Resolution Phase (OSS)

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The Resolution phase comprises the third and final stage in the naval combat round. During this phase, the DM reviews all damage inflicted on fighting vessels and their crews during the Action phase, enforces any consequences the damage might impose, and conducts morale checks if necessary (see the Morale section, page 53). If any vessel still wishes to fight, the combat advances to the next round. Each ship declares a new action and the round proceeds, starting with the Maneuvering phase and ending with the next Resolution phase. This process continues until all ships cease hostilities or until one vessel (or side) surrenders or sinks.
==Damage==
Ships can incur two types of damage during naval combat in addition to that inflicted on crew or passengers. The first type of damage affects the physical stability and Seaworthiness of a vessel and reflects hits against the ship's hull. Hence, it is called hull damage. The degree to which a ship can withstand such damage is measured in hull points. (Consult Table 38: Ship Combat Statistics on page 65 to find hull point ratings for particular vessels.) Hull damage occurs as a result of spells striking a ship's hull, ramming actions, and artillery attacks.
The second type of damage-called crippling damage refers to strikes against a ship's masts, rigging, oars, or any combination of the three. Most ships have numbers of crippling points equal to their hull points. Crippling damage primarily affects maneuverability, pursuit, and movement. Certain ramming action results, as well as spells and artillery, cause crippling damage.
==The Effects Of Hull Damage==
Hull damage erodes the stability and Seaworthiness of a vessel. The degree of this erosion depends on a vessel's overall size; the larger the ship, the more hull damage it can sustain before losing Seaworthiness. Table 28: Seaworthiness Reduction Rates indicates the rate at which damaged ships lose their stability.
 Table 28: Seaworthiness Reduction Rates
Size Category	Reduction
Small 	2/1
Medium 	2/3
Large 	1/3
Very Large 	1/4
Size Category: This refers to the size of the damaged vessel (see the notes for Table 2: Ship Characteristics for details on ship size).
Reduction: This is the rate at which damaged vessels lose Seaworthiness. The first number lists the amount of Seaworthiness lost and the second indicates the number of lost hull points needed to cause the reduction. Thus, Medium ships lose two points of Seaworthiness for every three hull points lost.
The Seaworthiness reduction takes effect immediately that is, once the DM tallies the hull point damage in the Resolution phase. If the vessel in question requires a Seaworthiness check, it uses its adjusted Seaworthiness until it can put in for repairs (see below).
In addition, every time a ship loses one-half of its original hull points (rounded down), it must make a successful Seaworthiness check or founder in 1d10 hours unless beached or repaired. Furthermore, every time a ship loses an additional quarter of its remaining hull points it must make another check to avoid foundering. If the Seaworthiness roll fails on a roll of 20, the ship sinks (see next page).
Ships lose of their adjusted movement rate (the rate after all adjustments for the prevailing conditions) and suffer a -2 penalty on all maneuverability dice rolls (including those made in the Maneuvering phase of the combat round) once they lose half their original hull points. When a ship loses % of its original hull points, the penalty increases. Such ships lose an additional % of their original, adjusted movement rates and suffer a -3 penalty to all maneuverability die rolls.
Once a ship reaches 0 hull points or below, it automatically begins sinking, according to the table below:
 Table 29: Sinking Times
Size 	Sinking Time
Small 	1 round
Medium 	1d8 rounds
Large 	1d10 rounds
Very Large	1d12 rounds
All crew and passengers still aboard a ship when it sinks must make successful saving throws vs. death magic or be trapped in the wreck and killed. If the saving throw succeeds, a survivor must still attempt to swim unless he can reach a lifeboat (see the Swimming rules found in the Movement chapter of the Player's Handbook).
==The Effects Of Crippling Damage==
Crippling damage directly affects the movement of vessels. For every of total crippling points lost, reduce a ship's current movement rate by and penalize its maneuverability die rolls by 2. Ships that have a modified movement rate of 0 are dead in the water and automatically lose all maneuverability checks.
