Let's Read Champions 1e (pg 31)

Okay, let's dive right into the combat modifiers. This is actually a lengthy section; the chart of modifiers takes up most of the second column of the page onto the next one. But first, there are two different types of combat in Champions: Physical, and mental. Physical combat is all the punches, energy blasts, killing attacks, etc. that are...well, physical. These attacks are based on the Dexterity scores of the two people involved; the CV (DEX/3) is added for the attacker, and subtracted for the defender. Fractions are rounded to the nearest whole number. So, if Nightshade (DEX 20) is attacking Blockhead (DEX 15), his Offensive Combat Value (OCV) is 7, and Blockhead's Defensive Combat Value (DCV) is 5. Therefore, Nightshade needs a roll of 11 + 7 - 5 = 13 or less to hit his target. Blockhead needs a 11 + 5 - 7 = 9 or less to hit Nightshade. The CV works as both OCV and DCV depending on who is attacking who.

The CV can be modified by Skill Levels, too, so a character such as Blockhead with three levels of hand-to-hand combat Skill Levels who is attacked can modify his OCV or ECV, depending on how he wants to distribute those three levels. So, Blockhead, who is much better at hand-to-hand fighting than Nightshade, can put one Skill Level to OCV, and the other two to DCV, adjusting the target numbers so that Nightshade now needs an 11 + 7 - 5 (DCV) - 2 (SL) = 11 or less to hit if he is foolish enough to punch Blockhead, and Blockhead needs an 11 + 5 (OCV) - 7 (DCV) +1 (SL) = 10 or less to hit Nightshade in hand-to-hand combat.

Mental combat, on the other hand, uses the Ego Combat Value (ECV), which is the character's EGO/3. Mentalists will tend to have high EGO scores for this reason. Skill levels can exist for mental combat, too.

Range is another standard modifier; for every 3 inches of distance between the attacker and the target, the roll is modified by -1. So Nightshade, who has teleported 15" away from Blockhead to stay out of range, can still blast him with his Darkblast, but the range modifier means his 13 or less is reduced by 15"/3 = 5, or 8 or less to hit. Skill Levels in ranged combat can be applied to OCV but not DCV. And Skill Levels with a particular ranged attack mean that you can actually bounce your attack off a surface, like Captain America's shield. Multiple bounces mean one Skill Level per bounce, and you have to count every inch that the projectile travels in the range modifier. Got it? Good.

So, now we have the list of modifiers. Here's the quick rundown of what's on this page:

Area Effect attack: +1 to OCV, target DCV is set to 0. Misses hit one of the surrounding hexes (roll a D6 to determine which one).

Explosions are the same as Area Effects.

Surprise attack, target is already in combat, DCV reduced by half.

Surprise attack out of combat, DCV is set to 0.

Target has 50% concealment: -2 OCV

Target has 75% concealment: -4 OCV

Target is 90% concealed and only showing his head: -6 OCV

Surprise maneuvers: OCV varies from +0 to +3 depending on the GM's evaluation of the maneuver.

Throwing unbalanced objects (chair, building, etc.): Range Mod is -1 per inch.

Throwing balanced objects (spear, Wolverine, etc.): Range Mod is -1 per two inches.

I don't know if I would actually consider Wolverine balanced, now that I think about it. But he's more aerodynamic than a car, so there's that.

Character "sets" for a phase (sighting target): +1 OCV, Range Mod is doubled (-1 per 6")

Character "braces" for a phase (against solid object): +1 OCV, DCV set to 0, Range Mod is doubled.

Target's size:

1 hex: +1 OCV

2 hexes: +2 OCV

4 hexes: +3 OCV

8 hexes: +4 OCV

Target is 1/2 man-sized: -2 OCV

Target is 1/4 man-sized: -4 OCV

Target is 1/8 man-sized: -6 OCV

So, that's the mods so far. There are a few on the next page, but I'll get to them next time. Let's put a few of these into action, though.

Nightshade has teleported away from Blockhead to keep out of the big guy's fists. Blockhead is a big boy, filling a whole hex, and Nightshade has set himself, taking an additional phase to improve his aim. The 'set' gives him a +1 to his OCV and doubles his range modifier. He's 15" away from Blockhead, which means he gets a -3 to his OCV (every 6" or partial amount gives a cumulative -1). Blockhead's size gives Nightshade an additional +1 OCV. So, totalling up the modifiers, Nightshade has an attack roll calculated as follows:

Base Attack Roll = 11

DEX 20/3 = 7 OCV

Target's DEX 15/3 = 5 DCV

Set: +1 OCV, -3 Range Mod to OCV

Target's size = 1 hex: +1 OCV

All total, we have 11 + 7 - 5 + 1 -3 + 1 = 12 or less to hit with his Energy Blast. Not bad odds. Will Nightshade succeed in striking his opponent? Tune in next time to find out!