Introduction

There are literally thousands of role-playing games on the market today, each with its own combat system. The complexity of these systems range up and down on even scale imaginable. From the simple and vague, “He’s hurt bad ... very bad”, to the precise but cumbersome, “the target has sustained forty-one points of damage to the left lower leg, has severe muscle and tendon damage, a transverse fracture of the tibia and will go into shock in three rounds if not treated”. When designing this system, it was understood that some people would play this game for the combat so the concise but complex system would have to be included. However, others would rather play for the story and wouldn’t be bothered by the long drawn-out precision of a complex system.

The largest problem, however, was that the system had to be simple. One possible answer was to make two rules for everything, one simple and one complex. This, however, would be to difficult to remember and very limiting. What was needed was a system that could begin simple and get more complex as the players gained more experience. A system that allows players to bring their own experience to the game and let them begin at any level. And a system that was easy to understand and even easier to use. After three years of effort, a system that satisfies all of these points was developed.
The solution was to design a system that had only one set of rules that were easy to understand and even easier to use, and then build onto these for the complex system. So the basic system, which could be used by new players or for Non-Player Character combat, deals exclusively with one average and a dice roll. From this, the system is made more and more complex by adding modifiers for any and all influencing factors. So the most advanced form of combat includes modifiers for weather, target and marksman movement, alertness condition, ground cover, fatigue and injuries that are all taken into account and influence the outcome. This produces hundreds of different systems of any difficulty desired all differing only in which modifiers are used. The system allows the Game Master and the players to select how accurate they want combat, and because of this, offers everyone - regardless of their interests - a good gaming experience.

FIRST PRIORITY
The first priority when learning any new combat system is some of the basics about the system itself, and this system is no different. Basics like the conventions and definitions that are used in and by the system. Conventions and definitions that establish the primary concepts and assumptions of the game, to help the Game Master understand the system, and to reduce misunderstandings that might occur. Conventions about the different kinds of combat, the creation of sides, and the flow of combat. Definitions that lay down the meaning of Weaponry and Hand to Hand combat, the group and the side, and each step in combat. These conventions and definitions will be discussed in the following sections which will build the foundations of your understanding of the system.

Different types of combat?
While it can be said that the types of combat are all alike, one specific feature divides all combat into two distinct types. The separation is based on how weapons are used in the two types of combat. This is because how a weapon is used relates directly to which skills are being used and the type of damage done by the combat.

Hand to Hand
When a weapon such as a bare hand or objects in a hand are used to inflict damage, the combat is called Hand-To-Hand Combat. This combat includes the use of all martial arts such as Judo, Karate, and the use of small hand held weaponry such as beer bottles, knives, and chairs. Hand-To-Hand weapons or disciplines, like fisticuffs or martial art attacks cannot be used at over three meters. So if combatants are over this distance from their targets, they must move (walk, crawl, jump, etc.) inside this distance before they can attack.
Hand to Hand combat inflicts blade and bludgeon damage to the target either separately or simultaneously. These are the only two types of damage that can be inflicted by Hand-To-Hand attacks, and the amount of damage is directly related to the Physical Strength of the attacker. The justification of these statements is clear, of all the types of damage only blade and bludgeon damage require physical contact to inflict damage. From this fact and common sense, it should be clear that the stronger the attacker, the greater the force of the attack, and the larger the number of damage points taken by the attack.

Weaponry Combat
In Weaponry Combat however, combatants can use any weapon as long as they do not come in direct physical contact with their target. Therefore all projectiles, ranged weaponry and thrown weaponry fall into this category. Representative weapons are lasers, sonics, bows, all firearms, and anything thrown (including of course beer bottles and small bar-room patrons). Weaponry combat can occur over any range from 25 centimetres to 3 kilometres. Latagrea is included in the weaponry category of combat, because coalesced mental energy, while a physical force, does not constitute direct physical contact.
Weaponry combat can inflict any and all of the types of damage including blade or bludgeon damage, and any attack may combine more than one type of damage depending on the weapon used. The amount of damage done relies on the weapons’ Damage Modifier and the range.

