In Call of Cthulhu (CoC) 7th Edition, combat was changed to be more of an exchange of blows vs a single swing with a weapon. Since the mechanic was new, it introduced new questions as to how it all works due to interactions between various rules.
Opponent can either dodge or fight back.
You compare the levels of success and the better success wins.
For ties, if dodging, the defender wins and the attack is dodged.
Ready firearm: +50 to DEX.
Point-blank range gives the shooter a bonus die.
Firing 2+ shots adds a penalty die on all shots, even the first shot.
Firing into melee adds a penalty die, only a fumble indicates an ally is hit.
You can reload one bullet and fire in the same round for one penalty die.
You cannot fight back against a firearm attack.
p.412-413 Keeper Rulebook has a flowchart for Combat and Combat Damage.
p.408-410 Keeper Rulebook has Melee and Firearm Summaries.
So it's very straight forward, but it's the combination of firearm vs melee where confusion reigns.
Q (Morgan Hua): So, when you are attacked, you can either dodge or fight back. But what if you are holding a gun in your hand, do you get to shoot? That seems like an unfair advantage. You shoot your opponent, then they enter melee with you then you shoot them again.
A (Mike Mason)
: Once you are in melee, you are in melee - trying to fire off a gun while in melee is very hard - so you cannot fire at someone as a “fight back”. You can use the gun as a cosh though to “fight back”. If you let a PC fire the gun as a “fight back” then apply two penalty dice (one for “hip fire” and one for trying to shoot while the combatant is hitting you).
On TV in melee - someone has a gun in the brawl - its a messed up situation, and normally the gun goes off hitting the person firing it (as its been twisted round by their opponent).
Anyway, base rule - you are either in melee (so cannot fire, but can use gun as a cosh etc) or you are not (and so you can fire). Otherwise, as you say, [the shooter] has an unfair advantage (due to game mechanics) that wouldn’t exist in real life.
p.s. Cosh Damage: 1d8 + DB. See p.401 Keeper Rulebook, Blackjack (Cosh).
Q (RN): The initiative bonus for having a ready gun, when does that apply? Does it apply still in later rounds, even after a character reloads, or does it apply in only the first round?
A (Morgan Hua): Ready gun bonus applies to all rounds the gun is already out and ready to fire. e.g. If the PCs had to draw their guns before firing, there is no +50 to DEX. I believe this is to model the fact that pulling a trigger is faster than swinging a baseball bat. If you are out of bullets and need to reload, then I would not give you the +50 bonus, even in the case of loading one bullet and firing with the penalty die. I would consider the gun not ready, even though it's out of its holster.
Also if you move before you fire, you won't get the +50 DEX modifier. You only get the +50 DEX modifier if your gun is out and ready to fire, and you fire before you move. See p.127 Keeper Rulebook, Movement During Combat.
Q (RN): For the answer involving 2 penalty dice, wouldn't the point-blank range cancel out the penalty die from firing into melee?
A (MH): Overall, I'd just give the 2 penalty dice. The bonus die is because you're so close you can't miss, but the problem is you're so close you can't hit when trying to shoot a gun while someone is grappling you.
Q (RN): The bonus for point-blank and the penalty for melee always confused me as they seemed like they'd always cancel each other out.
A (MH): As a GM, I do cheat a little and let the PCs step back a few steps and fire into melee. e.g. The gun wielder can fire on their turn, but must dodge / fight grapple when being attacked in melee range. But the bonus and penalty die cancel out for point-blank and firing into melee.
When more than two people are fighting. Generally what happens is a PC is grappling with an opponent and another PC is free with a gun. In this instance, the point-blank and firing into melee cancel each other out and you can fire normally, or fire 3 times with a penalty die on each shot, but if you miss, nothing bad happens. Only if you fumble do you hit the friendly. The penalty die is to model you not trying to hit a friendly. At the high end failure (based on the firearm malfunction %), you just get a jammed gun. But that is up to GM when firing into melee, GM may decide on friendly fire instead. although most friendly fire incidents happen during insanity, so maybe a jam is a nicer thing for the GM to do.
Q (RN): So when would point-blank apply, but firing into melee not?
A (MH): During a surprise attack. Or the first round where the PC with +50 DEX goes before the bad guys and steps into point-blank range before firing. This mostly happens in enclosed spaces like an apartment hallway, a room in an office, or a train car.
I've also seen a pitched fight where a bad guy just dropped a friendly, so hasn't entered melee with another friendly, so another PC was able to fire with a bonus die since the baddy was unengaged at that moment.
