Combat

Attack Dice Pools

Characters do not add a weapon’s rating to their attack dice pool. Calculate dice pools for attacks as follows:

Unarmed Combat: Strength + Brawl; Defense applies

Ranged Combat: Dexterity + Firearms (Defense only applies if within 2 yards)

Melee Combat: Strength + Weaponry; Defense applies

Thrown Weapons: Dexterity + Athletics; Defense applies

Damage

The harm inflicted by an attack is determined by the number of successes on the attack roll, plus any weapon bonus. If you get no successes on your attack roll after applying Defense, you deal no damage — your victim doesn't have to defend against your weapon’s bonus successes. Attacks with fists and feet deal bashing damage. If you use a weapon, the damage is always lethal. Cricket bats and brass knuckles can shatter bones and crush skulls with far less effort than kicking someone to death. Some weapons have modifiers of +0. They don’t add any bonus successes, but the attack still deals lethal damage. If you don’t want to kill someone by accident, drop your weapon.

When you take damage mark it from left to right in your health boxes. The exceptional to this is if you take multiple types of damage, the worst type of damage always appears on the left, and least serious to the right. I.e. If you had 3 aggravated damage and got punched the bashing damage would go left of the aggravated.

• Bashing is damage from fists and other such things. Its marked with a /

• Lethal is damage from slabbing, perceiving, crushing, or any sort of jarring physical trauma. Its marked with an X

• Aggravated is damage from Fire or strange supernatural attacks, it's marked with an *

If your health boxes fill with a certain type of damage and you take more of the same type the damage "loops around" turning already damaged health boxes into the next stage higher. I.e. if you have 7 health boxes all filled with bashing damage, then receive another 2 bashing damage, two of your leftmost boxes of bashing damage turn into lethal damage.

Most mortals who suffer lethal damage will begin to bleed out internally or externally. This occurs once a mortal has taken lethal damage equal to their size. If they do not get medical attention quickly they will die, taking additional lethal damage as time goes on until every health box is filled. Once every health box is filled with lethal the mortal takes an additional lethal damage every turn (thus looping around to aggravated damage) until they perish.

Those that have their their last 3 health boxes filled with any damage suffer wound penalties: the third to last gives -1, the second to last a -2, and the last a -3. Mortals and most supernaturals who find their last health box filled with Bashing Damage must roll their stamina every round to avoid falling unconscious, they do not suffer wound penalties to this roll. When someone's last health box has lethal damage they fall unconscious.

Mortals heal Bashing Damage at a rate of 1 per hour, they heal Lethal Damage at a rate of 1 per day (so long as they have adequate medical care), and they heal Aggravated damage at a rate of 1 per week (so long as they are hospitalized and under good care).

Vampires and Injury

The dead bodies of a vampire are considerably harder to injure than the bodies of the living. Vampires do not suffer from wound penalties, they do not bleed out, nor do they have to roll to stay conscious after their last health box has been filled with bashing damage. A vampire who has his last Health box filled with Lethal Damage is in Torpor, a Vampire who has his last health box filled with Aggravating Damage meets Final Death.

Attacks that deal piercing damage or bashing dame will only ever delivers levels of bashing damage to a vampire. Slashing damage still deals lethal damage however, and a ballistics attack aimed a vampire's head will likely deal lethal damage, but not a ballistics attack aimed at a vampire's body or limbs.

To stake a vampire you must get an exceptional success on a called shot to the heart (-4 to the attack) with all five points dealing lethal damage to the vampire. When you attempt to take a vampire in the heart with a wooden stake it will deal lethal damage so long as you deal at least 3 damage. If successful the vampire is completely incapacitated, but still completely aware. They can do nothing but observe events around them for as long as the stake is in their heart. They must still expend blood every dusk, if they run out of blood they take a point of lethal damage every night until falling into torpor.

A called shot to the vampire's head will not inflict the Stunned condition, however called shots to the limbs will inflict their relevant conditions. If a vampire gains Arm Wrack, Leg Wrack, or Blinded condition from injury he must heal the damaged the attack caused before the condition will go away.