Taking Sides!
When combat begins the situation always starts when the first punch is thrown or the first shot is fired. When this happens the person who threw the punch or fired the shot becomes the attacker, and the person on the receiving end is being attacked. At this point the combat is limited to only these two people. This changes very quickly, however, and soon after the first act of aggression everyone else nearby will have a choice to make. Either to fight, to flee, or to do nothing. All actions will fall into one of these categories. As it happens this choice is very helpful because this natural tendency to become part of either the group that fights, flees, or does nothing is a hard decision for a Game Master. So when the players say “I’ll fight” or “I won’t” they are making the decision easier for the Game Master. The decision distinguishes the different sides that are fighting, directs the combat sequence and determines who moves with who, and when.

Sides - based on goals
People working towards the same goal are usually on the same side. All the people on one side may not know they are working together but they are actually on the same side. Take the example of brawl in a crowded bar, the first punch will send the recipient flying into other patrons. Friends of the attacker will fight because they saw their friend insulted, while the friends of the receiver saw their friend attacked. Other patrons in the bar may stay out of the situation because it is none of their business. In this example the sides are easy to define because every person on the same side has the same goal. Another often helpful hint is to look at the teams and individuals.

Helpful Hints - Teams and Individuals!
The presence of teams or individuals can help greatly in the definition of sides. The obvious example is one where a member of a team is in combat and the others on the team join-in on the same side. The case of individuals is similar, they also fight on a side, but usually it’s their own! This division of combatants into sides is the same as the division based on goals. If you are in a team then you must share the goals of your team and are therefore defined as a side once more.
Teams and individuals are a good indication of which side a person is on but there are advantages and disadvantages to being part of a team or being an individual. Large teams are usually a little noisy while an individual can be very stealthy. An individual is vulnerable to an attack by a team, however, because one persons’ efforts must be divided between many, while theirs’ are concentrated on only one.
When performing a calculation for a team, use their collective average for any attribute or skill instead of the individual’s score. This applies only when the team is acting as a whole - that is in Surprise or Primary attack. If an individual, within a team, is firing a weapon or wants to take action use the individual’s score.

Controlling Combat
In a real combat situation everyone acts at once, the opposing sides all move simultaneously and there is no fixed order. Obviously this situation must be controlled so the Game Master can handle all of the players’ requests, because if all of the players from all of the sides, began to yell their actions at the Game Master all at once ... well you can see that the Game Master would have no hope of understanding. Therefore a few rules are established so that the progression of combat can be simplified and its flow controlled. Although these rules indicate that there is a fixed order in which characters move, in turns, and a controlled flow, the sequence, the carnage still unfolds in a haphazard and disorderly form that is realistic. The turns, rounds and other rules only serve to help the Game Master and players to visualize the conflict, blow by blow.

Turns and Rounds
The infinite number of actions possible during a combat situation is far too much to consider simultaneously. Therefore a whole of combat situation is separated into smaller parts called Turns and Rounds. A turn is defined as the time it takes for a side, either a team or an individual, to expend all of their Agility Points. The turn, typically about five seconds in length, is time that each character receives to take action and perform any desired movements. Each player is free to specify whatever moves are desired when it is their turn to take action. The order of turns between members of the same team can be decided upon by position, marching order, mutual agreement, or the roll of a dice.
The round is the length of time it takes for every person from every side to take action. Since all movement actually occurs simultaneously it should be clear that in game time the length of a round is equal to five seconds. While it takes real time for the players to Specify their moves, all the actions of both sides are played-out in five seconds. The whole combat situation is composed of as many rounds as is necessary for the combat to be resolved.
It is very important to realize that All characters start their moves at the same instant. Therefore if one player executes a jumping side-kick in his turn, his target may have ducked, leaving the character sprawling through the air and on his way to a hard landing. The two moves are declared at different times but happen all at once, and the players must realize this to plan their moves effectively. Otherwise they could find a solid brick wall where the target’s head used to be. OUCH!
Rounds and Turns are guides to the Game Master and as such barely have meaning in real time. The Round, however, is an exception. Each turn takes approximately five seconds to complete, and since all the turns occur simultaneously, a round is also complete at the end of five seconds. Every time the sides have moved a round has passed. Approximately five seconds of game time have passed.

COMBAT - STEP BY STEP
Combat is often a related sequence of events which begins when combat is initiated, repeats throughout combat, and ends when the combat is resolved. Whether you choose the simple combat or tack-on modifiers for a more complex system, there are five steps involved in combat. The five steps are separate pieces that make-up a whole sequence. Each piece has only one rule but several ways that it can be performed. The separate ways to perform each step is called a procedure. Each procedure lists, step by step, what has to be done to get the result. The easy procedure for each step is listed first, with subsequent progress to the more complex. For each of the five steps you may choose to incorporate anyone of its procedures into your style of gaming. The possible combinations are varied enough to satisfy almost every need, and while the resulting combat system will differ from another Game Masters’, this is as it should be. Everyone should get the best role playing experience possible without having to conform to anyone else’s concept of enjoyment.