Technically to get the +50 DEX, you're not allowed to move before you fire, only afterwards. But I allow a few steps of movement during combat anyway. e.g. If you're already in close range and stepping a few feet will get you into point-blank, I'll allow it. But this means your movement stops at point-blank. I won't allow a move-to-point-blank, fire, move away, that'll be abusive.
Q (RN): So melee only counts after one of those involved is performing a melee attack. Just being in melee range, but not attacking does not count. Right?
A (MH): Yes. Hand-to-hand melee only starts for a specific person if they're being attacked with Fighting Brawl (knife, fists, etc) or Fighting Maneuver. If everyone is standing at point-blank and are just shooting at each other, everyone gets a bonus die.
Q (MH): How bad is a penalty die? Two penalty dice?
A (MH): Answer via example.
Assume your firearms skill is 40%.
With one penalty die:
The only time you get a success is if both die rolls are successes.
40% * 40% = 0.4 * 0.4 = 0.16 = 16% chance of hitting with one penalty die.
With two penalty dice:
The only time you get a success is if all three die rolls are successes.
40% * 40% * 40% = 6.4% chance of hitting with two penalty dice.
So basically, you square or cube your success percent depending on whether you have one or two penalty die.
Q (MH): How good is a bonus die? Two bonus dice?
A (MH): Answer via example.
Assume your firearms skills is 40%.
With one bonus die:
The only time you miss is if both die rolls miss, so you square the miss percent and subtract it from 100%.
100% - 40% = 60% miss percent
60% * 60% = 36% when both dice miss.
100% - 36% = 64% chance of hitting with one bonus die.
With two bonus dice:
It's cube the miss percent and subtract from 100%.
60% * 60% * 60% = 21.6% when all three dice miss.
100% - 21.6% = 78.4% chance of hitting with two bonus dice.
Basically you square or cube your failure percent and subtract from 100% depending on whether you have one or two penalty dice.
Q (TD): Do monsters get to fight back?
A (MH): Yes, but not only that they get to fight back that many times before an attacker gets a bonus die for outnumbering a defender. In the rules, if you've fought back or dodged already, and then get attacked again in the same round, an attacker gets a bonus die for outnumbering the defender. i.e. many on one combat. See p.108 Keeper Handbook: Outnumbered.
So, if the monster has 4 attacks, it doesn't get outnumbered until after it has fought back 4 times that round.
Q (CC): If a creature uses 2 attacks against a PC on the same turn, would the second be used with a bonus die? Or would it be only if multiple monsters/NPCs attack the same PC.
A (MH): If a monster is attacking the same target multiple times, it gets a bonus die for the additional attacks. See p.15 Malleus Monstrorum Volume 1, Monsters and Outnumbering.
If an octopus-like creature decides to grab you with 4 tentacles, instead of 1, it'll be a lot harder to fend off the additional attacks. So, it should get a bonus die for the additional attacks.
But I sometimes give the PCs a break and omit the bonus die. I would do this on a case by case basis.
If the multiple attacks are really deadly, then I wouldn't bother with the bonus die and if the PC survives, it's a miracle the Player can talk about afterwards.
If the attacks are a claw and a bite, then I'd say the two attacks are in concert. If the claw hits, then the creature pulls the PC in for the bite with a bonus die.
If the 1st attack was a grapple and the 2nd attack was some sort of death kiss, then I would instead give the target a penalty die since the whole reason for the 1st attack was to immobilize the target, and being grappled does add a penalty die. Also I would not allow the grappled target to step back to fire a gun on their turn as the target is now locked in melee combat and can only try to break free or fight with a cosh.
If the attacks are completely different actions such as a claw and a kick, then I wouldn't give a bonus die for the 2nd attack.
Q (MH): If I fight back, can I spend enough Luck to get an Extreme or Critical (01%) success and impale the attacker?
A (MH): Yes and No. You can spend enough Luck to get an Extreme or Critical success to beat your attacker, and do normal damage. You only get the impale bonuses if you are the attacker, not as a defender. p.103 Keeper Handbook: Extreme Damage and Impales.
Q (MH): If attacking, can I spend enough Luck to get a Critical (01%) success?
A (MH): On your attack, spending Luck to get your die roll down to a 01 will beat any opponent's level of success, but it will only be treated as an Extreme success for damage (Extreme Damage and Impales apply). See p.62 Pulp Cthulhu, Critical Successes and Fumbles.
Q (MH): How does a double barreled shotgun work?
A (MH): Shotguns have under Uses per Round either "1 or 2" or "1 (2)". "1 (2)" are single barreled shotguns. "1 or 2" are double barreled shotguns. Also under Name if you see a "(2B)" it's a double barreled shotgun.
