Comabt Rules and FAQ expansion
Posted: Sun Oct 20, 2013 4:41 pm
Had some questions about the stuff at http://www.palladiumbooks.com/questions/combat.html and the intentional typo is because the tab header when you open that page has it 
Firstly, for this page and FAQ in general, is there any way of including dates? Like for example, if the 151 questions answered there were answered at different times, if there is some record of the dates they were answered? If complete information about that isn't available, could it be made partially available? Like if the 'last edited' date is known for the document which was uploaded there, that could at least be posted so that we know that those were up before that date and any potential 152+ would come at some later date. If there was info about who answered the questions that'd also be cool in case people wanted to clarify more, or if there were contradicting answers, which to prioritize (like say Kevin Siembieda answer versus someone else)
Secondly, a Q about short/long/full burst damage. Initially 2/5/10 multipliers, CB1 reduced this to 2/3/7. Even with the reduced amounts, we reach a bit of confusion. Short bursts appear to be ideal for guns that have clips of 10 shots or less, since you don't lose any efficiency. Long bursts appear to be ideal for guns of 6 shots or less (half is 3 shots, which is the new multiplier). Full bursts are ideal for guns with 7 shots or less.
CB1 clarifies that bursts must use at least 2 shots, so there isn't any of the problem of a short burst only using 1 shot in a 5-shot gun. Presumably in this case, a short burst would use 40% of the ammo and a long burst would use 60% of the ammo instead of 20/50?
With weapons that have only 5-6 shots, I assume we should reduce the x7 multiplier to at most, however many shots are being taken. I can't recall if the books clarify that though. Even so, it sure does make bursting way more efficient for lower ammo weapons than high-ammo weapons (except those like rail guns or pulse weapons who list special rates of fire and damage)
Thirdly: with the 'restrained punch' options for supernatural/robot PS, is this automatically successful, or do you have to roll to pull punch to do is restrained? Or is pull punch something you can roll on top of restrained to reduce it even further?
Getting back to the web page Qs...
Question 3 says "Standard means that the weapon is capable of firing single shots (aimed or wild), and is capable of firing bursts only if the weapon description states it can fire bursts.". I thought Standard meant you COULD fire bursts though.
RMBpg225 for the JA-11 Juicer Assassin's Energy Rifle for RoF under the Ion beam says "Aimed, burst or wild as standard, see Modern Weapon Proficiency Section". Most other entries in RMB say 'Standard, see Modern Weapon Proficiency Section".
The phrasing "as standard" for JA-11's ion barrel makes it seem that it is simply elaborating on what standard includes, rather than making an exception to it. Or is the JAER able to fire ion bursts while the NG-57 Northern Gun Heavy-Duty Ion Blaster is not able to?
It goes out of its way to say that the JA-11's laser barrel can only fire aimed shots (though ones assumed it could also fire wild) and that it cannot fire bursts.
If the default of 'standard' was non-bursting, why go out of your way to specify that something can't burst? Why not just say standard as the other laser rifles do?
Is the JA-11's laser barrel a unique laser for sniping, or does it work identically to the majority of other lasers which do not burst unless otherwise indicated by some 3-pulse blast?
While some guns do go out of their way to list 3-pulse burst blasts (such as the L-20 pulse rifle) I always took that to be an advantageous exception. Looking at the L-20 (RMBpg225) a 20% (short) burst would normally take up 8 shots and only inflict 2d6x2 damage. The L-20's pulse option uses less than half the ammo and does 50% more damage than that. Being a weapon designed for bursting, it's clearly more efficient at it (just like rail guns are), but I don't think it necessarily means that other 'standard' weapons can't burst at all.
CB1's "The Combat Sequence" has a Coalition Grunt using a "Coalition laser pistol" for a long (50% ammo) burst with a base damage of 2D4. This would've been the CS-18 Laser Pistol (RMBpg203, CB1 says 5 shots is half the total payload, this weapon's payload is 10) which only lists 'standard', yet it is able to burst. The first statement mistakenly says "Wilk's Laser Pistol" but both the damage/payload and the oddness of the weapon make it clear that it's the CS-18. Even if it were the Wilk's Laser Pistol, it also says Standard like the CS-18 does.
