Tactical Combat Mechanics
Combat in Sentius: Last Enclave is dynamic, tactical, and built around player agency and survival.
This section covers initiative, actions, attack mechanics, and additional combat rules, including vehicles and underwater encounters.
Combat Overview
Combat consists of three core elements:
✔ Initiative – Determines who acts first in a round.
✔ Actions – Defines what a character can do on their turn.
✔ Attack & Defense Mechanics – How strikes land, armor absorbs damage, and characters survive encounters.
Initiative
A combat round lasts 6 seconds—though in real-time, players act sequentially.
Initiative is rolled at the start of every round, keeping combat dynamic and unpredictable.
Rolling Initiative
✔ Each character rolls their Initiative Speed die (from Calculated Abilities).
✔ Highest roll acts first.
✔ Ties are broken by Higest Bonus → Quickness → Intuition → Agility.
✔ If still tied: Players act before enemies, and players can decide their own turn order.
Basics of Combat
The act of attacking and defending follows a straightforward sequence:
1️⃣ Attacker rolls their Combat Skill (Melee, Bow, Firearm, or Gunnery) against the target’s Defense (Melee or Ranged).
2️⃣ If the attack succeeds (meets or exceeds Defense), it deals Wounds of Weapon.
3️⃣ Weapons enhance Wounds based on type:
| Weapon Type | Bonus Wounds |
|---|---|
| Blades | 1-5 Wounds depending on size |
| Slug Thrower (Bullets) | 3 Wounds |
| Laser | 3 Wounds |
| Ion | 2 Wound, -1 Armor Rating |
| Plasma | 4 Wounds, plus Burning. |
| Particle | 5 Wounds, plus Disintegration |
| Grenade | 4-6 Wounds (Area Effect) |
| Missile | 7-9 Wounds, plus Deadly (Area Effect) |
4️⃣ Defender calculates Wounds taken (Wounds - Armor Rating).
✔ If reduced to 0, they roll 1 Armor Die.
✔ If Wounds exceed Armor, they roll 2 Armor Dice.
✔ Rolling a 1-2 on any Armor Die reduces Armor Rating by 1 and Armor Die 1 size.
5️⃣ Defender rolls a Health Usage Check If Armor Rating Exceeded:
✔ Critical Hits cause an automatic Health Die reduction first.
✔ If they roll a 1-2, their Health Die downgrades.
✔ If they reach d0 Health, they die.
✔ If they have a cybernetic pool, reduce that pool to zero first.
- The cybernetics still work, but the health pool is now in danger.
Cover in Combat
Taking cover is essential for survival in a firefight. The type of cover a character hides behind determines how much protection they receive from incoming attacks.
- Soft Cover (+1 Defense) – Provides partial protection by obscuring the line of sight but does not fully stop incoming fire. Bullets and energy blasts can penetrate soft cover, potentially still hitting the target.
- Hard Cover (+2 Defense) – Offers solid protection against most attacks, preventing penetration. However, if an attack still deals damage, it means the shot found a weak point or pierced through a vulnerable area in the cover.
- Shield (1 Defense) - Provides partial protection when held for protection.
Using cover effectively can be the difference between life and death in combat, forcing enemies to reposition or waste shots while you stay protected.
Actions in Combat
Every character gets 2 actions per round.
✔ You can perform any action once per round (except for specific exceptions listed below).
Standard Actions
- Move – Move up to Stride (1 Action).
- Run – Move Stride + Stride Die (2 Actions).
- Melee Attack – (1 Action, up to 2 times per round).
- Fire a Weapon (ROF 1) – (1 Action, up to 2 times per round).
- Fire a Weapon (ROF 2+) – (2 Actions).
- Change a Weapon - (1 Action).
- Pick a Lock – (1 Action per difficulty level, up to 2 times per round).
- Disarm a Trap – (1 Action per difficulty level, up to 2 times per round).
- Channel Power – (1 Action per 6 Construction Points, up to 2 times per round).
- Reload (Firearm/Bow) – (1 Action).
- Reload (Crossbow) – (2 Actions).
- Bolster Morale (Leadership) – (1 Action).
- Support an Ally’s Skill Check (Leadership) – (1 Action).
- Drive a Vehicle – (1 Action, must be performed once per round).
- Swim - (1 Action, must be performed once per round).
Additional Actions
✔ Aim (Ranged only) – Spend 1 Action to gain +1 to your next attack.
✔ Called Shots (Melee or Ranged) – Declare a specific target and take a Downgrade:
| Target | Effect |
|---|---|
| Arms | -2 to enemy Combat Skill (until their next turn). |
| Legs | Half Stride, no running (until their next turn). |
| Head | +2 Wounds (Can be soaked by armor). |
✔ Dodge (Active Defense) – Spend 1 Action, roll Athletics:
✔ Success: +1 to Defense (Melee & Ranged).
