AI:L Combat
Initiative Phase
Commanders roll for initiative, rolling Intellect + Tactics, Intellect + Leadership, or Intellect + Deception, or Physique/Senses/Aether + Athletics/Awareness/Aether Channel.
The winner gains +1 Advantage, and another +1 for every 5 points they win initiative by, and can choose where they act in the initiative order. In a multi-sided combat, the winner gains +2 Advantage, and the runner up +1.
What the advantage can be spent on depends on what was rolled. Intellect + Tactics is Command Advantage, and can adds to Tactics rolls. Leadership allows the leader to transfer the advantage to any other unit as any kind of Advantage. Deception adds to further Command Initiative rolls. Rolling Physique or Senses means that the commander’s troops forfeit initiative, but the Commander can act independently in initiative order based on their roll, and gains personal combat advantage.
Once initiative is rolled, each side takes their full turn, with interrupts from the enemy as triggered or called.
Movement Phase
Units can move their base movement without penalty.
Units can dash by spending adrenaline (living), or making a pilot check (for vehicles), which allows them to take a second move. Dashing will automatically trigger a free overwatch attack from any unit in range and in an overwatch stance. Units with special movement actions, such as teleports, can take them instead of dashing.
Charging is a special kind of dash that ends in close combat range. It is conducted as a dash and ends with a melee attack, before entering the combat phase. A unit in overwatch will still get its overwatch attack against a charging unit, and a unit in guard will get a melee counter-attack.
Moving on roads will add bonus movement depending on road and unit type, so long as the unit stays on the road for its full move. Infantry gain +1 move, walkers gain +2, wheeled and hover units gain +3. This movement bonus also applies individually to each move action, such as a dash or charge.
Moving through difficult terrain may prevent a unit from dashing, and may also reduce its move. A move. If a unit’s move is reduced to zero by difficult terrain in can spend an adrenaline to move one hex, or it can move one hex and sacrifice its attack turn.
Attack Phase
Units can attack in any order in the attack phase. Attacking is made up of hit rolls, damage rolls, defense rolls, and casualty rolls. The first two rolls are made by the attacker, and the second two by the defender.
Accuracy Challenge to hit for ranged weapons is based on range. 5 for close, 10 for medium, 15 for long, 20 for extreme. Size modifiers can modify this when shooting at very small or very large targets. Units in cover add the value of their cover (1 – 10). Units taking defensive actions or in special stances can also add that to their AC.
If the attacker meets or exceeds the AC they hit. Every threshold of 5 over the AC adds an extra damage roll. For every hit the attacker rolls damage. The difficulty of the damage roll is based on the firepower of the attacker compared to the defender’s durability.
After damage is inflicted, the defender can make a defense roll if allowed. Defense rolls can be given by armour, cover, or other special abilities. Some defense rolls are cumulative, and will reduce the difficulty of the roll. They are generally independent of the kind of weapon being used, however some weapons will not allow certain defense rolls. A successful defense roll will either negate the attack, or may reduce its effects based on the conditions of the defense roll. If an attack hits, damages, and is not saved, the unit loses one or more points of strength.
A unit that loses a point of strength makes a casualty roll to see what state it is in. It may only be out of the fight briefly, or it may be completely annihilated. Casualty rolls are adjusted based on the attackers firepower.