Design Notes 1

Observation vs Per 1
Room Searching 2
Action: Bad & Act 2
Sound Intensity 2
Suppressors 3
One trait Absorption 3
Affliction 3
level costs 3
Area Effect “Area” 3
Spells 3
Flash 3
Energy Reserve 4
Extra Imbuements 4
Injuries 4
Hit Locations 4
GURPS Low Tech Armour 5
Motorcycle Armor - what's it good for? 5
Real Armour 6
Explosions 6
IED 6
Firearms 6
UT detailing per HT reality 6
Adjusting Damage 7
Bullet Size and Damage 7
Optional Wounding Rules 7
Minor wounds and healing 7
Body Hits 7
Limb Hits 8
Stopping the Bleeding 8
Groin Hits 8
“You Shot Me, Mister!” 8
Perks 8
Speed of Thought 8
Skills Categories 8
Errata 9
Staff Parry and injury 9
[Ultra-Tech] Value of Mitigator Limitation for Cybernetics 9
Guns Familiarity Modifier 9
Spaceships Power Plants 9
Friends Everywhere Variants 9
Official [Sean Punch] 9
Houserules 9
Room for Manoeuvre 10
Soldier Techniques 10
Useful Threads 11
basics for firearm training classes: 11
Maintenance level 11
Statting Yourself 11
Trademarks, Copyright & Permissions 12

Design Notes
Observation vs Per
When does a standard vision check become a observation skill check?
When the goal is to visually observe socially or tactically significant activities or objects without being seen to do
it, and to know enough about it that you can report to a subject-matter expert without loss of fidelity, as if he had
been there himself.
Perception: Hear somebody kicking in the door, see a black van parked outside, smell a gas leak, feel a small
tremor.
Observation: Watch guards moving around and gain some idea of their weapons, training, and rotation without
them ever realizing that you're keeping an eye on them.
Room Searching
Rooms are so big that you need separate skills for different things (on top of basic Perception for things sitting
out in the open):
 Architecture for hidden features of the room itself.
 Carpentry to notice something odd with the woodwork.
 Criminology to find macroscopic evidence left behind by a criminal.
 Electrician to spot something strange about the lights or wiring.
 Forensics to discover traces of blood, explosives, fibers, etc.
 Masonry to identify unusual stonework.
 Observation to "case the joint."
 Tracking to pick up on footprints on the floor.
 Traps for traps and secret doors.
 Housekeeping or Artist (Interior Decorating) for Spotting an out of place item.
These do overlap some, of course. The GM could allow a single Detective! roll for all of it, I suppose, but as that
skill implies, this would be cinematic. Real detectives ask forensic scientists, firemen, the locksmith, etc. to take
a look for a good reason. A detective might have Criminology and Observation, and maybe Tracking (if he
works outdoors a lot) or Forensics (if he works in a lab some of the time). He would have Search, but for patting
down suspects, not for poking in cupboards. They're not really closely related.
Action: Bad & Act
How it works.
Fact-Finding. ACT stands for "Accumulated Complementary Total" because it's the sum of all complementary
skill roll modifiers (+2 for critical success, +1 for success, -1 for failure, -2 for critical failure) generated by
rolls to gather information about the next act in the story. Any roll that leads to a clue about that act (true or
false!) contributes. Research, hacking, interrogation, wiretaps, you name it . . . the only restriction is that
success with the skill involved could plausibly yield a fact.
Analysis. Clues must be analyzed by making the roll under The Big Picture. That roll is at a bonus equal to
ACT and a penalty equal to not BAD per se but some multiple of BAD set by the GM: BAD, 1.5×BAD,
2×BAD, or whatever. Critical success reveals what's going on and allows planning at +2; success allows
planning at no bonus; failure allows no planning and means the group must gain at least another +1 to
ACT to try analysis again; and critical failure works like failure, plus the group is sidelined into kicking down
the wrong door, fighting the wrong people, etc.
Permission. In some campaigns, there's an AR here that has the same modifiers as the analysis roll. Success
means the group is cleared to go on to the next step. Failure means they aren't. Where this AR replaces
the analysis roll, assume the patron organization does the analysis once it gets enough clues from the
PCs.)
Planning. Successful analysis allows the planning roll under The Mission Plan. This is also at a bonus equal to
ACT and a penalty equal to a multiple of BAD set by the GM, but now there's a possible +2 for critical
success at analysis and potential bonuses for complementary skill rolls against planning skills. Succeed or
fail, this roll allows the group to tackle the next act . . .
Execution. All rolls made in the field are subject to BAD for this act, but the planning roll acts as a
complementary skill roll to all of these rolls, effectively adjusting BAD.
In other words, ACT never directly cancels BAD in the field. ACT cancels BAD-related penalties to rolls for
analysis, permission, and planning. Success pays forward to the next step as a complementary bonus: good
fact-finding makes analysis easier, good analysis makes planning easier, and good planning makes field tasks
easier. Thus, the maximum offset to BAD for field tasks is +2, when the planning roll critically succeeds. ACT is
not a general way to make field tasks easier.

