The Masters of Darkness

Rules for Combat

There will be occasions during your adventure when you have to fight an enemy. The enemy’s COMBAT SKILL and ENDURANCE points are given in the text. Lone Wolf’s aim in the combat is to kill the enemy by reducing his ENDURANCE points to zero while losing as few ENDURANCE points as possible himself.

At the start of a combat, enter Lone Wolf’s and the enemy’s ENDURANCE points in the appropriate boxes on the Combat Record section of your Action Chart.

The sequence for combat is as follows:

  1. Add any extra points gained through your Magnakai Disciplines and Special Items to your current COMBAT SKILL total.

  2. Subtract the COMBAT SKILL of your enemy from this total. The result is your Combat Ratio. Enter it on the Action Chart.

    Example

    Lone Wolf (COMBAT SKILL 15) is attacked by a Nightstalker (COMBAT SKILL 22). He is not given the opportunity to evade combat but must stand and fight as the creature leaps on him. Lone Wolf has the Magnakai Discipline of Psi-surge to which the Nightstalker is not immune, so Lone Wolf adds 4 points to his COMBAT SKILL, giving a total COMBAT SKILL of 19.

    He subtracts the Nightstalker’s COMBAT SKILL from his own, giving a Combat Ratio of −3. (19 − 22 = −3). −3 is noted on the Action Chart as the Combat Ratio.

  3. When you have your Combat Ratio, pick a number from the Random Number Table.

  4. Turn to the Combat Results Table. Along the top of the chart are shown the Combat Ratio numbers. Find the number that is the same as your Combat Ratio and cross-reference it with the random number that you have picked (the random numbers appear on the side of the chart). You now have the number of ENDURANCE points lost by both Lone Wolf and his enemy in this round of combat. (E represents points lost by the enemy; LW represents points lost by Lone Wolf.)

    Example

    The Combat Ratio between Lone Wolf and the Nightstalker has been established as −3. If the number taken from the Random Number Table is a 6, then the result of the first round of combat is:

    • Lone Wolf loses 3 ENDURANCE points (plus an additional 2 points for using Psi-surge)
    • Nightstalker loses 6 ENDURANCE points


  5. On the Action Chart, mark the changes in ENDURANCE points to the participants in the combat.

  6. Unless otherwise instructed, or unless you have an option to evade, the next round of combat now starts.

  7. Repeat the sequence from Stage 3.

This process of combat continues until the ENDURANCE points of either the enemy or Lone Wolf are reduced to zero or below, at which point that combatant is declared dead. If Lone Wolf is dead, the adventure is over. If the enemy is dead, Lone Wolf proceeds but with his ENDURANCE points possibly reduced.

A summary of Combat Rules appears in the back of this book.

Evasion of Combat

During your adventure you may be given the chance to evade combat. If you have already engaged in a round of combat and decide to evade, calculate the combat for that round in the usual manner. All points lost by the enemy as a result of that round are ignored, and you make your escape. Only Lone Wolf may lose ENDURANCE points during that round, but then that is the risk of running away! You may only evade if the text of the particular section allows you to do so.

Project AonThe Masters of Darkness