Wound/Stress Thresholds

[Hugh Neilson]

Taking the idea of adding a characteristic to do what needs to be done, let's invent one and call it Durability (DUR). DUR starts at 5 and can be bought for 5 CP (but that number is really up for grabs). This is the amount of Injury Levels your character can sustain before succumbing to shock, no rolls necessary. bigdamnhero, this addresses the million minor wounds bit. Even if you're not suffering a penalty from your minor injuries because your character rolled a successful EGO Roll, the pain's still there somewhere and will take you out. Yes, this is a bit of a concession and acts like a pool of points, but since the maximum number you're keeping track of is 5 to 10 (in rare cases), it shouldn't add to much to the process (I've used a die before that I place next to units in skirmishes and it seems to run smoothly - you can even change the color if you suffer a serious wound so you can easily see that the character can only move half his normal distance).

I'd say adding a stat to have it eroded by attrition so that you can replace eroding a different stat by attrition doesn't seem like it serves much of a purpose. Why is it harder to subtract 1, 2 or 4 from 5 - 10 than it is to subtract somewhere increments between, say, 1 and 10 from 10 - 25? Why not just base everything on the Shock roll, if that was the objective?

 

 

• Less than 1/3 BODY: This is a Minor Injury. It counts as 1 point against DUR. The GM may rule that you can shrug off the damage (to prevent "death by a thousand paper cuts". Basically, the GM might allow a few 1-2 BODY injuries before making them Minor Injuries, at least for PCs and important NPCs).

 

Why? Either a 1-2 BOD injury is enough to do serious damage, or it isn't. If you want a level that has no effect, make one.

[Lucius]

. The only issue would be the hit locations, which might bog things down with another roll (although another set of 3 dice, of a different color, could be thrown along with the to-hit roll).

Are you familiar with the expression, to swallow a camel and then strain a gnat?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

If I were to swallow a palindromedary, I don't think a gnat would give me a problem.

[eepjr24]

I wish I could like that more than once, Lucius.

 

- E

[whitekeys]

Here's how I track BODY. After the calculations we're all familiar with, an attack will do X BODY. This becomes an "X BODY Wound". If you're stabbed for 2 BODY Damage, you now have a stab wound. It has a numerical value which defines how fast it will heal, and, relative to your BODY total, how much closer you are to succumbing to your wounds and dying. The threshold for this is your [r]PD. If an attacker succeeds an Attack Roll, and the target subtracts its PD from the BODY Damage total to equal 0 or less, then the attacker either missed or had their hit shrugged off to no effect.

 

This is pretty close to the system you are envisioning:

1. I don't just mark my hit point total down. I keep track of individual wounds. Some of them can be shrugged off, and others are more serious.

2. It works on a Threshold basis, defined by my PD (rather than a percentage of my BODY). Your PD can be purchased relative to your BODY if you choose. 

3. With the Disabling optional rules, or slightly tweaked versions, you can accomplish the suffering of penalties for your characters as a result of these wounds.

4. Same goes for STUN.

 

Thoughts? I have other ways of doing it, as well, I'll fill you in later.

 

EDIT: stupid codes for ®

[Doc Democracy]

I hear people when they say "why play HERO but then change the system?". However, you all probably know that I am irresistibly attracted to suggestions of how to mod the system. It is, after all, supposed to be a toolkit. Anything that helps mod the system allows that toolkit a broader reach...

 

I often get bored with the STUN/BODY grind. It is because it is so possible to balance damage and defences for fairly predictable outcomes that things can feel so....predictable. I think there has to be an opportunity to tweak the system to enhance the narrative. I have to say though that I don't like the whole spiral of death thing that wound levels etc often bring as you are less and less capable the longer things go on and once you begin to lose, you often just lose faster and faster.

 

I like the idea of tracking hits. We already have a mook rule where one or two hits take them out. That enhances the narrative (and saves on bureaucracy). Why not explore it a bit more.

 

I like the idea of there being a bit more randomness in when you may get tired or unconscious.

 

I like there being the potential for effects other than the attrition of STUN and BODY.

 

Am I proposing something? Not anything properly worked out.

 

In my head I have a vague notion of each successful hit being the core framework. The damage could result in some kind of shock roll - either stun someone, tire them, knock them out or cause a lingering injury that has a specific hampering effect (like choosing to hinder someone's running rather than looking to knock them out, or their sight to make it more difficult to target opponents).

