Welcome back to my "Beginner's Guide to Savage Worlds". Last week I looked at how to create characters with different ancestries, along with Arcane Backgrounds. This week, I'm going to look at some advanced combat options, to show there's more than just simply attacking. I'll have sections dedicated to both melee and ranged combat, but I'll also talk about some situations which can apply to both or neither.
Holding and Interrupting
If you're mulling over what to do on your turn, you can go On Hold. This means you don't take your turn when your card comes up, choosing to either act later in the round or any time you want in the next round. One word of caution though; if you're Shaken or Wounded while On Hold, you lose your turn.
You can even interrupt somebody else's turn when you're On Hold. This requires an opposed Athletics roll, and a success means you act before the other person while a failure means they still act first but you can act immediately afterwards. If you're dealt a Joker and haven't yet acted, you can choose to interrupt the action without needing to make the roll.
Called Shots
It's assumed that all attacks are directed at the centre of body mass, unless explicitly stated. If you do want to target somewhere else, you can make a Called Shot. This imposes penalties on the attack roll, but it can convey other effects. For example, a Called Shot to the target's head or vitals imposes a -4 penalty to your attack roll, but you get a +4 bonus on your damage roll if it hits.
Another thing you can do with Called Shots is Disarm. This is a Called Shot directed at a target's weapon or the limb it's being held in.
- Against the limb, this is a Called Shot to the target's arm (which has a -2 penalty) or hand (which has a -4 penalty). If the attack Shakes or Wounds the target, they must make a Strength roll with a penalty equal to the Called Shot penalty in order to keep hold of the weapon.
- Against the weapon, there's a Scale penalty based on how big the weapon is. The wielder then has to oppose the damage total with a Strength roll to keep hold of the item.
- Objects have a Hardness rather than a Toughness, and a Parry of 2. If your damage equals or exceeds the object's Hardness, it's destroyed. However, a raise doesn't grant you bonus damage when attacking an object, and the damage dice don't Ace. Some objects might be immune to certain types of damage.
Supporting and Testing
As an action, you can Support an ally's Trait roll. This is especially good for non-combatant characters, as it gives them something to do in a fight. Supporting uses any skill you have, but you have to be specific as to how you’re using that skill, and what the ally's action is that you're Supporting. You can't just say "I want to Support with Notice"; you have to elaborate.
Examples of Support:
- Pointing out a dragon's missing scale to an archer (Supporting Shooting with Notice);
- Saying to a Shaken fighter "Go get 'em, tiger!" (Supporting Spirit with Persuasion);
- Telling someone engaged in melee with a zombie that their weak spot is the head (Supporting Fighting with Occult).
As long as it makes narrative sense, anything goes.
Once the GM approves the action, you can make the roll. Success grants a +1 bonus to the character’s affected Trait roll, while a raise grants +2. However, a Critical Failure on your roll imposes a -2 penalty to the Trait roll. Multiple characters can Support the same person, but the maximum cumulative bonus from Support is +4.
The polar opposite of Support, a Test is an action intended to throw your enemies off guard and leave them open. Like with Support, you can use any of your skills to Test an opponent, but you have to be specific as to what it is you’re doing.
Examples of Tests:
- Kicking an opponent in the groin (Fighting);
- Saying “Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries” (Taunt);
- Giving someone a hard stare (Intimidation).
Testing is an opposed roll, using whichever Attribute is linked to the skill used for the Test. On a success, you can impose one of the following status effects:
- Distracted: The target suffers a -2 penalty to all their actions until the end of their next turn (in other words, it makes it harder for them to hit you).
- Vulnerable: All attacks and actions directed at the target are made at +2 until the end of their next turn (thus making it easier for you to hit them).
If you score a raise on the Test, the target is also Shaken. This cannot Wound a character if they're already Shaken; only physical attacks can do that. Some settings may allow Creative Combat, in which a Wild Card who scores a raise on a Test can choose to either make the target Shaken or roll for a random effect. Effects include earning a Benny, making the target Distracted and Vulnerable, recovering a Wound or level of Fatigue, or even gaining another turn.
Stunning
Some powers and items (such as pepper sprays, tasers, or stun grenades) can Stun a target. When you're Stunned, you're Distracted until the end of your next turn, Vulnerable until you're no longer Stunned, knocked Prone, and cannot move or take any other actions. You can recover by making a Vigour roll on your turn as a free action. If successful, you're no longer Stunned, but you remain Vulnerable until the end of your next turn unless you got a raise (in which case it wears off at the end of your current turn).
- When you're Prone, you suffer a -2 penalty to your Fighting rolls and Parry. However, you're treated as having Medium Cover against ranged attacks from more than 3" away. You can drop prone as a free action, but each inch of movement uses 2" of Pace, as does standing up.
