Combat

This chapter gives you guidelines to play out the battles, whether they be simple one-on-one fights between your character and Valentine's guards, or multi-character shoot outs involving explosives and automatic weapons. Since modern combat is a complex subject, playing out firefights is a bit more complicated than the rest of the game. Every effort has been made to keep all the flavor of the epic Kingsman battles without bogging down play. Combat calls for a turn structure and some record keeping. Your GM will choreograph these battles to keep the level of excitement high.

## Action Rounds

Unlike the free-flowing way in which the Kingsman movies play out most of the time, combat (and also chases) is structured into turns called Action Rounds. Each character involved in a combat will take one action in a turn, and as soon as all characters involved have acted, the next round starts. When a combat takes place, each player controls their character and the GM controls all the NPCs. Each round is divided into two parts: the Declaration and the Action.

### The Declaration

Each character and NPC involved in the combat has their action for the round declared verbally. You do this by stating in as much detail as you need what you want your character to do during that round — move, move and fire their gun at the guard, disarm the nuclear bomb, hold fire until fired upon, and the like. A Declaration can consist of whatever actions you feel your character can perform in approximately 3 to 5 seconds. A complex action will usually take more than one Action Round to complete. Once the action has been declared, it must be carried through for that round; you cannot change your mind about what action you want your character to perform once all actions are declared.

The order in which characters have their actions declared depends on their Speed ratings. The character with the highest Speed declares last (allowing them an advantage by knowing what the other characters will do before they have to make their decision), while the character with the lowest Speed declares first. Any ties are resolved by rolling a D6 until the tie is broken (lowest roll wins). Once the order of Declaration has been established, it is retained throughout the entire battle.

### The Action

Each character then plays out their declared action. The character with the highest Speed goes first, next highest second, and so forth (in reverse order of the Declaration). The GM is responsible for resolving any movement or attacks which take place. There are two types of skills that a character can use for attacks: Fire Combat and Hand-to- Hand Combat. The definitions of these skills tell you when each type of attack is used in play.

Your character must attempt to complete any action they have begun, unless the choices of the other characters make it impossible to do so. You cannot change your mind once you declare your action.

*EXAMPLE: Your character wants to run across the alleyway and take cover behind some garbage cans on the other side. While moving, an NPC fires their weapon at your character, wounding them and causing them to fall to the ground. Your character got only half way across the alley; they are lying prone on the ground. They obviously did not complete the action you wanted them to.*

If a character is being fired upon by another and has not yet fired their weapon during the round, they may be able to "draw” to see who gets to shoot first (see Speed below). This option may modify a declared action. The ability to get the first shot off separates Player Characters from the NPCs and gives them the extra advantage over their opponents that may be crucial. If a player’s character has moved and not yet fired during an Action Round, they will still get an opportunity to beat an NPC to the first shot.

## Combat Movement

The exact position of a character during combat must be known by the GM and you at all times. The simplest way to keep track of characters is to draw a scaled-down map of the location in which the action will take place. A scale of 10 feet to 1 inch works best, for this scale will allow comfortable movement and positioning of playing pieces (if they are used) and yet can cover large areas in scale without taking up an entire table top. The scale may be reduced as appropriate.

There are two methods of keeping track of characters on the map: the first is to pencil in their location on the map, and as they move, erase their old positions and pencil in the new ones. The second, more practical method is to use small playing pieces to represent characters, which the players can move on the map. If this second method is adopted, the grid should use one-inch squares to allow easier positioning.

There are two kinds of movement a character can make during combat: normal and zigzag. The player must announce during the Declaration which form of movement his character will use in that Action Round.

### Normal Movement

During one Action Round, you may move your character a distance in feet equal to ten times their Speed (with a minimum movement of ten feet). If you are using a one-inch grid, you would move them a number of squares equal to their Speed. They can be moved in any direction from their position. The character can use normal movement to jump over small impediments — boxes, barrels, and so forth — in their path; the GM will decide if there is any delay involved for a character moving over such obstacles. There is no need to roll dice in order for your character to move; it is a decision you make for your character. The character does not have to move if you want them to stay where they are.

At the end of movement, you describe the posture of your character (for example, standing, kneeling behind the garbage can, or lying prone). The GM will apply modifiers for posture should anyone fire at your character.

Your character may combine normal movement with either Fire Combat or Hand-to-Hand Combat. You may choose when they fire their weapon (before, during or after his movement).

### Zig-Zag Movement

This is a special type of dodging movement which allows the character to lessen the distance they move in order to make themselves less of a target. They are sacrificing distance for safety. In this case, a character can move a maximum of five times his Speed in feet, and he cannot use Fire or Hand-to-Hand Combat in that round.