Bursting with a 10-shot weapon is clearly more efficient than with a 20-shot weapon though. It makes me wonder, if weapons have multiple ammunition options (such as short, long, and cannister clips) do we use the smallest ammunition source to figure out how many shots a burst uses? Or do bursts that inflict the same amount of damage use more shots if you're using a long clip than a short one?
Question 9 mentions only auto-dodge bonuses counting to auto-dodging. But power armor like the Kittani Serpent from Atlantis I think were written prior to this rule being introduced (I'm pretty sure in RMB you were supposed to use full dodge bonuses for auto-dodges, much like parry bonuses with auto-parries) so I don't think it has any.
Do we have a timeline of when this "autododge bonuses only" rule was introduced? Could we have errata that gives some autododge bonuses to various sources of autododge abilities (the Grey Seer in FoM and the Reaver Assassin in Warlords come to mind) so that it's not "PP only" which essentially means "no bonuses" for the average person?
Question 13 wasn't answered very clearly. "can parry equal to their number of attacks (actions) per melee round" doesn't answer whether or not you can parry 2 attacks during the same turn (like if Bill and Mike attacked John on the first turn). As far as I know you can parry an unlimited amount but are limited by line of sight, and after 3 attackers, the 4th is automatically behind you and out of sight? This is only for melee range though, what are numerical limits in ranged combat and line of sight, since guys like Cyber-knights can parry single energy blasts (but not bursts) from guns?
Question 15 talks about what happens when you lose initiative. I am wondering, is this something we should ignore if someone is already at the bottom of the initiative order, either via an initial low roll or being knocked down earlier in the same melee? Kinda odd that knockdowns hurt those with initiative more than those without. It feels like it'd be fairer that if someone is already at the bottom, we move them to the top of initiative and make them lose an additional attack.
Question 21 says "If the NPC or PC have autododge and autoparry they still can be used." Was this written prior to the introduction of errata in Rifter/GMG/RUE which allowed people without auto-dodge to dodge when out of attacks by borrowing from the next melee round? Would this specification of auto dodge/parry being usable when out of attacks imply that other automatic defenses (such as the automatic body flip which some HU/N&SS characters have, and which CS Commandoes USED to have) would also be useable in response to attacks when out of actions?
Question 23 says "It goes up as they advance in there new character class and does not have to wait till they pass the level of their old character class. " for Hand to Hand. Does this mean that if a level 2 Ley Line Walker with Hand to Hand Basic selects Hand to Hand Basic as a Shifter, he won't have to wait until he is a level 3 Shifter to get Hand to Hand Basic at level 3? Would he get BasicLvl3 as a Level 1 Shifter, or as a level 2 Shifter?
This seems to differ from how other skills advance, and I thought I heard something other than this for how to treat HtH. If FAQ entries like this are not considered correct then could that page be edited to make a note (preferably using a strikethrough rather than simply deleting any wrong text, to acknowledge a mistake) of how to deal with that situation?
Question 55 says that '+1 to automatic body flip' for HtH Commando in CWC was a mistake. If that was the case, why were the NPCs and NPC templates in Siege on Tolkeen Book 2 made including this bonus when they were lower than level 14?
Question 57 mentions that an Aikido guy (filled with positive chi) who gets infected with negative chi from an opponent could use that chi infecting him to power neutral like hardened chi (this means 'positive or negative' category). This is a bit confusing as I thought (especially with Mystic China's explanation) that when you were infected by negative chi that only the opponent who infected you had control over what that negative chi could be used for. Could this be clarified?
Question 105 clarifies that a single vibro blade slash won't mist a car, that it just cuts through it perfectly. Would energy BLASTS (like a 1MD shot from a Wilk's Laser Wand) mist SDC targets?
Question 117 says that Juicers lose their auto-dodge if using robots or power armor. How heavy does armor have to get before it has this effect? Is this why Juicers don't tend to wear environmental armor? Does this policy also apply to Crazies, Grey Seers, or Reaver Asssassins? Is there anyone who DOESN'T loser their auto-dodge when using powered armor or robots?
Question 145 makes it seem like unless a missile is listed as having a dodge then you simply have to roll a successful strike to shoot one down, rather than beating a strike roll. When missiles do have a dodge, should we consider it an auto-dodge? If not, then does a missile dodging mean it delays in hitting you as it avoids your attack? If it delays, then if you kept firing at a missile, could you eventually delay it long enough for it to run out of fuel and not hit you? Could a missile opt not to dodge a low-damage attack to avoid delay?