Single barreled shotguns "1 (2)" act like handguns where you get a penalty die if you fire twice.
For double barreled shotguns "1 or 2", you can fire at:
- one target with one barrel. Normal attack roll.
- one target with both barrels. Two attack rolls, one for each barrel, no penalty die.
- two targets, one with each barrel. Normal attack roll for first shot, Penalty die for 2nd target.
See p.405 Keeper Rulebook, 2nd column, bottom, Uses per Round.
Damage listed is for a single barrel. Shotgun pellets do not impale, so an Extreme Success only does max damage. See p.406 Keeper Rulebook, 2nd column, Shotguns.
Optional Armor Rule, see p.126 Keeper Rulebook. Armor is reduced from each damage die. e.g. Creature has armor of 1 gets hit with a 4d6 shotgun blast; armor will stop 4 pts of damage from pellets.
Optional Point-Blank Rule, see p.127 Keeper Rulebook, Point-Blank Revisited. Rifles, full-length shotguns, and bows do not get a bonus die at point-blank range. Short-barreled shotguns (such as the Winchester 1897 "Trench Gun" used in WWI or a modern Remington Tac 14) or sawed-off shotguns do gain a bonus die.
In my experience, shotguns generally become the weapon of choice for veteran CoC Players. Due to the massive amount of damage it does. PCs would move into point-blank or wait until an enemy comes into point-blank for a bonus die before firing. Though an extreme success would only result in maximum damage instead of an impale. See p.406 Keeper Rulebook, Shotguns.
What's interesting is that Delta Green does something different. Shotguns always gain a +20% to hit (similar to a bonus die). Armor stoppage is doubled. Single barrel is 2d8 and firing both barrels is 3d8, rolling only once to hit. See p.94 Delta Green Agent's Handbook, Shotguns.
So, you can house rule something similar, such as 6d6/3d6/1d6+2 damage for a double barreled shotgun blast, requiring only one die roll to hit if firing both barrels.
Q (MH): How does restraining an opponent work?
A (MH): First, the attacker needs to succeed in an attack Maneuver, p.106 Keeper Rulebook. Assume the maneuver is a bear hug. The defender could have avoided the Maneuver with a better fight back (defender punches the attacker in the nose) or an equal or better dodge. Let's assume the attacker beat the defender. Then each round, the attacker can keep on using the same hold without additional dice rolls. The defender can only break out by succeeding in their own Maneuver on their turn.
As a house rule, I've seen where the person breaking out of a Maneuver has to beat (fight back) or equal (dodge) the success level (std, hard, extreme, crit) of the original attack. So the only time the Bear Hugger needs to reroll is if he thinks he can put a better hold on the defender. e.g. upgrade his bear hug (assume he got a std success) to a full nelson (wants a hard or extreme success), but there's a chance he might fail and the defender will automatically get free. So, how I would do this is when the defender finally gets to act (fighting Maneuver or Dodge), the Bear Hugger either has to be happy with his original level of success (so the defender only needs to roll and just compare levels of success) or the Bear Hugger rolls a new fight back (so both defender and attacker need to roll, then compare levels of success. And keep in mind the defender is acting, not the Bear Hugger, so ties go to him).
Also of note, Build difference penalties only affect the person initiating the Maneuver, so a smaller person trying to trip a bigger person will have a penalty, but not when a larger person tries to trip a smaller person (and doesn't get a bonus die for being bigger, unless the GM house rules this). So, in the above example, if a smaller person has already been Bear Hugged and is trying to break out of a Bear Hug with a Maneuver, I'd rule that there is a penalty die. See p.105-106, 408, and 412 Keeper Rulebook.
Q (DV): What can a player can do while being grappled and attacked in the same round.
For example: A player is grappled by a hunting horror and the horror goes in to take a big bite. Can the player make a dodge roll with penalty? Or does the creature simply get a free hit on the player or just given a bonus die.
A (MH): p.106 Keeper Rulebook. A successful maneuver allows:
Reading this, I assume the successful grapple puts the PC at a disadvantage. I would give the defender (PC) a dodge roll against the bite, but with a disadvantage die (due to the successful grapple, p106 Keeper Rulebook). And if the bite is in the same round as the grapple, the creature would get a bonus die for the 2nd attack (outnumbered bonus, p.108 Keeper Rulebook). I assume the creature has the PC in its coils or claws and would try to bite the PC in the head/arms/shoulders, the PC can try to squrim and avoid the bite when being attacked. On the captured PC's turn, the PC can then either attack (if an arm is free, but with a disadvantage die) or try a maneuver to breakout, otherwise the grapple disadvantage would be ongoing.