## Speed and the "Draw"

Often, in combat, split-second timing is the difference between staying alive and catching a bullet between the eyes. In all situations where two characters have the chance to fire at each other and neither has fired their weapon during the round, the order in which they fire is determined by rolling a D6 for each character and adding their Speeds to the respective dice results. The higher final number indicates which character shoots first. This situation is a “‘draw,’’ and can occur at any time during an Action Round as long as both players can still fire. A “draw” will usually give a Player Character the advantage in getting off the first shot.

Each weapon has listed the number of shots it can fire in one Action Round (see this). A weapon may never be fired more times than it is rated for. In addition, each character may fire their weapon in each Action Round a number of times equal to their Speed; the character is limited by the number of shots their weapon can fire per round. Thus, it is possible for a character with a Speed of 2 and carrying a weapon allowing two shots per round to move and fire once, and then to wait to “draw” with another character who is ready to fire at them.

*EXAMPLE: A character with a Speed of 1 could fire their gun only once per Action Round, even though the gun could be fired twice in a round.*

## Damage

The object of combat is to damage, and hopefully put out of action, your enemy before they can do it to your character. Characters attack each other by using either their Fire or Hand-to-Hand Combat skill. The Quality Rating of a successful roll will determine how badly the target character is hurt. This damage result is known as their Wound Level.

All weapons are given a Damage Class, which measures how much damage the weapon does to a human being. The weapons all have their Damage Classes noted. If you wish to use a weapon not listed there, the GM will assign a Damage Class to it. Each character is given a Hand- to-Hand Combat Damage Class that works the same way as the Damage Class for weapons (though the results will not be as deadly).

The Wound Level Chart below is checked when a character suffers damage during combat. Cross-reference the Quality Rating of the attack with the Damage Class of the weapon or character. The result is the Wound Level the character suffers. If the combat result was a failure, the attack failed and there is no damage.

### Explanation of Wound Level

**ST=Stun**: If this result occurs from Fire Combat, the target must try to make an Ease Factor 8 Willpower roll to continue any actions. Until they succeed, they cannot take any actions; they are pinned down by the gunfire, but they retains their weapon. The roll is performed every Action Round during the Declaration.

If the Stun is the result of Hand-to-Hand Combat, the target must try to make an Ease Factor 8 Strength roll. If it fails, the target falls to the ground, beaten senseless. They cannot take any actions for D6 rounds; the GM rolls the die in secret and does not tell the player the result until the character regains his senses at the beginning of the appropriate Action Round.

**LW=Light Wound**: If a character receives this result, they must immediately try to make a Pain Resistance roll (an Ease Factor 7 Will- power roll) to resist the pain and continue taking actions. During the Declaration of each Action Round, the character makes the Pain Resistance roll, and until they succeed, they can take no actions. If a character is stunned and then receives a wound, they must wait for the stun to wear off before they begin their Pain Resistance rolls.

**MW=Medium Wound**: The results are the same as for a Light Wound, except the character must make the Pain Resistance roll at Ease Factor 5. Until they succeed, they can take no actions.

**HW=Heavy Wound**: The results are the same as for a Light or Medium Wound, except the Pain Resistance roll is made at Ease Factor 3.

**IN=Incapacitated**: The character falls unconscious for a period of D6 hours; the GM rolls the die in secret and at the end of that time announces that the character is conscious. The character will have a Heavy Wound as a result of the combat. They will not need to perform any Pain Resistance rolls.

**KL=Killed**: The character has suffered the ultimate incapacitation, bought the farm, kicked the bucket, gone West, made the supreme sacrifice, or whatever. They are removed from play.

A player may use Hero Points to change the result of an NPC’s Quality Rating for combat, and thus lower any wound result. Thus, if an NPC obtained a Quality Rating of 3, a character could expend 2 Hero Points to make the dice result a failure. The Hero Points may not be used to decrease Wound Levels, only the Quality Ratings.

Any character who suffers a wound and does not immediately make the Pain Resistance roll falls prone to the ground, clutching the wound. They drop whatever weapon they are carrying. Likewise, Incapacitated characters drop their weapons (a character stunned by Fire Combat does not drop their weapon).

If a character is on a ledge of some kind and is wounded, they may fall off. If it is a Player Character, the player makes a Dexterity roll at an Ease Factor determined by the GM to save themselves. Refer to the Fall Wound Chart below for the Wound Level incurred; as explained, the character will suffer damage accumulation if they have already been wounded before falling.

When a character who is already wounded receives another wound, their Wound Level is increased. Refer to the Wound Accumulation Chart below to determine the new Wound Level.