Advanced Melee Combat
If a target is Disarmed (see above), you may get an Unarmed Defender bonus. This is a +2 bonus to Fighting rolls which an armed opponent gets against a character with no weapon or shield. Once it's their turn, they would have to draw another weapon or pick up the dropped weapon.
If you're duel-wielding melee weapons, you get a +1 Two Weapon bonus when attacking any foe who is wielding a single weapon and no shield, or is unarmed (this stacks with the Unarmed Defender bonus if that applies). You can also make attacks with either weapon, but there is a -2 penalty for attacking with the weapon wielded in the Off-Hand, and there may be Multi-Action penalties as well.
- Example: If you had a rapier in your master hand and a dagger in the off-hand, and wanted to make an attack with both, you'd incur the following penalties (unless they're negated by Edges)
- Rapier: -2 Multi-Action penalty
- Dagger: -2 Multi-Action penalty, and a -2 Off-Hand penalty, for a total of -4
Characters with Natural Weapons (such as claws, fangs, or horns) are not subject to Unarmed Defender or Two Weapon bonuses.
In situations where you're caught without weapons, you can use whatever's at hand. Using Impovised Weapons imposes a -2 penalty to your Fighting rolls, but you're still treated as an armed opponent.
If you're trying to subdue a foe without killing them, you can choose to deal Nonlethal Damage. Fists deal this by default, while you can choose to do this with blunt weapons. It's possible with edged weapons too, but you suffer a -1 penalty to your Fighting rolls in this case. Wounds work as normal, but if an enemy is Incapacitated by Nonlethal Damage, they're simply unconscious for 1d6 hours.
If you and your allies outnumber your foes, you can Gang Up. You get a +1 Gang Up bonus to your Fighting roll for each ally attacking the same target, to a maximum of +4. However, your opponent negates one point of this for each of their adjacent allies. Shaken characters still contribute towards Gang Up, but Stunned characters don't.
If you like an aggressive fighting style, you can make a Wild Attack against your foe; a faster and more powerful attack, but one that leaves you open. Wild Attacks grant a +2 bonus to both your Fighting roll and your damage roll, but leave you Vulnerable until the end of your next turn.
You can Push opponents by making an opposed Athletics or Strength roll. This can be modified by your shield's Parry bonus (attacking or resisting), and you get a +2 bonus if you ran at least 2" before the roll (although that would probably be cancelled out by the running penalty). On a success, your foe moves back 1" and must make an Athletics roll or be knocked Prone. On a raise, they're pushed back 2" and the Athletics roll has a -2 penalty.
You can Grapple a foe by making an opposed Athletics roll. On a success, they're Entangled, which means they can't move and are Vulnerable for as long as they remain Entangled. On a raise, they're Bound, which also makes them Distracted for as long as they're Bound and prevents them from performing any physical actions other than trying to break free. However, if they're Bound, you're Vulnerable too. It's a good way to get someone in a full nelson while your allies punch them. You can also Crush a grappled opponent as an action, which simply involves inflicting your Strength in damage. Shaken characters maintain their hold, but Stunned characters don't.
- When you're Entangled or Bound, you can break free on your turn as an action. This requires either an Athletics roll (which represents slipping free) or Strength roll at -2 (which represents forcing your way out). If you're restrained by a device, you roll against the standard Target Number of 4, but it's an opposed roll if you're being grappled. If you were Entangled, you only need a success to break free, but you need a raise to do so if you were Bound (a success in that regard makes you Entangled, but it means you're no longer Distracted and have more options for actions).
Finally, if you wish to escape you can choose to Withdraw. However, this allows every adjacent enemy who isn't Shaken or Stunned to make a free attack against you (either a standard melee attack or a grapple). To mitigate this, you can Defend. This gives you +4 Parry until the beginning of your next turn, but you cannot perform any other actions (you can still move, but you can't run).
Advanced Ranged Combat
Some weapons, such as grenades, have an Area of Effect. This means they're used to target a location, and do damage to all targets within a Blast or Cone Template. Blast Templates are circular, and can be Small (2" in diameter), Medium (4" in diameter), or Large (6" in diameter). Cone Templates are 9" long, and extend outwards (typically used for flamethrowers). Some area attacks can be Evaded, which requires an Agility roll at -2, negating damage on a success. If an area attack fails, it deviates. This means the Blast Template is moved away from its original location - either 1d6" for a thrown weapon or 2d6" for a launched projectile - in a direction determined by a d12 read like a clock (and some common sense). The distance is doubled if attacking at Medium Range, and tripled for Long Range.
One of the main ways of making ranged attacks easier is by Aiming at a specific enemy on your turn. This basically means you skip your turn (you can't move or take any other actions), but if your first action on your next turn is a ranged attack against the target you were aiming at, you can negate four points of penalties from the following sources: Called Shots, Cover, Range, Scale, or Speed. If you're using a weapon with a scope, you can ignore six points of the aforementioned penalties. If there are no penalties from these sources, the attack is made at +2.