The effects of hull and crippling damage are cumulative. Thus, a ship that suffers a loss of its crippling points and a loss of its hull points would be dead in the water with an effective movement rate of 0.
==Repairing Damage==
Traversing violent and often unpredictable expanses of ocean in damaged vessels tends to cut short adventuring careers. The natural (and not so natural) elements are harsh enough on undamaged vessels-let alone those ships battered by combat. As a result, ships and their crew often carry spare supplies and construction materials (such as extra sailcloth, rope, oars, pitch, and even masts) to help with repairs.
However, a crew can do only so much to restore a damaged vessel at sea. Such repair attempts can restore only 1d6 points of hull damage and 1d12 points of crippling damage. Repairing hull damage takes 1d4 days plus 2 days per size category above Small. Thus, fixing the hull of a Trireme (Very Large) requires a minimum of 7 days (1 plus 6 for size). Crews can repair crippling damage in 1d4 days. If a ship begins foundering from battle damage, it can be temporarily patched on a roll of 12 or better on 1d20 (provided the ship is not currently engaged in combat or manned by a skeleton crew). If someone aboard makes a successful Seamanship or Shipbuilding proficiency roll, add +3 to the roll for patching. A patched ship generally stays afloat just long enough to allow more extensive repairs. Once the ship regains even one hull point from repairs, it stops leaking.
Repairs can occur after each battle or event that damages a vessel. However, crews cannot restore more hull or crippling points than the particular event caused. Thus, a ship that suffers 12 hull points of damage in a battle can repair a maximum of 6 hull points while at sea. If that same ship later strikes a reef and loses one hull point, its crew cannot repair more than one hull point.
Skeleton crews cannot attempt repairs, and repairs are not possible during battle, storms, or gales.
Extensive repairs (more than 6 points) require the skills and materials of a shipyard. Damaged vessels must dock or beach for repairs. Because of the materials and skilled labor involved in such repairs, fixing a vessel requires a good deal of time and a potentially large amount of cash. Some ship owners may find it cheaper and more convenient to buy a new vessel than repair a damaged one. Table 30: Vessel Repair Cost and Time details the overall requirements, in money and time, for repairs.
 Table 30: Dessel Repair Cost and Time
Vessel Size	Cost*	Time
Small 	10 	2/day
Medium 	15 	1/day
Large 	150 	1/3 days
Very Large 	300 	1/4 days
: * Cost in gold pieces per hull/crippling point repaired
==Morale==
A crew's morale affects its performance throughout a naval battle. Crews with poor morale do not fight as effectively and, in extreme cases, may surrender despite contrary orders from their captain.
Morale checks need not occur after every round of combat. After all, every sailor expects a little bit of danger when plying his profession. However, certain events or encounters do test the mettle of even the most experienced sailor. The following situations precipitate a morale check:
* The ship suffers a critical hit.
* The ship makes a critical miss.
* The enemy surprises the crew (only on the first round after the surprise).
* The ship faces an obviously superior force. The ship loses 25%, 50%, or 75% of hull points (make a check at each stage).
* An ally or crewmen is slain by magic.
* 25% or 50% of the crew is dead (make a check at each stage).
* All officers desert, are slain, or surrender.
* The crew fights a creature they cannot harm due to magical protection.
* The crew is asked to perform a heroic or dangerous task.
* The ship cannot escape the enemy or situation.
* The ship's captain is slain or deserts.
When appropriate, morale checks occur during the latter part of the Resolution phase-after the DM totals all of the damage incurred during that round of combat.
Each ship's fighting complement (that is, its crew and any marines) possesses a base morale rating (see Table 31: Crew Experience and Morale) between 1 and 20. Again, determining a crew's experience level is an inexact process. See Determining Crew Experience earlier in this chapter for details.
 Table 31: Crew Experience and Morale
Crew Experience	Base Morale
Landlubbers 	9
Scurvy Rats 	11
Mates 	13
Mariners* 	15
Old Salts 	17
: * The sailors and fighting complements of professional naval ships (that is, members of a standing navy) function as Mariners for purposes of determining morale.
