A UGM task is listed like this:
SKILL/CHARACTERISTIC/DIFFICULTY, for example
Pistol/DEX/-2 means:
1) Roll 2D;
2) If the 2D roll is equal or lower to your Dexterity score, add DM+1;
3) Add your Pistol skill as a +DM;
4) Apply the Difficulty DM-2;
5) If the total is equal or greater than 8, you succeed; if it is lower than 8, you fail.
Hitting a target in ranged combat is a
Skill/DEX/DM task, where Skill is the skill relevant to the weapon being used, DEX is the character's Dexterity score and DM is the DM to hit at the specific range, taken from the LBB1 or LBB4 Range Matrixes (copy the DMs appropriate to your weapons to your character sheet).
Hitting a target in melee combat is a
Skill/STR/DM task, where Skill is the skill relevant to the weapon being used, STR is the character's Strength score and DM is the DM to hit at the specific range, taken from the LBB1 or LBB4 Range Matrixes (copy the DMs appropriate to your weapons to your character sheet).
Basic damage is done in the same way as LBB1 or LBB4 (i.e. Rifle 3D, Gauss Rifle 4D and so on). If you hit an unarmored target, you roll damage and apply each die to either STR, DEX or END (defender's choice). If you roll a Spectacular Success, YOU (i.e. the attacker) get to apply all damage to ONE characteristic - and if it is reduced beneath zero, to another and so on; this replaces the "first blood" rule.
Armor does not affect chances to hit, and instead absorbs damage. Armor is rated in dice - the amount of damage dice it absorbs:
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">ARMOR ABSORBS
Jack 1*
Mesh 1
Flak Jacket 2
Cloth 3
Combat/BD 5
Reflec 6**</pre>[/QUOTE]* Against melee weapons only.
** Reflec "absorbs" only Laser fire; it is ineffective against any other kind of attack.
However, some weapons have an Armor Piercing ability (AP), expressed in dice as well. It is the number of armor reduction ignored by the weapon; note that AP cannot reduce Armor below zero. A few examples:
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">Weapon AP
Pistols/SMGs 0
Shotguns 0
Carbines/ARs 1
Rifles 2
Laser Carbines 2
Laser Rifles 3
Gauss Rifle 3</pre>[/QUOTE]Sounds complicated? Here's an example. Assume you use your Laser Carbine (Damage 4, AP 2) to attack an enemy trooper (who's wearing Cloth Armor, Absorb 3. If you hit, you'll do 4D-(3D-2D)=3D damage.
Bypassing armor is possible in two ways - either Spectacular Success (which, in addition to the damage rule noted above, halves effective armor BEFORE applying AP) or by sniping. Sniping require the following conditions:
1) No active enemies are within Close range of the sniper.
2) The sniper must not move (not even evade) during the turn in which she snipes.
3) Target must be within Short range (for pistols/SMGs) or Medium range (for scope-less rifles) of the sniper; an optical or electronic scope allows this restriction to be ignored.
4) The sniper must have atleast Skill-1 with the weapon AND be elligible (sp?) for the weapon's DEX bonus.
5) A -4 DM is applied to hit.
A sniper who successfully hits her mark may choose ONE of two things:
1) Halve effective armor before applying AP.
OR
2) Apply all damage to one characteristic, sniper's choice.
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Vehicles in Combat
My idea about vehicle damage absorption (for non-armored vehicles; armor would add to that) is something along the following lines:
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">VEHICLE DAMAGE
SIZE ABSORPTION
Small (motorcycle) 1
Medium (car or jeep) 3
Large (van or small truck) 5
Huge (ATV or large truck) 7</pre>[/QUOTE]AP applies as normal, so a Gauss Rifle or a Laser Carbine will still be able to cause one damage roll a van (but not an ATV) and a Laser Rifle would inflict one damage roll on an ATV per hit. Specialized ammo will make things even easier.
I'll work up a series of modifications to
Piper's excellent CT vehicle system to adapt it to the UGM and to my damage system; this will also allow the addition of armor in the form of more damage absorption points.
For each remaining die of damage after Absorption, roll once on the Surface table below; roll on the Interior table only if the Surface Table indicates so; Any Interior hit also causes a pressure breach if the vehicle is pressurized. Roll on the Critical table instead if you get a UGM "spectacular success"; note that if the vehicle's Armor is twice or more than the weapon's amount of damage dice, even a Spectacular Success won't penetrate it.