1) CHECK FOR SURPRISE
2) PRIMARY ATTACK
3) PLAYERS’ ACTION
4) PERCENT TO HIT
5) DAMAGE
6) REPEAT STEPS 3 - 5 FOR EACH PLAYER
7) REPEAT STEPS 3 - 6 FOR EACH SIDE
8) REPEAT STEP 7 UNTIL RESOLUTION

Surprise, Surprise!
When an attack is initiated and the target is not alert it is said to be Surprised. This means the side with the advantage of surprise receives the one and only turn this round - no other side may take action. The other sides are caught with their pants down - so to speak -and cannot retaliate.
Often when a group is surprised the usual underlying reason is their attitude or physical factors. Their ability to notice an attack coming is directly related to their how well they are paying attention, what they are doing, and their injuries. So being loud, careless, not paying attention, or even injured a side is more likely to be surprised by an attack. When acting as a whole all the characters on the side bare the brunt of one ‘bad’ player, since this can louse-up the group’s chances of seeing an attack coming. This rule only applies when the group is acting as a whole, and so when some of the group are sleeping this does not degrade the alertness of the character or characters on guard. The measure of a side’s attention is called their ALERTNESS CONDITION (AC) and it is the average of the side’s Perception and their Alertness Percentage.
When attacked a players’ alertness condition will always jump to a higher level in the next turn. This new alertness level may not jump all the way up to a one hundred, but it will always increase. The amount of this increase is up to the Game Master depending on the disturbance caused by the attack and the players’ response. It is almost impossible to dismiss an attack from a Bazooka, while the Sting Ray is so silent, a missed attempt probably won’t even be heard let alone acted upon. Depending on the players’ reaction to the attack the level of alertness may return to the original level, remain high, or show no reaction at all. This is for the Game Master to determine, based on the character’s actions.
If the combatants lose sight of each other, or the combat ceases for two rounds or more the sides have another opportunity to obtain surprise. When this occurs the procedure for surprise should be used to determine which side seizes the opportunity and which side is caught unsuspecting.

Procedures for Surprise
To determine which side gets surprise.
(1) A simple attribute check is performed for each side. All sides roll l:100sd and try to roll under their PERCEPTION. The side which rolls the most below, or the least above their Perception gets SURPRISE.
(2) A side gets Surprise if they can roll under the average of their Perception and their Alertness Percentage. Assign one Alertness Percentage to each side (based on their actions) and average the corresponding Alertness Percentage with the side’s average Perception. Then have all sides roll l:100sd. The side which is most below, or the least above their average gets Surprise.
(3) Assign each individual their own Alertness Condition Percentage, then average this with the individual’s Perception. Further average all of the individual alertness conditions to get the side’s overall Alertness Condition Percentage. Have each side roll l:100sd and the side who is the most below or the least above the sides’s Alertness gets Surprise.

Primary Attack
As the name implies this procedure is used to determine which side gets the first attack. An advantage of primary attack, in addition to simply being first, is that if a side’s roll is thirty percent or more above that of the next highest roll, then that side gets the one and only attack that round. This means that a fortunate side who gets a few lucky rolls can have several consecutive attacks before the other sides have their first attack.
Any side which receives Primary Attack has the option to “pass” this attack, and instead take their action last. This allows the side to either have a first strike in hopes of disabling an opponent - or a last strike with the advantage of knowing the other combatants’ action, positions, and manoeuvres. When a side with Primary Attack “passes”, the established order of attacking is shifted forward. The second side now attacks first, the third side now goes second, and so on for all sides involved in combat, and right at the end is the side who passed.
If a side or an individual wishes to join a fight already in progress, they must first be assigned their turn. Which is determined using the same procedure used to order the original combatants. The new side’s turn may be added at the end, beginning, or even in between the original combatants’ turns. However that side will have to wait until it is their turn before they can attack. If at any time the results are equal - no one team or individual receives Primary attack - a l:100sd roll for each side should be repeated until the sides are assigned an order.