Defense

Only someone caught completely by surprise, a fool, a masochist or a martyr stands still and takes whatever an enemy has to dish out. Most combatants seek to avoid getting hit and hurt. A target is automatically allowed a degree of evasion when an opponent uses a Brawl, Weaponry or thrown attack against him. Such a response is a reflexive action and applies even if your character is attacked before his place in the Initiative roster. This reaction is called your character’s Defense, a trait equal to the lowest of his Dexterity or Wits. Your character’s Defense is subtracted from an attacker’s dice pool. In essence, your character bobs and weaves to avoid the blow. This automatic Defense does not normally apply against Firearms attacks. The only instance in which Defense does apply against Firearms-based attacks is when the attacker shoots within close-combat range; within a yard or two of the target. Defense does apply normally against thrown weapons, such as rocks, knives and spears.

A target who is tied up, unconscious or simply unmoving does not receive Defense as protection. Nor does one who’s taken by surprise or who is unaware of an incoming attack (say he has his back turned). That is, the attacker’s dice pool is not modified by the target’s Defense trait. A completely dormant target — a person who is tied up so that he cannot move at all, or who is unconscious— is a sitting duck for a killing blow. The attacker need not make a roll; he delivers damage equal to his dice pool. If the target wears armor, its rating is automatically subtracted from the damage inflicted.

If multiple close-combat attacks are directed at your character in the same turn, he may try to evade each of them, but doing so becomes progressively more difficult. Each attack after the first diminishes your character’s Defense modifier by one. So, if three attacks are staged against your character who has a 3 Defense (his Dexterity is 3 and his Wits is 4), the first attack suffers a -3 penalty, the second suffers a -2 penalty and the third suffers a -1 penalty. A fourth attack would suffer no Defense penalty. Basically, your character’s Defense is subtracted from incoming attacks, but it gets progressively harder to avoid them. If you elect, your character doesn't have to apply his Defense modifier until a specified attack comes in. At the start of each new turn, your character’s full, normal Defense trait is restored.

Dodge

Sometimes your character knows that he’s in over his head. Too many opponents are arrayed for him to hope to defeat them all. Or he’s been hurt badly and needs to avoid any further injury. In such cases, he can dedicate himself to avoiding harm by dodging. Your character’s action for a turn is spent anticipating attacks and moving out of harm’s way. Double his Defense trait. As with Defense, above, if multiple attacks are directed against your character, his Dodge total is reduced by one for each attack after the first. Thus, if his Dodge total is 6, your character’s first attacker suffers a -6 penalty. The second suffers a -5, the third suffers a -4, and so on. Your character can do nothing else in a turn in which he dodges except move up to his Speed trait.

Armor

Armor helps shield your fragile body from damage:

• Ballistic armor applies to incoming firearms attacks. Each point of ballistic armor downgrades one point of damage from lethal to bashing. (Ballistic armor does nothing for a vampire since they already only take bashing from bullets)

• General armor applies to all attacks. Each point of general armor reduces the total damage taken by one point, starting with the most severe type of damage. If armor has both ballistic and general ratings, apply the ballistic armor first. Characters with supernatural armor, such as a mage’s warding spells or a werewolf’s tough hide can benefit from such protection in addition to mundane armor; add the ratings together to determine a character’s final protection.

Initiative

At the start of combat everyone rolls a 1d10 + Dexterity & Composure & Miscellaneous Modifiers. These numbers are recorded and it forms the initiative roster, characters with the highest number goes first; ties go to the characters with the higher modifiers, then highest dexterity, if still a tie they roll their initiative mods vs one another. You can delay your action in a turn, going later on in the roster than your number dictates, but you must set circumstances for your turn. I.e. "If that guy fires a gun, I'm going to punch him" or "i'm delaying my action until Isiah takes his turn."

Turns

Turns are time during combat and other instances. A turn is roughly 3 seconds. A character can preform one Instant action during their turn, as well as move their speed, and preform reflexive actions.