 

Each hit needs to be tracked as the accumulated score should contribute to the shock roll (regardless of whether the damage has been used to hinder or harm).

 

Now, there IS an increased bureaucratic burden here. BUT I think it comes with the potential for more interesting and narrative based combat. It accommodates the hero targeting the legs of the villain running away to make it possible to catch him. It accommodates the idea of shooting out the cameras on the robot to hinder its ability to pinpoint the heroes in combat. Or any of the other multitude of wrinkles that players think of in combat that a system of roll to hit, roll for damage simply does not accommodate, even with a hit location system and disabling hits etc.

 

Surely it must be possible to come up with this kind of add-on for HERO of all systems. All it needs is a number freak to balance it and a flavour freak to come up with some examples that would help guide other GMs to wing the system....

 

Anyone? :-)

 

 

Doc

[Hugh Neilson]

I hear people when they say "why play HERO but then change the system?". However, you all probably know that I am irresistibly attracted to suggestions of how to mod the system. It is, after all, supposed to be a toolkit. Anything that helps mod the system allows that toolkit a broader reach...

The reality is that everyone changes the system. The question is how much. Setting the dials, imposing campaign norms and maxima, imposing the doubling limit on HKAs - these all change the system. When we discuss the SPD chart, someone always seems to say "don't change the system - just make everyone have the same SPD". But that is also changing the system - it's simply a lesser change that ditching SPD entirely.

[FeralFly]

Hello all!

 

 

Thanks again for all of the comments. After clicking through my PDF file again, I found some inspiration in an unlikely place, 6E2 120, where it says Ignore Stun Damage. I can't remember if anyone tried to point me in this direction before, so, if you did, thanks! In any event, it is quite intriguing. The idea is to convert everything to killing damage and just not track STUN - with the exception of a few specific things like knock-out gas, Drain STUN, and the like.

 

After looking at that, I also took a moment to think about why my Damage Thresholds just didn't seem to click, HERO-wise. I decided to do away with the proportional thresholds that work off a percentage of BODY and just leave them as regular values - much like the game does with most everything else. I just looked at how Defenses worked and said, "Why can't thresholds work that way, too?" 

 

So, here is the revamped system (with some renaming done):

 

For abstract-/narrative-style wounds...

 

Light Wound: 1-5 BODY

• -1 Wound Penalty (WP)
  

 

Medium Wound: 6-10 BODY

• -2 WP
  
• Movement halved
  
• Make CON Roll at -2 to avoid Shock:
  
  • MOS 0 or greater = No further effect than the WP
    
  • MOF 1-3 = Stunned
    
  • MOF 4 or greater = Succumb to shock
    
  
  

Heavy Wound: 11 or greater BODY

• -3 WP
  
• Movement quartered
  
• Make STR Roll at -3 to avoid Trauma:
  
  • MOS 0 or greater = No further effect than the WP
    
  • MOF 1-3 = Dying (bleeding out), but might remain conscious
    
  • MOF 4 or greater = Die instantly
    
  
  
• If the STR Roll doesn't cause death, then make a CON Roll at -3 as per the Medium Wound rules
  

 

As written, this could be considered a gritty death spiral - or death plummet. One way to avoid the death spiral is to allow key characters to Grit Your Teeth: spend a Phase gritting your teeth to ignore WP. Roll EGO modified by your WP. If you succeed, ignore -1 WP; for every 2 points by which you pass your roll, ignore another -1 WP. This lasts until you are hit again (or, at the GMs option, it can last longer to avoid rolling so many times).

 

Another option to shorten fights is to use a new characteristic called Pain Threshold (previously called Durability; if there's something in the book called Pain Threshold, the term mentioned here can be changed), or PT. Most important characters have a PT of 5. The rank is how much WP a character can sustain before being knocked out or go into shock.

 

Finally, the thresholds can be changed, but at the GMs approval. A dog shouldn't be as resistant as a player character. It won't have as much Defense, but it might also be appropriate to lower the thresholds, say, to something like LW 1-3, MW 4-6, and HW 7+. Just an example.

 

Anyway, let me know what you think, and if you've got something else, let me know that too! 

[Doc Democracy]

Could durability not simply be CON? If average CON is higher than 5 and you want that balance in your example, just increase the value of the wound penalty in a proportionate manner...

 

I am kinda anti-new-characteristics... :-)

 

Doc

 

PS - of course that might alter the value of CON enough to make it worth more points...