I think what's confusing is that BAD is used in two different ways: as the basis for penalties to analysis and
planning, and as a direct penalty to field tasks. ACT is only directly relevant to the first of these.
Sound Intensity
Sound level Example Range
(decibels) (yards)
1 Breathing 1/8 (1)
10 Whispered word, leaves rustling 1/4 (2)
20 Whispered/ quiet conversation 1/2 (4)
30 Normal conversation 1 (8)
40 Hooves, running, beating wings, light traffic 2 (16)
50 Hydrojet, loud conversation, loud conversation 4 (32)
60 Turbine or nuclear engine, noisy office 8 (64)
70 Steam or internal combustion engine, normal traffic 16 (128)
80 Screw or paddle wheel, "quiet" rock band 32 (256)
90 Rotors, aerial propellers, thunder, heavy traffic 64 (512)
100 Artillery fire, jet plane at takeoff 128 (1024)
110 Jet engine, very loud rock band 256 (2048)
 120 Rocket engine, Metallica at 50 yards 512 (4096)
+10 x2
Each level of Parabolic Hearing either doubles the range at which a sound can be heard (move 1 line down) or
reduces the level of sound that can be heard at a given distance by 10 decibels (move up 1 line).
The number in parentheses on the table is the maximum range at which the sound can be heard but its location
and origin not clearly distinguished.
Sound baffling on a vehicle will subtract (TL-4) x 10 decibels if basic, or TL x 10 if radical from its engine or
propeller noise.
Underwater
A sound with the same “loudness” is 62 dB higher underwater than in air, because of the difference in sound
transmission characteristics – subtract 62 dB from an underwater intensity to determine its equivalent intensity
in air. Underwater sound levels above 180 dB can cause tissue damage in marine creatures, rupturing
membranes surrounding lungs or swim bladders. Low frequency sound of this intensity can also trigger the
formation of gas bubbles in the bloodstream of deep-diving animals such as whales and tuna (or deep scuba
divers), producing the effects of severe bends, including strokes and death.
Suppressors
Apply +1 to Hearing per range step by which the listener is closer to the sound source,
-1 per step by which he’s more distant. For distances between two lines on the table, use the higher of the two.
A suppressor adds a further penalty.
Example: A Walther PPK (a light pistol) is audible on an unmodified Hearing roll at 256 yards. At 300 yards, the
roll is at -1. With a suppressor that gives -2 to Hearing, the roll is at -3.
The listener’s location also matters. It’s harder to hear a gunshot outside a cone in front of the gun’s muzzle.
Individuals located behind or far off to the side of the muzzle have -1 to Hearing. The GM may apply other
modifiers, eg
 Background noise: -5 for busy street; -6 for blaring TV set; -10 for fireworks
 Intervening terrain: +1 for bare concrete (reflects sound); -1 to -3 for heavy vegetation (muffles sound)
 Listener distracted: -2 or -3 (see p. B548, eg all clothes on fire = -3)
 Listener unfamiliar with firearms (no points in Guns): -4
 Listener wearing winter clothing over ears: -1 to -3
 Shot fired through pillow: -1
One trait Absorption
More kludging ahead: If you want to use a quasi-open-ended model, the simplest control is to assume that the
absorbing character can't absorb more points than he has in his starting DR ability (before adding absorbed
points to it, if applicable!). So if he has DR 10 (Absorption, One Trait, +80%) [90], he can absorb up to 10 points
per turn and immediately "spend" them out of his battery. Once he hits 90 points, though, he's done. At that
point, his 90-point investment effectively got him DR 10 (worth 50 points on its own) plus a temporary 90-point
boost, for a total of 140 points worth of benefits. That seems fair. And it isn't in Powers, dammit. >_<
Kromm, April 2005.
Affliction
level costs
There are so many ways to "fix" it, I'm not sure which is best. Part of me likes 10 + 3/level and simply taking the
penalty off recovery rolls.
Part of me thinks that maybe we should just define a per-die cost, as with Innate Attack, and require the
Affliction roll to exceed DR and cause a HT roll at -1 per 2 points penetrating, as with Side Effect. That way,
Affliction 1d would work against unarmoured normals, Affliction 10d would be enough to zap most humans with
HT 1-20, and you could go nuts with Affliction 10d(10) or 100d or whatever to stun guys in battlesuits. And of
course the countless places where the rules get all complicated and have to approximate Affliction levels with
damage dice would go away. And Absorption could work vs. Affliction.
But the latter would likely be full of puzzles, too, starting with "What's a fair cost per die?"
Kromm, Oct 2010
Area Effect “Area”
Number of hexes within an area: 3r^2-3r+1.
Area Hexes Area Hexes Area Hexes Area Hexes Area Hexes Area Hexes
1 1 4 37 7 127 10 271 13 469 16 721
2 7 5 61 8 169 11 331 14 547 17 817
3 19 6 91 9 217 12 397 15 631 18 919
Spells
Flash
Regular
Creates a brilliant flash of light. This may affect anyone who's facing the flash or its reflection with his eyes open
(GM's decision, if not using a battle map). The caster himself is unaffected if he closes his eyes as he casts the
spell. Others must make a HT roll – including the caster's allies, unless he shouts a warning (which others may
hear!) or they can see him and have Absolute Timing.
Modifiers: Any bonus for eye protection or Protected Vision; -3 within 10 yards, no modifier at 11-25 yards, or +3
at 26+ yards (like an Affliction beyond 1/2D range); if the flash is reflected, use the total distance to and from
whatever it bounced off, and add +3 if that's something like light-coloured walls or foliage rather than an actual
mirror such as ice, metal armour, or water.
Failure means a DX penalty (also reduces all DX-based skills) equal to margin of failure, lasting for 1 minute.
Treat failure by 10+, or any critical failure, as blindness instead.
Cost: 4.
Time to cast: 2 seconds.
Prerequisite: Continual Light.
Kromm, Sept 2009
Energy Reserve
New enhancement: Triggered recharge
One action, substance, or circumstance quickly recharges this energy reserve. The enhancement value
depends on how fast you can invoke this triggered recharge, and how easy and convenient it is to fulfill the
conditions: +300% if the whole energy reserve recharges when the condition is met, +60% if you're limited to 1
point per second, +30% if you're limited to 1 point per minute, and +10% if you're limited to 1 point per 10
minutes. Multiply the enhancement value by 2 if the trigger is very common, by 1.5 if the trigger is common, by
1 if the trigger is occasional, and by 0.5 if it's rare (use the same categories as Trigger). If the trigger is not
consumed, double the enhancement value.
Examples
 A priest of love who can recharge one ER per kiss, only one kiss per person per day counts.
Assume he takes 1 minute per kiss (no having a line of people and shotgun-kissing them, only kisses
"with feeling" count). The trigger condition is Very Common, but since you're limited to 1 point per day
per person kissed, it counts as consumable, for a total of +60%. Coupled with Special Recharge, if this
is the only way to recharge then this nets him a total modifier of -10%.
 A priest that must pray in a very high sanctity temple of his deity. 
He gets 1 point per minute of prayer, and the trigger is rare, but not consumed. He pays +30% for this
extra recharge.
 A mage who has the ability to fully refill his ER by drinking a pint of dragonblood. Since dragons are
unlikely to become blood donors for greedy mages, this is a rare condition, consumable, that fully refills
the ER, and thus costs +150%
Extra Imbuements
Armor and Shield Imbuements in Perfect Defense, from Pyramid #3/4: Magic on the Battlefield? Also, there
are 3 new Imbuement Skills in Pyramid #3/13: Thaumatology, two under The Mystic Knight, and one
under Odds and Ends. For mixing psionics and Imbuements, there are rules for doing so in Pyramid #3/12:
Tech and Toys. try "words of power" from thaumatology.