*EXAMPLE: A character has a Medium Wound due to combat and receives a Light Wound in the next Action Round. They now suffer from a Heavy Wound. if they then receive another Light Wound, they become Incapacitated.*

### Hand-to-Hand Damage

In general, damage from Hand-to-Hand Combat is not as heavy as for Fire Combat. The effects for Hand-to-Hand Combat are applied as listed above with the following exception:

**Shaking Off Wounds**: In Hand-to-Hand Combat, if the target of the attack has a Strength of 14 or 15 and is not being attacked with a weapon that has a stabbing point or a cutting edge, the target can lower any wound result by two levels if they succeed in making an Ease Factor 5 Strength roll. They would thus be able to ignore a Stun and Light Wound results, and would receive a Stun instead of a Medium Wound or a Light Wound instead of a Heavy Wound. If this roll fails, the target receives the wound at the normal level and must immediately begin making Pain Resistance rolls if necessary.

### Area Weapon Damage

Area weapons (such as missiles) explode at a particular point and cause damage radiating out from the point of impact. Area weapons use Damage Classes I, J, K, and L. The amount of damage a character takes from such weapons is related to their distance from the point of impact and the Damage Class of the weapon. Refer to the Area Weapon Damage Chart to the right to determine the damage to a character. Cross-reference the weapon’s Damage Class with the distance to find the Wound Level. Damage from area weapons is cumulative with other wounds.

### Damage to Material Objects

The damage levels in the game are calculated to measure the effects of wounds on unprotected human beings. Often in play, characters will want to fire their guns at or through material objects (cars, doors, and so forth). The Wound Adjustment Chart below adjusts the given Wound Level result, depending on the solidity of the material in the line of fire.

As a rule of thumb, the higher the weapon’s Damage Class, the more damage it will do to the material. The GM makes the final decision to any adjustments for damage.

## Fire Combat

By using his Fire Combat skill, a character can fire a weapon at a target. As is detailed in the skill, this weapon can be anything from a Walther PPK to a tube rocket. The option to fire a weapon at a target (or targets) can be exercised at any time during an Action Round, but once the round is over, any unused shots are lost (they cannot be carried over into the next Action Round).

During the Declaration, the player must indicate the target of his fire. Unless the character is using Spray Fire, he can shoot at only one target. In the event of a “draw” where a character is firing at a second (or third) target, he is considered to be using Spray Fire and suffers negative Ease Factor modifiers for each additional shot.

A projectile weapon has three ranges: Close, neutral, and Long. Close and Long ranges affect the Damage Class for the weapon, increasing the damage at Close range and decreasing it at Long range. These three ranges are also used during chases (see this), though they are applied more abstractly in a chase than in combat. In Fire Combat, it is important to keep track of the actual distance between characters.

If a weapon is being fired at Close range, increase its Damage Class by one (for example, a weapon with a Damage Class of F becomes a G) and gains a positive Ease Factor modifier. If at Long range, decrease its Damage Class by one; it also has a negative Ease Factor modifier applied. This adjustment to the Damage Class reflects the stopping power of the projectile due to range.

## Fire Combat Actions

During the Declaration, you decide which of the following Fire Combat options you wish your character to perform that round. If a “draw” situation arises, your character may be able to fire at a second (or third) target, assuming he can still shoot in that round. In such a case, the character is using Spray Fire and has his fire modified as indicated below. Each Fire Combat option has special instructions and results.

### Normal Fire

Your character can fire as many shots at a single target as either his Speed or weapon allows. There are no special modifiers or effects for this form of fire.

### Taking a Bead

Your character is taking more time to aim at the target. This form of fire is useful when it is important to hit something and damage it. You must declare in one Action Round the specific target your character is aiming at; the character may perform no other action during that round (he may not “draw” against an NPC until they fire). In the next Action Round, your character may fire at the declared target, and they receive a +3 Ease Factor modifier. When using this option, the modifier is good for that round only.

### Specific Shot

This option is similar to Taking a Bead, but it is performed in the same Action Round as it is declared. Your character is trying to make a more difficult shot while spending no extra time to aim. A Specific Shot gives your character a —2 Ease Factor modifier for the task, but allows them either to do more damage than their Quality Rating would normally dictate or to accomplish the specific damage or effect you have declared for them.

If your character is firing to do more damage and is successful, they will better their damage result by two levels (for example, a Light Wound will become a Heavy Wound). If they are firing to do a specific effect (for example, trying to disarm someone, shooting the target in the legs to stop them from running, blowing out the tires of a car, or damaging the control lever of the nuclear reaction) and succeeds, the damage result is not altered but the desired effect is achieved.