[steriaca]

The revamped system seems better that the old one. As I understand it, with this system, attacks no longer subtract BODY. STUN is still there, but is used rairly (KO Gas attacks). Any Body of the attack which gets through activates a roll depending on what gets through.

 

So, what is the use of the BODY stat then?

[Doc Democracy]

I missed that. You are right, the BODY stat could disappear or function as the proposed durability stat.

[FeralFly]

Body, as a characteristic, could be eliminated. The only time it would be relevant, in this system, would be for bleeding out - but even then, bleeding out could be abstracted out to Wounds increasing in severity over time (i.e., usually outside of the scope of a normal-length combat).

 

I don't really like the idea of adding a new characteristic either, as HERO has plenty of them to play with. Another option to adding the Durability/Pain Threshold could be to have a set limit on the Total Wound Penalty (TWP) a character has. This way, a character could not take 10 or 20 Light Wounds and be fine enough to walk away (he'd be at -10 and -20, respectively, but would still be able to walk). So, here's another alternative: 

 

• At TWP -2 (the equivalent of a Medium Wound), your Movement is at x0.50.
• At TWP -4 (the equivalent of a Heavy Wound), your Movement is at x0.50.
• At TWP -5, your body has sustained so much damage that it goes into shock.
• The wound levels would still have meaning, as Light Wounds are much easier to recover from than Heavy Wounds. This also increases the significance of Light Wounds beyond just a OCV or Skill Penalty.

These thresholds could be modified as well, per GM fiat or as a point-buy option for particularly tough people. In general, keeping the maximum TWP around -5 limits combat time and makes fights dangerous.

[whitekeys]

Each hit needs to be tracked as the accumulated score should contribute to the shock roll (regardless of whether the damage has been used to hinder or harm).

As written, this could be considered a gritty death spiral - or death plummet. One way to avoid the death spiral is to allow key characters to Grit Your Teeth: spend a Phase gritting your teeth to ignore WP. Roll EGO modified by your WP. If you succeed, ignore -1 WP; for every 2 points by which you pass your roll, ignore another -1 WP. This lasts until you are hit again (or, at the GMs option, it can last longer to avoid rolling so many times).

 

Another option to shorten fights is to use a new characteristic called Pain Threshold (previously called Durability; if there's something in the book called Pain Threshold, the term mentioned here can be changed), or PT. Most important characters have a PT of 5. The rank is how much WP a character can sustain before being knocked out or go into shock.

In response to the idea of penalties based on Damage taken, I only wanted to offer how that used to work in D&D 3.5 as food for thought, or possible inspiration. 

 

Concentration was a skill. If a character wanted to cast a spell in the same turn they took damage, they had to succeed a Concentration check of DC (difficulty class) 10 + the amount of damage taken + the level of the spell. 

 

I don't really like the idea of adding a new characteristic either, as HERO has plenty of them to play with. Another option to adding the Durability/Pain Threshold could be to have a set limit on the Total Wound Penalty (TWP) a character has. This way, a character could not take 10 or 20 Light Wounds and be fine enough to walk away (he'd be at -10 and -20, respectively, but would still be able to walk). So, here's another alternative: 

 

Personally, I think adding a skill would be easier than adding a characteristic to HERO, but as you've mentioned EGO already suits your self. I'm also not against some of the other penalties you've mentioned, like movement penalties, but I might argue them if you were uncompromising about them. Like why would I run slower if only my arm is busted? 

 

Body, as a characteristic, could be eliminated. The only time it would be relevant, in this system, would be for bleeding out - but even then, bleeding out could be abstracted out to Wounds increasing in severity over time (i.e., usually outside of the scope of a normal-length combat).

 

I more-or-less eliminated the BODY score in the Pokemon campaign I am currently running. It's going to come up so infrequently, for both Pokemon and Humans, that I simply decided to describe and adjudicate instances of real, life-threatening harm on a case-by-case basis, mostly dependent on dramatic sense as I see it fits the flavour of the campaign setting.

 

I would make this recommendation to you as you see it fits the flavour and tone of your campaign setting. No one should have a problem with that. To my mind, this style is actually less gritty, but more dramatic. No death, but many hindrances to overcome, and requiring much heroism and creativity.

[FeralFly]

In response to the idea of penalties based on Damage taken, I only wanted to offer how that used to work in D&D 3.5 as food for thought, or possible inspiration. 

