Steam & Sorcery ~ Conflicts

Attribute + Skill + Item Bonus = ABILITY SCORE ~~~ Ability Score + Card Draw = RESULT

It is important that all players participating in a LARP scene are doing so willingly. No one should be bullied into a conflict, even a fictional one, without their consent to play. Players may, therefore, refuse any challenge and decline a conflict as they see fit. In general, it’s much better to have an opponent who wants your challenge.

Start of a Scene & Turn Order

When a challenge or conflict is being faced by players, whether it be combat, hacking, magic, or anything that requires a card draw to determine the outcome, this moment of the game is referred to as a Scene. A scene is made up of however many Turns it takes to resolve the scene.

Turn order, also known in many games as initiative, is determined by players making a card draw added to however many points remain in the Stamina section of their character sheets. Characters must have at least one Body, Mind, and Spirit point left to be able to participate in a scene. The character with the highest score from current Physical Stamina + Card Draw gets their turn first, the next highest goes second, and so on. Ties can be broken with another draw of the cards. Once the turn order has been established, characters will remain in this sequence until the end of the scene. If there are multiple players in a Scene, it could be helpful to use a spare set of ten playing cards to label each player’s turn by handing them a card showing their turn order.

Each time a player’s turn comes around, they may declare what action they would like to take.

Characters use the information on electronic character cards (saved on your smartphone) and the validated character sheet to establish their Ability Score (Attribute + Skill + Item Bonus).
A card is drawn from the shuffled deck and added to the Ability Score to determine the success or failure Result.
All players in a scene act as witness to card shuffles and card draws to ensure game play honesty; unless at least one other conflicting player sees the card draw, it does not count.
The player with the highest Result (Ability Score + Card Draw) wins that turn.

Physical Conflicts (Body)

1. DECLARE TARGET

Whether it be ranged or melee combat, a player planning on attacking another (the Attacker) character declares a target (the Defender).
Note – defense from an attack does not use a player’s action as this is a reaction.

2. SKILL RATING

The attacker adds up their attack Ability Score using the Body Attribute score, relevant attack skills, weapon bonuses, and any other relevant bonuses
The defender adds up their defend Ability Score using the Body Attribute score, relevant defend skills, weapons capable of blocking, armor, etc. Sometimes magic can be used against physical attacks.
Some weapon types can be duel wielded if they are one handed and the same weapon type in each hand; the attacker gains the point bonus coins from both weapons.

3. DRAW A CARD!

The attacker and defender both draw from separate decks of cards at the same time (visible to all). The one with the highest total from Ability Score + Card Draw wins the turn. Whoever is victorious on that turn can add color to the scene by describing or acting out the success.
If the attacker wins that turn, the defender takes a wound (see below) and crosses a Physical Stamina point of their character sheet.

4. NEXT TURN!

Move on to the next player’s turn.
When all players have had their turn, repeat starting with the highest initiative to lowest.

Mental Conflicts (Mind)

Not all combat is fisticuffs; many are resolved by a battle of wits, social sabotage, or other psychological means.

Mental conflicts operate with similar mechanics to physical conflicts but the Mind score and appropriate skills and equipment are added together to create the Ability Score.

Role-playing the scene with witty insults is a great way to add color to the mental combat.

Some mental conflicts may not be against other characters and may involve a specific skill to solve a puzzle, such as a Clacker trying to steal information from a Difference Engine Network (DEN) computer; these scenes are usually arbitrated by an NPC who will have specific details on the challenge’s requirements.

Magical Conflicts (Spirit)

Some characters may attack, defend, or assist by the use of magic spells.

If defending from a spell attack, the defender must use their Spirit score added to appropriate skills or items.

Some spells (mostly attack ones) will require a straight forward higher Ability Score + Card Draw than the defender, but many will require a Ability Score + Card Draw versus Challenge Score + NPC Card Draw specified by the spell card.

Some of the more powerful spells actually temporarily drain players of their spirit points in order to cast it, but these points can be regained by resting during a round.

Wounds & Healing

WOUNDS

Wounds can damage a character’s Body, Mind, or Spirit; damage is recorded on the Stamina section of the sheet.

HEALING

Medical attention to lost stamina points requires a Fixer or Arbiter to administer, however, short-term healing during a scene can be given by those with appropriate skills, equipment, or magic.

Non Combat Actions

Many actions during a scene might not involve any kind of combat, but most still require a Ability Score + Card Draw versus Challenge Score + NPC Card Draw related to the information on the appropriate character card or equipment card. These situations are using managed by an NPC who will have specific details on how to attempt the challenge.

End of a Scene

By the time the outcome of the whole scene has been revealed, any character who was depleted of Stamina Points in either Body, Mind, or Spirit (or more than one category) is severely injured and ineffective until properly healed.

If a character reaches zero stamina in either three categories they are unable to participate in challenges and conflicts until proper healing has occurred.