### Spray Fire

This form of fire allows your character to shoot at several different targets during the same Action Round. A character can use this fire with any weapon that can shoot at least two rounds of ammunition in one Action Round.

If your character is using a non-automatic weapon (one that requires the trigger be pulled each time to fire a shot), they may fire at more than one target in an Action Round, but they receive an accumulating —1 Ease Factor for every target after the first. Thus, for the second shot, they would receive a —1 modifier, for the third shot a —2 modifier, and so on. The GM decides on any effects for the range of the targets.

Weapons such as the H&K VP-70, Uzi, and AKM are capable of automatic fire (they keep firing as long as the finger is on the trigger). These weapons do not receive the negative Ease Factor modifier. The GM will decide on any effects for the range of the targets.

## Hand-to-Hand Combat

Characters use their Hand-to-Hand Combat skill in any melee that employs their fists, feet and hand-held weapons. They must be within 10 feet of each other to engage in this form of combat. A character can move during the round to within 10 feet of another and then begin Hand-to-Hand Combat. Thrown weapons are also covered by this skill. If characters are involved in Hand-to-Hand Combat and one character fires a gun while the other punches them, the character firing the gun uses their Fire Combat skill while the punching player uses their Hand-to-Hand Combat skill.

The Damage Class for Hand-to-Hand Combat is based upon the character’s Strength and should be written down on the Character Record. If a character is using a hand-held weapon (knife, sword, club, blackjack, and so on), their Damage Class is increased a variable number of classes for the weapon. The GM decides how many classes a hand-held weapon improves the character’s Damage Class if it is not listed in here.

In a round a character can make a number of hand-to- hand attacks equal to their Speed rating (a character with a Speed of 0 can make an attack every other round). They can attack as many opponents as possible within 10 feet. A player must declare what hand-to-hand attack option their character will use in the round. If the attempt fails, the character has missed; if the attempt succeeds, refer to the Weapon Damage Chart to determine the Wound Level of the attack.

A character engaged in Hand-to-Hand Combat can choose not to make any attacks in an Action Round and move away instead. The Hand-to-Hand Combat is then broken off, unless the other character(s) follows and begins the combat again.

## Hand-to-Hand Combat Options

### Punch

Your character is trying to stun or wound his opponent. This option includes all attacks done with the hands and hand-held weapons.

### Kick

Your character is attacking another with their feet and legs. Due to the extra strength and distance of a kick, a character’s Damage Class is bettered by one class, but he suffers a —1 Ease Factor modifier for balance problems.

### Specific Blow

Your character is attempting to do extra damage to their opponent, accomplish a specific effect (knock the weapon from the opponent’s hand, deflect a thrown weapon, hit the opponent in the leg to slow them down, and so on), or achieve a difficult result (pushing a guard into another, hitting two NPCs with one swing, and so on). The player must announce what exactly they want the blow to accomplish. If the roll is a success, your character will cause damage two levels better (that is, a Medium Wound becomes an Incapacitation) if increased damage is what was desired or will accomplish the effect he was after. Your character suffers a —2 Ease Factor modifier when attempting this option. A character may perform only one Specific Blow per Action Round, but they may combine one of these options with other options (kick, punch or thrown weapon) if his Speed is greater than 1.

If your character is trying to disarm an opponent and catch the weapon, another —2 Ease Factor is applied to the task. If the roll is successful, your character has caught the item dislodged from the opponent. In this case, no damage is done to the target.

Listed below are five kinds of Specific Blows. A character may choose to use one of them in an Action Round.

**Knockout**: Your character is attempting to knock their opponent unconscious. There is an additional —2 Ease Factor modifier applied to this kind of Specific Blow. If the attempt succeeds, the target character must try to make a Willpower roll at an Ease Factor equal to twice the Quality Rating of the attack. If the Willpower roll succeeds, the defender receives a Stun but is not knocked unconscious. If the Willpower roll fails, the target falls unconscious for 15+3D6 minutes.

**Trip**: Your character causes the target to fall down and drop anything they are holding. No damage is done. On a Quality Rating 1 result, your character may flip the target up to 10 feet away in any direction (it is the equivalent of a push or shove). The target could wind up going over the edge of a cliff or into a brick wall as a result.

**Rise**: Your character uses this option to get back on their feet if they have been tripped. If they are successful, they get up without incident; if they fail, they still get up but their attacker(s) all receive one free attack in addition to any attacks they may make or have made in the round.

**Restraint**: Your character attempts to pin their target. If successful, the target may take no actions except to attempt a Release (see below). If the target is restrained, another character may, with no difficulty, tie up the target. No damage is done with this option. Once restrained, a character’s Speed does not modify any attacks against them.