Procedures for Primary Attack
To determine which side gets primary attack.
(1) Each side rolls l:100sd and then compare the results. The side with the lowest roll will get Primary Attack and attacks first, the side with the second lowest roll will attack second and so on until each side knows when it is their turn to attack. This step is performed only ONCE at the beginning of combat and from then on the combatants attack in that order every round until the engagement is resolved or broken-off.
(2) Each side rolls l:100sd, subtract one-half of the damage percentage taken in the proceeding turn and perform the rest of the procedure just like in procedure number one.
(3) Perform procedure number one or two, GM’s choice, at the beginning of each round. So that one team doesn’t get primary attack for the entire situation.

Taking Action!
This is the first and the only step in combat that isn’t performed exclusively by the Game Master. Every other step in combat requires little or no input from the players. Action though, is first and foremost for the players. Every round each player receives a turn which is the players’ chance to participate in the game. Everything that characters do in a combat situation is declared by their players during ACTION. So when it is a players’ turn, it is their time to plan their strategies; determine possible courses of action; select the best one then state their moves.

Any move at all?
A player can make their character perform any action desired within their turn. The number and type of these actions are only limited by the players’ imagination and the character’s supply of Agility Points (APts). Any action that players want their character to perform has its’ cost in Agility Points that must be paid. Actions can be made in any order or combination and against as many opponents as the player wishes, as long as the player has enough Points to cover the combined cost of the moves.
Some of the actions possible are listed along with their costs in APts on Table #3-6. Since no table is big enough to contain all the actions possible, only the primary and most basic moves have been listed. If a player wants to execute a manoeuvre not listed, you as the Game Master, should interpolate the cost of the desired move. If a player performed a jumping side kick which exhausted all of their agility points, they would continue until the motion of the last move had finished. This is important to remember when the other players make their moves. Because a player who is flying through the air at the end of their turn doesn’t freeze, mid-air, the instant their Agility Points run out.
A character takes approximately one-half of a second, of game time, for every ten percent of agility points expended. It should be clear then that if a player expends 100% of their agility points, it will take approximately 5 seconds. Any player expending all of their agility points will take this amount of time regardless of race, Agility or Physical Strength. This means that an Aracnian can expend their average number of agility points, 156 in the same time it takes a human to consume their 55. This indicates that the races move at different rates and is quite obvious when you consider their varied physical structure.

Need to slow it down?
For most people and for most combat scenarios the Turn will be small enough to visualize the combat and large enough not to make the calculations too tedious. This may not be true, however, when players want more detail about their actions or when combat becomes too complex within a single turn. Try to visualize two characters fighting. They are engaged in many types of hand to hand and weaponry action. How do you know where the characters are relative to each other? When one finishes their jumping side kick where is the other? This is vital knowledge when two characters are interacting. How can you fight someone if you don’t know where they are? When these circumstances exist it is helpful if all the action can be broken down even smaller. To fulfill this need a system where turns can be cut into smaller pieces was devised to help the players visualize their movements and allow the Game Master a better understanding of each character’s actions.
This system, called the “Sub-turn System”, divides a character’s turn and their Agility Points into a number of pieces. The usual number of pieces that a Turn is cut into is five, but it can be any number. Five pieces is a good number to start with. From there the Game Master can divide it into smaller or larger pieces to get more or less information. Now, within each of these pieces of the Turn, the normal steps of combat are followed. But, in these smaller pieces the character expends only one fifth of their Agility Points in one fifth of the time. The results being five times more information about where the characters are, and therefore better control over strategies, attacks, and defences. With the Sub-turn system we can find out where the characters are in relationship to each other, very simply. Because all the motion is compartmentalized into easy to visualize, slow-motion, sections. If you like you can cut the turn up smaller but remember it will always mean more work and not necessarily a clearer picture.

Want to speed it up?
Optionally, for additional complexity, the players can “borrow” agility points from their next turn. This can be very helpful if they find themselves in a deadly situation. Whenever points are borrowed, the rate is 3:1, that is if three points are borrowed from the next turn, then one additional point can be expended in this turn. Any number of points can be “borrowed” as long as the next turn has enough points to cover it. Consequently, the player has three less agility points in the next turn. The player moves as normal only with less points, and can continue borrowing from the next turn. If the player borrows all of the agility points from their next turn,
however, their character can have no movement at all. Also the player is not allowed to borrow again until this no-movement turn is finished.