Q (MT): On maneuvers, an attacker with a smaller build gets a penalty die when attacking a larger defender, but it doesn't specify what happens when a larger attacker attacks a smaller defender. Would a larger attacker get a bonus die?
A (MH): No. It would be too much of an advantage for the larger person. See p.105-106 Keeper Rulebook, Step 1: Compare Builds. It is explicitly stated: "If the character performing the maneuver has the same (or higher) Build as their opponent, no additional modifiers are applied."
Q (MH): How does knocking someone out work? e.g. I'm holding a shovel and declare I want to smack whoever comes around the corner in the face, trying to knock them out in one blow.
A (MH): See p.125 Keeper Rulebook. You need to get the defender to either 0 HP or cause a Major Wound. Though getting a Major Wound on a Fighting Brawl with bare hands is sometimes very difficult (damage is 1d3 +DB, that's why you should use a shovel or baseball bat 😊) and getting them to 0 HP on one punch will just kill them outright. So, I
sometimes house rule that if the original intention was to knock the defender unconscious (all earlier attacks were Fighting Brawl) and the defender is already below 1/2 HP, and gets hit again with a Fighting Brawl, I have the defender make a CON check to see if they go unconscious. This just speeds up the combat, especially if the PCs are dogpiling on a single NPC.
Q (MH): How do you deal with a called shot? We find out the creature has tough armor and we decide to aim for its eyes or open mouth.
A (MH): There is Aiming (Bonus die), p.113 Keeper Rulebook. This will increase the chance of getting an Extreme success which should model getting a called shot. See Extreme Damage and Impales p.103 Keeper Rulebook. And if the creature is Build 4 or larger and you're using a firearm, you get another Bonus die, p.113 Keeper Rulebook. And if you're really bold, you can get into Point-Blank Range (Bonus die) with a firearm. So, you can get in effect 3 bonus dice.
In Pulp Cthulhu, there is the Pulp Talent: Beady Eye, p.25 Pulp Cthulhu, which eliminates the penalty die for firing into melee and Aiming at a small target. But Players would want to apply this for everything, including a called shot. Logically, Beady Eye should allow that PC to do a called shot without a penalty, but that is unbalancing as most of the Pulp Talents are pretty limited in scope. So, I sometimes gave the PC a bonus die, but then that lead to abuse as that PC wanted a bonus die for every shot. Even the Insane Talent "Insane Accuracy," p.77 Pulp Cthulhu, gives a bonus die for every shot, is limited to the gun going empty or the first miss where it would hit an ally or something of great value.
Q (MH): Ranged and Thrown Weapons only applies half of the Damage Bonus (p.108 Keeper Rulebook). How do you figure this out?
A (MH): Damage Bonus (DB) is on p.33 Keeper Rulebook, below is a modified version.
For + damage, you can either roll the half damage or just roll full DB and halve it, rounding up.
For - damage, the PC is weaker, so you shouldn't halve the DB (in effect doing more damage with a thrown weapon), but double it, so it does even less damage. If damage + DB is negative, damage done is 0.
| STR + SIZ |
Build |
Damage Bonus |
Half Damage Bonus |
| 2 - 64 |
-2 |
-2 |
-4 |
| 65 - 84 |
-1 |
-1 |
-2 |
| 85 - 124 |
0 |
None |
0 |
| 125 - 164 |
1 |
+1d4 |
+1d2 |
| 165 - 204 |
2 |
+1d6 |
+1d3 |
| 205 - 284 |
3 |
+2d6 |
+1d6 |
| 285 - 364 |
4 |
+3d6 |
+1d6 +1d3 |
| 365 - 444 |
5 |
+4d6 |
+2d6 |
| 445 - 524 |
6 |
+5d6 |
+2d6 +1d3 |
Q (MH): How do you deal with submachine guns such as a Tommy Gun?
A (MH): The official rules are math intensive and I find it ruins the tension / game immersion when there's a timeout for math right in the middle of a gun battle. See p.114-116 Keeper Rulebook for complete rules and p.410 Keeper Rulebook for Summary.
Instead, I do a house rule: The level of success results in a number of bullets that hit. Roll for each target in range for individual results: Fail = no bullets hit, Regular Success = 1 bullet hits, Hard Success = 2, Extreme = 3, Critical = all bullets hit. If the gun has a higher rate of fire, maybe add an additional bullet or two to each level of success.
I ignore the additional damage of an Extreme Success as I assume the attacker is "Praying and Spraying" and not aiming carefully.