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">D6 SURFACE INTERIOR CRITICAL
1 Weapon Integrity Fuel
2 Weapon Transmission All Crew
3 Suspension Transmission LSS
4 Misc One Crew Control
5 Interior One Crew Power Plant
6 Interior Power Plant Explosion</pre>[/QUOTE]
Weapon: One weapon becomes inoperative; the gunner (if he operates the weapon directly) recieves 3D damage (absorbable by armor); if no weapons are installed or no intact weapons remain, ignore the result.
Suspension: The vehicle's suspension (wheels, tracks, legs, ACV-skirt or grav-module) is damaged; the first time it is hit, reduce speed by half; at the second, the vehicle grinds to a halt. Every time the suspension is hit, if the vehicle is moving at more than 30kph (speed 3 in LBB1 terms), and/or if the vehicle is airborne, the driver/pilot must roll a
Routine (Skill/DEX) UGM task using the appropriate vehicle skill; failure means that the vehicle crashes (speed at zero; roll twice on the table).
Misc: Roll 1D6; on 1 or 2, the vehicle's external lights are rendered inoperative; on 3 or 4, the vehicle's external sensors (if any, othewise ignore) are rendered inoperative; on 5 or 6, one of the vehicle's doors is stuck (
Difficult (STR Only) UGM task to open).
Integrity: Pressure integrity is lost. If the vehicle is not pressurized, or if pressure has already been lost, ignore this result.
Transmission: The vehicle's transmission (drive train or ACV-fans) is damaged; reduce speed by half in the first hit, total speed loss in the second. Every time the transmission is hit, if the vehicle is moving at more than 30kph (speed 3 in LBB1 terms), and/or if the vehicle is airborne, the driver/pilot must roll a
Standard (Skill/DEX) UGM task using the appropriate vehicle skill; failure means that the vehicle crashes (speed at zero; roll twice on the table). Grav vehicles do not have transmission, so treat this result for them as an Integrity Loss.
One Crew: One crewmember is hit; apply the entire penetrating damage (i.e. after absorption by the vehicle and the character's armor) to the character.
Power Plant: The vehicle's power plant is rendered inoperative; the vehicle grinds to a halt, and all power-dependent weapons cease to function; life support continues to work on backup batteries. If the vehicle is moving at more than 30kph (speed 3 in LBB1 terms), and/or if the vehicle is airborne, the driver/pilot must roll a
Standard (Skill/DEX) UGM task using the appropriate vehicle skill; failure means that the vehicle crashes (speed at zero; roll twice on the table).
Fuel: At the first hit, half of the vehicle's fuel leaks (but does not ignite immidiately). At the second, the entire fuel tank is breached and the vehicle slows down and then grinds to a halt. If an explosive weapon scores any kind of an Interior hit at a vehicle leaking flammable fuel, the fuel ignites; inflict 3D burn damage at the crew every turn they are still in the vehicle.
All Crew: An explosion (3D, AP 1) has occured that effects the whole crew (personal armor absorbs as normal).
LSS: The vehicle's Life Support System is rendered inoperative. If there is no such system onboard, or if it was already disabled, treat as an Integrity Loss result.
Control: The vehicle's control system and/or computer fails; If the vehicle is moving at more than 30kph (speed 3 in LBB1 terms), and/or if the vehicle is airborne, the vehicle crashes (speed at zero; roll twice on the table).
Explosion: The vehicle's fuel tank or ammunition storage ewxplodes; inflict 5D damage (AP 3, absorbable only by personal armor that covers the entire body) on all crew members; the vehicle is totally inoperative, ofcourse, and might burn.
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Starships in Personal Combat
While, in most cases, starships would be handeled using the LBB2 (or HG) combat system, sometimes you'd like to shoot down a Free Trader with your PGMP-12. For this purpose, treat every FULL 10D of personal-combat damage (ignore fractions) as ONE LBB2 hit. Ship Armor (which I'll add to LBB2 later on) absorbs one hit per point of armor, so most personal-scale weapons wouldn't be able to damage an armored starship (unless they do atleast 20D).
Similarly, ship weapons do 10D per LBB2 hit.
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Surprise
At the beginning of every encounter, make an opposed
Recon (or Leader)/INT task using the skill and the stat of the character with the highest Recon or Leader skill in each side. If no such skill is present, use a skill rating of 0 and no INT DM. Animals that aren't Pouncers or Trappers have an effective skill of 1D-4; Pouncers or Trappers have an effective skill of 1D. Under normal circumstances, if one side rolls 6 or more above the other side, surprise is achieved (see LBB1 pp.30-31 for effects). If an ambush has been laid out, the ambusher may achieve surprise at any roll higher than the roll of the quarry.
Encounter Range
Indoors, encounter range is usually determined by the Referee; outdoors, it should either be decided upon by the referee or determined by the rules presented in LBB1 p.31.
