If you spend a maneuver to aim, if you do it again on your following turn, do you then get 2 boost dice for having back-to-back aim maneuvers? If so... I'm assuming the limit is 2. Also, if that PC is attacked in between both aiming attempts, does he loose the stacking aim effect?
or does the core books not say?
You can Aim once(1 Boost) and then fire the weapon or you can Aim twice(2 Boost) by suffering 2 Strain and then fire. The limit is 2. If its more I haven't seen anything that says so and when I GM I maintain a limit of 2 on Aim anyways. You retain the benefits of aiming so long as you do not perform an action other than firing or a different Maneuver. If the PC is attacked before he is able to fire, any damage exceeding Soak will negate the benefits of Aim (AoR pg 213, EotE pg 201 for section of Aim and other Maneuvers).
Edit: Remember, a PC can perform 1 free Maneuver per turn. He can perform a second Maneuver by suffering 2 Strain. The CRB has a hard limit of 2 Maneuvers per turn with the exception of bonus maneuvers given to that PC. See the pages I listed above for the full reading on Maneuvers.
Edited by Oden GebhacI wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
EotE Pg 201
Yes, you can take the aim maneuver twice giving you a cumulative total of ■■ on the next combat check. This can cross over across 2 rounds as long as the two aim maneuvers are consecutive (end Round 1 aiming and start Round 2 aiming). The ability to go across rounds is quantified by the limitation that If the aiming character takes damage exceeding his soak in between aiming and his next attack action, the aim bonus is lost. It's pretty hard to inflict damage on another characters turn between his maneuver and action, so that makes it pretty clear aiming can go across.
Aiming is just a maneuver that does not require a specified target, so you can take aim intending to shoot one opponent on Round 1, and change your mind Round 2 and shoot a different guy without losing the bonus. Mechanically its about sacrificing your ability to do all the other things a maneuver can do in exchange for that boost on your next attack, it's not about the physical act of lining up on one specific guy. If you need a narrative, think of the first aim as taking time to actually pick out the best target or noticing an opening that might be hard to miss, with the second Aim being actually lining up a shot that leverages the enhanced decision making provided from the time and thought spent in the first aim maneuver.
It doesn't specify the limit is 2, but it doesn't say you can go beyond 2 either, so I think it's probably safe to assume 2 is the intended cap. Otherwise you could get some pretty silly rolls from the guy that spends 3 rounds consecutively aiming twice each time.
Also note it merely states you spend maneuvers in exchange for bonuses on your next attack, so it's possible to "aim" melee and brawl attacks as well as ranged.
I wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
Then you should reread the Aim ability as it allows for exactly this, as long as you don't get hurt, don't move and just keep aiming. Max is 2 boost no matter how many maneuvers you spend aiming.
I wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
Then you should reread the Aim ability as it allows for exactly this, as long as you don't get hurt, don't move and just keep aiming. Max is 2 boost no matter how many maneuvers you spend aiming.
Aiming also doesn't assume a non-moving target, and neither do the rules assume that while your character takes a turn all else around him is static.
I wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
Then you should reread the Aim ability as it allows for exactly this, as long as you don't get hurt, don't move and just keep aiming. Max is 2 boost no matter how many maneuvers you spend aiming.
Aiming also doesn't assume a non-moving target, and neither do the rules assume that while your character takes a turn all else around him is static.
I think the stacked aiming would be cancelled out if the aimer was attacked, but you can still aim on a moving target, you just hone in on leading your aim. Getting a better aim on a moving target is very logical (stay on target!).
I wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
Then you should reread the Aim ability as it allows for exactly this, as long as you don't get hurt, don't move and just keep aiming. Max is 2 boost no matter how many maneuvers you spend aiming.
Aiming also doesn't assume a non-moving target, and neither do the rules assume that while your character takes a turn all else around him is static.
I think the stacked aiming would be cancelled out if the aimer was attacked, but you can still aim on a moving target, you just hone in on leading your aim. Getting a better aim on a moving target is very logical (stay on target!).
No, it is ruined if the aimer takes damage. So, others can shoot AT him, but if they don't hurt him then he doesn't lose the aim bonus he's gained.