✔ Critical Success: +2 to Defense.
✔ Grab (Melee, Requires Free Hand) – Roll Athletics vs. Resistance (Physical).
✔ Success: Target is grabbed and cannot move (but can still attack).
✔ Once grabbed, you can Shove, Trip, or Maintain the Grab.
✔ Shove or Trip (Melee, Requires Grab) - Roll Athletics vs Resistance (Physcial).
✔ Success: Target is shoves 1 unit away or knocked prone.
✔ Disarm (Melee or Ranged) – Instead of damage, roll Combat Skill vs. Resistance (Physical).
✔ Failure: They keep their weapon.
✔ Success: Weapon is dropped nearby.
✔ Subdual (Melee only) – Declare non-lethal damage.
✔ If they reach d0 Health, they are unconscious instead of dead.
✔ Ranged weapons cannot subdue targets.
✔ Unstable Platform (Ranged) – Attacking from a moving vehicle is a Downgraded check.
✔ Two Weapon Fighting (Melee or Ranged) - You make 2 attacks but both are Downgraded checks.
Vehicle & Heavy Weapon Combat
Vehicles and heavy weapons have special rules.
✔ Armor Piercing Weapons reduce Armor Rating before calculating Wounds.
✔ Heavy Weapons ignore Heavy Armor protections (Tanks, Power Armor, etc.).
✔ Burning The target is set on fire and takes one wound per round at the start of the turn (bypasses armor).
✔ Deadly The target makes double the health checks if the attack exceeds armor. Also doubles critical wounds.
✔ Disintegration On a critical success the target takes one additional automatic health reduction.
✔ Fixed-Fire Weapons can only fire in specific directions, while Turrets can rotate freely.
✔ Linked Weapons can only fire in pairs, doing double the wounds of the weapon.
✔ Out of Control Vehicles:
✔ Failing an Armor Usage Check or not moving an aircraft for a round triggers a Crash Check.
✔ Crashing deals 1 Health Usage Check per 20 MPH of speed (bypasses armor).
Underwater
✔ Underwater Movement – Must swim every round to stay afloat.
✔ Weapon Penalties:
| Weapon Type | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Piercing Melee | -1 Attack |
| Other Melee | -3 Attack |
| Thrown Weapons / Bows | Cannot be used |
| Slug Weapons (Bullets) | Half-range |
| Lasers / Ion / Plasma / Particle | Cannot fire (water disrupts energy projection) |
| Defense Ratings | Halved |
✔ Drowning – A character can hold their breath for a number of rounds equal to their [Endurance Bonus + 6].
✔ Once breath runs out, they roll Resistance (Stamina).
✔ On failure: They pass out, then drown the following round unless rescued.
Maritime Combat
✔ Athletic check to move on a ship.
| Ship Size | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Small (Crusher) | Stiff Penalty |
| Medium (Colossus) | Moderate Penalty |
| Large (Behemoth) | Easy Penalty |
| Wave Size | Penalty Increase |
|---|---|
| Calm Seas | No increase |
| Moderate Waves (5ft or less) | One Stage |
| Severe Waves (greater than 5ft) | Two Stages |
Morale Checks
Non-player characters (creatures, enemies, and allies) start rolling Morale Checks in Round 3.
✔ Roll Grit Die under current Health Die max to stay in the fight.
✔ Failure: The NPC retreats or flees.
✔ Leadership Skill (Bolster Morale):
✔ Success: -2 Grit Check penalty (helps NPCs stay in the fight).
✔ Critical Success: -4 Grit Check penalty.
Surprise
If one side ambushes the other, they gain a full round of actions before rolling for initiative.
Size in Combat
Size differences in combat affect attack rolls, granting either an upgraded or downgraded check depending on the relative size of the attacker and defender.
✔ Equal-sized combatants always make a standard attack check.
Size-Based Attack Adjustments
- Upgraded Check → Smaller attacker vs. Bigger defender
(Wisp → Stalker → Crusher → Colossus → Behemoth) - Downgraded Check → Bigger attacker vs. Smaller defender
(Behemoth → Colossus → Crusher → Stalker → Wisp)
Full Combat Round Flow
1️⃣ Roll Initiative (every round).
2️⃣ On each creature’s turn:
✔ If Round 3+, non-PCs roll Morale Check.
✔ If applicable, apply Burning effect.
✔ Perform 1 or 2 Actions (attacks, movement, abilities, etc.).
✔ Resolve combat rolls, wounds, and checks.
✔ If applicable, roll drowning check.
3️⃣ Initiative passes to the next creature.