Optionally, you can use the Delta Green rules using a Lethality of 10%. Roll % dice for each target hit. If you roll <= 10%, instant kill. Otherwise add up the two dice for damage. e.g. you roll 28% = 2 + 8 = 10 pts damage. A rolled 0 is = 10 pts damage, so 20% = 2 + 10 = 12 pts damage. This basically defaults to 2d10 damage unless you roll 10% or less which is an instant kill.
A (Mike Mason): Divide skill by 10 to determine how may bullets in a volley (i.e skill of 60 = 6 bullets per volley). How many volleys are to be fired? Make an attack roll for each volley: first - apply range modifier (if applicable); second - add penalty die to roll; third - add 2 penalty dice; fourth - 2 penalties + increase difficulty. If attack roll is successful - half of the shots in the volley (i.e. 3 of 6) hit, roll damage. If extreme success - all shots hit.
Q (VS): Let's say I have a SMG skill of 75 and I am firing my tommy gun with a 50 round magazine at full auto. The rules states: "Regardless of skill, a full auto volley is never fewer than 3 bullets." In this case, each volley is 7 bullets OR is each volley a player choice between 3 to 7 bullets?
A (Mike Mason): Up to the number set by the skill which can be the player's choice (i.e. my skill is 75, but I choose to fire 4 rather than 7 bullets in a volley).
Q (MH): How far can a range weapon hit?
A (MH): All range weapons have a base range.
0 to 1x base range requires a Regular success to hit.
1x+ to 2x base range requires a Hard success to hit.
2x+ to 4x base range requires an Extreme success to hit.
So, the answer is 4x base range is the maximum range of a missile weapon.
Q (MH): Can I dodge bullets?
A (MH): You can dive for cover. If you make your Dodge roll, you will get partial cover and the attacker will have a penalty die to hit you. If you fail, then the attacker will attack you as normal. The cost is that you'll lose your next action whether in this round if you haven't acted yet or the next if you've already acted. This assumes there is cover to dive behind.
As a house rule (by other GMs, I'm not totally sure this is a fair house rule), if you are in Point Blank range, a successful Dodge roll means you were able to maneuver yourself so the attacker can't aim at you. Or if the attacker is using a long firearm such as a shotgun or rifle, you are past the barrel of the gun and they can't shoot you.
I would suggest maybe the better house rule would be that the defender needs to jump the attacker (fight back with a maneuver), only possible in Point Blank range, and announce they're trying to take the weapon away from the attacker. Then both roll attack rolls. Defender needs to get a better success than attacker to take the weapon away. Otherwise the attacker hits the defender with a bullet. Then assume the two people are in hand-to-hand combat, fighting over control of the gun. From then on, either they're fighting hand-to-hand, or the person with the gun gets two penalty dice for trying to shoot the defender with the gun
.
Also see p.127 Keeper Rulebook on Point-Blank Revisited (optional rule). Rifles and shotguns do not gain a point-blank bonus die. Which is interesting because in my games, most PCs want to get into point-blank with a shotgun in order to increase their chance of getting an Extreme success and doing maximum damage.
Q (TP): What's the difference between a Critical success (01) and an Extreme success in combat?
A (MH): A Critical success is better than an Extreme success. So, if you fought back and rolled a Critical success, you'd beat out the attacker's Extreme success. Damage-wise, a Critical success is the same as an Extreme success with the GM having an option to add an added effect such as instantly killing the opponent, ignoring armor, stunning the opponent, loping off a limb, or putting out an eye. See p.89 Keeper Rulebook, 01: A Critical Success.
Keep in mind, if you fight back, and roll an Extreme success, you only do normal damage. Only the attacker does extra damage with an Extreme success or better, not the defender. See p.103 Keeper Rulebook, Extreme Damage and Impales.
Q (SL): Question about Firearms combat rules: Noticed a lot of penalty/bonus die situations here, I’m curious how other keepers handle a situation where the attacker/shooter is firing at a target that succeeded their dive for cover roll (1 penalty die), has a small build of -2 (1 penalty die) and has fast movement of 8 or more (1 penalty die); does that mean the attacker gets 3 penalty dice or do you go with just 1 penalty die?
A (MH): The penalties stack. It is possible to earn and stack all 3 penalty dice, but the rules state that there's a maximum of 2 penalty dice and any additional penalty dice are used to increase the difficulty of the task instead. See p. 116 Keeper Rulebook. Automatic Fire, Second and further attack rolls. So, for this example, 2 penalty dice and a Hard Success is needed to hit the target.
Though possible, I've never seen a PC with build of -2. The Fast-Moving Target modifier is only if the PC with 8+ Move Rate is moving at full speed and doing nothing else. If a PC dives for cover, they lose their next action.
I can easily see 2 penalty dice applied to shooting a monster that is small and fast.