Pulling Blows

Sometimes you want to beat the fight out of someone without killing him. To that end you can choose to pull your blow, not putting full force behind an attack. You nominate a maximum amount of damage for the blow that can’t be greater than the higher trait in your attack pool — for example, if you've got Strength •• and Brawl ••••, you can deal between 1 and 4 points as your maximum damage. If you would ordinarily do more damage, any extra is ignored. Because you’re holding back, it’s easier for your opponent to ward off your blows: the defender gains a +1 bonus to Defense. This can only be preformed with brawl attacks.

Disarm

You attempt to snatch an opponent’s weapon away. Roll Dexterity + Brawl contested by your opponent’s Strength or Dexterity + Athletics. If you succeed, your opponent drops his weapon. If you get an exceptional success, you take possession of your opponent’s weapon. On a dramatic failure, you take damage equal to the weapon’s bonus — if you’re struggling over a gun, you take damage equal to its damage rating (the gun goes off).

Grapple

Initiating a grapple is not as simple as an attack, people squirm, kick, bite and generally do anything possible to get away, roll a Strength + Brawl vs their Dexterity + Brawl or Athletics. On a success, both of you are grappling. If you've got a length of rope, a chain, or a whip, you can add its weapon bonus to your Strength when grappling. If you score an exceptional success on this first roll, pick a move from the list below. When grappling, each party makes a contested Strength + Brawl vs Strength + Brawl action on the higher of the two characters’ Initiative, on the roll each party subtracts the other's Strength. The winner picks a move from the list below, or two moves on an exceptional success.

• Break Free from the grapple. You throw off your opponent; you’re both no longer grappling. Succeeding at this move is a reflexive action, you can take another action immediately afterwards.

• Control Weapon, either by drawing a weapon that you have holstered or turning your opponent’s weapon against him. You keep control until your opponent makes a Control Weapon move.

• Damage your opponent by dealing bashing damage equal to your rolled successes minus their successes. If you previously succeeded at a Control Weapon action, add the weapon bonus to your successes.

• Disarm your opponent, removing a weapon from the grapple entirely. You must first have succeeded at a Control Weapon move.

• Drop Prone, throwing both of you to the ground (see “Going Prone”). You must Break Free before rising.

• Hold your opponent in place. Neither of you can apply Defense against incoming attacks.

• Restrain your opponent with duct tape, zip ties, or a painful joint lock. Your opponent suffers the Immobilized condition. You can only use this move if you've already succeeded in a Hold move. If you use equipment to Restrain your opponent, you can leave the grapple.

• Take Cover using your opponent’s body.

• Throw your opponent as if he were an improvised, non-aerodynamic weapon. You must have the appropriate strength for this to work. After they are thrown roll your strength, they take any successes as bashing damage and knocked down.

If more than one person tries to grapple the same victim they must use their instant action to do so. those aiding a grapple roll their strength (not brawl, but they do take a penalty if they have no brawl), their successes on this roll are added to the parent grapple roll successes, but cannot be added to bashing damage if the grappler is using that maneuver.

Auto fire

Each action in a turn allows for one squeezing of the trigger. For most weapons such as a pistol or rifle that means one shot. For automatic weapons, that means auto fire — one of a short burst, medium burst or long burst.

Short burst: Your character fires three bullets at a single target, with a +1 bonus to the roll. A short burst cannot normally be directed against multiple targets.

Medium burst: Your character fires 10 or so bullets at one to three targets, with a +2 bonus to each attack roll. If he fires at more than one target, he suffers penalties that mitigate this bonus (see below).

Long burst: Your character fires 20 or so bullets at as many targets as the shooter wants. A +3 bonus is applied to each attack roll (but with penalties for multiple targets; see below).

The Storyteller says how many targets are too many. The shooter could unload at a single target, a crowd or at targets spread out from each other. If intended targets are simply too spread out to realistically be hit, the Storyteller can designate who is a valid target. If, for example, three intended targets stand approximately in front of the shooter and a fourth is behind him, the Storyteller may decree that the fourth cannot be targeted in the attack.