From the AoR CRB, page 213 and 214, it lists the following caveats for gaining the benefit of Aiming:
Aiming gives one of the following benefits:
As for "consecutive", it doesn't say anything about them having to be on the same round, just that you have to perform "Aim maneuver, Aim maneuver, combat check" without any other actions, maneuvers, or incidentals in between. And, of course, if you take damage before the combat check, the benefits of any Aiming you performed prior to taking damage are negated.
I wouldn't let the aiming boost stack between turns. A lot changes in a round, and where you were aiming is no longer where your target is.
Then you should reread the Aim ability as it allows for exactly this, as long as you don't get hurt, don't move and just keep aiming. Max is 2 boost no matter how many maneuvers you spend aiming.
Aiming also doesn't assume a non-moving target, and neither do the rules assume that while your character takes a turn all else around him is static.
Nope, you're right. It says it can carry over. My mistake.
Sorry to bring an old thread back to life but I have a couple of aim related questions as well.
First, the easy one as I am 99% sure of the answer already. I assume that aim can be used with Melee as well as ranged attacks?
Next, how should the second use of aim, to target particular locations, be handled? It seem to encroach on areas normally covered by Talents, advantage and critical hits. I'm especially interested in how it can be used it in shop combat. If someone targets the engines on another ship and succeeds, what happens?
Yes.
Targeting a specific location with Aim doesn't require the requisite results of Advantages and critical hits, one need only be successful with a combat check, so in that regard it is more assured that you actually hit what you want to.
What Talents are you concerned with?
The results of the aimed shot are essentially left to the GMs discretion.
Aimed shots are typically left up to the GM. Only advice I have is to keep any special effects limited in scope, if you make it too easy to intentionally disable an opponent that will cause problems down the road and conflict with other existing in-game mechanics like Crits and Ion/stun weapons. I'd also consider scope and scale a factor. Having a pair of starfighters in a dogfight trying to target one anothers components is a lot sillier then a pair of slow heavy cruisers.
So far the biggest benefit to called shots I've found is a balance when pitting light open-topped vehicles against players on foot. Combined with other setback sources it's still hard as heck to target a vehicle operator in most cases, but it allows for an alternative means of disabling said vehicle. As an added bonus, incapacitating a driver doesn't change a vehicles state (speed, ect) so it's easy to have said vehicle be obliterated by collisions following the drivers incapacitation if you want to keep that vehicle out of the players hands.
Next, how should the second use of aim, to target particular locations, be handled? It seem to encroach on areas normally covered by Talents, advantage and critical hits. I'm especially interested in how it can be used it in shop combat. If someone targets the engines on another ship and succeeds, what happens?
It's not really "encroaching" so much as "overlapping." For 3 Advantage, you can disarm your opponent. Or, you could aim at their weapon hand with a maneuver and two setbacks, and try for a single Success instead of 3 Advantage. It's a trade-off. Also for 3 Advantage, you can disable your opponent or one piece of gear. Or, you could aim at that place you want disabled and try for a Success instead.
In any case, the Critical Injury/Hit tables in Chapters VI and VII should give you good ideas about what mechanical effects should take place when certain body parts/ship parts are targeted. So, for example, someone targets and hits the engines (to my reckoning: this would necessitate at least one maneuver to aim; and either a maneuver to "get into position" when firing on a capital ship, or having Gained the Advantage on a smaller craft), the result could be something like the Engines Damaged critical hit (but don't rule it as an actual critical hit). If they succeed awesomely and with a Triumph or something, maybe the "Engines Down" effect would be better.
As a general guideline I allow an up to -10 on a Crit roll per aim maneuver used to aim at a specific area on a target. It gives a bit of flexibility to the Character to control the crit effect, but it's not massive. Otherwise I'll allow no damage to be done to the target character but damage be done to an openly held item.
But this isn't in concrete, if a player or I have a good idea we will usually run with it.
Thanks for the answers. Pretty much what I expected, there are no firm guidelines* but we are looking at roughly the same sort of effect as three advantage or a low level critical. As it happens I was listening to the order 66 podcast with the sample of capital ship combat and I noticed that they handled a target their weapons action as the lowest level crit that effects weapons.
*I was wondering if I had missed a rule somewhere, I love these books but I do find them a bit long winded at times, and I find myself skipping the odd paragraph that does not seem to be adding anything new. It could just be that I am comming from Savage Worlds, which is anything but long winded
The books could definitely use some consolidation.
The other thing some people miss is that it's "combat check," not just ranged attacks.