 

Concentration was a skill. If a character wanted to cast a spell in the same turn they took damage, they had to succeed a Concentration check of DC (difficulty class) 10 + the amount of damage taken + the level of the spell. 

 

I suppose something like this could be worked into the system, but it would change things around a bit. Maybe at 6 BODY, a Shock CON Roll is triggered and is at a penalty of -1 for every 2 BODY above 6, and a Trauma STR Roll could be triggered at 11 BODY, being at -1 for every 2 BODY above 11? For example, if you are hit for 8 BODY, you take a Medium Wound. The Shock CON Roll is going to be at -1 (this essentially overwrites the penalty to the roll listed in the most recent post). You'd still have your -2 WP to tote around with you. And if you took, say, 15 BODY, you'd take a Heavy Wound. You'd roll your Trauma STR Roll at -2 and, if you survived that, you'd then roll your Shock CON Roll at -4. Of course, these numbers could be changed around.

 

Personally, I think adding a skill would be easier than adding a characteristic to HERO, but as you've mentioned EGO already suits your self. I'm also not against some of the other penalties you've mentioned, like movement penalties, but I might argue them if you were uncompromising about them. Like why would I run slower if only my arm is busted? 

 

Well, the Wound Levels most recently described don't really work with the Hit Locations rule. The idea is wounds are abstracted with penalties. However, imagine someone fractures your right clavicle. You probably won't be able to sprint, let alone go at a full run, with this injury, as every step will send a jolt of pain through your system. With a broken hand or arm, you'd have to be careful not to let it bump into your body, or something else, as you ran.

 

I do see your point, though. I was actually thinking of using Hit Locations, but felt it would give a "Monty Python Black Knight" feel to things. You could impair both arms and legs, dropping your opponent, but he might be able to hobble toward you, trying to bite you. I'd have to assign local penalties instead of global penalties, which would be a little harder to memorize, which might lead to more charts. Plus, I've never been a fan of randomized Hit Locations (I've punched a lot of feet in Harnmaster). I know HERO offers some options in this with Hit Zones, which are good. I'd have to take a look at those again and see what I could apply to the system.

 

Thanks for the feedback!

[whitekeys]

I suppose something like this could be worked into the system, but it would change things around a bit. Maybe at 6 BODY, a Shock CON Roll is triggered and is at a penalty of -1 for every 2 BODY above 6, and a Trauma STR Roll could be triggered at 11 BODY, being at -1 for every 2 BODY above 11? For example, if you are hit for 8 BODY, you take a Medium Wound. The Shock CON Roll is going to be at -1 (this essentially overwrites the penalty to the roll listed in the most recent post). You'd still have your -2 WP to tote around with you. And if you took, say, 15 BODY, you'd take a Heavy Wound. You'd roll your Trauma STR Roll at -2 and, if you survived that, you'd then roll your Shock CON Roll at -4. Of course, these numbers could be changed around.

This is an idea I can get behind. However, the only difference in the system you're suggesting, with the numbers you're giving, is that you've halved the effectiveness of all damage done in your campaign. Since a Normal Normal has an average of 10 BODY, describing 8 BODY as a Medium Wound is somewhat of an understatement. Gnome sayin'? And at 15 BODY Damage taken, they're bleeding out quickly (however you want to describe that).

 

Whereas, before, I had a gun that did 2d6+1 and felt pretty comfortable with only needing to shoot it twice to seriously incapacitate a Normal, now I'll need to hit three or more times to have the same effect. PD is irrelevant to this calculation, btw. 

 

You could double the damage done, but then all the mathematicians would be scratching their heads, thinking you went to your next-door neighbours house by walking all the way around the block in the other direction.

[Greywind]

A "normal normal" has 8 in stats. Not 10.

[FeralFly]

This is an idea I can get behind. However, the only difference in the system you're suggesting, with the numbers you're giving, is that you've halved the effectiveness of all damage done in your campaign. Since a Normal Normal has an average of 10 BODY, describing 8 BODY as a Medium Wound is somewhat of an understatement. Gnome sayin'? And at 15 BODY Damage taken, they're bleeding out quickly (however you want to describe that).

 

Whereas, before, I had a gun that did 2d6+1 and felt pretty comfortable with only needing to shoot it twice to seriously incapacitate a Normal, now I'll need to hit three or more times to have the same effect. PD is irrelevant to this calculation, btw. 

