Tyler from the writing team here. In this update, I want to talk about what happens to your ENCORE characters when things don’t go just right, or when they decide to take things too far. I’m talking about fighting and Injuries!
This part of ENCORE is still in development and subject to change, but I wanted to give you all the details thus far so if you want to include it in any of your upcoming one shots, you can try out the rules!
Tussles & Getting Injured
When Old Timer characters get into fights during their escapades, these are called Tussles. Whether the Tussle is between two PCs or between PCs and NPCs, the rules are the same:
The Tussle is a contested Skill roll. Each side decides what skill they want to use and rolls for that, provided that it fits in the narrative context.
There is no DR set by the Administrator (the GM); instead, the highest total wins. Tussles can involve multiple back-and-forths, and depending on the situation, the winner can be declared after one contested skill roll or several (best of 3, best of 5, and so on).
When a side wins, they can decide to do damage to the losing side (some Tussles are only verbal arguments, which may not need to end in violence). If the winning side decides to do damage, this is a single d6 roll:
On a result of 1-2, the target takes a Minor Injury
On a result of 3-4, the target takes a Lasting Injury
On a result of 5-6, the target dies, takes a Wound (PCs), or is Incapacitated
The Tussles are meant to be quick, fluid, and even escalate out of hand quickly, to represent the Old Timers’ utilizing the skills they mastered in their previous lives, though they may not always have full control over them anymore.
Minor Injuries = -1 dice for the next Skill Roll in the current Scene.
Lasting Injuries = -1 dice for all Skill Rolls for the remainder of the Day. These injuries some sort of mark on the player or NPC.
Death/Incapacitation* = Depending on the tone of your table, NPCs can straight-up die when confronted by the Old Timers. The snotty barista did not know that the crotchedy old man asking to use the bathroom was a former assassin. Now they learn the hard way. However, if you want to limit the potential of snowballing carnage, you can have NPCs get Incapacitated rather than killed.
*Note: Old Timers (PCs) do not die as a result of a 5-6 result. They gain a Wound. If they gain a second Wound, they are Incapacitated.
Wound: -1 die to all rolls within a particular Attribute (Grit, Charm, Mobility, etc.) until the Old Timer can get healed up (downtime).
Old Timer Incapacitation: If an Old Timer takes 2 Wounds, they are knocked out of the Scene, the fight, and the game until they can be healed. Typically, Marblemont Estate Retirement Facility will send a strike team to extricate the downed Old Timer, bring them back to the Infirmary, and patch them up.
Injuries outside of Tussles
Typically, Old Timers can’t get too injured in their regular lives. They’re living with lingering maladies (in the form of Wrinkles) anyway, and unless they do something really reckless, they probably won’t get Injuries. However, it is highly possible that the Old Timers will be reckless. If the Old Timer is doing an activity or move that is considered reckless (Administrator’s discretion, but work with the PC on what they are attempting), and they critically fail the associated skill roll, you can give them a Minor or Lasting Injury depending on the narrative context. If they are parachuting and critically fail a roll to avoid a tree, they could get a Minor Injury from bonking a branch. If they jump out of a plane without a parachute or any other plan except relying on their cybernetic legs to save them, and they fail their roll, this could be a Lasting Injury, or even a Wound if you think the situation warrants it.
Overall, the rules for Injuries are meant to keep play streamlined, fun, and focusing on character moments and shenanigans rather than crunching numbers.
Let us Know what you Think!
As we continue development on ENCORE, we are guaranteed to tweak things here and there, and adjust elements of the game with more playtesting. With that said, we will keep you up to date through the Updates with any changes, additions/subtractions, etc. along the way. And we would love to hear your thoughts! If you try out ENCORE at your table, let us know what you think of the rules.
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