Hi there,

Maybe someone of you can help me out with two questions. Maybe I am just too stupid and/or blind to find it in the rule books.

1) NPC - action cards:

Does each NPC/creature have a set of action cards (basic actions + special actions) for its sole use or do all of them use one set during an encounter? Example: If I use parry for Orc A can I use it for ORC B or Gor D in the same round or do I have to wait until recharging is done? Or does this rule only apply for special action cards?

2) NPC - recharging of basic action cards:

Since special action cards only recharge at the end of a round does this rule count for basic action cards as well or do they recharge at the end of the creature's turn?

Sorry for bothering you. Any response will be highly appreciated

Regards,

Xerl

All your creatures can perform the basic actions such as melee, dodge, parry etc (providing they meet the criteria) and should be treated on individual basis. Or else clearly you'd have the ridiculous scenario you presented of a creature being unable to parry because his ally had which doesn't make sense.

As for the recharge all the cards recharge (both PNC's and NPCs) at the end of turn phase.

Regarding actions yes number of special action cards can be found on the creature cards but in general I consider this to be more of a guide than a rule. If you want to buff your monsters up with extra special actions do so. You're the GM. The PC's will thank you for it. Actually they won't because they may be dead but if it suits the balance to buff them then do so.

As for first aid this cannot be performed mid combat (and needs to be done in rally step) unless you have a specific card that says otherwise. Off the top off my head I think 'Splints and Bandages' is one such card which by definition can be applied in the thick of battle.

Hope that answers your questions

I agree with Noelyuk regarding the creature actions. But would like to add that some creature types have extra basic actions, if I recall correctly the greenskin action Chop! has the basic trait for example.

Regarding First Aid, I do believe it can be used in combat. In the Player's Guide, page 88. at the start of the paragraph "First Aid & Immediate Care" this can be found (my emphasis):

Long-term care may be the best option, but sometimes more immediate attention is required, such as tending to a bleeding wound in the middle of combat , or setting a broken arm after a nasty fall. Immediate care relies on the First Aid skill.

The skill Medicine cannot be used in combat though.

Hi there,

Many thanks for the responses

Regarding First Aid: I am asking because I've read the paragraph saying that healing during combat is possible. But since it's stated as well, that a fight can consist of 1 - 3 acts and first aid checks can be performed during rally steps which connect the acts I have to come to two conclusions:

- If First Aid is possible during combat phases AND in rally steps my PCs would have 5 (successfull) First Aid checks, right? Does First Aid count as an action or as a maneuver? I believe that skill usage which is performed as a maneuver isn't supposed to interact with other beings, right? Since it's named a specific action during a rally step I am pretty sure that it counts as action during combat.

- Regarding actions:

TOA, page 41 - 42

"Many enemies have special actions they can perform in addition to the normal range of basic actions available to the player characters. Enemy actions listed in the book function like action cards, interacting with other cards and effects as an action card does. When an enemy performs an action with a recharge rating, place the appropriate number of recharge tokens on the action. However, since multiple enemies may share actions or other abilities, recharge tokens are not removed from enemy cards or special actions at the end of an individual enemy action. Rather, at the end of each round during an encounter, as well as during each Rally Step, the GM removes one token from every enemy action or card that is currently recharging."

and

TOA, page 42

"Furthermore, when an NPC or monster uses a special action that has a recharge rating, that action cannot be used by other enemies that share access to that action until all the recharge tokens have been removed. Remember, the GM removes one token from every enemy action or card that is currently recharging at the end of every round during an encounter."

TOA, page 47

"One special distinction is how these special actions recharge. When a creature or NPC action is recharging, no other creatures can use that action – it is unavailable until the action has fully recharged. Further, recharge tokens
are not removed after an individual creature's activation. Rather, one recharge token is removed from every recharging action at the end of each round."

Again two conclusios and one remaining question:

- Tokens are removed at the end of the round from NPC action cards

- Enemies (of the same type?) who share access to the same SPECIAL action card can only use it when not charging

- Basic actions are unclear until now. Do they really work like PC actions? (Every single NPC has all basic actions and recharges them individually?)

Thanks for working with me on that topic. You guys are awesome!

Xerl

First aid can be used both in combat and in rally steps (or in story mode for that matter), but you can only get healed by it once per day (see healing limitations on page 89 of the Player's Guide). So you have the option to use first aid in combat or rally but a PC can only benifit from each source of healing once per day.

Doing first aid during combat counts as an action.

Yes, at the end of the round you remove one recharge from all NPC actions.

Yes. Enemies who share actions cannot use it when it's recharging, even if they were not the ones using it in the first place.

Basic actions works as PC actions, however most basic actions have no recharge, and thus need no tracking (active defences beeing the obvious exception).

Thanks for your reply. Healing is clear now. Awesome!

"Basic actions work as PC actions". Means that every single NPC can use parry and/or dodge in the same round? In some threads and on one reference sheet I've read that all NPCs of the same type share actions (not sure if they speak about basic or special ones). Do you know where that pov comes from?

