SHR Main Page | Opera Propria | Pax Hermetica Introduction 

Revised Combat Rules

This section presents alterations that should be made to the Ars Magica combat rules when they are used in the Mythic Present^TM. Obviously, things are a little different from how they are in the Middle Ages. For starters, there are these "gun" things; more about them anon. Then there is the armour issue. For some reason, policemen tend to object to people wandering around the streets in armour ("I'm a medieval re-enactor, Officer. Honest!"), and the armour types described in ArM5, though still nicely effective against those old stalwarts of urban combat, the flick-knife, the knuckle-duster, and the thrown brick, are somewhat less impressive when compared to the handgun. So, we have reworked armour thus...

When used against firearms all metal Mythic Ages armour provides two points less protection than normal. Yes, your lorica segmentata may indeed slow the bullet, but it also provides a nice source for sharp metal fragments to ricochet their way around your body, much in the same way as occurs in some armoured vehicles when struck by anti-tank fire. This is a Bad Thing^TM. There are also several modern forms of armour, listed below and all stated in terms of the most common form (or forms) encountered.

Respirators (for those insane enough to wear them) inflict a -3 on Perception and are Load 1. Armour types may be stacked, but there is an additional 1 Burden penalty for doing so, as they really are not designed to allow this. Furthermore, your Storyguide holds the power of veto over any combination, regardless of the character's Strength or lack of other equipment.

Guns are extremely deadly weapons, and as a result, when a character suffers damage from a gun, their Size is considered to be two points lower than normal. This means, for example, that a Size 0 character will suffer a Light wound from 1-3 damage, a Medium wound from 4-6 damage, and so on. The exception is if the character is wearing kevlar armour, which is specifically designed to cope with firearms damage and therefore has an additional effect. When you shoot someone wearing kevlar, the Size reduction rules are not used. This makes you a lot more likely to survive being shot, though there is every possibility you may still be feeling rather unwell.

Frankly, we would advise most magi to take a quick look at Muto Herbam/Animal/Terram, depending on whether they favour linen, leather or synthetics, and give their clothes a few points of Protection value.

The Firearms Rules

All weapon attributes are as in ArM5, with Str in this case being that necessary to use the weapon without being significantly affected by the recoil (-3 per point shortfall). Where there are two values given the first is for single shots and the second if using the "spray and pray" method (see below). The Defense value of all firearms is 0. Rate is the maximum rate of ammunition consumption, which determines the maximum number of shots that may be fired using the "spray and pray" method. Capacity is the ammunition capacity of the weapon. Reloading takes one combat round (or more if the storyguide deems appropriate).

Gunpowder Weapons Definitions:

• Light Pistol: A small, single-handed automatic or revolver. Normally 9mm or .38 calibre or below.
• Heavy Pistol: A larger, less concealable single-handed or "hand and a half" pistol. Tends to have a larger calibre.
• SMG: A small, single-handed or "hand and a half" fully automatic weapon. This covers a large field from "pistols on amphetamines," such as the Ingram Mac 10, through to more serious weapons, such as the Heckler and Koch MP5. Storyguides should feel free to vary statistics accordingly.
• Assault Rifle: A modern, normally shorter-barrelled military rifle, such as the SA80, AK47 or something similar.
• Hunting Rifle: A sportsman's rifle. This may tend to blur into the "Battle Rifle" category in some cases.
• Target Rifle: A category of guns based around accuracy at the expense of all else. This covers military sniper rifles and also Olympic style rifles.
• Battle Rifles: Covers the old style gun, such as the Lee Enfield rifle, with a slower rate of fire but longer range than the assault rifle. The SLR of the 1980's is one of the last examples of this.

While treated as pistols, sawnoff shotguns cannot be used as part of a two-pistol combination. The kick is sufficient that both hands are required to control the shotgun. Shooting one using only a single hand incurs a penalty of 10-Strength to the attack roll. The Storyguide is encouraged to extrapolate paired statistics based upon the single/pair examples given in the event of a player taking to using such a combination.

Burst Fire:

Burst fire can be used in one of two ways:

1. Concentrated on one target. In this event, use the damage rating behind the slash (i.e. a lot).
2. The "spray and pray" method: Multiple targets can be hit using this method, which allows multiple attack rolls to be made, or the spray can be held on the same target. There is a cumulative penalty for each shot after the second fired in this way (0, 0, -1, -1, -2, -3, -5, -8, -13, -21). Although only a maximum of 10 shots are permissible with some of the weapons listed, heavier machine guns can fire at (significantly) higher rates and retain the -21 modifier. If spraying between multiple targets, each 'space' is also a target into which one of these bullets is fired. In addition, for every second shot after the fourth an additional botch dice is rolled. The majority of botches on automatic fire should be jams. Damage is calculated using the value before the slash.

Pistols, unlike other firearms, can be used in melee combat, but a roll of 0 incurs an additional three botch dice if they are used in this way, with a high probability of the botch being accidentally hitting a colleague.

Exempla Gratia

Tasha, a Hermetic companion, finds herself for somewhat complex reasons confronting five diabolical cultists in the Indonesian Rainforest. She has had the foresight (and luck) to acquire an AK47 (Assault Rifle) in a previous encounter with a cultist, and doubting her ability to survive long enough to account for all five with aimed shots she proceeds to "spray and pray." The first shot is aimed at cultist A, the second is wasted into the space between A and B, the third is aimed at cultist B, the fourth goes into the space between B and C, the fifth is aimed at C, the sixth between C and D, the seventh at D, the eighth between D and E, and the ninth and tenth shots are both directed at E.

Tasha rolls to shoot cultist A with Dexterity + Longarms (specialised in Assault rifles) + Attack modifier - spray modifier (0) + stress roll (2+6+2-0+2=12). The cultist rolls a Defense total of 5 and is hit. With a Damage rating of +15 from her assault rifle, it is unlikely he will survive in a fit state to remain a threat, or indeed survive at all. The third shot is at B (the second having been wasted bridging the gap). She rolls Dex + Longarms + attack modifier -1 (spray modifier) + stress roll. (2+6+2-1+4=13). B rolls a 7 and is also hit. The fifth shot of the spray is aimed at C (the fourth also having been wasted). She rolls again, this time at a -2 spray modifier, and hits again. C is in trouble too. Her seventh shot is at D, at a -5 spray modifier, but hits again (Tasha is riding her luck), but the ninth shot fails to strike home, while on the tenth shot she rolls a 0. As this is the sixth shot after the fourth she rolls 3 additional botch dice, for a total of 4. Two of them come up 0, for a jam that her storyguide (sadistically) decides cannot be cleared in combat. Tasha is in trouble.

Cultist E aims his pistol and rolls to hit...

The cultist hits, but only just, giving only a 1-point bonus to damage. Thus the damage of his heavy pistol is +13. Tasha is wearing a Kevlar bullet proof vest that has a Protection score of 3, and she also has the Tough Virtue, adding +3 to her Soak, and a Stamina of +2. Kevlar nullifies the Size reduction damage rules used for firearms, and thus the excess damage of +5 only inflicts a Light wound on Tasha. However, she is still left with the problem of dealing with the cultist while armed only with her machete...

Copyright © Tom McKinnell and Niall Christie 2006.
Use of ^"TM" is purely for humour's sake, and does not constitute
any claim to ownership of the terms marked!

Return to Top