continuing combat after a failed first role.

When you exhaust and use a combat spell during combat (eg Fist of Yog Sothoth) but don't kill the monster with the attack, do you still add the bonus from the spell for the subsequent rounds of combat with it (given that hands are still devoted to the spell and that there is no break from the combat)

The same situation as above but with a weapon that exhausts (with or without a refresh cost)

Combat Checks

certain monster chits use the phrase 'before making a combat check.........do blah blah' does that mean you perform the required action once in a multi round attack on the monster of does it mean you perform the action for each round of combat against the monster? (for example Crawling One and Rat Thing)

Cultists

The ancient one quite often alters the Cultist chit under the worshippers text bit of the Ancient One card. Does this enhancement apply to monsters who have the text 'treated as a cultist' (e.g Dark Druid)?

The Thing In The Attic said:

Spells yes, they last until the end of combat or until you quit reserving the hand(s). For weapons, apart from the .357 Magnum (which is until end of combat), others (Flamethrower, Fetch Stick, etc.) are only good for 1 combat check, if you used one for the first check and failed, gotta find something else to use for later checks.

The Thing In The Attic said:

Each round of combat.

The Thing In The Attic said:

Yes for now. Though hopefully the upcoming FAQ will fully clarify the would-be Cultists and how to treat them.

Cheers for your answer Dam,

so basically against those type of creatures (the ones with 'before you make a combat check...' text ) you should pull out all the stops to kill it first off, such as clue tokens and rerolls before accepting the stamina damage and taking another shot.

The Thing In The Attic said:

Depends. If you have useless junk to toss at the Rat-Thing (Missions & Tasks rule for this), maybe not so big a deal. Also, Ratty is toughness 1 (same as the Crawling One). Crawling One, you might actually get a weaker one for your next combat check, so if you had a -6 for first round, next round it could be -1 only.

Dam said:

Yeah cos Yog Sothoth makes the Dark Druids combat rating better for the investigators, making a -2 into a -1 if the enhancements apply to all cultists and not just the Cultist monster chit.

The Thing In The Attic said:

So far my IH nemesis is Rhan-Tegoth. With Cultists and the Wannabes (Child of the Goats and DD) coming out the woodworks, counting as Cultists, adding doomers and Terror. Normally I'm all for the BGotW Herald, but R-T + BGotW game (combo hasn't come up yet) actually scares me . Hexagon cup will have 4 Wannabes in there, just waiting for +4 doomers and +4 Terror...

Simple houserule might be that you alter the rating as per the effect, unless the original is better/worse (depending on your POV). So DD would retain his -2 combat modifier when Yog-Sothoth is GOO, but would gain Magical Immunity.

Yeah, modifiers to all Cultists include Children of the Goat. I didn't know that Dark Druid was a cultist, but if he is, then yes, Yog's special ability makes him a little easier to roll for (unless you're using magical items or spells).

Quick add on to this.

How about multiple monster you have to encounter on the same space. Is the combat round once all monster have been dealt with or is each monster its own combat round?

teh-V1s1on said:

Not only is each monster its own combat, it may have multiple combat rounds if you don't defeat it the first round.

I can agree with each monster being its own round, but if you fail your combat check and you take your hit from the monster and you go back for seconds, I would have to say that is the same combat round.

I will look up some stuff and post back.

ps. look up and the second post he kinda talks about rounds and checks.

ColtsFan76 is correct, a Combat against a monster may have multiple Combat rounds. The first Combat round has the following phases:

1 - Horror Check (only for the first round)

2 - Fight or Flee

3 - Combat Check

If you fail the Combat Check, the next Combat round (and all the following Combat rounds against this monster) starts from 2 - Fight or Flee. You can keep using your succesfully cast spells on the second round of combat only if you devote the required amount of hands to them. This continues until you succeed in your Combat Check or are defeated by the monster.

-Villain

Villain said:

That doesnt make any sense. I just finished reading the combat section and yes if you fail to defeat the monster you go back to 2, but that would mean it is still the same combat round. If it wasn't the same round then succesfully cast spells that end when the combat round is over would end too.