Probably from easier tracking, if you only have one of each defence action you only need to track three cards. If you have three defences per NPC you can end up with a lot of cards to track and that's really impractical. Myself, I generally increase the defence of the NPCs by 1 and gett rid of the active defences for NPCs alltoghether.

To sum the RAW/VANILLA rules up:

- ALL enemies share ONE special action card and can only use it when it's not recharging (ex: Gor A uses special action card XY, Ungor B has to wait until XY is recharged)

- EVERY single enemy has the 8 basic actions and uses them individually (ex: Orc A uses parry, Orc B can use it in the same round)

Right?

There is one action card, and it can only be used by each group of NPC's once. However, I take a recharge token off at the end of each of their turns, which means they recharge faster anyway.

To sum the RAW/VANILLA rules up:

- ALL enemies share ONE special action card and can only use it when it's not recharging (ex: Gor A uses special action card XY, Ungor B has to wait until XY is recharged)

- EVERY single enemy has the 8 basic actions and uses them individually (ex: Orc A uses parry, Orc B can use it in the same round)

Right?

That is correct.

There is one action card, and it can only be used by each group of NPC's once. However, I take a recharge token off at the end of each of their turns, which means they recharge faster anyway.

No, recharge tokens are taken off, Per RAW one recharge token on each creature actions is removed after each round, not each activation. So if anything they recharge slower.

Thank you all for figuring that stuff out with me. You are awesome

I will now try to make a nice and comfy NPC tracking sheet for me and my group. Will gladly share it, if someone wants to use it.

One last question for you guys. Are there any programs or pieces of software you could recommend? Like mapping or tracking tools? Maybe some sort of visualization app for an ipad or stuff?

Xerl

Thank you all for figuring that stuff out with me. You are awesome

I will now try to make a nice and comfy NPC tracking sheet for me and my group. Will gladly share it, if someone wants to use it.

One last question for you guys. Are there any programs or pieces of software you could recommend? Like mapping or tracking tools? Maybe some sort of visualization app for an ipad or stuff?

Xerl

Fantasy Grounds all the way. Not only will it allow you to play with people from all over the globe but Fantasy Grounds will take care of all those troublesome recharge tokens so you don't have to

I use syrinscape (iPad app) for sound effects and background noise (www.syrinscape.com)

I would also second fantasy grounds.

Thanks for the recommendations guys. Highly appreciated

Any recommendations regarding mapping tools? Dundjinni or Campaign Cartographer 3 maybe? Or any freeware stuff?

I don't tend to make my own maps. I prefer to crib others work and repurpose them for my own needs. Fantasy Grounds allows you to use mask mode to slowly reveal certain sections of a dungeon or whatever. So you can use this feature to mask a room and make it whatever shape you want. I've got too many other things to occupy my time as GM than to be a cartographer but I take my hat off and salute those who can and honour them by getting full use out of their hard work and efforts

And the recent announcement of the tie in between Fantasy Grounds and Table Top Connect should serve all your mapping needs when it arrives

Well table top connect looks pretty awesome. I was going to recommend Table Top Simulator on steam but there are some things lacking in it. Editable character sheets for one, not a big concern with 3rd ed, as tokens and cards do most of the tracking. The character sheets just needs to be really updated with new advancements. I barely touch mine in Fantasy Grounds. I love the lighting, etc I'm seeing with TTC. I'd also like to see how easy it is to

Is there a pricing guide somewhere or will those of us with FG licenses get it bundled with an update?

I don't think I've used a map in a very long time. It's one of the reasons why I like wfrp so much! But I prefer the FGII setup, it seems a lot more manageable and user freindly than the table-top whatever-it-is. That said, someone has said they want to try it, and I am MAD keen to get playing a game.

I agree with the mapping aspect and I absolutely love the feel of the game. I believe the system does an excellent job of playing out the action like you might read in a book. I do like FG but there are some frustrations and that is just on the player end. I'm not sure how much fun I'd have GMing with FG, which is unfortunately why I picked it up. Noely's done a remarkable job over the last two years. I love that the system gets away from miniatures and the stands are more for defining "areas of engagements".

My biggest issue with FG is that with all the actions/abilities/skills/talents a character has they end up getting buried a bit. Even after playing a number sessions, (Rank 3 PC) finding my fortune and fatigue still trips me up and trying to find my minstrel class ability has me looking at my advances. This isn't a huge issue but with my laptop and one or two shared docs/maps open things get cluttered.

The other issue is just the learning curve for new players, especially those who haven't player WFRP before.

Both are surmountable, but I'm not sure i'm up for the coaching sessions.

That said the fellows that made the libraries and modules for FG have done a tremendous job and they get a hats off.

I'm hoping with Tabletop I can just load the table and everything is as I left it last session. Each player has their area, visible to all and the main area is for rolling dice and progress trackers, documents, and occassional map or picture. New players just have to learn how to grab tokens and move the camera around. Easy enough for anyone thats played a video game in the last ten years.

Just my two cents.