The Continuum Weapons & Combat FAQ

The Continuum roleplaying game has been in existence for about five years now officially, and there are many elements of the game system that have aspects to them that make the players, and GMs, think a little bit. This Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) page is designed to answer some of the commonly asked questions about one of the more interesting Continuum game elements - Skills.

Weapons & Combat Frequently Asked Questions

I've noticed the fact that there are no Surprise rules in the game. Sometimes Time Combat will dictate who gets surprise (you Oracle where someone is going and span in on them). But what about ordinary surprise (especially in Physical Combat)? How is that handled?

As a rule of thumb, unless specific skills are involved, the best bet is to use Quick rolls with modifiers according to terrain and situation to determine surprise (with things like Sharp Reflexes helping out). The only way to not be surprised by a span-in attack would be to have Span Sense (or to make a victory or grace roll on one's Quick).

I would suggest giving the surpriser an action before the combat bout begins. If it were a case of surprise in an already occuring combat bout (like a held action being used by someone who is unseen or spanning in), I'd say the affected characters would continue, unless incapacitated, with their normal course of action (possibly with a negative modifier), unable to react to the new surprising element until thier next action. Surprisers would also get certain advantages against their opponents, like unchallenged attack rolls. A good way to beat that Master of Kung Fu would be to surprise him with something heavy spanning in above him.

For example: Joe acts on stage 1 and 2, on stage 1 he declares he's going to attack Bill. Mary, who's been hiding out of sight, and holding her action since last combat bout, decides to span over and thwack him with a brick. She does this, and since it's a surprise, Joe doesn't get to dodge out out of the way or do anything about it. Mary rolls (unchallenged) for a hit against an unmoving target, doesn't Blunder, and gives Joe a lump on his head. Joe still takes his shot at Bill, since he was already in motion to do this (we're talking about a 2-second window here), but with his newly acquired Impairment Points in effect. The now-in-pain Joe may do whatever he likes once stage 2 comes up.

Special thanks to Chris Adams, Dave Fooden, Barbara Manui, David Trimboli, and the folks on the Continuum Mailing List for their help in the compiling of this FAQ information.

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