Procedures for Action
To regulate the expenditure of movement points.
(1) For simple combat ignore the calculation of APts and just use your discretion as to whether a player has moved enough.
(2) Let the player expend their points as per Table #3-6 when it is their turn. Where the number of Agility Points is equal to the characters’ Agility Attribute as calculated in Character Generation. When the player is finished continue on to the next player. Remind them that they all begin moving at the same time, and that to be effective they must account for their targets movements.

Percent to Hit
At this stage the type of combat, either Hand To Hand or Weaponry, comes into play. The difference comes from the skills that are required by the two types of combat. For Marksmanship the Aim attribute is used. The value of the combatants’ skill, called Marksmanship in weaponry combat, is the average of AIM and the WEaPon DIFficulty modifier. The WEP DIFs can be found listed next to their respective weapons on the DATA SHEETS. For Brawlmanship, as it is called in Hand to Hand combat, the Brawl attribute is used. Here the value of a combatants’ skill is the average of the characters’ BRAWL and the ATTACK DIFficulty modifier. The ATTACK DIFs can be found listed next to their respective attacks in the DATA SHEETS.
NOTE: Since Hand to Hand combat can only occur under three meters you should double check the range. To warn the player that, if they are more than three meters away from their opponent, a jumping side-kick will not only look ridiculous, it will also fail miserably.
So the values for the skills are simply averages as shown below:
MARKSmanship = ( AIM + WEP DIF ) / 2
BRAWLmanship = ( BRAWL + ATTACK DIF ) / 2

Grenades and Explosives
A special case to Weaponry combat are grenades and explosives because of the possibility of bouncing. There are the three conditions when checking against Brawl for grenades and explosives, which are listed in procedure number #4. The Physical strength attribute determines the distance that the grenade, explosive or any thrown weapon can be hurled. Table #3-4.0 shows Physical Strength vs. the object’s weight and the distance, in meters, that object can be thrown.

Procedures for Percent to Hit
To calculate Percent to Hit.
(1) If the player rolls l:100sd and the result is under their MARKSmanship then the attack hits.
(2) Look up the players’ MARKSmanship versus Range on Table #3-1 and if the player rolls under this value the attack hits.
(3) Look up:
a. The value for MARKSmanship vs. Range as in procedure NUMBER TWO, this is called the players’ PERCENT TO HIT.
b. The ADVERSITY MODIFIERS from TABLE 3-7.0 to 3-7.4, of any environmental and movement conditions that may exist. Reference the sum of the Adversity Modifiers vs. Range on Table #3-2, to yield the PERCENT AGAINST
c. Now subtract the Percent Against from the Percent to Hit.
If the result has a negative value, the player has missed. The range and or the adversity modifiers were too much for the players’ skill to overcome.

If, however, the result is a positive number, the player has hit!
Have the player roll a l:100sd
i. If this l:100sd roll is more than 20 under the result, the attack is a direct hit. The player hits exactly where desired, proceed to the next step –DAMAGE
ii. If, however, the roll is 20 or less under the result, The attack is un-directed and a random hit; The position of the hit is determined on the RANDOM HIT table #3-3.4.
(4) GRENADES & EXPLOSIVES
a. Roll l:100sd — When the roll is under character’s brawl attribute, then there is no bounce and the hits exactly where it was aimed.

If the roll is less than 20 over brawl, Check the Grenade bounce Table #3-4.1 to determine the number of bounces. With this use the table to determine where the grenade or explosive actually lands.

If the roll is more than 20 over the brawl, the grenade or explosive misses! The distance the grenade or explosive lands is l:10sd + 13 meters away from the target hexagon.
Damage
The general category of damage actually consists of two separate sections, Tissue Damage and Organ Damage. The obvious objection which arises is that “Organs are made up of tissues! So isn’t the damage being counted twice? The answer is no, because tissue damage has different effects than those of organ damage. Tissue damage is localized in the particular body part injured and therefore, only its’ function is effected. The bleeding, and therefore lowered blood volume, that results from the localized wound effects the entire body. The heart has to pump harder, breathing must supply oxygen to less blood. So you can see the damage has body wide effects.