Firstly, for this page and FAQ in general, is there any way of including dates? Like for example, if the 151 questions answered there were answered at different times, if there is some record of the dates they were answered? If complete information about that isn't available, could it be made partially available? Like if the 'last edited' date is known for the document which was uploaded there, that could at least be posted so that we know that those were up before that date and any potential 152+ would come at some later date. If there was info about who answered the questions that'd also be cool in case people wanted to clarify more, or if there were contradicting answers, which to prioritize (like say Kevin Siembieda answer versus someone else)
Secondly, a Q about short/long/full burst damage. Initially 2/5/10 multipliers, CB1 reduced this to 2/3/7. Even with the reduced amounts, we reach a bit of confusion. Short bursts appear to be ideal for guns that have clips of 10 shots or less, since you don't lose any efficiency. Long bursts appear to be ideal for guns of 6 shots or less (half is 3 shots, which is the new multiplier). Full bursts are ideal for guns with 7 shots or less.
CB1 clarifies that bursts must use at least 2 shots, so there isn't any of the problem of a short burst only using 1 shot in a 5-shot gun. Presumably in this case, a short burst would use 40% of the ammo and a long burst would use 60% of the ammo instead of 20/50?
With weapons that have only 5-6 shots, I assume we should reduce the x7 multiplier to at most, however many shots are being taken. I can't recall if the books clarify that though. Even so, it sure does make bursting way more efficient for lower ammo weapons than high-ammo weapons (except those like rail guns or pulse weapons who list special rates of fire and damage)
Thirdly: with the 'restrained punch' options for supernatural/robot PS, is this automatically successful, or do you have to roll to pull punch to do is restrained? Or is pull punch something you can roll on top of restrained to reduce it even further?
Getting back to the web page Qs...
Question 3 says "Standard means that the weapon is capable of firing single shots (aimed or wild), and is capable of firing bursts only if the weapon description states it can fire bursts.". I thought Standard meant you COULD fire bursts though.
RMBpg225 for the JA-11 Juicer Assassin's Energy Rifle for RoF under the Ion beam says "Aimed, burst or wild as standard, see Modern Weapon Proficiency Section". Most other entries in RMB say 'Standard, see Modern Weapon Proficiency Section".
The phrasing "as standard" for JA-11's ion barrel makes it seem that it is simply elaborating on what standard includes, rather than making an exception to it. Or is the JAER able to fire ion bursts while the NG-57 Northern Gun Heavy-Duty Ion Blaster is not able to?
It goes out of its way to say that the JA-11's laser barrel can only fire aimed shots (though ones assumed it could also fire wild) and that it cannot fire bursts.
If the default of 'standard' was non-bursting, why go out of your way to specify that something can't burst? Why not just say standard as the other laser rifles do?
Is the JA-11's laser barrel a unique laser for sniping, or does it work identically to the majority of other lasers which do not burst unless otherwise indicated by some 3-pulse blast?
While some guns do go out of their way to list 3-pulse burst blasts (such as the L-20 pulse rifle) I always took that to be an advantageous exception. Looking at the L-20 (RMBpg225) a 20% (short) burst would normally take up 8 shots and only inflict 2d6x2 damage. The L-20's pulse option uses less than half the ammo and does 50% more damage than that. Being a weapon designed for bursting, it's clearly more efficient at it (just like rail guns are), but I don't think it necessarily means that other 'standard' weapons can't burst at all.
CB1's "The Combat Sequence" has a Coalition Grunt using a "Coalition laser pistol" for a long (50% ammo) burst with a base damage of 2D4. This would've been the CS-18 Laser Pistol (RMBpg203, CB1 says 5 shots is half the total payload, this weapon's payload is 10) which only lists 'standard', yet it is able to burst. The first statement mistakenly says "Wilk's Laser Pistol" but both the damage/payload and the oddness of the weapon make it clear that it's the CS-18. Even if it were the Wilk's Laser Pistol, it also says Standard like the CS-18 does.
Bursting with a 10-shot weapon is clearly more efficient than with a 20-shot weapon though. It makes me wonder, if weapons have multiple ammunition options (such as short, long, and cannister clips) do we use the smallest ammunition source to figure out how many shots a burst uses? Or do bursts that inflict the same amount of damage use more shots if you're using a long clip than a short one?
