Alright, the Jays and Dodgers are tied at 1-1 in the Series, so let's continue on with some more Champions love. Today, we start the Combat section. We get a brief explanation of how comic book combat works (way different than realistic games like D&D or Star Frontiers). The laws of physics and space-time are routinely bent in superhero combat, as two guys can pound on each other in fifteen seconds while carrying on a two-minute debate on morality and ethics in the same time. It's glorious. We then get a breakdown of how this section of the rules will be laid out. First, it's the Order of Combat (who goes first), then Combat Maneuvers (how you hit someone), then Determining Damage, Taking Damage, Recovering from Damage, and the Effects of Damage. Got all that? Lots of damage. Okay, let's jump right in.
The Order of Combat is the Champions' version of initiative, but it's not random. Although, I have seen a house rule that makes it random, but more on that later. The most important factors in the Order of Combat are a character's SPD and DEX.
Time in Champions combat is broken up into three different increments. The Turn is the overall time frame that is entered when combat is declared; it's not used for anything out-of-combat. A turn is about 12 seconds of time, and you get to act in a turn as many times as your SPD rating. So, a character with a SPD of 3 acts three times in a turn, or roughly every four seconds. A turn is broken up into 12 Segments. A Segment is about 1 second long, obviously. All segments in the turn are numbered, 1 through 12. If you are set to act in a particular segment, you and anyone else acting on this particular segment move in the order of your DEX scores, highest to lowest. If two characters share the same DEX, they move simultaneously.
The Phase is the third increment; a phase is the length of time necessary for a character to perform an action. You have as many Phases as you have SPD points. And there is a very handy (and necessary) Speed Chart provided that cross-references your SPD score and the twelve segments. Every segment, the Referee looks across the chart on that segment's line. Anyone whose SPD score column has an 'X' gets to act on that segment. Here's the chart (from the 6th edition, but it hasn't changed in 44 years):
Actually, it has changed; the original has the vertical axis as the segments and the Speed at the top, but that's fine. So, you find the character's speed on the left, and read across. Anytime you see the Hero symbol, that's a segment you get to act on. The character sheet has the phases listed, and you just circle the ones that apply to your character. For example, a character with a SPD of 5 would read across and see that he acts on Segments 3, 5, 8, 10, and 12. A SPD of 3 means you move on 4, 8, and 12. Note that the max speed you can get for your character is 12; it's the only characteristic with a hard limit.
Note that you don't have to act on your phase; you can delay it if you want to. You can either delay until your opponent's turn to act, or even to the next segment. However, you can't act twice in a single segment, even if you're the Flash.
So, let's say my character Nightshade (DEX 20, SPD 5) takes on Blockhead, a DEX 15/SPD 3 brick. When combat starts, the Referee counts off the segments as follows: '1...2...3, Nightshade is up.' Nightshade gets to make his attack, and blasts Blockhead. After that attack is resolved, it's Segment 4, meaning Blockhead gets to punch back. Assuming Nightshade is still conscious, he acts on segment 5, and blasts Blockhead again. Neither acts on 6 or 7, but on 8 they can both go. Since Nightshade has a DEX of 20 and Blockhead only has a 15 DEX, Nightshade acts first. Not wanting to get punched again, he teleports out of reach. Blockhead can give chase, but is unlikely to reach his opponent in this phase. Nightshade gets to go on phase 10, blasting Blockhead again. In phase 12, they both act, with Nightshade being first, and thus he can continue to teleport out of reach, frustrating Blockhead until he can blast him into submission.
Next we get a quick introduction to Attack Rolls. Basically, this is a 3D6 roll, with 11 being your target number. This target is modified by your OCV and your target's DCV. If you roll higher than the target number, you miss. There are plenty of modifiers, which we'll go over on the next page. So, we'll leave things hanging and get back to them next time. Until then, Let's Go, Blue Jays!
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