Auto fire is resolved with a single Dexterity + Firearms roll for each intended target. If your character directs auto fire at more than one target in a single attack, a penalty equal to the number of targets is applied to each dice pool. So, if your character directs auto fire at three targets, the dice pool for each suffers a -3 penalty. If he fires at only one target, he suffers no penalty

The extra dice gained for using automatic fire (and penalties for shooting at multiple people) apply to the gunman’s dice pool. Any successful hits deal successes + weapon modifier damage. This is one of the few instances where wielding a weapon grants dice bonuses to attack as well as bonus damage.

Example: Weston’s packing a sub machine gun when the gang boss’s three henchmen draw pistols. He pulls the trigger for a medium burst and sprays bullets at all three punks. Weston’s Dexterity is 2, his Firearms is 4, and he gains a +2 bonus for a medium burst, giving him a total of eight dice. As he’s shooting at three people, he suffers a −3 penalty. Weston’s player rolls five dice three times, once for each henchman. As he’s using a large SMG, he adds two successes to any successful roll to determine damage.

Firearm Range
Each firearm and thrown weapon has various ranges to which it is accurate. The Firearms Chart lists these, broken out as short, medium and long range. Your character suffers no penalties when firing up to short range. A target at medium range imposes a -2 penalty. Long range applies a -4 penalty.

By no means is long range the limit to which a gun can fire or a thrown weapon can be hurled. Most firearms, for example, can shoot a bullet much farther than the weapon can reliably hit a target. If your character tries to shoot a target beyond long range, he can still make the attempt. Make a chance roll to determine success, regardless of what your character’s dice pool might normally be. Any target that’s more than double a weapon’s long range away is considered completely out of range and no shot can hit it.

Thrown Weapon Range

For a non-aerodynamic item, its Size is subtracted from your character’s Strength + Dexterity + Athletics to indicate short range. Medium and long range can be extrapolated from there, as double the previous distance. So, if your character has 3 Strength, 2 Dexterity and 1 Athletics and he throws a laptop (1 Size), short range for the weapon is five yards, medium range is 10 yards and long range is 20 yards.Aerodynamic objects such as footballs and spears can be thrown double the above distances. So, if the above item was a football instead of a laptop (still Size 1), short range would be 10 yards, medium range would be 20 yards and long range would be 40 yards. Thus, distance is relatively fixed while the accuracy of a thrown object is determined by a Dexterity + Athletics roll. An object with a Size that equals or exceeds your character’s Strength simply can’t be thrown far enough to constitute a ranged weapon, even if it’s an aerodynamic item. It’s simply too heavy or bulky to be thrown.

Aiming

For each full turn that your character aims a ranged weapon at a target, add one bonus die to your attack pool to a maximum of three. Your character loses any Defense while aiming; he must remain still. If an opponent attacks him in close combat before his shot gets off, and your character’s Defense is applied to the incoming attack, he loses all of his accumulated aiming bonus. In order for your character to retain his accumulated aiming bonus, he needs to weather any incoming close-combat attacks by not applying his Defense. Attackers do not suffer your character’s Defense as a penalty.

Shooting into Close Combat

Sometimes your character is put in a dilemma. Allies are involved in close combat with an enemy, while your character stands outside the fray. He has a gun or other ranged attack and can try to shoot opponents in the fight, but he might hit his allies. Is squeezing the trigger worth the risk? If a single shot is fired (or a single ranged weapon such as a knife is thrown), subtract two dice for each combatant whom your character tries to avoid hitting. (Subtract four dice for each combatant who is grappled and whom your character wishes to avoid.)

If the attack succeeds, your character hits his intended target. If the attack fails, it misses everyone. On a dramatic failure, the Storyteller may decide that one of the combatants whom your character tried to avoid is hit. The ally hit is chosen randomly. If auto fire (even a short burst) is directed at a single target, and that target is in close combat with someone (or anyone is within a yard of the target), an autofire roll is made against each person. Even though a short burst normally applies against only a single target, anyone nearby is targeted as well. Bullets might miss or pass through the target or ricochet to hit bystanders. The attack is treated like auto fire against multiple targets; a -1 penalty is applied for each person who could be hit.

