The Face-Off
Often it comes down to a showdown between the one side
and another. Sometimes it ends with one side backing down, and
sometimes it ends in killing.
A
Face-Off is any face-to-face confrontation between two or more
characters. Any of the characters on either side in a Face-Off may
attempt to do either one of three things: intimidate
their opponent(s) into backing down, make the first
move,
or goad
them into attacking you or someone else.
Intimidation
Trying to make someone back down involves 'staring them
out' or intimidating them verbally. It's all about making the other
guy believe that you're not worth messing with. In game terms it
involves an opposed Nerve + Reputation + 1D10 check. The attacker is
the one who is trying to make the other back down. The Intimidation
skill for may me used in place of Reputation.
If the roll succeeds, the other person backs down. If
the attempt fails, the opposing character may try in turn to make the
first character back down. Each character may make a maximum of three
attempts to make another character back down in any Face-Off, unless
they fumble the attempt (roll a one on D10), in which case they have
temporarily lost so much face that no-one is intimidated by them.
Making the first move
Making the first move in a Face-Off is not easy. It's
easier to shoot someone in the back than, and so no checks have to be
made in an ambush situation. But it takes a lot of nerve to throw
down on an armed man orwoman who's looking you straight in the eyes,
especially if they have a reputation as a stone-cold killer. To make
the first move (throw the first punch, make the first knife lunge,
draw your gun and fire), a character must roll 1D10, adding his
Nerve, and score more than the sum of his opponent's Nerve and
Reputation. If the character fails the roll, they may try again up to
a maximum of three attempts, unless they fumble an attempt, in which
case the have temporarily chickened out and will not make the first
move in that situation.
When dealing with Face-Offs between groups, average the
Nerve and Reputation/Intimidate scores of everyone in the group. If
one group outnumbers the other, apply a positive or negative modifier
equal to the difference in numbers, up to a maximum of +/-10. It
takes Nerve indeed to face down a mob alone, but any coward amongst a
multitude can 'cast the first stone'.
Face-Offs should be role-played as much as possible. The
referee should give players a suitable bonus to their roles if they
come out with a good line or move.
Once someone starts shooting, the spell is broken and
everyone can blaze away as they wish, even if they fumbled a first
move. The encounter then enters the first combat turn.
Goading
A character in a face-off situation can try to provoke
their opponent(s) into attacking them, by insulting them or otherwise
doing or saying something to wind them up. This is the kind of school
playground stuff that we've all seen and done.
Goading is an Opposed Task, pitting the Wit skill plus
INT or GEN stat of the instigator, minus their Reputation, against
the Wit or Insight skill plus NRV stat of the target, minus their
Reputation.
Notice that Reputation acts as a negative modifier for
both characters when Goading. A character with a fearsome reputation
will find it difficult to draw anyone into a fight with them, but
will equally find it difficult to back down without losing face.
There are several situational modifiers that can be
applied to the goading character's score:
Situation |
Mod. |
Trying to goad target into a: |
|
Fistfight
|
0 |
Knife fight
|
-2 |
Gunfight
|
-3 |
Illegal car race
|
-1 |
Dance-off
|
3 |
Police or other authority present |
-3 |
Knows something personal about target |
+1 to +3 |
Target intoxicated |
-3 to +3 |
Target already angry or stressed |
+1 to +3 |
If one character tries to goad another into attacking
and fails, the target can then try to goad them in return, if they
wish.
One character can goad another into attacking a third,
often by misrepresenting their intentions, words or actions. The
rules are the same.
On the other hand, one character can attempt to
counteract a goading attempt against another by appealing to the
target's good sense and better nature. They roll D10 plus their Wit
skill and INT or GEN stat, adding their score to the target's to
resist the goading attempt. Only one character can do this to another
at one time (otherwise the babble of voices becomes confusing),
although several characters can take turns at it.
When one player character is trying to goad another, the
encounter should be role-played and not rolled for.
The Ambush
Haven't got the guts to stand up to your enemy in a
fight? Why not just bushwack him from some hiding place?
On a successful ambush, the ambusher automatically wins
initiative, and gains a +5 modifier to hit against their target.
To determine the success of an ambush, make an opposed
task between the Concealment/Evasion skill of the ambusher and the
Awareness skill of the person being ambushed. Situational modifiers
for darkness and other factors which affect the senses work in favour
of the ambusher. If the potential victim is aware of the possibility
of an ambush and is trying to move stealthily through the area in
order to avoid it, an opposed task between their Sneak skill and the
ambusher's Awareness is made first to determine whether the ambusher
spots their quarry. In this case the modifiers work in favour of the
character being ambushed.
When
one group of characters are trying to ambush another, the character
with the lowest
combination of Concealmeant/Evasion and Intelligence from ambushing
group rolls against the character with the highest total Awareness
and Intelligence from the ambushed group.
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