Injuries
Kromm post: http://forums.sjgames.com/showpost.php?p=1903862&postcount=12
"Just HP loss" without any of bleeding (which can kill in minutes; p. B420), lasting or permanent injury (to the
neck, skull, veins/arteries, or vitals; Martial Arts, p. 128), crippling (which takes 1d months, minimum a month,
to get better . . . if it ever does; pp. B420-423), dismemberment (which never gets better; p. B421), or a mortal
wound (p. B423) is the GURPS equivalent of "stun" or "stress" in other game systems. It gets better quickly
because it's closer to bruising or long-term fatigue than anything else. GURPS assesses nastier injury through
qualitative effects at HP thresholds – bleeding leads to ongoing and likely fatal HP loss proportional to the
wound, while lasting, crippling, dismembering, and mortal wounds inflict disadvantages, attribute penalties, and
so on for months or forever. Infection (p. B444) can also last a long time and prove fatal.
If the "just HP loss" angle bugs you, the solution probably isn't to tinker with healing times but to add new Bad
Things that happen at injury over some threshold ranging between HP/10 and full HP, depending on the body
part and the damage type. For instance, you could treat any torso injury over HP/2 from an impaling weapon as
having the lasting effects of major wounds to the vitals, and you could have crushing wounds over full HP lead
to internal bleeding. The HP might get better, but there would be lingering disadvantage effects. Similarly, you
could penalize various HT rolls for bleeding, infection, etc. more severely for some injuries.
The important takeaway message is that HP are largely a quantitative rating of how much general battery the
body can sustain if nothing worse happens to produce lasting or permanent bad qualitative effects. They're
supposed to come back moderately quickly, but then "low on HP" isn't supposed to be a particularly serious
injury effect in its own right until you hit the -HP threshold.

Hit Locations
Hit location penalties consider three factors:

1. Target size. How large or small the body part is -- in essence, its Size Modifier. (On bigger or smaller foes,
overall SM accounts for changes in the size of body parts; e.g., since an SM +2 giant is attacked at +2 no
matter where you hit him, his hands and head are effectively larger by +2.)

2. Target mobility. The body part's potential range of movement, speed of movement, and likely movements in a
combat situation. (This isn't treated as a Dodge bonus simply because a body part moving unpredictably is still
a hard target for, say, a surprise attack where no defense is allowed. An entire man running in a straight line
isn't, really.)

3. Target attitude. How the body part is normally offered in combat. This accounts for whether it's presented or
denied by combat stances, often behind other body parts or a shield, above or below the usual line of attack for
an equal-sized foe, etc. (Incidentally, this explains why the feet of a higher fighter or head of a lower fighter are
struck at a bonus, despite the body part not changing size!)

A helmed head, for instance, isn't all that small; it's between 8" and 1' across (SM -5) and basically spherical (+2
to SM, for a net -3 for size). However, it's highly mobile (-1): it twists around on a neck constantly in a fight, and
it's maximally displaced from the center of mass, meaning its potential range of movement is exceptionally high.
It's also generally denied (-1): no tried-and-true combat stance leads with the jaw; moreover, against another
man, it's above the median line of attack. This gives -5.

A gloved hand is over 5" across (SM -6) and basically spherical (+2 to SM, for a net -4 for size) when balled into
a fist for punching or around a weapon grip. It, too, is highly mobile (-1): it whizzes around striking and parrying,
and is highly displaced from the center of mass. However, it is most commonly presented (+1), since all that
striking and parrying is a tad difficult otherwise -- and if it's able to defend, then it has a high probability of being
right on the median line of attack. This gives -4. The same hand behind a shield has the full -6 for size, as it isn't
balled up into a sphere, and is mobile (-1) and denied (-1), which gives -8.

A weapon arm, shoulder to wrist, is about a yard long (SM -2), long and skinny (no SM adjustment), mobile (-1),
and presented (+1). That's -2.

A shield arm, shoulder to wrist, is also about a yard long (SM -2), mobile (-1), and denied (-1). That's -4.

And so on. A few body parts might not quite make sense in these terms if you don't agree with my assessments
of mobility and attitude, or whether the SM ought to assume a stick (0), elongated box (+1), or sphere (+2), but I
think you can see how it works.

