Help a noobie understand critical hits

[JulianLW]

Originally Posted by Colonel__Klink

They *can* be a vampire. Or they can delve into cybernetics... or they can delve into magic. All are options. Vampires can delve into magic if they got the points just like people can choose to have more magic than cybernetics.

And no, as I said "imagine if they didn't have a garbage weapon? What if they had some skill?" What's 4 times 5d6?

Ok, what if he had a rifle and had twelve skill in it? What's 4 x 5d6 x 2? (The 5.56 rifles have a recoil of 2 as well!) Oh look the PC took 155 damage to the head! game over.




Ah I got swing and thrust reversed. So it's 2d+1 minus dr x 1.5 for one attack a turn vs 2d6, enemy dr halved for 3 or more attacks a turn. I wonder which is nastier...

TBh I think a crit hit situation like I mentioned is still pretty bad... 4x2d6(2) x 2? Oh the player took 62 damage and died...

Hrmm... This is a problem...

Are you - and your players - really wanting to play in a game in which a head shot from a high-powered rifle does NOT mean automatic death?

You're wanting to play a game in which it's either impossible to get shot in the head? Or in which somebody gets shot in the head by a high powered rifle and doesn't have to at least roll a death check?

And now my question is - what kind of game is this? If this is really what you want, wouldn't you be happier playing something without any kind of dice rolls? Where you have total control of the narrative?

Just for the sake of running the numbers: a Tech Level 8 sniper rifle does 9d+1 pi. A sniper sets up a head shot and gets off all 3 shots! All of them hit! The PC doesn't have Luck, is totally surprised, and gets no dodge attempt. The shots are going to do 33 damage each, -2 for head DR, times four for a head shot: that's an average of 124 final injury for each shot. Sounds about right to me.

Are you really wanting to run a game in which a PC survives getting shot three times in the head by a sniper? Or do you want a reality in which getting shot can't happen?