Many factors can influence a crew's morale during the course of a naval combat-ships burst into flame, arrows find their targets, and commanding officers die. All of these events can affect the outcome of a morale check. Table 32: Situational Morale Modifiers details the modifying effects these combat situations have on crew morale checks.
==Making the Morale Check==
To make a morale check, the DM simply finds the crew's base morale (on Table 31: Crew Experience and Morale) and adds or subtracts the appropriate modifiers from Table 32: Situational Morale Modifiers. The resulting number represents the crew's adjusted morale rating. Then the DM rolls 2d10 and adds the numbers together. If the total number rolled is less than or equal to the crew's adjusted rating, the crew in question passes its morale check. However, if the number is greater than the crew's adjusted rating, the crew fails its morale check.
For example, Love's Honor, a merchant cog (with a crew of mates) transporting the PCs and their cargo is under attack by the corsair ship Black Winter. The ship's captain and two officers stand on deck, and the PCs lend a hand with the ship's defense. After several naval combat rounds, the captain and one officer lie dead from a fireball cast by the Black Winter's wizard. The corsairs then ram the merchant vessel, inflicting heavy damage to the cog (15 hull points). It's now time for the crew of Love's Honor to attempt a morale check.
{| class="article-table" 	Situation	Modifier
Ship has lost 25% of its Hull Points 	-2 	
Ship has lost 50% of its Hull Points 	-4 	
Ship has lost 75% of its Hull Points 	-6 	
Captain slain 	-3 	
Officer slain 	-1* 	
Opponent has lost 50% of its Hull Points	+2 	
Captain on deck 	+4 	
Officer on deck 	+1* 	
Ship on fire 	-2 	
Opponent's ship on fire 	+1 	
Abandoned by friendly ships 	-6 	
Crew losses at 25% 	-2 	
Crew losses at 50% 	-3 	
Crew receiving share of plunder 	+2 	
Crew fighting a hated enemy 	+4 	
Enemy offers a chance for surrender 	-1 	
Enemy known for killing prisoners 	+3 	
Enemy known for treating prisoners well 	-1 	
Ship's crew was surprised 	-2 	
Crew fighting magical creatures 	-2 	
Crew received good/bad omen 	+2/-2 	
Powerful ally killed 	-3 	
Crew favored by captain 	+2 	
Crew poorly treated 	-2 	
Crew outnumbered 3 to 1 	-4 	
Crew outnumbered 2 to 1 	-2 	
Unable to hurt opponent 	-8 	
Magic-using allies 	+2 	
The DM checks Table 30 and notes the crew's base morale rating (13). Then the Dungeon Master applies the situational modifiers on Table 31 to the crew's base rating to find their adjusted morale for this check. The crew gains a +1 for having an officer with them on deck and another +2 for magic-using allies (the PCs); for a total bonus of +3. However the crew suffers a -2 penalty for having a magic- using foe (the wizard), a -1 penalty for losing an officer, a -3 penalty for their slain captain, and a -2 penalty for hull damage (25%); for a total penalty of -8, The crew's final morale rating is 8 (base 13+3-8-8). Finally, the DM rolls 2d10 and compares the result to the morale rating. He rolls a 14; the crew of Love's Honor fails its morale check and panic ensues. Let's hope the PCs have a plan for winning the battle.
==Dungeon Mastery Tip: Morale and Role-playing==
Although the morale rules are fairly comprehensive, DMs should not adhere to them if they interfere with a storyline or the pace of an adventure. Dungeon Masters should use common sense in applying these rules. A fanatical group of cultists pursuing the PCs over water will probably not surrender just because their leader dies. Likewise, a shipful of mercenaries hired to capture the PCs will probably not heroically fight the party to the bitter end-they should value their lives more than a few bags of gold.
