GURPS 4e - Combat Examples

Armor: Normal Clothing* (DR 0 arms, legs, torso, groin, 2 lbs.), Shoes* (DR 1 feet, 2 lbs.) [* flexible]
Punch: 1d-2 cr., Reach: C (DX)
Kick: 1d-1 cr., Reach: C,1 (DX-2)

Skills: Judo - 20 (DX+4)

Ads/Disads:

Zach Red

ST:	14	HP:	14	Size Modifier: 0
DX:	14	Will:	10	Encumbrance: 0 (4 lbs.)
IQ:	10	Per:	10	Basic Speed: 6
HT:	10	FP:	10	Basic Move: 6

Thrust: 1d

Swing: 2d

Dodge: 10*

Parry: 13*

Block: -

(* includes a +1 bonus for Combat Reflexes)

Armor: Normal Clothing* (DR 0 arms, legs, torso, groin, 2 lbs.), Shoes* (DR 1 feet, 2 lbs.) [* flexible]
Punch: 1d+1 cr., Reach: C (Karate)
Kick: 1d+2 cr., Reach: C,1 (Karate)

Skills: Karate - 18 (DX+4)

Ads/Disads: Combat Reflexes

In this example, two unarmed and unarmored opponents face one another in a gladiatorial arena, starting the contest one yard apart.

Arthur has the higher Basic Speed, so he goes first.

TURN ONE

Arthur Green HP: 12
Maneuver: Wait, Attack (Deceptive Attack, B369) ("I will grapple the first enemy to step into range.")

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 9
Maneuver: Attack, Mighty Blows (optional, B357), Hit Location: Groin, Kick (Arthur)

Opts to spend 1 FP to choose Mighty Blows. Uses his Step to move forward 1 hex, turn is immediately interrupted by Arthur's "Wait (Attack)" maneuver.

Arthur Green HP: 12
Uses his Step to move forward 1 hex into Zach's hex. Arthur lowers his skill with Deceptive Attack by -6 to inflict a -3 penalty to defense on Zach if he hits. He rolls 3d6 against his effective Judo skill of 14 (-6 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 12 - a possible hit.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 9
Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 10 (-3 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 10 - he Parries. He now finishes his interrupted Attack.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 9
Maneuver: Attack, Mighty Blows, Hit Location: Groin, Kick (Arthur)

Rolls 3d6 against his effective Karate skill of 13 (-3 for Hit Location: Groin, -2 for Kick) and gets 13 - a possible hit.

Arthur Green HP: 12
Rolls 3d6 against his Parry of 13 and gets 9 - he Parries.

TURN TWO

Arthur Green HP: 12
Maneuver: Attack (Deceptive Attack), Throw ("On the turn after a successful Judo Parry, you may attempt to throw your attacker if he is within one yard.", B203)

Arthur lowers his skill with Deceptive Attack by -4 to inflict a -2 penalty to defense on Zach if he hits. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Judo skill of 16 and gets 16 - a possible hit. (Note there's really no good reason to not use a Deceptive Attack any time your effective skill is over 16, since a roll of 17 or 18 is always going to fail or critically fail.)

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 8
Opts to spend 1 FP to choose Feverish Defense (optional, B357) for a +2 Parry bonus. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 13 (+2 for Feverish Defense, -2 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 12 - he Parries.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 7
Maneuver: Attack, Mighty Blows, Hit Location: Face, Kick (Arthur)

Opts to spend 1 FP to choose Mighty Blows. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Karate skill of 11 (-5 for Hit Location: Face, -2 for Kick) and gets 11 - a possible hit.

Arthur Green HP: 12
Rolls 3d6 against his Parry of 13 and gets 15 - he fails to Parry.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 7
Rolls 1d+4 (includes +2 bonus for Mighty Blows) for damage and gets a total of 6.

Arthur Green HP: 6, Shock: -4
6 points of crushing basic damage to the Face - 0 DR leaves 6 points of penetrating damage. Arthur's HP are reduced to 6 and he has a shock penalty of -4.

As this was a hit to the Face sufficient to cause a Shock penalty, Arthur must check for Knockdown and Stunning (B420). He rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 10 - he suffers no penalty beyond ordinary shock.

TURN THREE

Arthur Green HP: 6, Shock: -4
Maneuver: Attack, Grappling (with two hands, B370) (Deceptive Attack)

Arthur lowers his skill with Deceptive Attack by -4 to inflict a -2 penalty to defense on Zach if he hits. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Judo skill of 12 (-4 for Shock, -4 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 8 - a possible hit.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 6
Opts to spend 1 FP to choose Feverish Defense for a +2 Parry bonus. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 13 (-2 for Deceptive Attack, +2 for Feverish Defense) and gets 10 - he Parries.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 6
Maneuver: Attack, Hit Location: Face, Kick (Arthur)

Rolls 3d6 against his effective Karate skill of 13 (-5 for Hit Location: Face, -2 for Kick) and gets 15 - a miss. As this is a kick, he rolls 3d6 against his DX of 14 to avoid falling down - he gets 13 and keeps his footing (B274).

TURN FOUR

Arthur Green HP: 6
Maneuver: Attack, Grappling (with two hands) (Deceptive Attack)

Arthur lowers his skill with Deceptive Attack by -6 to inflict a -3 penalty to defense on Zach if he hits. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Judo skill of 14 (-6 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 13 - a possible hit.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 6
Opts to Parry and Retreat (B377), and attempts to move out of Close Combat. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 13 (-3 for Deceptive Attack, +3 for Retreat) and gets 14 - he fails to Parry, and is now Grappled. He remains in Close Combat, and does not move backward 1 hex.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 6
Maneuver: Attack, Kick (Arthur)

Rolls 3d6 against his effective Karate skill of 12 (-4 for being Grappled, -2 for Kick) and gets 11 - a possible hit.

