ThirdWizard
First Post
Sooner or later, something is going to go wrong and you'll find yourself in a combat. There are several types of combat in the game, but the most common you will encounter are social combat and physical combat. In social combat, you use words, logic, and emotion to win the day. In physical combat you use magic, guns, or fists.
[toc]FORCE[/toc]
[h=2]General Rules[/h]
[h=4]Consequences[/h]
Consequences are aspects that you take on to reduce stress from a hit and keep fighting. Consequences can be very bad, and they can reduce your effectiveness for an extended period of time, depending on recovery time of the aspect created. You choose your own consequences and non-player characters choose their own consequences.
[h=4]Taken Out[/h]
When you refuse to or cannot take a new consequence and don't have enough stress boxes to soak an attack, you are taken out. The enemy chooses your fate, and you are defeated. This doesn't necessarily mean you're dead. In a lot of cases you're knocked out, captured, left for dead, and so on and so forth. Sometimes its better to be taken out than to accumulate too many consequences.
[h=4]Conceding[/h]
Everybody wants to win. But, that's not always going to happen, and when it looks like things aren't in your favor and you feel you want to remove yourself from the fight, you can concede instead of taking an action. Normally, when you are taken out by an opponent, they choose your fate. But, when you concede, you get to have a hand in determining what happens to you. Don't be afraid of conceding, as sometimes the costs of winning a battle are not worth the win.
[h=4]Maneuvers[/h]
Maneuvers are an important part of combat actions, and are not to be taken lightly. In order to keep things flowing, we will play with the rule that inflicted aspects cannot be used until the next exchange and they can only be tagged by the person that inflicts them unless they note it as freely taggable by anyone (or someone in particular) when declaring the maneuver in the first place. Open tags are first come first served. Otherwise, you must spend a FATE point to use the aspect granted by someone else's maneuver. This goes for any aspect created though other means as well, including things like declarations and assessments.
[h=2]Resolution Steps[/h]
In order to perform actions in a combat, we will follow a strict set of steps. These steps ensure that nothing is missed and give the players the opportunity to use FATE points, stunts, defenses, and any other powers they might possess, in as fast paced a method as can be expected in a play by post.
Post & Roll Actions & Secondary Actions
Once combat is declared on, everyone will post what they're doing for the current exchange as soon as they can, regardless of initiative order. Post a primary action, and a secondary action that you will take if the primary action proves untenable (for example, if your target is taken out before you can act). If you are going to concede the encounter, declare it now.
You will then roll the dice associated with the actions. The dice will need to be labeled as to what Skill you are using and its corresponding Ladder value (Mediocre, Average, Fair, etc.). If you're casting a spell, declare the power of the spell in shifts. These values must be declared in the roll description, as that cannot be changed, and if it is not present there the roll must be re-rolled.
For this roll, just roll 4df and add your skill modifier, and we'll worry about spending FATE points later. Right now, we just want the basic skill roll with normal modifiers.
[h=4]Included in the Post[/h]
For Step 1 always include the following information in your post:
Examples
If your die result is modified by anything outside of the skill, then make a note of what is modifying the skill. Things that might modify a skill roll include focus items and invokes. These need to be spelled out to avoid any confusion. The GM has a lot going on, so anything to help keep from having to make calculations helps.
[h=4]Optional Immediate adjustment[/h]
Since FATE points and tags are spent retroactively, you can immediately edit your post to spend a FATE or to tag an aspect, changing the outcome before the GM gets to it. This will speed up gameplay in cases where there will need to be back and forth over an expenditure of FATE. Don't edit what you originally wrote, just continue after the original posting with details on how you will spend the FATE noting the edit taking place.
[h=4]Step 2 (Game Master)[/h]
Determines outcome and order that in character posts detailing the outcomes can be made.
The GM, at this point, goes over each action in initiative order rolling for non player characters' and player character' defensive rolls. After the GM has determined what happens for the round, he will post the tentative outcomes for everyone to read, in the order that they occur based on initiative.
The order that combatants acted in isn't always important. For example, if you're fighting a big bad monster and everyone shoots it, but it doesn't go down, it doesn't matter much who shot it first and who shot it last. In these cases, post your outcome to the in character thread as quickly as possible so that we can move on to the next exchange.
A post is made detailing this information.
[h=4]Step 3 (Players)[/h]
Use defensive abilities, spend FATE points, etc. which can change the outcome.
It is important to note that the outcomes are only tentative at this point, as emphasized above. FATE points are spent retroactively if needed. Therefore, if the GM posts that you failed a roll, you may then proceed to spend a FATE to add +2 to the roll and see if you now succeed at the task. To streamline play, all target numbers that the players know exist will be made available so that a back and forth with the GM is not required in all cases (though it will be in some). Most known facts will be transparent in this way.