==Effects of Failed Morale Checks==
Simply failing a morale check does not automatically send a crew into a panic, nor does it mean that the crew in question automatically surrenders. The reaction of crew members to a failed morale check depends entirely on the degree to which they failed the check. Table 33: Effects of Failed Morale Checks details the possible outcomes of a failed morale check.
{| class="article-table"	Degree of Failure 	Result
2 or less	-1 to all combat rolls	
3-5 	-2 to all combat rolls	
6-8 	-3 to all combat rolls	
9+ 	Surrender 	
==Surrendering==
Ships that surrender immediately cease hostilities. In some instances, the victor of the combat will allow the surrendering ship to limp away. In most cases, however, the crew of the victorious vessel will board the vanquished ship and loot its cargo or seize the craft. The crew of the losing ship may be set adrift or ransomed at the victor's discretion. Note that Player Characters are not bound to surrender if the crew of their ship decides to strike the colors. However, attacking another vessel once your ship has surrendered is a grave violation of naval tradition. Ships that do so abrogate all claims to mercy from the enemy. Consequently, NPC crews might mutiny and attempt to capture or kill PCs who continue to attack after the ship has surrendered. At the very least, demoralized crewmen will cease fighting and attempt to abandon ship or take cover if the PCs choose to fight on. Because morale checks occur at the end of the
Resolution phase, it is possible for all ships on both sides of a conflict to surrender at the same time. In such a case, all ships break off and will not engage each other for at least two hours.
==Escaping==
Ships that manage to open the range so far that their enemies can no longer see them (see Table 6: Visibility Ranges) have escaped battle. If an escaping ship has a higher daily movement rate (see pages 20 and 22) than its opponents, it need not fear further attacks if it sails away from the battle area and does not turn back. Otherwise, opposing ships can pursue. During the following day, opponents can search for the fleeing ship, locating it on a roll of 6 on 1d6. If the battle took place near a coast, add one to the die roll. Also, add one for each extra ship searching; however, a roll of 1 always fails. If the fleeing ship is found, a new battle begins.
==Recovering Casualties==
Not every creature eliminated during combat actually dies. Some might merely be knocked unconscious; others may be so badly wounded that they lose their will to fight. If a ship sinks, all creatures eliminated during the battle die (from drowning or other misfortune); otherwise, they are permitted a saving throw vs. paralyzation if they receive some sort of healing or first aid immediately after the battle. A successful saving throw indicates that the creature recovers as though brought back from death's door (see Chapter 9 of the DUNGEON MASTER® Guide).
==Multiple Ships==
The Detailed Combat System works best for resolving duels between two ships, with the players controlling the vessel carrying the PCs and the DM handling the opposing ship. If three or more ships become involved in a battle, the DM has several options:
* Two or more vessels can act together as a unit. Both vessels take the same action at the same time and effectively function as a single ship, though they cannot pool crewmen or damage points. If the ships have different Pursuit and Maneuverability ratings, the group must use the lowest one.
* All the vessels on each side can act as units, subject to the limitations noted above.
* The battle can be broken apart into separate two- ship duels.
* Allow all the ships to act independently. This method works best when several vessels threaten a single foe. Each ship declares its own action and compares its maneuver or pursuit dice with the enemy separately. As the battle develops, the foe might outmaneuver some allied ships, but fail to elude others.
* Use a combination of methods. For example, the DM might want to treat the opposing sides as two units until the ships get within archery range, then break the battle up into individual duels.
==Dungeon Mastery Tips: Naval Battles==
The Detailed Naval Combat rules assume the battle takes place on the open sea or in a fairly large body of water free of hazards. Not all battles take place under ideal conditions, however, and the DM should feel free to assign bonuses or penalties that reflect the situation. For example, a pirate ship caught in a harbor might be unable to flee its attackers unless it first closes the range, then breaks free. This simulates the ship rushing to the harbor mouth, where the enemy awaits, and breaking through the line. Likewise, any ships maneuvering in the restricted area at the harbor mouth might suffer a maneuverability penalty- including the escaping pirates.