Tissue Damage
This local type of damage

Structure and Function
Function is always the first concern of the players when they take any damage. The first thing they will ask is “how badly am I hurt?”, which really means “What doesn’t work any more?”. The descriptions are structured to tell the players exactly this information, what doesn’t work and how bad the rest is damaged. Meaning that all of the points of damage that a character has taken, describes that character’s function. When he or she has no more damage points left in a body part he or she has no more function in that body part - it’s as simple as that. No function means that the body part is totally useless. So if the part in question was a hand, the fingers would just hang limp, and if it was the heart, it would no longer function. So the effects of losing all of your damage points in a particular body part can range from being inconvenient and painful to life threatening.
Note, the first ten percent of damage points on the damage sheet of each body part structure before the points of function listed on the character sheet. These structure points are lost when a player becomes damaged and can only be recovered by natural healing. So, even if the player receives the best of medical treatment possible, genetic surgery, there is still some damage that must be healed by the normal healing process. These points are all structural and therefore do not affect the players’ functioning. Total destruction of the body part occurs when it has taken five times the number of points the undamaged body part has. So the average hand with its six points is totally destroyed when it has received thirty points (5 x 6) of damage. The same calculation follows for all other body parts on all other races.

Damage Types?
It is obvious that there are different type of weapons, some of which are projectiles, explosives, bludgeons, and lasers. These different types of weapons employ different means to cause damage including bullets, shrapnel, brute force, and pure energy. So, it is only logical that these different types of weapons cause different types of damage, refered to as Damage Type. The damage type is used to characterize the generic number of damage points. The damage type

Damage Die Rolls

Grazing Shots
After completing procedure one or twb, you will know how many damage points can be done by the attack. That’s right “can” be done, because]the above damage calculation does not account for hoy well the marksman hits, only that he or she does. This! calculation remedies that situation. To make the damage points taken more accurate you must know the PERCENT UNDER. PERCENT UNDER is the percent to hit or marksmanship minus the l:100sd ROLL that the player rolled when he or she was trying to beat their marksmanship or percent to hit.

You want more description?
Damage description tables, numbered 3-8 through 3-14, have been set-up to aid a Game Master in describing to the players the kind and severity of damage they have taken and / or given. Even though these tables add greatly to the damage description they are not specialized to the various anatomies of the different races after all sometimes you have to ad lib. That is what Game Mastering is all about. These additions should be made from your knowledge of Physical structure comparisons between the different races.
You should also note that their are twenty categories of damage on all of the tables, and the actual damage percentage may fall between the upper and lower limit of any one category. Since the descriptions are the average of a range of damage done, the most applicable “end” of the description should be chosen. If the actual damage percentage is in the upper end of the! percentage 11 range the damage description would be rnore severe, but if the damage percentage was in the lower end of the category the description would be less severe. These additions are an option the Game Master ban use or disregard depending on the accuracy or description his role-players want.
To use these tables there are a few things one must know; what type of damage does the weapon inflict (DAM-age TYPE) and how many damage points does the affected area have (DAMage points). The type! of damage that a weapon does is listed beside it on |the DATA SHEETS. DAMage points are assigned during character
generation (See Character generation: damage record) and are also on your character sheet in the DAMAGE RECORD. You must know the damage percentage to know which description to look at. This can be simply calculated by dividing the number of points taken by the total number of points in the area when undamaged and multiplying by one hundred. The number of points TAKEN could be the unmodified number derived in “DAMAGE” or it could be the modified value calculated in the “GRAZING SHOTS” section.
These descriptions are written for races with endoskeletons, all but three of the races in the known galaxy. The descriptions for these other three races the Aracnians, Fenbin, and Sooaacoli must be altered so that the bone descriptions come first instead of last - as in the other races. These alterations should be performed by the Game Master using the existing descriptions. This modification will produce a properly ordered sequence of descriptions for races with exoskeletons.

DAMAGE PERCENTAGE = points taken / total points * 100

With this percentage and the damage type you can now look up a large specific description about the actual damage done. The damage type will tell which of the tables, labeled Table #3-8 through 3-14, to use. Then look up the Damage Percentage and read the description in the box.
For more description about the extent of the damage you can read the Additional Descriptions. This means that after you read the description indicated by the damage percentage look up the table (down the percentages) until you reach the most serve description in the last type of damage. For example if using Table #3-8 and you began reading at the 86-90 description you can also read the 81-85, 61-65, 41-45 and the 11-15 descriptions. The reasoning behind this is simple - when a sword breaks the bone, it must first damage all the flesh surrounding the bone - and so the previous descriptions apply. You can continue reading the AD descriptions until you reach the top of the table. All of these descriptions would relate the sum total of all of the consequences of the attack, and all of the descriptions you could read on that particular injury.

