Hi all, thought I’d run an idea past you before my next game on Saturday.
My players are about to run into a Mad Max style combat scenario, with makeshift ground vehicles running around and shooting them. From what I can find there are no official rules for personal vs vehicle combat, although some people are adapting starship combat (please correct me if I am wrong!) and I don’t want to whip up a full complex set of rules for one scene…
So I’m thinking of using the Trait system (2e specifically):
- A vehicle is a Trait, with a rank representing its general toughness (a tank might be around 7 or 8, an off-road buggy like I will be using is a 3).
- It can carry up to 4 characters, with 1 required to act as a driver.
- The driver can move the vehicle up to 3 zones (number of zones is “Move” below) with a Control/Daring+Conn roll at difficulty 1. A complication forces a second roll to avoid a loss of control (difficulty = number of complications), otherwise the vehicle crashes, losing “Move” ranks on the Trait and causing “Move” impact damage to all occupants.
- Non-driver characters may shoot from within the vehicle, but suffer a “Move” penalty to their Tasks.
- Any non-driver may use a mounted weapon, at no penalty.
- Shooting at the vehicle’s occupants is at a penalty of “Move”, and the occupant gets Rank resistance to the attack.
- Finally, shooting at the vehicle itself involves a Create Trait Task, with a penalty equal to the Rank of the vehicle. A success reduces the Rank by 1, and reducing it to 0 immobilises it (causing a potential loss of control as above).
Does this look reasonable, or too complex? I’m wanting to keep the emphasis on the characters, and I really don’t want to figure out how you damage statted vehicles with personal weapons!
(And yes, Lucas, and any other of my players, you can weigh in on this!)