**Release**: Your character uses this option to break a Restrain. It is attempted at an Ease Factor equal to the Quality Rating of the Restrain.

### Throw A Weapon

Just about anything a character can pick up can be thrown at an opponent, the most common such weapon being a knife. An ob-ject as light and as balanced as a knife can be thrown up to a distance in feet equal to ten times the Strength of the thrower. A sharp-edged object like a knife increases the character’s Hand-to- Hand Damage Class by one class.

If other items are to be thrown, the GM will judge how far they can be thrown and what Damage Class they have. The heavier or clumsier an object is, the less distance it will travel but the more damage it will do. In one Action Round, a character can throw a number of weapons equal to their Speed rating.

## Weapons

A list of weapons is provided which you can use to select a weapon for your character. The attributes for each weapon are given on the accompanying Weapon List. You should choose the weapons for your character carefully, and have them carry only what they actually need to complete the mission.

Each rifle and pistol on this table will indicate the number of single shots that can be fired in one Action Round. For non-automatic weapons, one shot uses up one bullet, and these shots can be fired at different times in a round. For automatic weapons, there is a second listing for burst fire, indicating the number of bullets that are fired at one time during the round (burst fire cannot be split up during a round).

If your character is carrying a non-automatic weapon, they do not have to use all the shots available to them in a round. There are such considerations as ammo depletion and negative modifiers for multiple shots to keep in mind. You do have to keep track of how many bullets your character has fired, for they must reload the gun when his ammo is exhausted. Reloading a weapon takes time, and the Weapons List indicates how many Action Rounds your character must spend reloading their weapon.

Each gun also has a Jam range listed for it. A jam will occur if you roll a number within the listed Jam range on D100 when resolving a Fire Combat task. The weapon is then jammed and cannot be fired until cleared. A jam result negates any Quality Rating. You can clear the weapon by making an Ease Factor 5 Fire Combat roll at the beginning of any following round.

If you roll a 100, the gun has misfired and is useless for the remainder of the combat. It needs to be repaired, using the repair rules found here.

## Scars

At the end of a combat, if a character has received a Medium, Heavy or Incapacitating Wound from Fire Combat or from a knife or sword in Hand-to-Hand Combat, they may receive a permanent, recognizable scar. If a character is wounded several times in combat, they use the final accumulated Wound Level for determining the chance of a wound.

Refer to the Scar Chance Chart to the right. Determine the Wound Level for the character, and roll D100. If the result is less than or equal to the chance for the Wound Level, the character receives a scar. To determine the location of the scar, roll D100 again and refer to the Scar Location Chart. The dice result will indicate on which part of the character’s body the scar is located.

## Healing

A character who is wounded during combat can recover from their wounds by treating them. There are two types of medical treatment that will speed the healing process: First Aid and Hospitalization. The normal, unattended healing process reduces the Wound Level by one (a Medium Wound becomes a Light Wound) over the period of a week.

If your character is wounded in combat, write down the Wound Level and the date he was wounded on your Character Record. As time passes, their wound will heal. You can keep track of their healing during an adventure or campaign.

### First Aid

Each Player Character is trained in First Aid to handle emergencies in the field. The Primary Chance for using First Aid is 20. If the roll is a success, the Wound Level for a character is reduced by one (a Medium Wound becomes a Light Wound). This attempt may be made only once for any wounded character.

### Hospitalization

A character can reduce a Wound Level by two (a Heavy Wound becomes a Light Wound) by seeking proper medical care in a hospital. A character must spend three days in a hospital or other health facility for each level reduced. Once the character leaves the hospital, they will continue to mend at the normal healing rate.

## Notes on Combat

Obvious though it may sound, combat is the surest way to get your character killed off. However, the game is designed to give the Player Characters an edge in combat situations. Their use of Hero Points (see here) and their ability to get off the first shot should help them in a pinch. However, since the enemy (guards, soldiers, other spies) will often be more heavily armed than your character, even those advantages do not last for very long. In general, it is best to have your character avoid long, protracted firefights.

Rookies in particular should keep away from firefights if they can help it. Their supply of Hero Points is not large enough to counter great numbers of ill-trained louts blazing away at them with Number 4 rifles, and their slightly superior skills will not offset the odds against them. Agents will be able to hold their own against equal or even slightly superior numbers in a fight, but they should not stick around too long. Senior Agents will be able to hold off large numbers of inferior enemies so long as the ammunition holds out.

Often, characters will be able to make better progress by interacting with the Non-Player Characters than by showering them with gunfire.