When a medium or long burst is fired at multiple targets, an attack roll is made against anyone standing near (within one yard) or between all intended targets. So, if your character fires a medium burst at two people, but a bystander is between them, an attack roll is made against all three people. Each bystander counts as a full target. That means an additional -1 penalty to the dice pool rolled against each person. Bystanders may also require a shooter to use a larger burst to hit everyone he wants. As with any autofire attack on multiple targets, modifiers for each target are applied separately.

Covering Fire

Characters can use automatic weapons to provide covering fire — firing on full-auto to dissuade the character’s enemies from coming out into the open. Covering fire is only possible with a weapon capable of fully automatic fire. Roll Dexterity + Firearms. If successful, opponents within range must make a choice on their next turns; they can seek cover or drop prone (accepting normal penalties to any attacks made) or, if they take aggressive actions without seeking cover or going prone, they suffer a shot as if the successes on Covering Fire were scored against them. The character states the general area he’s firing at, and rolls Dexterity + Firearms. If the roll succeeds, characters in the affected area must make a choice on their next turns. They can avoid the attack, either running to any cover that’s within their Speed or dropping prone (see “Going Prone,” pp. 164–165 of the World of Darkness Rulebook). Or, they can take an action as normal but suffer damage based on the covering fire successes + weapon modifier. Covering fire takes 10 bullets, the same as firing a medium burst.

Example: The Santos Militia has military-spec hardware and they’re on to Danny. One of the militia opens up with an assault rifle and the Storyteller informs Danny’s player that he’s using covering fire. The Storyteller rolls the militiaman’s Dexterity + Firearms and gets two successes. Danny can either get out of the way by going prone or ducking behind one of the Santos’ Hummers, or take a shot at the guy with the gun and take five points of lethal damage.

Firearms and Close Combat

When within a close quarters environment you gain your defense vs firearm attacks. Additionally any firearm larger than Size 1 is too big to use to accurately shoot someone when fists and crowbars are the order of the day. In close combat, the target’s Defense against firearms attacks is increased by the gun’s (Size − 1). If using a gun larger than a pistol to bludgeon your opponent, treat it as an improvised crowbar.

Concealment

The old adage “You can’t hit what you can’t see” is true. Visibility and an opponent’s efforts to hide make it difficult to target someone with a ranged attack. Anything that makes a target difficult to see in ranged combat — fog, mist, darkness, obstructions — offers concealment. There are four degrees of concealment to consider, and the penalties associated with each may be applied to ranged attack rolls. (Concealment does not apply when opponents are engaged in Brawl or Weaponry combat. They're too close to hide from one another.)

Barely concealed: -1 (Example: crouching behind an office chair)

Partially concealed: -2 (hiding behind the hood of a car, but with upper body exposed)

Substantially concealed: -3 (crouching fully behind a car, or poking up out of a foxhole)

Completely covered: Completely protected by an intervening barrier (all shots hit the cover automatically; see “Cover,” below) If the barrier is something that bars vision like fog rather than something that blocks attacks, the attack doesn't use Cover but rather the attacker is reduced to a chance die.

Firing from Concealment

Being concealed helps protect your character, of course, but it also makes it difficult to conduct ranged attacks back at an opponent. Your character must pop up, fire, and then duck down again. If he fires back from shelter, the penalty to your roll is one less than the concealment rating of your character’s protection. Thus, if he’s substantially concealed (-3 to be hit) and fires back while maintaining that protection, your attack roll suffers a -2 penalty. A character who is completely covered (under full cover) cannot stage ranged attacks at opponents. Doing so would compromise his cover and reduce him to substantially concealed, instead (attacks made against him would then suffer a -3 penalty).

Cover

When shooting at a target in cover, subtract the cover’s Durability from the damage dealt. Any remaining damage affects both the object providing cover and anyone hiding behind it equally. If the object’s Durability is higher than the attacker’s weapon modifier, the bullets cannot penetrate cover. Durability for a range of objects is provided on p. 136 of the World of Darkness Rulebook. Remember that cover only applies when the intended victim is entirely hidden — a chain-link fence or steel lamppost isn't large enough for a person to hide behind. If you can see your target through cover — glass, for example — subtract half the cover’s Durability from incoming attacks (round down). This does not apply if the object’s Durability is higher than your weapon modifier.

