Page 163 - World of Darkness

Aiming Firearms and Close Combat

For each full turn that your character aims a ranged It’s inevitable that a character with a gun or bow tries
weapon at a target, add one bonus die to your attack pool to use it in close combat. That is, he uses a Firearms-based
to a maximum of three. Your character loses any Defense weapon while other combatants use Brawl or Weaponry
while aiming; he must remain still. If an opponent attacks attacks, and everyone is within reach of one another. Such
him in close combat before his shot gets off, and your close proximity is not the forte of Firearms attacks; they’re
character’s Defense is applied to the incoming attack, he best used from afar where clubs and fists can’t reach.
loses all of his accumulated aiming bonus. In order for If the Storyteller decides that your character is using
your character to retain his accumulated aiming bonus, a gun or bow in what’s otherwise a close combat, a target’s
he needs to weather any incoming close-combat attacks Defense applies against your character’s attack. Intended
by not applying his Defense. Attackers do not suffer your targets have an opportunity to knock a gun aside or jostle
character’s Defense as a penalty. the shooter, as represented by their Defense scores. So, if
If your character’s weapon has a scope, it can dimin- your character is close enough to two opponents that they
ish any range penalties that might apply to an attack. Your can wield knives at him, and your character fires a gun,
character must focus on aiming and can perform no other the targets’ Defense scores are penalties to your Dexterity
actions. Taking his eye off the target — even to sneeze — + Firearms rolls. Their Defense scores apply against single
cancels the benefits of any time spent. shots or autofire from your character.
Aiming cannot be combined with the Gunslinger If an intended target dodges, his full Dodge trait ap-
Merit. Nor can your character gain the aiming bonus and plies against a gun used in close combat. The Brawling
use autofire. Dodge and Weaponry Dodge Merits also apply against guns
used in close combat.
Shooting into Close Combat Using a gun in a Brawl-based grapple is handled dif-
ferently than as presented here. See “Grapple,” above, for
Sometimes your character is put in a dilemma. Allies details.
are involved in close combat with an enemy, while your
character stands outside the fray. He has a gun or other Concealment
ranged attack and can try to shoot opponents in the fight,
but he might hit his allies. Is squeezing the trigger worth The old adage “You can’t hit what you can’t see” is
the risk? true. Visibility and an opponent’s efforts to hide make it
If a single shot is fired (or a single ranged weapon difficult to target someone with a ranged attack. Anything
such as a knife is thrown), subtract two dice for each com- that makes a target difficult to see in ranged combat —
batant whom your character tries to avoid hitting. (Sub- fog, mist, darkness, obstructions — offers concealment.
tract four dice for each combatant who is grappled — see There are four degrees of concealment to consider, and
p. 157 — and whom your character wishes to avoid.) If the penalties associated with each may be applied to ranged
the attack succeeds, your character hits his intended tar- attack rolls. (Concealment does not apply when oppo-
get. If the attack fails, it misses everyone. On a dramatic nents are engaged in Brawl or Weaponry combat. They’re
failure, the Storyteller may decide that one of the com- too close to hide from one another.)
batants whom your character tried to avoid is hit. The Barely concealed: -1 (Example: crouching behind an
ally hit is chosen randomly. office chair)
Example: Green is in a melee with Tyler and Partially concealed: -2 (hiding behind the hood of a
Swanson, both of whom are friends of Gibbs. Gibbs tries to car, but with upper body exposed)
fire his pistol at Green from 15 yards away, and hopes to Substantially concealed: -3 (crouching fully behind
avoid hitting anyone else. Four dice are subtracted from a car, or poking up out of a foxhole)
Gibbs’ attack dice pool to avoid hitting Swanson and Tyler, Completely covered: Completely protected by an in-
and a roll is made for the ranged attack. It succeeds with one tervening barrier (all shots hit the cover automatically;
success. If no successes had been rolled, no one would have see “Cover,” below)
been hit. If a dramatic failure had been rolled, one of
Swanson or Tyler would have been hit, as chosen randomly Cover
by the Storyteller. Had Green, Swanson and Tyler all been
grappling, Gibbs’ shot would have suffered a -8 penalty. Cover provides protection for targets hiding behind
it. Cover doesn’t usually apply to close combat; opponents
Note that these shooting into close combat rules ap-
ply to single shots or thrown items. They do not apply to are within a yard or so of each other. In a ranged attack
autofire conducted with guns. Rules for hitting bystand- against a covered target (someone behind a closed door
ers are covered under “Autofire,” above. or inside a closed car), the cover is hit automatically (the
bullets rip into the door or car).
A powerful gun or other ranged attack might pen-
etrate cover to hit a protected opponent. Follow these steps

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Chapter 7- COMBAT