7d) Combat -- Initiative

Initiative

At the start of each Combat Round, each player character and NPC involved must roll for Initiative to determine what order everyone acts in. To determine initiative, each character roll 2D10 and adds their Reflexes stat to the result. An unmodified roll of a 2 means the character acts last of all, regardless of their Reflexes stat.

For larger-scale combat, initiative can be rolled once for each squad or vehicle, based on the squad leader, vehicle commander or pilot's Reflexes stat.

The character with the highest initiative in that round takes their first Combat Action first, followed by the character with the second-highest initiative, then the third-highest and so on. Once everyone has taken their first Action, second actions are taken in the same order.

If two or more characters get the same result, they act simultaneously. This means that it is perfectly possible for two opponents to shoot and kill each other in the same instant.

Characters making unaimed shots gain a +3 modifier to initiative, at the expense of a -5 modifier to hit.

The Quick-Draw

Normally it takes one Action to draw, unsheathe or unsling and ready a weapon (chambering a round or cocking the hammer). The character doesn't have succeed on any task or stat check to do this.

However, a character can instead try to draw and attack in the same action. This is called a Quick-Draw (after the cartoon character Quick Draw McGraw).

A Quick-drawing character adds their Quick-Draw skill (if any) to their initiative roll, but at the risk of something going wrong if they fumble the roll.

A quick-draw can only be performed with the following types of weapon:

A revolver-type handgun (including pepper-box pistols)

A single-shot handgun (including derringers and stock-less sawn-off shotguns)

A self-loading (semi-automatic) handgun carried with a round already chambered

A one-handed melee or throwing weapon – but not a grenade (anything from a shuriken or switch-blade to a katana or bastard sword)

Quick-draw modifiers

Opponent has weapon drawn and cocked: -10

Opponent has weapon drawn, not cocked: -5

Hip/thigh holster draw: 0

Hip/thigh holster, gun not tied down: -1

Belly-draw (tucked in belt or belly holster): -1

Cross-draw (shoulder or reverse draw): -3

Flap holster, flap up/bucket holster: -1

Flap holster, flap down: -2

Flap holster, buttoned down: -4

Hanging by lanyard: 0

Drawing from pocket: -2; +1 if hand in pocket

Gun in back of belt: -3

Spring holster: +1

Sleeve drop: +1

Bridgeport Rig (hip): +2

Short barrelled pistol* (1”-4”): +1

Medium barrelled pistol* (4”-6”): 0

Long barrelled pistol* (6” plus): -1

Sights filed off: +1 (-3 to hit)

No trigger guard: +1 (+1 to fumble chance)

Hair trigger: +1 (+1 to fumble chance)

Small melee weapon (knife, shuriken): +1

Med. melee weapon (machete, hatchet): -1

Large melee weapon (most swords etc.): -2

Drawing two weapons at once: +1 to fumble chance

* Barrel Length is an extra weapon stat in the Death at Noon Wild West source book for this game.

Quick-draw fumbles

An unmodified 2D10 roll of a 2 on a Quick-draw roll means the character has fumbled. Roll a D6 and consult the table below for the consequences:

1-2: If a gun, the weapon goes off accidentally, shooting harmlessly into the ground. One shot is fired which automatically misses. If using a melee or thrown weapon, the result is similar: the attack automatically misses. The character may act normally in the next action phase.

3-4: The weapon being drawn slips out of the character's grip and lands 1D3m/yd away in a random direction (see the rules for scattering under Area Effect Weapons below).

5: The gun goes off accidentally, hitting a random person or object in the shooter's fire arc. The character may act normally in the next action phase.

6: The character shoots or cuts themselves with the weapon, in an appropriate location, e.g. the foot for a hip holster draw, the arm for a shoulder holster draw, the thigh for a cross draw.

A handgun with the trigger guard removed OR with a hair trigger fumbles on a Quick-draw on a natural 2D10 roll of 2 or 3. A gun with both modifications fumbles on a 2, 3 or 4. Drawing two weapons at once increases the chance of fumbling by one. Thus, a character fast-drawing two handguns, with hair triggers and the trigger guards removed, would fumble on natural roll of 2 to 5 on 2D10 roll: a 10 per cent chance. Thus a character might beat their opponent to the draw, only to shoot their own toes off.