GURPS Low Tech Armour

Scale, Light DR3/2(cr) 16lbs.
Scale, Medium DR4/3(cr) 24lbs.
Scale, Heavy DR5 32lbs.
Segmented Plate, Light DR3 12lbs
Segmented Plate, Medium DR4 18lbs
Segmented Plate, Heavy DR5 24lbs
Also Mail and Plates should be about $1400
Last edited by DanHoward; 01-25-2011 at 11:56 AM.
Optimisation?
Copper is considered cheap armour(-1DR), yet has full price, it was used at early TL1, At TL2+, iron is a better
choice.
Munitions grade heavy mail has DR4/2, medium plate DR5, if you want to cover your body with one of these, it
would weigh between 50 and 60 pounds, a warrior with ST12-13 is in light encumbrance, the cost of heavy mail
would be $1500, and medium plate $3k, the mail is very good for a TL3 warrior with comfortable wealth, the
plate is a very good option for a TL4 warrior (since starting wealth of TL4 is $2k).
A TL3 warrior could combine a cheap thrusting broadsword($240), a large knife($40) and a shield($70), and
$150 for basic equipment.
A TL4 warrior instead could get a duelling halberd ($120), a shortsword ($400), and $480 for firearms and basic
equipment. You should remember also, that even though plate in small pieces is available at TL2, it wasn't used
in a wide scale, exception-helmets.
Also remember that there isn't just Light Plate (DR3, 8lbs), Medium Plate (DR6, 20lbs) and Heavy Plate (DR9,
32lbs), there is anything between these 3, like Medium-Light (DR5, 16lbs) or Medium Heavy (DR7, 24lbs), the
basic rule is +1DR,+4lbs,+$500, segmented plate (+1DR, +6lbs,+$300) and brigandine (+1DR, +5lbs, +$450)
follow the same principle.
Motorcycle Armor - what's it good for?
http://forums.sjgames.com/showpost.php?p=1767213&postcount=19
Corrosion with a crummy armor divisor. "Skid along the ground" damage is going to be in the realm of (speed in
mph)/20 dice of corrosion damage with a divisor of (0.2), multiplying any DR by 5 and explaining why "any DR"
is better than "no DR." The DR won't do nearly that much vs. the initial collision with the street, of course. And
yes, the corrosion will deplete the DR, despite being kind of lousy at penetrating it.
Real Armour
NIJ Proof Dam ≈DR
I .22 LR and .38 Special D+2 to 2d+1 8
IIA 9x19mm from a pistol or .357 Magnum 2d+2 to 3d+1 10
II 9x19mm from a SMG or .357 Magnum 3d-1 to 3d+1 12
IIIA 9x19mm from a SMG or .44 Magnum 3d-1 to 4d+1 15
III 7.62x51 7d 25
III+ 30
IV 7.62x51 AP 5d(2) 35

Explosions
Extrudable explosive is squirted into gaps like caulk, while foam explosive is injected from a pressurized
dispenser; both measures are expressly to ensure that the blast is "contained" for maximum effect. As for det-
cord and cutting cord, careful wrapping is considered just as good for this effect. All of these examples are
expressly cases of skilful application of demolition explosives out of combat by somebody using Explosives
(Demolition).
At any rate, do note the progression:
 At distance: Damage is ×1, divided by (10 × distance in yards) in vacuum, (3 × distance in yards) in air, (2 ×
distance in yards) for FAE in air, or (distance in yards) in water. Use this for distant combat explosions.
 At touch on exterior: Damage is ×1. Use this for direct hits in combat.
 Tamped or shaped on exterior (High-Tech, pp. 182-183): Halves explosive weight needed. Effectively,
damage is ×1.4. Use this for most demolition.
 Fully contained on exterior (B415): Maximum damage. Effectively, damage is ×1.7. Use this for demolition
where explosive is in gap or applied over full surface of object.
 Internal (B415): Wounding, and effectively damage, is ×3. Use this for explosive bullets in flesh, cyberpunk
brain-bombs, etc.
Kromm, 13 July 2010.
 Confined space, HT181, x2 damage (unless there are doors/ windows that will blow out, then x1.5)
IED
It all depends on what you mean by "bomb."
If you mean "an explosive surprise used for assassination, sabotage, terror, etc.,"
then use Explosives (Demolition) to assemble existing parts – explosives, detonators, triggers, and so forth –
into a bomb. If the bomb in question is a trap, learn the technique Set Trap (B233) to improve your odds.
If you're short on prefabricated parts,
then you may need Chemistry to cook explosives, Electronics Repair (Communications) to rig a cell-phone
trigger, Explosives (Fireworks) to fabricate primers, Machinist to turn out a fragmentation sheath, etc. Don't go
nuts with these rolls . . . they're only needed when you don't have bulk explosive, blasting caps, bunches of
nails, and the like on hand.
If you mean "a packaged explosive device for delivery by aircraft,"
then use Engineer (Artillery) to plan the prototype and Armoury (Heavy Weapons) to assemble the parts into a
working munition. The parts themselves, should it matter, will be made by craftsmen with skills like Electrician,
Electronics Repair, Explosives, and Machinist. Again, it's important not to go nuts with the rolls.
And if you really just mean "a hasty grenade trap,"
Soldier or Traps will suffice, because you're not working with explosives directly, but using a prepackaged round
of ammunition in a novel way. You'd no more need Engineer (Artillery) and Explosives (Demolition) for this than
you'd need Armoury (Small Arms) and Engineer (Small Arms) to shoot bullets; the skill for that is called "Guns."
In all cases, there may well be familiarity issues.
It would be reasonable to give a civilian demolition expert -2 to Explosives (Demolition) when creating an IED, a
weapons engineer -2 to Engineer (Artillery) if he customarily designs howitzers rather than bombs, and a
commando -2 if he's only ever thrown his grenades before now.
Kromm, September 2011.