 

You could double the damage done, but then all the mathematicians would be scratching their heads, thinking you went to your next-door neighbours house by walking all the way around the block in the other direction.

 

We could just change the threshold range and the Margin of Failure Ranges for each Wound Level. For example, it could be something like this:

 

LW: 1-4, MW: 5-8, HW: 9+.

If you fail your CON Roll by 3 or more, you go into shock.

If you fail your STR Roll by 3 or more, you die.

 

These rolls are modified by the Wound Penalty of the corresponding wound, so a Medium Wound would have the CON Roll at -2, while a Heavy Wound would have the STR Roll and the CON Roll at -3. These could be further worsened by the total BODY received from the attack minus the minimum threshold value.

 

For example, Joe average (8s in everything gives an 11-) is hit by two shots from your 2d6+1 gun. The first one does 8 BODY while the other is a critical hit and does 13 BODY. The 8 BODY hit is a Medium Wound. He takes a -2 WP and has to make his CON Roll at (Damage 8 - Threshold 5) -3 on top of the normal -2 penalty, so at -5. His chances of not getting stunned are 6-, or about 9%. His chances of going into shock (failing by 3 or worse, rolling a 9 or higher) are about 74% (I'm not sure on the math on that one?). The 13 BODY shot is deadly: he takes the -3 WP and has to make his STR Roll at (Damage 13 - threshold 9) -4 on top of the normal -3 penalty, so at -7. He chances of being conscious but dying are 4-, so about 2%. His chances of outright dying (failing by 3 or worse, rolling a 7 or higher), are about 91%. And if he survives that, he still has to make his CON Roll at (Damage 13 - Threshold 4) -9 on top of the normal -3, so at 3-. Failing by 3 would be at -3, too (since it is the lowest).

 

Again, not sure on the math on the odds of that, but if it is accurate, those results look pretty lethal (in which case, the formula might have to be changed). The 13 BODY shot will almost always be eventually fatal, and will quite reliably kill someone. And if it doesn't kill him, it will KO him 99.5% of the time. The 8 BODY shot will most likely stun him and will put him into shock 3 out of 4 times.

 

I'm thinking if the math is right, that's a bit too lethal. Basically, anything that can deal 2d6-1 or higher is a deadly weapon.

[Hugh Neilson]

So, here is the revamped system (with some renaming done):

 

For abstract-/narrative-style wounds...

 

Light Wound: 1-5 BODY

• -1 Wound Penalty (WP)

Medium Wound: 6-10 BODY

• -2 WP
• Movement halved
• Make CON Roll at -2 to avoid Shock:
  • MOS 0 or greater = No further effect than the WP
  • MOF 1-3 = Stunned
  • MOF 4 or greater = Succumb to shock

Heavy Wound: 11 or greater BODY

• -3 WP
• Movement quartered
• Make STR Roll at -3 to avoid Trauma:
  • MOS 0 or greater = No further effect than the WP
  • MOF 1-3 = Dying (bleeding out), but might remain conscious
  • MOF 4 or greater = Die instantly
• If the STR Roll doesn't cause death, then make a CON Roll at -3 as per the Medium Wound rules

As written, this could be considered a gritty death spiral - or death plummet. One way to avoid the death spiral is to allow key characters to Grit Your Teeth: spend a Phase gritting your teeth to ignore WP. Roll EGO modified by your WP. If you succeed, ignore -1 WP; for every 2 points by which you pass your roll, ignore another -1 WP. This lasts until you are hit again (or, at the GMs option, it can last longer to avoid rolling so many times).

 

Another option to shorten fights is to use a new characteristic called Pain Threshold (previously called Durability; if there's something in the book called Pain Threshold, the term mentioned here can be changed), or PT. Most important characters have a PT of 5. The rank is how much WP a character can sustain before being knocked out or go into shock.

 

Finally, the thresholds can be changed, but at the GMs approval. A dog shouldn't be as resistant as a player character. It won't have as much Defense, but it might also be appropriate to lower the thresholds, say, to something like LW 1-3, MW 4-6, and HW 7+. Just an example.

 

Anyway, let me know what you think, and if you've got something else, let me know that too!

 

It's Hero - why can't I buy up (or sell back) my PT or Wound thresholds?

 

Rather than fractionalized movement, why not move this out to Impairing and Disabling wounds, so my arm or head can be damaged instead of my legs?

 

I can just soak unlimited wounds? Set a WP at which you are automatically Medium Wounded (and one for Heavy). Perhaps that is BOD's new function - half BOD = medium wounded; full = heavy.

[whitekeys]

We could just change the threshold range and the Margin of Failure Ranges for each Wound Level. For example, it could be something like this:

 

LW: 1-4, MW: 5-8, HW: 9+.

 

Astute! That was what I was hinting at.

 

Again, not sure on the math on the odds of that, but if it is accurate, those results look pretty lethal (in which case, the formula might have to be changed). The 13 BODY shot will almost always be eventually fatal, and will quite reliably kill someone. And if it doesn't kill him, it will KO him 99.5% of the time. The 8 BODY shot will most likely stun him and will put him into shock 3 out of 4 times.

 

I'm thinking if the math is right, that's a bit too lethal. Basically, anything that can deal 2d6-1 or higher is a deadly weapon.

I agree that this is quite lethal. But that's not at all concerning to me. Everything checks out: you rolled max damage so you obviously landed a vital shot and a 13 BODY wound will kill you if your BODY is only 10; which is totally congruent with reality if you imagine that the shot hit you in the head or stomach, unprotected, and you didn't receive immediate and invasive medical intervention. Guns ARE deadly weapons and HERO is a beautifully balanced mathematical representation of that.

 

However, I hear that might not be the kind of balance you're going for. What are you going for?

 

What happens if I succeed all my rolls, btw?

[FeralFly]

It's Hero - why can't I buy up (or sell back) my PT or Wound thresholds?

 

Rather than fractionalized movement, why not move this out to Impairing and Disabling wounds, so my arm or head can be damaged instead of my legs?

 

I can just soak unlimited wounds? Set a WP at which you are automatically Medium Wounded (and one for Heavy). Perhaps that is BOD's new function - half BOD = medium wounded; full = heavy.

 

Well, that is the idea with PT - you can buy it up or sell it back, letting you resist more total pain before succumbing to shock. You could also buy up or sell back the Thresholds, but that would be more representative of more mass or whatnot - AKA "GM discretion."

 

As far as using Hit Locations... I do like the idea, but that reduces the abstraction. I'm thinking about doing something Hit-Location-wise as an option to my optional system. The idea is to have the Wound Level be relative to the body as a whole while the Impairment is location-specific.

 

On paper, you can soak unlimited wounds. Pain, however, is cumulative. So, if you get hit by 10 Light Wounds, you just have the -10 to OCV and Skill Rolls. However, you probably will either surrender or just drop to the ground (meeting or exceeding your PT) before that happens.

[FeralFly]

What happens if I succeed all my rolls, btw?

 

You remain standing but are left with the Wound Penalties.

[FeralFly]

Okay, I think I’ve addressed the bulk of the issues mentioned before. If I’ve forgotten you, sorry! The following is more or less how damage thresholds could be implemented in HERO. I know I still have a ways to go if I ever wanted to play test it with anyone (How would REC and END fit into this system for example? Or Healing, Aid, Regeneration, etc.?), but the point is that I think I have some sort of near-workable start. I’m not particularly attached to any of the numbers presented below, so most of it is subject to change. As a fair warning, it is a bit lengthy!

 

That being said, here goes…

 

Standard:

BODY 8 (can be bought or sold in increments of 2 BODY worth 10 CP)

LW 1-4, MW 5-8, HW 9+ (these thresholds are based on x0.50 BODY, BODY, and BODY+1; so, yes, this is a series of figured characteristics, but they are fairly easy to do)

PT 5 (when your total WP reaches this value, you go into shock; this can be bought up or sold back for 10 CP)

 

Note: So BODY stays. I figure it’s a little more elegant doing things this way than just buying up or selling back LW, MW, and HW thresholds. YMMV. A BODY Drain could be very interesting in this system.

 

LWs give a WP of -1 (this is applied on the character’s OCV and relevant Skill Rolls). By themselves, LWs aren’t much to worry about – a successful First Aid Skill Roll could even be used to “heal” them, removing their penalty (just an idea).

 

MWs give a WP of -2 and trigger a Shock CON Roll. This roll is modified by the WP of the Wound and can be further modified (if you desire extra lethality) by an additional -1 for every 1 or 2 points (again, it depends on how much lethality you want) the BODY exceeds the minimum threshold for this level (e.g., if the threshold is 5-8, the minimum threshold is 5). Failure by 1 or 2 means you are stunned (as written). Failure by 3 or more means you go into shock (see below).

 

Note: An obvious issue with having the penalty increase relative to the damage caused is that characters with high BODY ratings can take more damage at each threshold level, which could result in them having a higher penalty than a character with less BODY (especially with Shock CON Rolls at the HW level). This is something that will need a little more thought to fully develop.

 

HWs give a WP of -3 (I’m still not sure if this should be -3 or -4, but let’s try it this way) and trigger a Trauma STR Roll. This roll is modified by the WP of the Wound and can be further modified in the same manner as MWs. Success by 2 or more means you suffer nothing other than the WP. Success by 0 to 1 means you are stunned (as written). Failure by 1 or 2 means you are dying, but possibly still able to function (you’ll have to make a Shock CON Roll at -3 plus the modifiers if you want more lethality). Failure by 3 or more means you die.

 

Shock, in this abstract system, means that your character falls unconscious. You can be brought back into the fight if someone administers first-aid to you, but the roll is at a penalty equal to your WP. For more lethality, the GM could rule that if you do not get any first aid, you have to make Trauma STR Rolls at an increasing penalty value to stabilize yourself; otherwise, you will eventually die.

 

Dying (for HWs) means that you are bleeding out very quickly. You must make a Trauma STR Roll every Turn (during the first Segment, like the Bleeding rules) modified by your Total Wound Penalty. This means that the more wounds you take, the faster you will die.

 

For those who would like a bit less abstraction at the expense of having more complexity, here is a makeshift Hit Location add-on.

 

Whenever you are hit, use the Hit Location rules to find out where, and how much, damage is done. If at any time, before or after applying the Hit Location multipliers, the BODY damage done to an area meets the MW threshold level, that location is impaired (or possibly disabled if it’s an HW) and suffers the penalties listed in the book. Do not write down an MW or HW yet, though. Take the final modified BODY damage and compare it to the thresholds; that will tell you your Wound Level.

 

Mini-example: Joe Average has 8s in his characteristics (STR through PRE) and not wearing any body armor. He gets shot by a heavy pistol weighing in at 2d6+1. His attacker rolls well, getting 9 points of BODY. The attacker rolls a 15, and then a 3, hitting Joe in the left leg. Before applying the modifier of x0.50, we see that the original value, 9, exceeds Joe’s HW threshold. This would usually mean that the leg has been disabled, but the effects are at the GMs discretion (as written). The GM decides that the leg is Impaired (Running is at x0.50 and DCV suffers a -2 penalty). To determine the relative Wound Level, we apply the multiplier, leaving 4 BODY, which causes a MW. Joe has to make his Shock CON Roll at -2. Since he has a base CON Roll 11-, he has to make it at 9-. He rolls 10 and is stunned (as written – he’ll have to do nothing).

 

Note: The GM could also rule that a Disabling Wound causes twice the Impairment Penalty. In this case, that would be Running x0.25 and DCV -4.

 

So, to summarize: Joe gets shot and has a lame leg – it’s Impaired. His Wound Penalty is -2, which is applied to his OCV and to most Skill Rolls. He is also at half of his running (10m/2 = 5m) and his DCV is at -2 (brought down to 1).

 

If that shot had instead struck Joe’s arm, the results would have been similar (BODY is at x0.50, etc), but instead of his movement being halved and his DCV at -2, he would take a -3 penalty to his OCV and to any Skill Rolls used with that arm. Be careful here: the WP and Impairment penalties do not stack with each other, just by themselves – only use the worst of the two. So while two MW gives a WP of -4, having one MW and one impaired right arm gives -2 to most Skill Rolls and combat situations where you’re not using your right arm, or -3 to situations where you’re using your right arm.

 

Using Impairment and Disabling rules will complicate the system. I’m just mentioning them here for anyone interested in seeing how it could be done in a system like this. Impairing or Disabling Wounds to the head can kill – and it’s at the GM’s discretion, according to the book (H62 111 to 112). Actually, any Disabling Wound can kill, so there’s some extra lethality…

 

So, to give credit where credit is due… I am synthesizing three damage systems: HERO, Synergy System, and Silhouette Core.

[FeralFly]

So, I guess that's it, folks! Unless someone else wishes to chime in... it's solved.

[whitekeys]

So, I guess that's it, folks! Unless someone else wishes to chime in... it's solved.

Good stuff.