Question 9 mentions only auto-dodge bonuses counting to auto-dodging. But power armor like the Kittani Serpent from Atlantis I think were written prior to this rule being introduced (I'm pretty sure in RMB you were supposed to use full dodge bonuses for auto-dodges, much like parry bonuses with auto-parries) so I don't think it has any.
Do we have a timeline of when this "autododge bonuses only" rule was introduced? Could we have errata that gives some autododge bonuses to various sources of autododge abilities (the Grey Seer in FoM and the Reaver Assassin in Warlords come to mind) so that it's not "PP only" which essentially means "no bonuses" for the average person?
Question 13 wasn't answered very clearly. "can parry equal to their number of attacks (actions) per melee round" doesn't answer whether or not you can parry 2 attacks during the same turn (like if Bill and Mike attacked John on the first turn). As far as I know you can parry an unlimited amount but are limited by line of sight, and after 3 attackers, the 4th is automatically behind you and out of sight? This is only for melee range though, what are numerical limits in ranged combat and line of sight, since guys like Cyber-knights can parry single energy blasts (but not bursts) from guns?
Question 15 talks about what happens when you lose initiative. I am wondering, is this something we should ignore if someone is already at the bottom of the initiative order, either via an initial low roll or being knocked down earlier in the same melee? Kinda odd that knockdowns hurt those with initiative more than those without. It feels like it'd be fairer that if someone is already at the bottom, we move them to the top of initiative and make them lose an additional attack.
Question 21 says "If the NPC or PC have autododge and autoparry they still can be used." Was this written prior to the introduction of errata in Rifter/GMG/RUE which allowed people without auto-dodge to dodge when out of attacks by borrowing from the next melee round? Would this specification of auto dodge/parry being usable when out of attacks imply that other automatic defenses (such as the automatic body flip which some HU/N&SS characters have, and which CS Commandoes USED to have) would also be useable in response to attacks when out of actions?
Question 23 says "It goes up as they advance in there new character class and does not have to wait till they pass the level of their old character class. " for Hand to Hand. Does this mean that if a level 2 Ley Line Walker with Hand to Hand Basic selects Hand to Hand Basic as a Shifter, he won't have to wait until he is a level 3 Shifter to get Hand to Hand Basic at level 3? Would he get BasicLvl3 as a Level 1 Shifter, or as a level 2 Shifter?
This seems to differ from how other skills advance, and I thought I heard something other than this for how to treat HtH. If FAQ entries like this are not considered correct then could that page be edited to make a note (preferably using a strikethrough rather than simply deleting any wrong text, to acknowledge a mistake) of how to deal with that situation?
Question 55 says that '+1 to automatic body flip' for HtH Commando in CWC was a mistake. If that was the case, why were the NPCs and NPC templates in Siege on Tolkeen Book 2 made including this bonus when they were lower than level 14?
Question 57 mentions that an Aikido guy (filled with positive chi) who gets infected with negative chi from an opponent could use that chi infecting him to power neutral like hardened chi (this means 'positive or negative' category). This is a bit confusing as I thought (especially with Mystic China's explanation) that when you were infected by negative chi that only the opponent who infected you had control over what that negative chi could be used for. Could this be clarified?
Question 105 clarifies that a single vibro blade slash won't mist a car, that it just cuts through it perfectly. Would energy BLASTS (like a 1MD shot from a Wilk's Laser Wand) mist SDC targets?
Question 117 says that Juicers lose their auto-dodge if using robots or power armor. How heavy does armor have to get before it has this effect? Is this why Juicers don't tend to wear environmental armor? Does this policy also apply to Crazies, Grey Seers, or Reaver Asssassins? Is there anyone who DOESN'T loser their auto-dodge when using powered armor or robots?
Question 145 makes it seem like unless a missile is listed as having a dodge then you simply have to roll a successful strike to shoot one down, rather than beating a strike roll. When missiles do have a dodge, should we consider it an auto-dodge? If not, then does a missile dodging mean it delays in hitting you as it avoids your attack? If it delays, then if you kept firing at a missile, could you eventually delay it long enough for it to run out of fuel and not hit you? Could a missile opt not to dodge a low-damage attack to avoid delay?