Avoiding an Encounter
A party that has surprise my avoid an encounter at will; Otherwise, roll a
Recon/INT/-2 task to do so, with the following DMs:
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">RANGE DM
Close N/A
Short -1
Medium +1
Long +2
Very Long +3</pre>[/QUOTE]
Initiative
Initiative is an Opposed
Tactics/INT task; use the stats of the character with the highest Tactics skill on each side; the winner's side goes first. If no Tactics skill is present, use a skill rating of 0, but no INT DM.
Making Attacks
Characters using melee weapons, hand-thrown weapons or single-fire ranged weapons may attack once per combat round; characters using most personal auto-fire weapons may attack twice per combat round (but both attacks must be on the same target OR on another target within Close range to it); characters using the Gauss Rifle, LMG, HMG or VRF Gauss Gun on auto-fire may attack three times per combat round (but both attacks must be on the same target OR on another target within Close range to it).
A Melee attack is a
Skill/DEX/Range-DM task.
A ranged attack is a
Skill/STR/Range-DM task.
"Skill" is the skill relevant to the weapon; Range-DM is the range-matrix DM. DMs for high or low Strength or Dexterity (LBB1 pp.34-350 apply as normal.
Autofire
Autofire-capable weapons are shown on the weapons charts with the two DMs in each column separated by a slash. The first DM is used when the weapon is fired semi-automatically; the second is used on full automatic fire settings. Characters using most personal auto-fire weapons may attack twice per combat round (but both attacks must be on the same target OR on another target within Close range to it); characters using the Gauss Rifle, Autocannon, LMG, HMG or VRF Gauss Gun on auto-fire may attack three times per combat round (but both attacks must be on the same target OR on another target within Close range to it).
Group Hits by Autofire
Non-evading targets within close range (1.5m) of the original target area are also attacked by the weapon's burst of fire. A DM of -3 is imposed to hit. From a normal four round burst, no more than two adjacent targets may be hit. From a ten round burst or greater (fired by Gauss Rifles, Autocannons, LMGs, HMGs and VRF Gauss Guns), four targets may be hit.
Group Hits By Shotguns
Each shot by a shotgun may attack up to three individuals within Close range to the original target. In addition, when firing against flying targets (winged animals, flying vehicles) within range, a DM of +2 is allowed. Note that this rule also applies to Flechette rounds fired in Long, Very Long and Extreme ranges and to High Energy Weapons (PGMPs and FGMPs) fired in Very Long and Extreme ranges.
Blast Damage
The High Explosive (HE) rounds of the LAG, ACR and Snub Pistol also damage all targets within Close range (up to 1.5m) of the main target with the regular AP, but only half the rolled damage. The High Explosive (HE) rounds of the Autocannon and all grenades also damage all targets within Short range (up to 6m) of the main target with the regular AP, but only half the rolled damage. Blast Damage and group hits (by shotguns/energy weapons/flechette/autofire) are cumulative.
Hand Grenades
Hand Grenades have no Range DMs; they may only be thrown at target in Medium range (or less if the character is suicidically heroic :toast: ). Hitting the target is a
Throwing/DEX/+2 task to hit, have an AP of 4 and 6D damage, and do Blast Damage as described above to all targets within Short Range (6m0 of the primary target. If the task fails, the grenade scatters [mechanism?].
Throwing Blades and other Objects
Small blades (Dagger or Blade), spears, stones and other objects may be thrown on targets within Short or Medium ranges using a
Throwing/DEX/+2 task in Short Range or a
Throwing/DEX/-2 task at Medium Range. Stones (or similar small blunt objects) have an AP of 0 and cause 2D damage. Blades and spears use their regular AP and damage.
Tac Missiles
A Tac Missile is a TV-guided, man-portable missile; it uses a
Launchers/DEX/0 task to hit anything within its range; DM -1 to -4 for a moving target (depending on speed), DM -2 for targets with ECM and DM -4 for targets with Extensive ECM. I'll create a table of Tac Missiles by TL, providing AP, damage and range.
Indirect Fire
Indirect Fire requires TWO task-throws: the gunner throws a
Field Artillery/INT/0 task while the spotter rolls a
Forward Obs/INT/0 task. If both succeed, the attack hits the target accurately; if only one succeeds, the shot scatters [mechanism?], unless he has rolled a Spectacular Success; if both fail, the shot hits an irrelevant location and is wasted. I'll detail artillery weapons later (along the lines of LBB4 pp.48-49).
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A unified weapon table for use with my combat system is available
here.
And super-kudos to WJP. I've already put together a word doc of the most savory parts of this thread. A couple of quick hits:
