Part 6: Adventuring ☰
This chapter details the basic and more simplistic aspects of running a combat encounter in Iron & Aether. More advanced mechanics and strategies are covered in the next chapter.
Combat begins when the PCs and a group of hostile creatures and/or NPCs abandon diplomacy and decide to settle their problems with violence, though that is not to say things cannot still be settled peacefully if a great enough effort is made. This chapter details the general flow and order of events in combat, as well as laying down a few general rules that should help things flow more smoothly.
At the start of combat, the order in which each combatant acts must be determined. To do so, record each fighter's AGI or DEX score (their choice), and place them in descending order (i.e. the highest at the top and the lowest at the bottom); creatures who tie decide between themselves who goes first. Then at the start of each round, the actor with the highest initiative takes their turn, then the next-highest, and so on until everyone has taken their turn. If combat has not resolved after the last participant has acted, then start over again at the top of the list, descending through it again until combat is over. If the party is facing a large number of hostiles, enemies may be grouped together and act on the same turn to make combat logistically simpler – in this case, roughly estimate the average AGI/DEX of the group and use that.
Creatures who join combat after it starts take their turns after the end of the current round.
At the start of combat, the GM determines who, if anyone, is surprised. Surprised creatures are placed in the initiative order as normal, however they do not partake in the first round of combat and attacks against them during this time have advantage.
When combat starts, it is important to determine where everyone is placed on the battlefield, if that hasn’t been done already. If playing using a grid or some sort of map, this part should be trivial. If there is no such grid or the party has chosen to go the Theater of the Mind route, then the GM will, for the most part, determine where everyone on the battlefield is, with the help of the players and their chosen marching order or previously stated positions.
Once initiative and surprise have been determined and the combatants’ positions established, combat begins in earnest. Every round of combat lasts 3 seconds, and each creature’s turn describes what they are doing during that 3 seconds using their actions and reaction. Pay attention as each combatant takes their turn, so that when your turn comes around, you can utilize it to its fullest potential.
Most of the time, attacking with a given weapon uses up a single action, though some weapons require the use of more than one; the number of actions you have on each of your turns is determined by your DEX score. Generally, there are two forms of attacks a character can make: attacking in melee and attacking at range.
Attacking in Melee. A creature is considered engaged in melee combat they are within the range of >1 of an opponent's equipped melee weapons. Most melee weapons, unless they have the Short or Long property, have a range of 2m. Melee attacks are reduced by a creature’s M-DEF score.
Attacking at Range. A ranged weapon’s standard range and long range are listed next to their ammunition. If an attack is made in the weapon’s standard range, the attack is made as normal. If the attack is made in the weapon’s long range or against a prone target, then it has disadvantage. For Archery weapons, firing while prone also grants disadvantage, whereas with Firearm weapons, firing while prone grants advantage. Lastly, ranged attacks made in melee range with two-handed weapons have disadvantage, but such attacks with one-handed weapons do not. Ranged attacks are always reduced by a creature’s R-DEF score.
Sometimes, through extraordinary luck or fortunate circumstance, a combatant makes an especially potent strike against their opponent, dealing more damage than normal. When making an attack, if any of the dice that you rolled roll their maximum value, you may roll a single extra damage die and add it to the damage of your attack before measuring it against your opponent's M-/R-DEF. This only applies to dice that you roll, meaning that having advantage on an attack does not make it an automatic critical hit. Here are a couple of examples of when this rule would and would not apply.
Example 1. Feanor the Warrior makes a strike against a Trow Scout with his long sword, rolling 2d6 in so doing. When he does, he rolls a 6 and a 3: since one of his dice rolled the maximum value, he can roll an additional d6, which comes up as a 2. Adding his STR of 4, the total of his damage roll is 6+3+2+4 = 15; subtracting the Trow Scout's M-DEF of 6, his final damage for this attack is 9.
Example 2. Eliana the Artificer fires her hammerlock pistol at her target from stealth, granting her advantage on her attack and changing her roll from 3d8 + 5 to 16 +
1d8 + 5. Her singular d8 roll comes out to a 4, so this attack is not a critical hit. That being said, a total damage roll of 25 is still pretty good!
When a creature wields two Small or Medium melee weapons at once (Polearm weapons cannot be dual-wielded), their Armor score is increased by their proficiency with whichever one of those weapons they are more proficient with. For example, if a character with 3 proficiency in Medium weapons and 1 proficiency in Small were to wield a rapier in one hand and a stiletto in the other, their Armor score would increase by 3. In the case of dual-wielding Large weapons, the character must be Big or bigger and be able to wield each weapon one-handed (to wield a two-handed weapon in one hand, a character's STR score must be >1 + the STR requirement of the weapon).
The character loses this bonus if they become unable to use their arms (such as by being restrained or paralyzed) or if they wear armor that grants disadvantage on DEX checks, including Medium or Large shields.