Steve Jackson Games Forums - View Single Post - Clarification on Surprise Attacks and Initiative

Kalminos · 02-26-2016, 08:21 PM

Let's say there are 5 guys sitting in the living room of someone's house playing poker on the dinner table. They are all veterans of The Great War- whatever that is- and thus have combat reflexes, except for one of them whom for a variety of reasons ended up not actually fighting at all during his deployment.

A mysterious assailant comes in, kicks down the front door as they sit there playing poker, and just starts spraying at the lot of them with his assault rifle. None of them saw this coming, they are totally surprised.

The one without combat reflexes freezes, and gets no defenses and no actions for 1d6 seconds before he may attempt to make IQ rolls- by this time, he is well and dead.

The rest, whom have combat reflexes roll initiative against their attacker, their side happens to lose for the purposes of this example.

They are all mentally stunned and similarly cannot defend (by jumping out of the line of fire) until they each individually make a increasingly easier IQ roll.

Or, can even the one who lacked combat reflexes defend at -4 par stunning (since that is how they are described)? and by similar token, can the ones with combat reflexes defend at -4 (and not being able to retreat) until they each pass their IQ rolls?

Or does the 'frozen' one without combat reflexes not get defense rolls at all, (based on the wording "before the defenders can react at all." and those with it are allowed them at -4 par mental stunning?

02-26-2016, 08:21 PM	#1
Kalminos Join Date: Apr 2013	Clarification on Surprise Attacks and Initiative Let's say there are 5 guys sitting in the living room of someone's house playing poker on the dinner table. They are all veterans of The Great War- whatever that is- and thus have combat reflexes, except for one of them whom for a variety of reasons ended up not actually fighting at all during his deployment. A mysterious assailant comes in, kicks down the front door as they sit there playing poker, and just starts spraying at the lot of them with his assault rifle. None of them saw this coming, they are totally surprised. The one without combat reflexes freezes, and gets no defenses and no actions for 1d6 seconds before he may attempt to make IQ rolls- by this time, he is well and dead. The rest, whom have combat reflexes roll initiative against their attacker, their side happens to lose for the purposes of this example. They are all mentally stunned and similarly cannot defend (by jumping out of the line of fire) until they each individually make a increasingly easier IQ roll. Or, can even the one who lacked combat reflexes defend at -4 par stunning (since that is how they are described)? and by similar token, can the ones with combat reflexes defend at -4 (and not being able to retreat) until they each pass their IQ rolls? Or does the 'frozen' one without combat reflexes not get defense rolls at all, (based on the wording "before the defenders can react at all." and those with it are allowed them at -4 par mental stunning?