Aiming also allows you to attack targets at Extreme Range. This is up to four times a weapon's Long Range, and imposes a -8 Range penalty (-6 with a scoped weapon). You have to Aim in order to attack the target at Extreme Range, and it doesn't negate the Range penalty. You can't use thrown weapons at Extreme Range.
Most ranged weapons have a Rate of Fire, which is usually 1, but this may be higher for submachine guns, assault rifles, and similar weapons. You can roll a number of Shooting dice equal to your weapon's Rate of Fire on each attack. You have to declare who you're targeting before you make the roll, but you can choose whether each die is allocated to the same enemy or different enemies. You still get a Wild Die, and you ignore whichever die rolls the lowest. Each die has a -2 penalty for Recoil unless stated otherwise, and you then choose which roll is applied to which target (determining any penalties appropriate to that target). Attacking with a Rate of Fire of 1 expends one round, but higher Rates of Fire expend more ammunition with each attack.
Another cool thing you can do is Suppressive Fire. This is a single Shooting roll which expends a number of rounds equal to three times the weapon's Rate of Fire, and is made against all targets in a Medium Blast Template. A success makes the targets Distracted, and a raise means some can be hit for damage (no more than the weapon's Rate of Fire). This always incurs Recoil.
If you're not very good at Shooting, you can use a Shotgun. Shotguns loaded with buckshot grant a +2 bonus to Shooting rolls (to account for the spread), dealing 3d6 damage at Short Range, 2d6 at Medium Range, and 1d6 at Long Range. If it's a double-barrelled shotgun, you can fire both barrels in the same action to deal +4 damage. You can't use shotguns at Extreme Range.
Of course, most ranged weapons have limited ammunition, and have to be Reloaded. It's a free action to nock an arrow or load a sling stone. However, it's an action to load a single bullet, crossbow bolt, or shotgun shell. For modern firearms which have magazines, you can change a magazine as an action (providing that the magazine is pre-loaded). Some weapons, such as heavier crossbows or muzzle-loaded firearms can take multiple actions to load. If you ran on your turn, you have to make an Agility roll to successfully load.
One of the big dangers of ranged combat is Innocent Bystanders; any time you roll a natural 1 on your Trait die, and the Wild Die doesn't succeed, you hit somebody either adjacent to or in the line of fire of your intended target. If you're using a shotgun or a Rate of Fire greater than 1, this occurs on every die which rolls a natural 1 or 2.
If an enemy engages you in melee, there's another risk. If you're using a one-handed ranged weapon (such as a pistol), you can still Shoot into Melee, but you roll against their Parry. If it's a two-handed weapon, you have to either Withdraw (provoking a free attack), or try and whack them (and likely incur an Improvised Weapon penalty). You can shoot at another target, but you'll be Vulnerable if someone is engaged in melee with you.
Mounted Combat
If you're on horseback, you can use your horse's Pace when moving. However, your melee attacks use the lower of your Fighting or Riding. Ranged attacks still use the skill appropriate to the weapon, but they're subject to a -2 Unstable Platform penalty. Your mount can also kick opponents directly in front of them. This is treated as their action, rather than yours. If you move at least 6" in a relatively straight line towards your foe, you can Charge to gain a +4 bonus to your damage roll.
If someone charges at you, and you have a weapon with Reach (such as a polearm), you can Set a weapon by going On Hold and interrupting the charger's action. You get a +2 bonus to your Athletics roll if your weapon has a higher Reach, and if you win the roll, you get the damage bonus from Charging on your attack.
If you or your mount are Shaken or Wounded, you have to make an immediate Riding roll to stay mounted. You may take damage if you ran on your turn, but other effects might depend on the circumstances (GM's call for this one). For example, if a horse is Incapacitated, a rider who fails their roll could be Prone and Entangled as they're pinned (or Bound on a Critical Failure). This isn't an official rule; it's one of my house rules when I run.
Sneak Attacks
The domain of the Rogue, you can hide as part of your movement by making a Stealth roll opposed by an enemy's Notice (this is a free action), providing that it makes narrative sense. You can even use these rules to sneak up on enemies to attack them while they're unaware. Again, this involves a free Stealth roll opposed by their Notice. On a success, they're treated as Vulnerable against you until the end of your turn. But on a raise, you get The Drop, which grants a +4 bonus to both your attack roll and your damage roll (this does not stack with being Vulnerable). If you're hit by one of these attacks, you can be knocked out if you fail a Vigour roll (at -2 if it was to the head).
Please join me again next week, for another tutorial on character creation, looking at how setting can affect it.
Happy writing. And happy rolling.
This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group at www.peginc.com. It is unofficial Media Content permitted under the Media Network Content Agreement. This content is not managed, approved, or endorsed by Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Certain portions of the materials used are the intellectual property of Pinnacle, and all rights are reserved. Savage Worlds, all related settings, and unique characters, locations, and characters, logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle Entertainment Group
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