ORGAN SYSTEM DAMAGE
This is an advanced system for determining the damage done and the effects to the critical organ systems. The organ systems that are covered in this are Circulatory, Respiratory, Nervous - Endocrine, an(l Digestive - Excretory. Organ system damage leads directly from the tissue damage system and description. The essential part of the tissue system is the percentage damage done. This percentage is used to find out the severity of the organ damage. There is an obvious need to modify the damage to the body part and what organ system is being affected, because Respiratory damage in the foot is improbable. Table # 3-3.1 shows how the damage percentage should be modified to organ system and body part. Simply multiply the tissue damage by the correct column and row of the table. The result of this calculation is then looked-up on the appropriate organ system damage table #3-15.1 through 3-15.4. The results of the damage can be determined from the descriptions. Organ system damage descriptions and table values are calibrated to any race that has it head and brain on its shoulders. For other races place the damage to the head where this particular race’s “head” is (in the chest for the Eebek and Krane). There is one further exception for the Aracnian’s and Eebek’s 12decentralized circulatory and respiratory system. They take their damage over their entire body. Evenly distribute any inflicted damage to these sections.

POISONS and DRUGS
Contrary to weapons and attacks, poisons and drugs only affect organ systems and usually no tissue damage is done. Each type of poison and drug effects a different system, also different doses of a certain poison or drug can cause different effects. A small dose of a particular poison can temporarily slow the nervous system, while a larger dose is deadly -for example this is Kurari. Other more exotic drugs can affect the digestion, circulation and respiration. The types and sources of these various drugs are endless and so are their effects. A Game Master should decide which system(s) the chemical effects and its weapon modifier (WEP MOD). Then the WEP MOD can be put directly into the calculation for damage since percent to hit is not usually a factor (ie. the poison or drug is ingested, injected, etc.). The calculation will yield a number of tissue damage points which are ignored but the value is then used to calculate the organ system damage as laid out above. Any poison can be used as long as it affects one or more of the systems and it can be assigned a WEP MOD.
Each of the three procedures for Damage share some quintessential elements which links them together into a single system. DAMAGE TYPE, found in 1 and 3, specifies exactly what the implies - what type of damage the weapon in question inflicts. Number 2 and 3 share is that these procedures yield a single number, equal to the number of damage points that were inflicted on the target. The disadvantage is, only a person very familiar with the system can get an accurate idea just from this. The advantage is that a number from 1 to 5000 is much more specific then grouping all possible damages into only fifteen categories. Other role players, who are new to role playing or are unfamiliar with this system, will probably want more description, at least until they become acquainted with the system. Those who want more description will find it in the DESCRTPTION section below. It is structured to use the results of any of the procedures in Damage, to add a great deal more description.

Procedures
(1) First you must know the DAMAGE TYPE of the weapon. This will tell you which table you should look to for the description. Next you must know where the damage was done. This can be specified by the Game Master or rolled for on the Random Hit table #3-3.4. With this data you can find the damage done to the affected area or body part. Damage is referenced by a Title to a description on Damage type specific tables, those numbered 3-16 through 3-21. Each damage type has its own table due to the differences in damage done by the various weapons.

Beside each title on the table you will notice two other columns. These other two elements are a SEVERITY ROLL and the DAMAGE PERCENTAGE. The severity roll tells you which severity table to roll on to determine the full consequences of the damage taken. This process can be done very quickly and will hardly affect the flow of the game. The damage percentage relates an approximation of the damage taken as a percentage of the total points in that particular body part for use with an even larger description laid out in TABLES 3-8 through 3-14. The second element only comes into play when a wound has been left untreated for an extended period of time. If this situation exists simply roll on the l:10sd and look up the appropriate title on the table and it’s description. This description should clear up any questions the player might have.
You will notice that the descriptions are not body part specific due to all the useless repetition that would be needed. Game Masters should use discretion to customize the descriptions. If the players are experienced, have them do the rolling and give them the descriptions to read. This can free-up your time and efforts to deal with the elements and flow of the module and still run combat.

1.1) Determine what type of damage is being done. appropriate column for the particular race. Then have the player roll l:10sd and follow the instructions on the table, and have the affected player roll l:10sd then look up the damage description.