Firearms
A rough estimate, for gaming:
 Muzzle Energy x 4 gives
 Muzzle Velocity x 2 (mv equates to me^0.5)
 Damage x 2.05 (ME^0.52)
 1/2D range x 1.4 (velocity increase ^ 0.5)
 Max Range x 2 (mv increase = range increase)
 Acc +1* (treat this as per Match Grade loads and only add an increase if the original weapon is Acc 4+)
UT detailing per HT reality
Take the guns in UT and vary them with every gunsmithing option you can find in Tactical Shooting. Particularly
bullpup conversion, shortening a longarm, weight reduction, and the various levels of Fine and Very Fine for
both Accuracy and Reliability, as well as Presentation quality. Call Cheap (Unreliable) -2 to HT and -1 to Malf,
for 85% of list price, and Cheap (Inaccurate) 65% of list price for -1 to Acc.
Adjusting Damage
1. Multiply damage dice by 3.5, retaining fractions, and add the damage bonus or penalty.
2. Apply the multiplier for the chosen option to the result. If using more than one option, apply their multipliers in
succession (e.g., ¥1.1 and ¥1.3 would multiply damage by 1.1 ¥ 1.3 = 1.43) – don’t add them together as you
would enhancements and limitations (B101).
3. Divide the result by 3.5, retaining fractions.
Result less than 1.0.
• Convert as follows: 0.01-0.15 = 1d-6, 0.16-0.32 = 1d-5; 0.33-0.42 = 1d-4; 0.43-0.56 = 1d-3; 0.57-0.75 = 1d-
2; 0.76-0.95 = 1d-1; and 0.96+ = 1d. High Tech pg166; NB these differ from Basic pg371 but are used in
Spaceships.
Result between 1.0 and 12.0.
• Take the whole number as the dice of damage and then add a bonus based on the fractional remainder: up
to 0.14 gives no bonus; 0.15-0.42 gives +1; 0.43-0.64 gives +2; 0.65-0.85 gives +1d-1 (that is, round up to
the next full die and apply a -1 penalty); and 0.86 or greater rounds up to the next full die.
Result greater than 12.0.
• Divide the result by 6 and round to the nearest whole number, n. List damage as 6d¥n. Multiples of 6d give
the most statistically pleasing results, but you can also use multiples of 4d to 8d.
Bullet Size and Damage
The greater a bullet’s actual diameter (not its nominal calibre!), the more tissue damage it does. Diameter
therefore determines damage type. As usual, this affects wounding, not penetration – see Damage (B268) and
Damage and Injury.
 Under 4mm (under .16 calibre): Damage type is small piercing (pi-).
 4mm to 7.99mm (.16 to .31 calibre): At low velocities (pistol cartridges or black-powder weapons), damage
type is small piercing (pi-); this models the behaviour of rounds like the .32 ACP (which fires a 7.95mm
bullet), .25 ACP, and .22 LR.
 For bullets of this calibre fired from high-velocity weapons (such as most centre-fire rifles), damage type is
piercing (pi).
 8mm to 9.99mm (.32 to .39 calibre): Damage type is piercing (pi). This is the default – there’s no size
modifier for bullet damage.
 10mm to 14.99mm (.40 to .59 calibre): Damage type is large piercing (pi+).
 15mm and over (.60 calibre and over): Damage type is huge piercing (pi++).
Optional Wounding Rules
Those seeking brutal realism in the aftermath of gunplay may find these optional injury rules useful. See
GURPS Martial Arts for related options.
Minor wounds and healing
Missing HP indicate that you are still experiencing the effects of blood loss and/or a shock to the system
(generating toxins, clots, etc.), and that the effects are sufficient to strain your vital organs. Once you have had
enough time to replace the blood, detoxify, and generally get your system back inside its normal operating
parameters, you are no longer missing HP. You may well still have soreness, bruises, scrapes, scabs, and even
small holes in you . . . but those are symptoms of having recently lost HP, not indicators that you're presently
missing HP. Things like broken bones and organ damage require some basic HP of injury to cause them, but
persist in a manner unrelated to HP, and can go on being a problem for some time after you've fully recovered
HP; see pB422 and Martial Arts, pp138-139.
A good way to look at things: FP represent short-term winding and lost capacity for work, recovering in minutes
to hours; HP represent medium-term blood loss and tissue toxicity, recovering in days to weeks; and the results
on pB422 and on pp138-139 of Martial Arts represent long-term structural damage, recovering in months to
never. Sufficient FP loss will cause HP loss, and sufficient HP loss will cause long-term structural effects, but
while these severe knock-on effects can outlast the short-term spikes of fatigue or injury that triggered them,
they don't in themselves stand for missing FP or HP, respectively.

Body Hits
People shot in the torso don’t usually die instantly – they pass out and gradually bleed to death, unless they
receive medical assistance. However, the “torso” hit location encompasses the entire torso, including the “vitals”
contained within; things like the heart, lungs, kidneys, and several major blood vessels. Occasionally, then, a
torso hit could mean instant or near-instant death. Whenever an attack that inflicts impaling, piercing, or tight-
beam burning damage hits the torso, roll 1d. On a 1, it actually strikes the vitals, with the effects stated on p.
B399. On a 2-6, injury can’t exceed the target’s HP. Any excess is lost but still counts when determining the HT
penalty for bleeding rolls. Do the same for a groin wound – but don’t bother checking for a vitals hit! Over-
penetration (B408) is unaffected. A body used as cover blocks as much damage as it has HP. Example:
Assassin Luís “El Chacal” Morales has no clear shot at El Presidente, so he opts to shoot through the
bodyguard who’s shielding his target. Luís hits the torso and does 23 points of damage to the bodyguard, who
has HT 11 and 11 HP. He rolls 1d for a vitals hit but doesn’t get a 1. The bodyguard suffers 11 HP of injury and
goes to 0 HP. He must roll against HT 11 to stay conscious. After a minute, he starts making HT rolls at -4 to
avoid further HP loss to bleeding. The entire penetrating damage of 23 points determines the penalty, not just
his 11-HP wound. In either case, the bullet exits his body with enough energy to inflict 23 - 11 = 12 points of
damage to El Presidente, behind him.
Limb Hits
While an attack that’s neither cutting nor explosive can dismember (B421), the injury threshold is realistically
much higher. Notably, bullets are more likely to pass through a limb or an extremity than to blow it off.
Optionally, a body part is automatically permanently crippled (B422) if it suffers at least twice the injury needed
to cripple it – but impaling, piercing, and tight-beam burning attacks must inflict twice that amount to sever the
body part.
Fractio Cripple Cut or Exp = Sever TgtBmBurn, or
n @10hp Other = Perm Cripple Imp or Pi = Sever
Limb >hp/2 6 12 24
Ext >hp/3 4 8 16
Eye >hp/10 2 4 8
Stopping the Bleeding
Severe bleeding can be difficult to stop. Make bleeding rolls for skull, eye, neck, or vitals injuries every 30
seconds. The usual -1 per 5 HP of injury applies, but add a further -2 for the neck or -4 for the vitals. Apply the
same total penalty – for wound size and wound location – to First Aid rolls for bandaging (B424). If the bleeding
is from the skull, eye, neck, or vitals, make a Surgery roll at the same penalties; First Aid won’t suffice.
Groin Hits
the gonads have the same visceral nerves and pain receptors that the vitals have. This holds true for females
as well as males - a woman's ovaries have comparable sensitivity as a man's testes.
The primary difference is that the male groin has all these nerve endings highly concentrated in one easily-
targeted area.
I don't have my book with me at the moment, but if there is a pain reaction for being hit in the vitals, then a groin
hit on a male should probably be comparable to that. It's the same category of nervous system sensitivity.
For a female, the ovarian nerve endings are probably tucked away far enough inside the abdomen to just
qualify as normal Vitals, in terms of target area.
“You Shot Me, Mister!”
Getting wounded is a traumatic experience for body and mind! The GM might require those who receive a
serious wound (any torso or head injury of 4+ HP) to roll a Fright Check (B360) on the following turn. Loss of a
limb, or a wound that breaks a bone, spurts lots of blood, etc., should give -4 or worse. Combat Reflexes helps,
as always. The GM may give a bonus to PCs with experience around severe injuries – emergency medical
personnel, veteran soldiers, etc. – if their skills match their background.