Q (SC): How is car crash damage calculated.
A (MH): If you are using a car to run over someone, the damage is 1d6 to 1d10 per build of the car, depending on how solid you hit your target. A standard car has build 5. See p.415 Keeper Rulebook, Table VI: Vehicular Collisions and p.416 Table V: Vehicle Reference Chart.
And the driver and all passengers takes a single die of damage depending on how hard you hit the object. e.g. if you did 1d6 damage per car's build to what you run over, people inside the car take 1d6 each; if you did 1d10 damage per car's build to what you run over, each passenger takes 1d10 damage. See p.144 Keeper Rulebook, Vehicular Collisions.
If you are in the car and it gets into a fatal crash (car takes damage equal to the build x 10, 50 HP for a standard car), you might just die outright or take 2d10 damage when thrown from the car. If the car isn't destroyed outright, then driver and each passenger takes 1d10. See p.416 Keeper Rulebook, Table V: Vehicle Reference Chart, Build.
Q (HW): For opposed combat rolls, both sides failed, but I accidentally ruled that the victor of the combat round was based on the higher skill.
A (MH): Actually, you did nothing wrong. If you look at p.125, Keeper Rulebook, Avoiding Nothing Happening When Both Sides Fail Their Fighting Skill Roll. You did the 2nd bullet point. As long as you're consistent in how you interpret the rules, then it's ok. If you didn't like the outcome, you can revise how you handle this situation next time, but tell your players why you changed the rule before the next session.
I'd personally go with the 1st bullet point, nothing happens, because sometimes a combat round is just a delaying tactic and having nothing happening is a win for the PCs. If the PCs outnumber the bad guys, this lets the PCs pick off the bad guys, let the unoccupied PCs finish a ritual or run away.
Q (ED): If a person with high Firearms Skill shoots into melee and rolls 100. Is that a fumble or a malfunction?
A (MH): GM's choice: You can jam, shoot the friendly engaged in hand-to-hand, or shoot yourself. See p.118 Keeper Rulebook, Malfunctions. Up to whatever the GM determines as the most interesting.
Q (IC): What's the difference between Malfunctions and Fumbles?
A (MH): There are two stats, Malfunction which is generally somewhere between 98-100. Fumble which is either 96-100 (if Firearms skill is less than 50) or 100 (if Firearms skill is 50+). Malfunction generally takes more than one round to clear. Most fumbles only take one round to recover from, but may involve friendly fire.
When firing into melee combat, a fumble indicates friendly fire, accidentally hitting a PC instead of the intended target. When firing into melee, a penalty die is accessed to model that you're not trying to hit a friendly. I sometimes do offer to PCs the option of firing without a penalty die, but the devil's bargain is that if you miss, you'll automatically hit the friendly in combat vs only if you fumble.
A malfunction means the gun is jammed (or explodes due to lack of maintenance) and may take multiple rounds to fix. Not having a working weapon for several rounds in a life and death situation is pretty bad.
See p.113 (bottom) and p.114 (top) Keeper Rulebook, Firing into Melee Combat.
See p.118 Keeper Rulebook, Malfunctions. Takes 1d6 rounds to clear a malfunction if it's not a revolver.
Q (ED): Are fumbles in melee just a miss? I'm more interested in monsters. A ghoul attacking an investigator fumbled and I was uncertain if she would lose her next roll or not. Do they just miss or does something else happens?
A (MH): GM potluck. In your example, I'd say maybe the ghoul missed and its claws got stuck in the wall. To make it horrifying and not funny, I'd describe its long finger nails digging really deep into the wall, enough the eviscerate the PC, but it missed and its fingers are temporarily stuck (for 1 or 2 rounds). Though it can still attack with its other claw, thus not totally removing the threat to the PCs. If the combat is really close, I might give the PCs a bonus die for the next round as the ghoul's hand is still stuck and will be free soon, but it is still a threat. At the very least, a ghoul which has 3 attacks, would only have 1 or 2 attacks until it's free.
So, this applies to PCs too. A fumble is GM potluck. I generally rule either a dropped weapon or a slip and fall. For a 00 fumble, I sometimes do something special, such as your weapon goes into the gelatinous creature up to the hilt, including your hand. You're now stuck as its digestive juices start working on your hand.
Q (TC): Can you do your full movement and then attack?
A (MH): Yes, but you might lose the +50 to your initiative DEX order for a readied firearm or even get a penalty die if you take your full movement, depending if your GM uses the full optional rule. See p.127 Keeper Rulebook, Optional Rules for Combat: Movement During Combat.