2: A simple way to figure out damage points done is to use the DAMAGE 10DIE ROLL listed beside each weapon on the DATA SHEETS. The result of the DAMAGE DIE ROLL is the number of points of damage that the target has taken. It is recommended that this procedure only be used if the range is less than ten meters. While, the procedure will work for ranges above ten meters, beyond that distance the results begin to lose accuracy, and these inaccuracies should be kept in mind.

The data in the weapons1 data sheets is in the form (X+Y). The key to this is that the first number This DAMAGE DIE ROLL is abbreviated to save space. The abbreviation takes the form of one or two numbers (X) is the number of times you should roll l0sd (X:10sd). The second number (Y) is the number of points you should add to the die roll. Therefore you get X:10sd + Y which is the DAMAGE DIE ROLL. In the case of a fractional (X) values roll l:10sd and multiply the result by the fraction. If no (Y) value is present then there is no addition and the damage done is just the result of X:10sd.

EXAMPLES:
AUTO PISTOL 4+2 means4:10sd+2
CONTOUR LASER 3 means3:10sd
FINGER LASER means l:10sd*«

3: You must know the range that the marksman is attacking from. The only other fact you need is the WEP MODifier. WEP MODs are listed along side their weapons on the DATA SHEETS. To find the number of points of damage done to the target, cross reference the WEP MOD and the RANGE using Table #3-3. The resulting value is the number of points of damage that have been done to the target. NOTE: Do not confuse WEP MODifier with WEP DIFficulty modifier they are two separate modifiers.

GRAZING SHOTS
After completing procedure one or two you now enow how many damage points can be done by the attack. Fhat's right "can" be done, because the above damage :alculation does not account for how well the marksman tiits, only that he or she does. This calculation remedies that situation. To make the damage points taken more accurate you must know the PERCENT UNDER. PERCENT UNDER is the percent to hit or marksmanship minus the l;100sd ROLL that the player rolled when he or she was trying to beat their marksmanship or percent to hit.

% UNDER = {MARKS or % TO HIT} - l:100sdROLL

Take this percentage (the percent under) and divide it by the marksmanship or percent to hit depending on which procedure was used in the "Percent to hit" section. This should result in a number that is less than one. Multiplying this number with the number of damage points that could have been done to the opponent will result in less than the original number of damage points. The modified number of damage points now reflects a more accurate value, because any inaccuracies in aiming that affected the placement of the shot have been compensated for.

DESCRIPTION
Damage description tables, numbered 3-8 through 3-14, have been set-up to aid a Game Master in describing to his players the kind and severity of damage they have taken and or given. Even though these tables add greatly to the damage description they are not specialized to the various anatomies of the different races after all sometimes you have to ad lib that what Game Mastering is all about. These additions should be made from your knowledge of Physical structure comparisons between the different races.
You should also note that their are 20 categories of damage on all of the tables, and the actual damage percentage may fall between the upper and lower limit of any one category. Since the descriptions are the average of a range of damage done, the most applicable "end" of the description should be chosen. If the actual damage percentage is in the upper end of the percentage range the damage description would be more severe, but if the damage percentage was in the lower end of the category the description would be less severe. These additions are an option the Game Master can use or disregard depending on the accuracy or description his role-players want.
To use these tables there are a few things one must know, what type of damage does the weapon inflict (DAMage TYPE) and how many damage points does the affected area have (DAMage points). The type of damage that a weapon does is listed beside it on the DATA SHEETS. DAMage points are assigned during character generation (See Character generation: damage record) and are also on your character sheet in the DAMAGE RECORD. You must know the damage percentage to know which description to look at. This can be simply calculated by dividing the number of points taken by the total number of points in the area when undamaged and multiplying by one hundred. The number of points TAKEN could be the unmodified number derived in "DAMAGE" or it could be the modified value calculated in the "GRAZING SHOTS" section.
These descriptions are written for races with endoskeletons, all but three of the races in the known galaxy. The descriptions for these other three races the Aracnians, Fenbin, and Sooaacoli must be altered so that the bone descriptions come first instead of last - as in the other races. These alterations should be performed by the Game Master using the existing descriptions. This modification will produce a properly ordered sequence of descriptions for races with exoskeletons.

CONCLUSION
We hope that you find these rules clear and easy to use. That you use only those rules that you and your players enjoy using and ones that fit your style of gaming. We hope that if you have any questions that have been answered by the pertinent examples for the various procedures. Finally have fun using these rules, select the ones that you can have fun with not the one that drag you down — after all this is supposed to be a game and it's supposed to be fun!