Perks
Speed of Thought
Basic Speed = (DX + IQ)/4 for combat sequence purposes only (not for Basic Move or Dodge)
http://forums.sjgames.com/showpost.php?p=710715&postcount=18

Skills Categories
Skill Group: At the top level, combat skills fall into large groups like "all melee weapons" or "all ranged
weapons." Some such groups have formal names – like Melee Weapon – but these don't designate skills
per se that you can buy directly. They're used only to draw rules distinctions. For instance, Melee Weapon
skills grant a parry, while ranged weapons take range modifiers. See Grouped Skills (B169).
Skill Category: Some of the above groups have smaller divisions. For Melee Weapon, these are things like
"fencing weapons" and "flails." For ranged weapons, these are "missile weapons" and "thrown weapons."
Again, you cannot buy these directly. They exist only to further refine rules distinctions. For example,
fencing weapons have special rules for parries, retreats, and encumbrance; flails are hard to defend
against; missile weapons stay in your hand and shoot separate ammunition; and thrown weapons are
bodily launched.
Skill: Within groups and categories are the specific skills you actually buy. Fencing skills are Main-Gauche,
Rapier, Saber, and Smallsword; flail skills are Flail and Two-Handed Flail; missile skills are Bow,
Crossbow, Gunner, Guns, and many others; and thrown weapon skills are Bolas, Throwing, Thrown
Weapon, and so forth. Each one must be bought separately!
Required Specialty: Some skills have further divisions within them. While these share the name of the "master
skill," you have to buy each speciality as if it were its own skill. For instance, Guns (Pistol) and Guns (Rifle)
are two distinct skills, despite both being Guns; likewise, Thrown Weapon (Shuriken) and Thrown Weapon
(Spear) are different skills, despite both being Thrown Weapon. Note that not all skills have specialties!
See Specialties (pp. B169-170).
Familiarity: Where a skill or a required specialty of a skill covers lots and lots of different makes and models, the
GM may opt to declare that nobody has used all the different kinds, so there's a penalty to fight with a new
kind until you've practiced with it. Under Guns (Pistol), for instance, a Colt Government, .45 ACP, a Glock
 21, .45 ACP, and a Ruger Super Redhawk, .454 Casull are mutually unfamiliar. This can apply to skills in
the Melee Weapon group! A Roman gladius, Japanese wakizashi, and the largest katars from India, while
all Shortsword weapons, would be mutually unfamiliar. See Familiarity (B169).
Kromm, June 15th 2010

Errata
Staff Parry and injury
Any staff parry that only succeeds because of the weapon's Parry bonus (e.g., a roll of 11-12 against a staff
Parry of 12 that would be just 10 without the +2 for the staff) counts as a successful parry but endangers the
hand. Roll the usual damage for the incoming attack, halve it, and apply the result to a randomly chosen hand.
Glove DR protects normally. It's probably a decent "harsh realism" rule for those really into gaming out staff
fighting. Observant readers will note that it's basically the same rule used to see whether a shield deflects or
simply absorbs an attack.
[Ultra-Tech] Value of Mitigator Limitation for Cybernetics
Mitigator is worth -70% here because monthly "treatments" are needed, which happen to take the form of
monthly Maintenance. It isn't worth only -60% like a Mitigator that's easily stolen, broken, or misplaced because
cyberwear is less vulnerable to damage than most Mitigators. Electrical is a minor weakness next to the way
that pills, glasses, etc., are easily lost, stolen, and crushed. Unhealing is true for any inanimate Mitigator, and
not a special drawback here. Thus, all of these aspects were considered in the valuation of Mitigator.

Cyberwear that doesn't need monthly Maintenance, isn't Electrical, or is capable of self-repair and thus not
Unhealing would be a Mitigator worth -80%. If it has two of these benefits, it would be a Mitigator worth -90%. If
it had all three, it would be as good as the thing it replaces and simply get rid of the disadvantage altogether.
Guns Familiarity Modifier
If it's penalty size that's the issue, cut the -2 per category to -1, so that unfamiliarity ranges from -1 to -3 instead
of from -2 to -6. That way, it'll average -2, as for almost every other skill, and common penalties will be -1 and
no longer worse than default penalties for different weapon types altogether. Thinking about it more, I'd even
support calling this errata. Kromm.
Spaceships Power Plants
Fuel Cells and MHDs are overrated by a huge factor:
 Closed-system Fuel Cells, CFCs, gives 0.1ep for 18hrs;
 Closed MHD gives 0.2ep for 16hrs.
 Open-system Fuel Cells give 1ep but needs ½ fuel tank systems per hour;
 Open MHD gives 3ep but needs 2½ fuel tank systems per hour.
NB: 1ep is 2mw/ton.