[h=4]Step 4 (Players)[/h]
Choose how to take stress/consequences.
Everyone determines their own consequences. Players dictate the consequences taken by their characters and the GM determines consequences taken by non player characters.
If you were hit, determine how much stress or consequences you want to take. If you take consequences, be sure to note what you want the consequence to be. Try to be creative in naming the consequence aspects. Don't just say "Bruised" or "Cut." Try to describe where you were injured or how bad it is. This is important in adjudicating the aspect later, and it makes for much more colorful combat descriptions for the GM to use when writing up the enemy's actions!
[h=4]Step 5 (Players & GM)[/h]
Post the outcomes In Character
Take what happened in the thread beforehand and detail your own action out. Be descriptive and engaging. If the GM said that the ghoul took the consequence of "Point Blank Shotgun Blast To The Shoulder" make that a part of the description as you battle the monster.
The GM will post the outcomes of NPC actions, and use descriptions that you added in the form of Aspects to the events as well. So, if you describe a "Deep Cut To The Shin" the GM can use that to add flavor to the NPC action descriptions.
[h=4]Step 6 (Game Master)[/h]
Posts any compels for the next exchange and notes all new Aspects.
Before the next exchange begins, the GM will look at the new consequences and aspects on the scene, post them up, and offer compels.
This is an important step, so wait for this before posting up what you will be doing in the next exchange.
Example
A stressed spell caster blew out the street light and it is now dark. The GM rules that everyone's eyes are still adjusting to the much dimmer light, and that no one can see unless they have the ability to see in the dark. Everyone gets a compel based on the new aspect Sudden Darkness to fail all skill checks in the next exchange. On the following exchange, everyone's eyes will adjust and the aspect will be removed. You can ignore the compel by spending a FATE point, but you gain one if you accept the compel.
[h=4]Step 7[/h]
Go back to step #1.
And, we're back to the beginning.
[h=2]Example[/h]
Example combat between:
[h=4]Step 1 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
[h=4]Step 2, 3, & 4 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
[h=4]Step 5 (In Character Thread)[/h]
[h=4]Step 6 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
[toc]FORCE[/toc]
[h=2]General Rules[/h]
[h=4]Consequences[/h]
Consequences are aspects that you take on to reduce stress from a hit and keep fighting. Consequences can be very bad, and they can reduce your effectiveness for an extended period of time, depending on recovery time of the aspect created. You choose your own consequences and non-player characters choose their own consequences.
[h=4]Taken Out[/h]
When you refuse to or cannot take a new consequence and don't have enough stress boxes to soak an attack, you are taken out. The enemy chooses your fate, and you are defeated. This doesn't necessarily mean you're dead. In a lot of cases you're knocked out, captured, left for dead, and so on and so forth. Sometimes its better to be taken out than to accumulate too many consequences.
[h=4]Conceding[/h]
Everybody wants to win. But, that's not always going to happen, and when it looks like things aren't in your favor and you feel you want to remove yourself from the fight, you can concede instead of taking an action. Normally, when you are taken out by an opponent, they choose your fate. But, when you concede, you get to have a hand in determining what happens to you. Don't be afraid of conceding, as sometimes the costs of winning a battle are not worth the win.
[h=4]Maneuvers[/h]
Maneuvers are an important part of combat actions, and are not to be taken lightly. In order to keep things flowing, we will play with the rule that inflicted aspects cannot be used until the next exchange and they can only be tagged by the person that inflicts them unless they note it as freely taggable by anyone (or someone in particular) when declaring the maneuver in the first place. Open tags are first come first served. Otherwise, you must spend a FATE point to use the aspect granted by someone else's maneuver. This goes for any aspect created though other means as well, including things like declarations and assessments.
[h=2]Resolution Steps[/h]
In order to perform actions in a combat, we will follow a strict set of steps. These steps ensure that nothing is missed and give the players the opportunity to use FATE points, stunts, defenses, and any other powers they might possess, in as fast paced a method as can be expected in a play by post.
- Players Post & Roll Actions and Secondary Actions.
- GM determines outcome and order that in character posts detailing the outcomes can be made.
- Players use defensive abilities, spend FATE points, etc. which can change the outcome.
- Players choose how to take stress/consequences.
- Players and the GM post the outcomes In Character.
- The GM posts any compels for the next exchange and notes all new Aspects.
- Go back to step #1.
Post & Roll Actions & Secondary Actions
Once combat is declared on, everyone will post what they're doing for the current exchange as soon as they can, regardless of initiative order. Post a primary action, and a secondary action that you will take if the primary action proves untenable (for example, if your target is taken out before you can act). If you are going to concede the encounter, declare it now.