Example: Cross hides completely behind a wooden door. Drake shoots at the door in the hopes of hitting Cross beyond. The door’s Durability is 1. Drake’s attack roll nets three successes and he’s using a heavy revolver, for a total of five damage. The shot passes through the door, dealing four damage to the door’s Structure and to Cross. Today’s lesson: in the roshambo of life, bullets beat a cheap wooden door.

Human Shields

When the shit hits the fan and the SWAT team hits the botched bank job, the only available cover may be a terrified member of the public. Unfortunately, the human body is nowhere as effective at blocking bullets as television and movies would have us believe. If your character is in the morally dubious position of using another human being as cover, any shots directed his way do damage to his victim first. Reduce the damage dealt by the victim’s Stamina and any armor. Any remaining damage blows right through to your character. If the person you want to use to save your ass is already part of the fight, you need to use the Take Cover grapple move

Example: Drake only wanted to jack the pale lady’s car. Now, he’s facing down three dudes with hand cannons. In desperation, he grabs a guy off the sidewalk who’s about to learn the meaning of “wrong place, wrong time.” One of the lady’s minions pulls the trigger. He’s a practiced marksman (Dexterity 2, Firearms 2) so the Storyteller rolls four dice. He gets two successes and adds the gun’s weapon modifier of 2. The human shield takes four points of lethal damage. Drake’s player subtracts his human shield’s Stamina of 2 from the damage and marks off two points of lethal damage himself.

Specified Targets

Attacking specific body parts has its benefits. In addition to potentially ignoring armor, strikes to limbs and the head can have added effects.

• Arm (–2): A damaging hit can inflict the Arm Wrack Condition if it deals more damage than the target’s Stamina

• Leg (–2): A damaging hit can inflict the Leg Wrack Condition or Knocked Down Condition if it deals more damage than the target’s Stamina

• Head (–3): A damaging attack can stun the victim, inflicting the Stunned Condition

• Heart (–4): If the attacker does at least five points of damage, the weapon pierces the opponent’s heart, with special effects for some monstrous targets

• Hand (–4): On a damaging hit, the victim suffers the Arm Wrack Condition.

• Eye (–5): On a damaging hit, the victim is blinded. If inflicted in this way the blinded condition is temporary.

Improvised Weapons

The examples of weapons above can only go so far. What about an old-fashioned corded telephone, a thrown brick, or a shard of sharp metal? Characters who grab an improvised weapon still stand a chance of doing serious damage, but it’s not as likely compared to someone who’s brought a tool specifically for killing. If you can make an argument (and the Storyteller accepts it) that your improvised weapon is close enough to one of the weapons on the weapon chart, use the associated weapon profile. Otherwise, an improvised weapon does (Durability− 1) damage, with an initiative penalty and Strength requirement equal to the weapon’s Size. Using an improvised weapon reduces your attack dice pool by 1. On a successful attack, the weapon takes the same amount of damage as it inflicts; though Durability reduces this damage as normal. Once the weapon’s Structure is reduced to 0, the object is too wrecked to inflict any real damage.

Movement

Your character’s Speed trait indicates how many yards he can travel in a single turn by walking or jogging. He can travel that many yards and still perform an action, all in the same turn. He can move and perform an action, or perform an action and then move. He cannot, however, move, perform an action and then move again all in the same turn. If he moves more quickly, he can travel up to twice his Speed trait in a turn by running. Doing so is considered a full action and no other feats can usually be performed while running.

Charging

Your character can charge an opponent in close combat — in a Brawl or Weaponry attack. Essentially, he closes a considerable distance with a target and is able to attack. Your character can move up to twice his Speed and stage an attack at the end of his movement, all in the same turn. Your character’s Defense score is not subtracted from any attacks made against him in the turn. He makes a relatively easy target of himself by making a beeline to a specific opponent.