Friends Everywhere Variants

Official [Sean Punch]
Serendipity (Social, -20%) [12]. This works once per game session and expressly relies on GM judgment. It's
also totally spontaneous, requiring no fussy game mechanics, just a statement of intent. NB: there's no special
limit on the duration of the coincidences; if you use it to find "a sports car idling in front of the bank," then you
can drive that car until you decide to return it to its rightful owner; if "the mechanic at the local garage has all the
parts you need to complete your ultra-tech contragrav belt." then the belt works indefinitely. The trait write-up
even offers one other example that's germane: "one of the guards you need to talk your way past just happens
to be your cousin."
Houserules
Friends Everywhere: +50%. For Allies and Contacts. A well travelled character knows people everywhere. Such
Allies and Contacts may show up for an adventure or session and never be seen again only to be replaced by a
new NPC in subsequent sessions. If the Frequency of Appearance roll indicates that an Friend Everywhere
shows up the GM should make a new NPC. The player may choose to purchase this character as a regular Ally
or Contact with earned experience or let him go.
The Lads: A very large, motley collection of old school friends, work colleagues and drinking buddies who are
blue collar workers. They can loan construction machinery, repair common devices, provide technical advice or
simply look menacing. If nobody can provide what you want, maybe someone else with a different job can help
in a different way. Contact (Blue Collar Workers 9; Institution; Everywhere; Constantly (no roll); Unlimited Use;
Minor Authority; Somewhat Reliable) [40]
This needs explanation.
 Skills names dropped and capability is described in terms of departments, organisation and resources.
In this case, whatever blue collar workers can do. 'Institution' quantifies the very large breadth covered
by this. Skill level 9 means a small chance in such a broad range of getting exactly what you want.
 'Constantly' as the entire group can't become unavailable, you merely may not know someone with
exactly what you want.
  'Unlimited Use' means no -2 per subsequent use as each request means a different person is doing it. If
you don't know a telephone engineer with a cherry picker, maybe you know someone who can cause a
traffic jam as he repaints the road markings.
 'Minor Authority' means something that's not meant to be publicly available but is so widely abused, few
in authority are bothered. Such as needlessly working on a telephone line for hours.
A guy in the CIA could be similar to the following.
FBI: Friends in a national police force with more powers and resources than found in local forces. This is
suitable for modern campaigns based in the US. Contact (FBI 18; Important Department; Everywhere; Quite
Often (9 or less); Full Authority; Somewhat Reliable) [30]

Contact Group [cost undefined] You are a federal law-enforcement agent, entitled to information and
reasonable assistance from every law enforcement agency in the USA.
It's not so much a matter of serendipitously stumbling on chance help in a statistically unlikely way. The issue is
that some characters have informal or even formal contacts with organisations that systematically span more
than just one town. (Brett, July 2011)

Room for Manoeuvre

All-Out (*) is a reasonable expansion. The bonus depends on what * is. As a general rule:
+1 for feats based on IQ, Will, or Per. For this purpose, treat ranged attacks as an application of
Per. Examples: The +1 that All-Out Concentrate grants psi use (Psionic Powers, p. 11); the +1 to hit that
All-Out Attack grants ranged attacks (B365).
+2 for defenses or resistance rolls, or feats of ST or HT. Examples: The +2 that All-Out Defense gives regular
(B366) or mental (Psionic Powers, p. 11) defenses; the +2 that All-Out Attack gives to use ST offensively
or to break free in close combat (Martial Arts, p. 114).
+4 for feats of pure agility based on DX. Examples: The +4 to hit that All-Out Attack grants melee attacks
(B365) and DX-based close-combat moves (Martial Arts, p. 114); the +4 to Acrobatics for an all-out
Acrobatic Stand (Martial Arts, p. 98).
You could call these things All-Out Move (to get +4 DX when a roll is needed to navigate terrain), All-Out
Change Posture (as for the Acrobatic Stand example), All-Out Ready (to get +4 DX when a roll is needed to
ready an item, or +2 ST when what you're readying is too heavy for you), etc., as needed. The game effect
would be a bonus at the expense of giving up all active defenses.
And you could certainly allow Committed (*) for the second and third cases above, giving half the bonus (+1 or
+2) in return for the drawbacks of the Committed Attack maneuver defined in Martial Arts.

And to answer the obvious: I'd probably allow All-Out Evaluate to count as a feat of Per and have each second
of Evaluate without any defenses give +2 to hit, not just +1, to a maximum of +6. Probably followed by an All-
Out Attack at +4, for +10. ;)

Move and Ready maneuver, for fighters who don't know Fast-Draw, that allows full Move but denies you the
ability to defend with what you're readying and calls for a DX-2 roll to get the weapon out without tossing it.

All-Out Ready that denies you all defenses but means you automatically get your weapon whilst running at full
Move.