During play, most of the time, we don't bother with the optional rules and just let the shooter have the +50 DEX and allow them to move before firing. Most of the time, it's to move into point-blank range before firing, so they can get a bonus die. Why allow this? It makes sense, the shooter is trying to move into point-blank range, close enough to not miss and far enough away to not get hit with a baseball bat, and if the target charges the shooter, then the shooter will just fire once the opponent gets into point-blank range anyway. It's not like this combat is discrete and people just appear next to you, they're all moving, but we have to use initiative DEX order to help simulate combat, letting the faster people go first. And if the target is another shooter, then it evens out as the target gets +50 DEX also.
Q (AJ): Pulp Cthulhu question. Supposing one of your heroes gets knocked down to zero hit points but decides to spend luck to stay conscious. What happens if they then take more damage? As they are already at zero, do they just shrug it off (assuming it's less than half their max HP)?
A (MH): According to p.66 Pulp Cthulhu, Dying and Death, you are correct. But, I don't quite use Rules As Written (RAW). I force them to spend all their Luck to Avoid Certain Death p.61. Otherwise, it seems crazy and the PCs can't really be hurt. Without danger of being hurt, the game is not as exciting.
RAW in your example requires 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, etc Luck Spends to keep conscious each additional round. And as long as the PC only takes damage less than 1/2 max HP on each hit, then he'll live. Most PCs have a lot of Luck, so this means the PC can probably stick around multiple rounds at 0 HP. I think this is abusive. For a superhero-like games (The Shadow, Rocketeer), it'll be ok, but I don't like superhero games.
Q (DMB): My character threw a grenade at 2 Nazis and a monk who where standing on top of a plane. The plane was located near to our plane which had crash landed and was leaking fuel. I rolled a 01 critical success. The GM ruled this resulted in the German plane exploding, our plane exploding with all our stuff in it and a mighty impressive fire ball. I feel that despite the grenade being ill advised the 01 critical success should result in an outcome that I, the player, wanted. Killing the bad guys with no damage to the plane. GM has ruled that due to it being 01 the damage is critical and mass carnage, not the effect I, the player, desired.
A (MH): It all depends on where you are in the plot/scenario. Killing all the bad guys and not getting hurt at all sounds like an 01 die roll to me. Now, depending on where you are in the plot, if you're supposed to go somewhere else and not try to fix the plane, then blowing it up is a favor done to you by the GM. If you're supposed to fix the plane and leave the area, then blowing up both planes is overly harsh. So, it all depends. Since the GM knows the plot/scenario, I'd give the GM the benefit of the doubt.
Also Nazis and grenades sounds like Pulp Cthulhu, escaping unhurt from a giant fireball sounds correct and on theme to me.
An 01 is a GM potluck die roll, up to GM interpretation. First, it is an extreme success, so the grenade would have done maximum damage + regular damage (if piercing weapon). Assume 01 drops the grenade exactly where the PC wanted it and groups all the bad guys within the kill effect. Then all the bad guys would take this damage without a chance to react. The bonus effect is GM potluck. Your GM decided it would also ignite the enemy plane and explode causing extra damage to the bad guys and the surrounding area. Having a fuel leak nearby with a trail of fuel leading to your plane probably means your plane would catch fire also. So, this all makes sense to me.
As a thought experiment, let's say it's a cult of inhuman creatures worshipping an atomic bomb ready to summon Azathoth. PC decides to take a rifle and shoot the detonator (red Do Not Touch button) in order to set the bomb off early. If the PC rolled a 01, I'd say he'd hit the button (without damaging the mechanism) and set the bomb off. This would incinerate the cult and stop the ritual without having to wade through the creatures and possibly failing before Azathoth shows up. Definitely a win. If you were playing Pulp Cthulhu, anybody with 30+ Luck can Survive Certain Death -- most likely there's an
empty abandoned refrigerator right next to you. 😊. The 01 lets you do what you wanted really well, but doesn't shield you from the consequences, nor change the laws of physics (unless it's Pulp Cthulhu where it's
Movie Physics).
Q (DV): Bullets/knives can deliver impale bonuses but what about claws. Like from a bear? I’ve been running my games with the intention that any set of large sharp natural claws have the possibility of dealing impale bonus as these claws are large and sharp like a knife.
A (MH): Even a small knife that does 1d4 can impale. So, I'd say any creature with a bite or claw attack that can do 1d4 or more damage can impale. See p.401, Keeper Rulebook. Weapons listed with an (i) can impale. See p.405, Keeper Rulebook, Key (i). I see a typo in my book. Bow and Arrows should impale.
Q (A): Combat where our first Major Wound happened! A broken arm, his dominant arm. The damage roll was just a bit over the player's half HP, so he went unconscious. To wake him up, one of the other players did a Medicine check. He got some HP back from this, putting him back over half of his HP.