You seem to confuse Combat with a Combat round. The former is the whole conflict with the monster, while the latter is basically just the Combat check portion of it (or an attempt to Evade).

To sum it up:

- A single Combat against a monster can last multiple rounds if the investigator fails to defeat it on the first Combat check.

- Most spells last until the end of the Combat (that is, multiple rounds) as long as you reserve the required hands for them.

- Between Combat rounds you can choose to change the spells or items you want to use, but if you stop using your hands for a spell, you can no longer use it that turn.

The rules are very clear on this and I don't think I can make this any more obvious without creating a specific example - do you want me to do that? It's not a big deal, I can do it if this is still unclear to you, I just need to think about it for moment, to make sure I'll cover all types of items.

-Villain

ok. besides on the ancient one I have found one instance in an example that explains a "combat round" . Page 15 of the rules . Thanks for the help I will have more I'm sure.

I only got this deep because the mythos is a b!+c# and I need every angle possible to beat them. If I could get away with having s spell that last for combat and that could mean fight multiple monsters in the same location that would be huge. The sanity cost of spells just drains the poor mind.

Thanks again

You're welcome, but as I had already started typing this, here's anyways an example to illustrate it all:

Michael McGlenn the Gangster is cluelessly wandering around Easttown when he happens to meet a Flying Polyp. Michael has lost his Tommy Gun, but has a stick of Dynamite, a Cavalry Saber, Powder of Ibn-Ghazi and the spell Red Sign of Shudde M'ell. Michael could try to sneak around the Polyp, but sneaking around is for girly men and Michael is a real man, so he chooses to initiate Combat.

First round: (Michael's Sanity 3, Stamina 7)

Michael passes the Horror check, but loses 1 Sanity due to the Polyp's Nightmarish-ability. Michael could now once again try to Flee, but he chooses to Fight instead. Michael uses his both hands to throw the Dynamite at the Polyp. The Dynamite is only half-effective against the monster with Physical Resistance, so Michael gets only +4 to his Combat check, which he fails. Michael would take 3 points of damage, but his Strong Body reduces that to 2. The Dynamite is discarded, because it's a single-use item.

Second round: (Michael's Sanity 2, Stamina 5)

Michael realizes that spells might work better against the Polyp. Before deciding whether to Fight or Flee, Michael tries to cast Red Sign of Shudde M'ell and succeeds (spending the Sanity cost of 1). The Spell takes one of his hands now. He refuses to Flee once again and takes the Cavalry Saber in his free hand. The spell reduces the monster's Toughness by 1 (to 2) and allows Michael to ignore one of its special abilities - Michael chooses Physical Resistance, so the Saber will give him the full +2 to his Combat check - which he unluckily fails again. Michael loses another 2 points of Stamina, and the second round of Combat is over.

Third round: (Michael's Sanity 1, Stamina 3)

Michael still refuses to flee, and chooses to devote one of his hands to the Red Sign of Shudde M'ell to keep the spell working for this round. He also uses the Cavalry Saber again - and fails his combat check once again, losing 2 more Stamina. He's having a really bad day, you know.

Fourth round: (Michael's Sanity 1, Stamina 1)

Eyeing his options, Michael realizes he better change his strategy. He releases the spell (and the Saber), freeing both of his hands. He can no longer use that spell in this Combat; Flying Polyp's Toughness is restored to 3 and it once again has Physical Resistance. Michael's still not going to Flee, so he takes the Powder of Ibn-Ghazi and using his both hands throws it at the Flying Polyp. He finally succeeds in his combat check and defeats the horrible monster. However, using the Powder costs Michael 1 point of Sanity, so he becomes insane. The Flying Polyp is also Overwhelming, so Michael would lose 1 more Stamina (which would cause him to be devoured for being at 0 Stamina and Sanity at the same time), but luckily his Strong Body allows him to reduce that Stamina loss to zero. The Powder of Ibn-Ghazi is discarded for being a one-use item.

Conclusion: Michael defeats the Flying Polyp after 4 rounds of Combat, but becomes insane in the process.

I believe this should be clear enough.

-Villain