Soldier Techniques
Booby Trap (Hard; defaults to Soldier or Traps+4; cannot exceed Soldier+4 or Traps+8): Improves your roll to
use a grenade as a booby trap (High-Tech, p. 190), rig a signal flare as a trip flare (Action 2, p. 25), etc.
Comfy Post. (Average, Default to Per or Per-based Soldier) You can find the best possible place from which to
do your task, you can find the one bug-free spot at your post, driest spot in the trench, the most
comfortable rock to use as a pillow in a rough camp, etc. Success reduces nuisances/penalties for poor
conditions by half (completely?).
Detect Mine (Hard; defaults to Explosives (EOD), Traps, or Soldier-5; cannot exceed Explosives (EOD)+4,
Traps+4, or Soldier): Improves your roll to probe for mines and similar buried or tripwire-rigged ordnance;
see High-Tech, p. 189. Roll at +4 for simple trip flares (see Action 2, p. 23).
Find Cover (Average; defaults to Per or Per-based Soldier; cannot exceed prerequisite+4): Can replace Per for
any roll the GM requires to spot hard cover, or to find concealment that would allow you to use of
Camouflage or Stealth.
Kit Up (Average; defaults to Soldier or IQ-based Hiking; cannot exceed prerequisite skill+4): Improves all rolls to
set up and maintain load-bearing equipment, or to fit a pack, so that your gear remains accessible and
loose items don't compromise Stealth. See High-Tech, p. 54.
Lay Mine (Average; defaults to Explosives (Demolition)+4, Soldier, or Traps+2; cannot exceed Explosives
(Demolition)+8, Soldier+4, or Traps+6): Improves your roll to deploy a mine, as noted on p. 189 of High-
Tech. This covers non-improvised ordnance; to rig grenades, use Booby Trap.
Maintain Weapon (Average; defaults to Armoury (Small Arms), Soldier, or IQ-based Gunner or Guns; cannot
exceed prerequisite skill+4): Improves your roll to clean and maintain any firearm with which you're familiar;
 see High-Tech, p. 80. Can also be used whenever the GM requires a roll to change barrels, select
magazines, etc.
March (Average; defaults to HT-based Hiking or Soldier; cannot exceed prerequisite skill+4): Improves your roll
to break in new footwear (see High-Tech, p. 69) and any similar roll required to avoid not the usual fatigue
from hiking, but afflictions or actual injury from heavy loads or ill-fitting gear.
NBC Drill (Hard; defaults to Per-based Armoury (Heavy Weapons) or Soldier; cannot exceed prerequisite
skill+4): Roll against this technique to know the difference between a dud round and a biological or
chemical one; to spot a retarded bomb that might be an NBC weapon; and whenever a Per roll is needed
to recognize poison gas by scent. This doesn't cover using most NBC gear, but you may make an IQ-
based roll to don any gear simple enough to require Soldier rather than NBC Suit skill.
Quick Don (Hard, Default Armory-4, Quick Draw (Armor), Soldier-4 [not sure about these skills, is that even a
valid use of quick draw?]) You can put on your armor, NBC suit, gas mask, etc. with lightning speed. In the
event of a sudden attack, use this technique to get your gear on before suffering the consequences of
being unprotected.
Rescue (Average; defaults to Soldier or IQ-based Forced Entry; cannot exceed prerequisite skill+4): Replaces
Forced Entry whenever you use the rescue tools on pp. 29-30 of High-Tech for their intended purpose –
extinguishing fires, rescuing people, etc. – rather than as burglary tools.
Stand Watch (Average; defaults to Will or Will-based Soldier; cannot exceed prerequisite+4): Improves your roll
to remain awake when sleep-deprived, as explained on p. B427. At the GM's option, this may also be used
in place of Will to resist deliberate distraction attempts: diversionary explosions, sexy assassins, etc.
Stay Awake In Formation (Hard, defaults to Will-4, can't exceed preq+4): The ability to stay awake in group
formations during change of command ceremonies, training sessions, political speeches, etc. Failure
commonly means falling over, etc. Critical failure means you fall asleep on your feet, and begin to snore.

Useful Threads
basics for firearm training classes:
http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=105920
Basic Safety Course : $150 +/- (In a classroom setting with 5-10 other people, costs are higher for fewer people,
approximately 8 hours of total time. Price usually includes 50 rounds of ammunition, range time, reference
material, eye and ear protection, use of instructor's firearm, and a certificate) Most instructors require this
course be completed and proof of completion provided for higher level training.
Home Self Defense Course: ~$300 +/- (Some class work, but mostly range work, around 8-10 hours of total
time. Price include around 200 rounds of ammunition. Students are expected to provide eye and ear protection
and proof of safety course completion) This covers the most rudimentary techniques for use of cover, accessing
situations, firearm deployment, and targeting under adverse conditions.
1st Level of Defensive Combat: ~1000 +/- (Very little class work as it is mostly range and situation training and
goes for a couple days minimum) Price does NOT include at least 800 rounds of ammunition. This is a more in
depth work with cover use, off hand training, and more difficult targeting situations.
Above this level it is mostly the same thing, a bit over $1000 each course and anywhere between 700-1200
rounds of ammunition with some course taking an entire week of instruction 8-10 hours per day. 

Lower skill levels are fairly cheap and quick.

Elite skill levels are horribly expensive and long.
The rules cover the time component.
And there are graduations between... so maybe something like??:
Dabbler 1/8 100 rounds
Dabbler ¼ 200
Dabbler ½ 400
DX+0 [1cp] needs 1,000 rounds
DX+1 needs 2,000 rounds
DX+2 needs 8,000 rounds
DX+3 needs 32,000 rounds

Maintenance level
DX+0 needs 50 rounds
DX+1 needs 100 rounds
DX+2 needs 200 rounds
DX+3 needs 400 rounds
Statting Yourself
If actually using yourself as a character in play, don't try to create yourself as a character perfectly accurately.
You don't need a perfect representation. You need something like a caricature or passport photograph -
recognisably you, but not actually exactly like you, and perhaps not a flattering image.
So what you do is, rank attributes from best to worst, then give them 12, 11, 10, 9. Then four background skills,
ranked in terms of effort given to them, 4, 2, 1, 1. Then four professional/ educational skills, same again, but
with 8, 4, 2, 1 points. Then four hobby skills, same again, but with 4, 2, 1, 1 points.
This gives a character somewhere between 11 and 71 points. The variation comes about because of 4e's
different costs for DX/IQ compared to HT/ST.
Forget about dis/advantages. We just assume that this is an alternate you without disadvantages, and we don't
test your ego by the advantages.
If you really insist on having them, then they ought to be something that the whole group agrees on. Remember
that even a miserable 1 pt Quirk is supposed to be something that your friends would know about. So if
someone really has Fashion Sense, everyone's going to know about it, it'll be unarguable, pretty much. But if it's
only you saying that you have Combat Reflexes or Laziness, well, sorry, 'tain't good enough.
A generous GM will then give everyone four "Wish List" skills, with 4, 2, 1 and 1 pts in them. These are the skills
you'd get if you had the time, money, effort or chance, and perhaps those you might get if you thought you were
going to become an adventurer.
All this avoids the whole ego question, with the character creation session becoming an argument between all
those with a very high or low opinion of themselves. The latter need an ego boost; the former need to read that
study on how incompetent people consistently rate their competence in a skill or attribute as higher than it is -
because one of the aspects of competence is being able to assess your own level of competence. Those who
know a very little tend to think they know a lot.

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All rights are reserved by Steve Jackson Games.
This game aid is the original creation of James A Millar and
is released for free distribution, and
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