Alright, we are continuing our journey through the combat rules. There is one other damage effect that needs to be dealt with: Knockback. As mentioned on the previous page, Knockback is simply the result of being punched or blasted so hard that you go flying backward. It's a common staple of comic book battles, so of course it needs to be incorporated into these rules.
To calculate Knockback, simply roll 2D6. Subtract the result from the BODY damage done by the attack. Not the damage that got through, but the damage that was rolled. If the result is negative, there's no Knockback. If the roll is equal to the BODY damage, the target is knocked down. A positive result gives the number of inches the target is knocked back (remember, one inch equals two meters in Champions). So, Nightshade hits Blockhead with his Energy Blast and rolls 31 STUN and 9 BODY. Blockhead will shrug off most of that damage, but Nightshade then gets to roll for Knockback. Rolling 2D6, he gets a roll of 5. Subtracting 5 from 9 gives a Knockback of 4", or 8 meters.
Now, the 2D6 roll can be modified under certain circumstances. If the target is flying, you only roll 1D6 for Knockback, meaning they're far more likely to be knocked back in the air. If the target is underwater, add 1D6 to the roll. If it's a Killing Attack, add 1D6 to the roll. And if it is a Martial Arts maneuver, add 1D6 to the roll. So, if Wolverine slashes Sub-Mariner in the water, the Knockback roll will actually be 4D6, making it very unlikely that Subby will be moving at all.
Knockback can actually do damage; a character who gets knocked back into a wall or other solid upright object takes 1D6 normal damage per inch of Knockback. So, in the example above, if Nightshade's shadow blast knocks Blockhead back into a concrete wall, then Blockhead is going to take another 4D6 of normal damage. If Blockhead gets knocked back into another character, then both characters will take 4D6 damage. And Nightshade will score additional Cool points for that maneuver, assuming that Blockhead is knocked back into another villain.
No, there are no Cool points in Champions. But there should be.
However, the damage rolled for Knockback is also dependent on what the target is knocked into. If the structure has a low BODY score (we'll get to that part later), the maximum damage the Knockback victim can take is 1D6 per BODY score. If the character is knocked back more inches than the wall has BODY, then he goes through the wall and keeps on going. His Knockback distance is reduced by 1" per BODY point of the wrecked obstruction. So, if Nightshade knocks Blockhead back 11" (that's a hell of a BODY roll for him, but it is possible), and Blockhead goes through a wall with 6 BODY, he will take 6D6 damage from going through the wall, and his total Knockback is reduced to 5". If the target isn't knocked into anything and just hits the ground, he takes 1D6 per 2" of Knockback.
The Acrobatics skill can save a character from taking Knockback damage. If Crusader makes an Acrobatics roll when Ogre punches him, assuming he's conscious after getting hit, he will roll with the punch and take no damage from the ground. However, Acrobatics won't help him if he gets punched into a wall.
Flight can also reduce Knockback if the character announces that he's using some or all of his Flight inches to resist being knocked back. In that case, each inch of Flight used for resisting reduces Knockback taken by 1". Also, heavier targets (such as those under Growth or Density Increase powers) will take less Knockback (the exact amount is in the power descriptions; otherwise, it's 1" of reduction per 2x human mass of the target. So a robot that weighs 800 kg will take 3" less of Knockback due to its mass.
Got all that? Good. That covers hurting people. Next, we'll talk about how to heal. Or at least, recover from the damage that was taken. During a battle, the combatants are going to lose STUN and END (and possibly BODY as well). These are finite resources; run out of them and problems occur. Fortunately, all characters come equipped with a Recovery (REC) characteristic to help alleviate or delay those problems.
First of all, at the end of every turn (after Segment 12 is complete), everyone automatically gets a Recovery unless they are at -21 or lower STUN. For everyone else, after Segment 12 they get to add their REC score to both their STUN and END, up to their maximum scores. For example, Nightshade has a STUN of 25, an END of 50, and a REC of 10. While fighting Blockhead, he's used up 24 END and taken 9 STUN in damage. At the end of the turn, he automatically adds 10 to his END, bringing it to 36, and gets all of his STUN back, resetting it to 25. The additional STUN recovery point is wasted.
Characters can also take a breather during a fight, using one of their phases as a Recovery phase. They can't do anything else, including expending any END, and in return they get to recover STUN and END just like a normal post-Segment 12 recovery. However, during this phase their CV is 0. If a character is holding his breath for whatever reason (gas, underwater, etc.) he can't take a recovery at all, not even post-Segment 12. In fact, holding your breath costs you at least 1 END per phase. If you run out of END, then you lose 1 STUN per phase. And if you run out of STUN, you lose 1 BODY per phase until you die.
Speaking of BODY, REC also helps with that; divide your REC by 10, and that's how many BODY pips you recover per day. So, getting stabbed isn't going to be healed in just a few minutes, unless of course you have Regeneration.
Alright, now we talk about Endurance. We've already discussed it pretty thoroughly, so this is just a couple of paragraphs clarifying what we have already learned. First of all, you pay 1 END for every 5 points of power (or STR) that you use in a phase. If a power isn't used at full capacity, you don't pay the full END cost; you only pay for the amount you actually use. So, a 40-point power would cost 8 END to use at full capacity. I will note that this did get changed in a later edition (I want to say 3rd, but it might have been 4th) to 1 END per 10 points, which made a huge difference in END expenditures. Note that there are some powers that cost no END, as do all skills.
If you run out of END but need to keep fighting, you drain STUN as END. For every 2 END you are trying to use, you take 1D6 STUN damage. There's no defense against this, and you can knock yourself out by overexerting yourself.
Lastly, characters can Push their powers beyond their normal limits. This isn't easy, and it's exhausting; you can push your power up to 10 additional points (so Nightshade's shadow blast, normally 8D6, can be pushed to 10D6 if he really needs to). Each additional point costs 1 END to use, so it's not something to be done on the regular. Save Pushing for emergencies and boss fights.
And that's it for this page. We'll continue next time with additional combat rolls that might come up on occasion. Until then, my friends.
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