What happens to his Major Wound?
We now have ruled that he has to wait at least a week, for a healing roll for the major wound. But some of the investigators didn't agree, while his HP was already over half of his max. We tried to find answers online, but couldn't really find an answer for this predicament.
How should we handle this in the future?
A (MH): Once current HP is half HP or better, the Major Wound is healed. See p.121, Keeper Rulebook, Major Wound Recovery.
I rule that once HP is half HP or more, then Major Wound box is unchecked. How you describe this is up to the GM (with Player input possibly).
It does seem odd that a broken arm is suddenly healed.
That said, I would rule that the Major Wound status is unchecked, but the arm is still broken, but First Aid or Medicine had reset the arm and put a split on it (or plaster cast). Once HP is fully recovered, the arm is healed.
The difference is that if you have a Major Wound and HP drops to 0, you are dying. If you don't have a Major Wound, you're unconscious.
Assume you do First Aid and splint the arm which puts the PC back to NOT a Major Wound. Later when the PC gets dropped to 0 HP, the PC is just unconscious with a splint. But let's say you rule the PC still has a Major Wound and gets dropped to 0 HP, you'd have to say that a broken piece of bone had hit an artery when the PC got dropped to 0 HP and is bleeding out. The PC's dying.
In either case, the PC still has a broken arm (though splinted or in a plaster cast). the question is whether you as a GM want to kill the PC if they hit 0 HP afterwards. I would be nicer and assume if they had gotten First Aid or Medicine (and recovered enough HP), they should not be in danger of dying.
Q (S): How does movement work in CoC? If a PC has MOV 7, how far can you move on a grid map? Assume each grid square is 1 yard or meter.
A (MH): If you are just running flat out, sprinting, you can move up to MOV x 5 per round in yards or meters. See p.33, Keeper Rulebook, Movement Rate (MOV). So a MOV 7 can move up to 35 yards (or 105 feet).
World class sprinter can MOV 11. A fit human MOV 9 for a 5-minute mile, 12 MPH. See p.146, Keeper Rulebook, MOV Rates Table.
During combat, it's MOV in yards or meters because you are more cautious. See p.206, Keeper Rulebook, Movement.
So, during combat, it's 7 grid squares per round. But if they're sprinting (fleeing), it's 35 grid squares.
This is good to know because most houses in the 1920s didn't have a large lot size. You can basically run from the backyard to your car parked on the street in one round. 😊
Q (K): Do you have to Dodge to get out of melee?
A (MH): There's no disengage or attacks of opportunity in CoC. So, you don't need to dodge to get out of melee and flee. You just leave, unless someone has you held; in that case, you need to break out of the hold first before fleeing. Combat lets you have an attack and a move, so you'd have to make a Fighting (Brawl) roll and defeat the hold on you, then in the same action, move away as far as possible.
If you are talking about getting out of melee range, so you can shoot without the 2 penalty dice. That's more of a GM decision.
Q: When does outnumbering reset?
A (MH): RAW (Rules As Written) says that the defender is outnumbered (attacker gets a bonus die) if the defender already dodged or fought-back in that Round and the count resets at the top of the Round.
I found that there is an odd edge case. For example, one attacker is very fast, DEX 80. And the defender has DEX 60. Assume there's one more attacker at DEX 50. In this situation, the DEX 80 attacker will never get a bonus die, the 2nd attacker at DEX 50 always gets the bonus die. I found this really strange.
One person mentioned that they reset the count at the start of the defender's action. So, when it wraps around to the 80 DEX attacker, they would still get a bonus die. It would reset at DEX 60, and the attacker at 50 DEX would be the "1st defense," so no bonus die for that attack. This seems more fair.
That said, most combat doesn't go longer than 3 rounds, and is probably moot in most cases.
Also sometimes during combat, I forget the reset and give a bonus die for every attack after the 1st attack. No one has really noticed because it's usually many PCs vs one opponent/creature. And no one complains when they get a bonus die. And they wonder when they don't get one. Then I have to say, you don't get a bonus die because your attack is the first attack on the creature at the top of the round. But like I said, the very fast PC (sometimes the big bruiser) winds up never getting a bonus die. That's when I noticed this.
Q (Z): How do you describe Major Wounds?
(O): How do you handle a missed throw roll when PCs are pitching dynamite or grenades?
Is homebrewing a longer range for some of the thrown weapons a good idea? Or should I just stick with the rules in the book. I understand it's unlikely to actually encounter scenarios where your characters are throwing spears, but it bothers me nonetheless.