You will then roll the dice associated with the actions. The dice will need to be labeled as to what Skill you are using and its corresponding Ladder value (Mediocre, Average, Fair, etc.). If you're casting a spell, declare the power of the spell in shifts. These values must be declared in the roll description, as that cannot be changed, and if it is not present there the roll must be re-rolled.
For this roll, just roll 4df and add your skill modifier, and we'll worry about spending FATE points later. Right now, we just want the basic skill roll with normal modifiers.
[h=4]Included in the Post[/h]
For Step 1 always include the following information in your post:
- Your Stress.
- Your current Consequences.
- Your current supply of FATE points (after any adjustments)
Examples
If your die result is modified by anything outside of the skill, then make a note of what is modifying the skill. Things that might modify a skill roll include focus items and invokes. These need to be spelled out to avoid any confusion. The GM has a lot going on, so anything to help keep from having to make calculations helps.
[h=4]Optional Immediate adjustment[/h]
Since FATE points and tags are spent retroactively, you can immediately edit your post to spend a FATE or to tag an aspect, changing the outcome before the GM gets to it. This will speed up gameplay in cases where there will need to be back and forth over an expenditure of FATE. Don't edit what you originally wrote, just continue after the original posting with details on how you will spend the FATE noting the edit taking place.
[h=4]Step 2 (Game Master)[/h]
Determines outcome and order that in character posts detailing the outcomes can be made.
The GM, at this point, goes over each action in initiative order rolling for non player characters' and player character' defensive rolls. After the GM has determined what happens for the round, he will post the tentative outcomes for everyone to read, in the order that they occur based on initiative.
The order that combatants acted in isn't always important. For example, if you're fighting a big bad monster and everyone shoots it, but it doesn't go down, it doesn't matter much who shot it first and who shot it last. In these cases, post your outcome to the in character thread as quickly as possible so that we can move on to the next exchange.
A post is made detailing this information.
[h=4]Step 3 (Players)[/h]
Use defensive abilities, spend FATE points, etc. which can change the outcome.
It is important to note that the outcomes are only tentative at this point, as emphasized above. FATE points are spent retroactively if needed. Therefore, if the GM posts that you failed a roll, you may then proceed to spend a FATE to add +2 to the roll and see if you now succeed at the task. To streamline play, all target numbers that the players know exist will be made available so that a back and forth with the GM is not required in all cases (though it will be in some). Most known facts will be transparent in this way.
[h=4]Step 4 (Players)[/h]
Choose how to take stress/consequences.
Everyone determines their own consequences. Players dictate the consequences taken by their characters and the GM determines consequences taken by non player characters.
If you were hit, determine how much stress or consequences you want to take. If you take consequences, be sure to note what you want the consequence to be. Try to be creative in naming the consequence aspects. Don't just say "Bruised" or "Cut." Try to describe where you were injured or how bad it is. This is important in adjudicating the aspect later, and it makes for much more colorful combat descriptions for the GM to use when writing up the enemy's actions!
[h=4]Step 5 (Players & GM)[/h]
Post the outcomes In Character
Take what happened in the thread beforehand and detail your own action out. Be descriptive and engaging. If the GM said that the ghoul took the consequence of "Point Blank Shotgun Blast To The Shoulder" make that a part of the description as you battle the monster.
The GM will post the outcomes of NPC actions, and use descriptions that you added in the form of Aspects to the events as well. So, if you describe a "Deep Cut To The Shin" the GM can use that to add flavor to the NPC action descriptions.
[h=4]Step 6 (Game Master)[/h]
Posts any compels for the next exchange and notes all new Aspects.
Before the next exchange begins, the GM will look at the new consequences and aspects on the scene, post them up, and offer compels.
This is an important step, so wait for this before posting up what you will be doing in the next exchange.
Example
A stressed spell caster blew out the street light and it is now dark. The GM rules that everyone's eyes are still adjusting to the much dimmer light, and that no one can see unless they have the ability to see in the dark. Everyone gets a compel based on the new aspect Sudden Darkness to fail all skill checks in the next exchange. On the following exchange, everyone's eyes will adjust and the aspect will be removed. You can ignore the compel by spending a FATE point, but you gain one if you accept the compel.
[h=4]Step 7[/h]
Go back to step #1.
And, we're back to the beginning.
[h=2]Example[/h]
Example combat between:
- Blake Stone – Former Beat Cop For Hire
- Ian Rhode – Aeromancer in Training
- Jack – Winter Court Black Sheep
- Ghoul Enforcer – In it for the Meat
[h=4]Step 1 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
Blake's Player said:
Ian's Player said:
Jack's Player said:
[h=4]Step 2, 3, & 4 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
GM said:
Blake's Player said:
GM said:
[h=4]Step 5 (In Character Thread)[/h]
GM said:
Ian's Player said:
Jack's Player said:
Blake's Player said:
[h=4]Step 6 (Out of Character Thread)[/h]
GM said:
