How Actions Resolve

Everything you attempt with an uncertain outcome resolves through one of two engines — a check or a roll — and both are driven by your numbers, not by dice.

Checks

When you try something with a real chance of failure, the GM sets a difficulty (DC) and you compare:

Check result = relevant stat + skill bonus + situational modifiers
Result ≥ DC → success

Proper tools grant +5, ideal conditions +5, a rushing penalty is −10, no tools −15. Allies can help: each helper adds +5 to your check. When two characters oppose each other, both roll their check and the higher result wins — ties go to the defender.

Attacks

An attack resolves in two gates:

1. Hit check. Attacker accuracy (base 70 + DEX scaling + weapon bonus) minus target evasion (DEX scaling + speed bonus − armor weight penalty + position). The result is your hit chance, clamped between 5% and 95%. Roll 1–100; at or below the threshold, you hit.
2. Dodge check. A target who can see the attack rolls their evasion again. At or below it, they dodge entirely — no damage.

A target who doesn't know you're there cannot dodge. Sneak attacks against unaware targets add +50% to +100% damage and auto-crit if they connect.

Damage

When a hit connects:

1. Base damage   = weapon/ability base + stat scaling
2. Range roll    = base × random between Min% and Max%
3. Crit          = if your crit chance triggers, damage becomes full base × crit multiplier
4. Vitals        = called shots to vital spots multiply further
5. Armor         = final damage × (1 − armor reduction)
6. Resistance    = elemental resistance applies last
7. Minimum       = you always deal at least 1 damage

Stat scaling follows your attack type: melee adds STR, ranged adds DEX, magic adds INT and WIS, mutant powers add the stats that govern them.

Damage ranges — risk vs reward

Every weapon and ability deals between a minimum and maximum percentage of base. This is the system's only real randomness, and it's a lever you control:

The pairing rule: a critical hit always deals full base damage before the multiplier — so wide-range weapons shine when your crit chance is high (40%+), and narrow-range weapons suit low-crit builds. Wide range with no crits means you eat the floor; narrow range with high crits is wasted consistency.

Crit chance comes from DEX and gear. Crit multiplier starts at 1.5× and climbs with STR, DEX, and weapon mods — capped at a floor of 1.5×.

Armor & position

Armor reduces damage by a percentage: reduction = armor value / (armor value + 100). 50 armor cuts damage by a third; 150 cuts it by 60%. Each armor piece covers a specific location — a shot to an unarmored arm uses that arm's armor.

Where you stand matters. Flanking (side) gives you +15% damage and drops your target's evasion by 15%; attacking from the rear gives +25% damage and −30% evasion. Each extra attacker surrounding a target costs it another 5% evasion.

Status effects

Status effects are a contest of potency vs resistance. If your potency beats the target's resistance, the effect lands with a duration and intensity scaled by the gap — and by level difference. Common harmful effects:

Beneficial effects work the same way in your favor: Hasted (+1 action, then a stun when it expires), Shielded (absorbs damage), Regenerating (5% max HP per turn), Blessed (+10% accuracy), Stealthed (enemies lose track of you).

The golden rule

Know your numbers and the world is predictable. Stack modifiers deliberately — position, crit, armor piercing, elements — and you'll turn a fair fight into a foregone conclusion. That's not an exploit. That's the game.