Your character cannot charge and make an “All-Out Attack” in the same action. Nor can he charge and perform any other special attack that requires him to give up his Defense as a drawback to the maneuver. He can perform one maneuver or the other. If your character’s Defense is applied against any incoming attacks in a turn, he cannot perform a charge in the same turn. If incoming attacks precede his position in Initiative, he has to suffer those attacks without the benefits of Defense in order to conduct a charge at his place in Initiative.

Going Prone

Sometimes there’s no cover to be found when your character comes under fire, and he dives to the ground as a last resort. Or your character has been crawling to avoid being spotted, or he simply just lies on the ground. Regardless of the reason, it all boils down to going prone. Ranged attacks suffer a -2 penalty when the target is prone. A standing attacker who uses a Brawl or Weaponry attack gets a +2 dice bonus to hit a prone target in close combat. If an attacker approaches a prone target such that he is about a yard away (within range to be considered in close combat), and conducts a ranged attack at the target, the attack receives the +2 bonus. The ranged attack is also subject to the target’s Defense, though. Going prone is a reflexive action.

Rising from prone is an action and must be performed in its own turn. Your character could therefore rise from prone and remain stationary or rise from prone and move up to his Speed in the same turn.

Combat Conditions*If a character is blinded in both eyes and deaf in both ears then they lose all defense and auto-fail all combat rolls.

Other Complications

• Drawing: Upholstering, Pulling, sheathing, or otherwise preparing a weapon takes one action. Thus, if your character draws his weapon in a fight, he spends an action doing so (unless he has the Quick Draw Merit). If a weapon is hidden on your character’s person (under a coat or in a purse), an action is spent drawing it and your character loses her Defense for the turn.

• Reloading: Your character must spend one action to reload her empty gun. A gun that must be loaded with individual bullets also costs your character’s Defense for the turn. That is, Defense can’t be applied against incoming close-combat attacks. A weapon that’s reloaded with a clip or magazine does not cost Defense for the turn.

• Offhand Attacks: If your character makes attacks with his offhand (say, he’s right handed but is forced to use his left), they suffer a -2 penalty. The Ambidextrous Merit eliminates this penalty.

• All-Out Attack: Your character foregoes all pretense of self-preservation. He gives his all to do his opponent harm. You gain two bonus dice on your character’s attack for the turn, but lose his Defense trait for the turn. Thus, he’s easier to be hit and harmed, but he can deliver more damage, too. An all-out attack can be performed with any close-combat attack, armed or unarmed. If your character’s Defense is applied against any incoming attack in a turn, he cannot perform an all-out attack in that turn

• Clear Jam: Your character’s gun jams, probably because of a dramatic failure achieved in a Firearms roll. It can take as little as an action to clear a jam, unless the Storyteller rules that the gun must be dissembled and cleared later, when time permits.

• Touching an Opponent: An option of close combat is intentionally making contact with a target, whether by hand or with a hand-held item, but without doing harm. This effort is considered touching, and might be performed to plant a bug on someone, to count coup, to deliver the effect of an occult incantation or to knowingly spread an infection. It’s assumed that a target doesn’t want to be touched. If there’s no resistance involved, the Storyteller can decree that a touch is performed automatically. Otherwise you roll your Strength or Dexterity (whichever is higher) + Athletics or Brawl/Weaponry (whichever is higher) is rolled to perform a touch. No damage is delivered through an intentional touch, even if multiple successes are rolled. A resisting target’s Defense applies.

• Surprise: Dexterity + Stealth vs Wits + Composure. If the attack gets more successes than the defender takes gets no instant action on his first round of initiative they have no defense for this first round. If the defender succeeds combat simply rolls as normal.

• Stun: Some weapons pack such a wallop that if damage successes inflicted in a single attack equal or exceed the target’s Size, he loses his next action.

• Knockout: A single blow delivered to the head (-3 penalty to hit) that equals or exceeds the target’s Size in damage might knock him unconscious. A Stamina roll is made for the victim. If it succeeds, he behaves normally. If it fails, he is unconscious for a number of turns equal to the damage done.

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