Arthur Green HP: 6
Rolls 3d6 against his Dodge of 9 and gets 9 - he Dodges. (Note that Arthur can not Parry as he is Grappling with both hands; he can let go with one or both hands as a free action, but only on his turn (B370-B371).)

TURN FIVE

Arthur Green HP: 6
Maneuver: Attack, Throw (Deceptive Attack)

Arthur lowers his skill with Deceptive Attack by -6 to inflict a -3 penalty to defense on Zach if he hits. He rolls 3d6 against his effective Judo skill of 14 (-6 for Deceptive Attack) and gets 12 - a possible hit.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Opts to spend 1 FP to choose Feverish Defense for a +2 Parry bonus. Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 12 (-3 for Deceptive Attack, +2 for Feverish Defense) and gets 14 - he fails to Parry.

Zach is thrown to the ground and is prone, occupying the two hexes as shown in the diagram (Arthur's choice). He rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 to avoid being stunned and gets 12 - he is now suffering from Stun. He is still grappled (though Basic doesn't address this one way or the other, Martial Arts p. 75 states that the grapple is only lost if the throw is a critical failure).

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Maneuver: Do Nothing (Stun)

Rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 10 - he may act normally on his next turn.

TURN SIX

Arthur Green HP: 6
Maneuver: Attack, Kick (Zach)

As Zach is no longer suffering Stun, Arthur lets go with one hand (he is still Grappling) so he can Parry if needed. Rolls 3d6 against his Kick skill of 14 (DX-2) and gets 15 - a miss. As this is a kick, he rolls 3d6 against his DX of 16 to avoid falling down - he gets 11 and keeps his footing.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Maneuver: All-Out Attack (Determined), Hit Location: Face, Punch (Arthur)

Rolls 3d6 against his effective Karate skill of 9 (+4 for All-Out Attack (Determined), -5 for Hit Location: Face, -4 for being Grappled, -4 for being Prone) and gets 9 - a possible hit.

Arthur Green HP: 6
Rolls 3d6 against his effective Parry of 13 and gets 15 - he fails to Parry.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Rolls 1d+1 for damage and gets a total of 5.

Arthur Green HP: 1, Shock: -4
5 points of crushing basic damage to the Face - 0 DR leaves 5 points of penetrating damage. Arthur's HP are reduced to 1 and he has a shock penalty of -4.

As this was a hit to the Face sufficient to cause a Shock penalty, Arthur must check for Knockdown and Stunning. He rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 12 - a failure. He falls down prone and suffers Stun; he is also no longer grappling Zach (due to the Knockdown, B420: "if you were holding anything, you drop it").

He now also has less than 1/3 his HP, so his Move and Dodge are halved.

TURN SEVEN

Arthur Green HP: 1, Shock: -4
Maneuver: Do Nothing (Stun)

Rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 11 - he must choose to 'Do Nothing' again next turn.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Maneuver: Change Posture (Prone to Kneeling)

TURN EIGHT

Arthur Green HP: 1
Maneuver: Do Nothing (Stun)

Rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 14 - he must choose to 'Do Nothing' again next turn.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Maneuver: All-Out Attack (Double), Hit Location: Face, Punch (Arthur)

Uses his Step to change posture from kneeling to standing. Rolls 3d6 twice against his effective Karate skill of 13 (-5 for Hit Location: Face) and gets 10 and 12 - two possible hits.

Arthur Green HP: 1
Rolls 3d6 twice, once against his effective Parry of 6 (-3 for Prone, -4 for Stun), once against his effective Dodge of "-3" (1/2 Dodge, -3 for Prone, -4 for Stun). He gets 11 and 10 respectively - he fails both defenses.

Zach Red HP: 14, FP: 5
Rolls 1d+1 for damage twice and gets totals of 4 and 5.

Arthur Green HP: -8, Shock: -4
4 points of crushing basic damage to the Face - 0 DR leaves 4 points of penetrating damage. Arthur's HP are reduced to -3 and he has a shock penalty of -4.

As this was a hit to the Face sufficient to cause a Shock penalty, Arthur must check for Knockdown and Stunning. He rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 9 - he suffers no penalty beyond ordinary Shock.

5 points of crushing basic damage to the Face - 0 DR leaves 5 points of penetrating damage. Arthur's HP are further reduced to -8 (his Shock penalty is already at the max -4).

As this was a hit to the Face sufficient to cause a Shock penalty, Arthur must check for Knockdown and Stunning. He rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 and gets 12 - he suffers Stun (he is already Prone).

TURN NINE

Arthur Green HP: -8
Maneuver: n/a

At the start of this turn Arthur rolls 3d6 against his HT of 10 to avoid falling unconscious from his wounds and fails with a 13 - he immediately collapses into unconsciousness.

At this point 'combat time' has ended, as Arthur is unable to defend himself - he can roll against his HT in one hour to see if he awakens (B423).

Since the combat did not last longer than 10 seconds, Zach does not lose any more Fatigue Points (B426).

Judo/Normal Clothing VS. Karate/Normal Clothing

Judo/Normal Clothing VS.
Karate/Normal Clothing