I was under the impression that an attack was considered an opposed check, WS/BS vs Targets Defense. I assumed that a targets defense in combat was based on Agility so the average difficulty for most attacks was 2 purple dice (only one if the targets Agility was lower than the active players strength/agility for melee/ranged, three if higher). It seems from the content of other posts that I've been doing this wrong so my question is this:

Is every attack normally only one purple die, with misfortune added equal to targets defenses, adjusting for circumstance of course.

Any help is appreciated by myself and the players I narrate for!

Don't forget to also count difficulty added from the action card.

Otherwise, 1 Challenge die is standard, but can be modified by the GM based on the circumstance. If the situation isn't at all ideal, then feel free to adjust upwards (or downwards if conditions are very favorable). There is no real standard for when to do this, it's totally up to the individual GM.

If I remember correctly (don't have the books available) it works like this:

Performing an attack, is an Easy Challange. 1 Challange Dice.

Then you add 1 Misfortune Dice for each point of Defense the target has. (This will be listed in parentheses next to the AG stat)

Then you add any Challange or Misfortune Dice dictated by the Action Card being played.

Remember to use p.60 table to give Fortune/Misfotune modifiers (the most common beeing outnumbering / being outnumbered in an engagement). A Henchmen group is a single Unit (one initiative, one attack, one Wounds pool) so don't count it as outnumbering 1 dude (the henchmen mechanic already gives it Fortune bonus)

Cwell2101 said:

Hm, true. I've barely used this.

*Starts making notes in his planned adventures*

Read it, love it, print it : http://www.sweetwatercakery.com/_jesse/WFRP3/WFRP3%20Resources/WFRP3/WFRP3%20Reference%20Guide%20-%20Court%20Dimon%202.pdf

It is better to have that when running a game than going thru books or rules summary. Thanks to Court Dimon for making it, Gitzman for hosting it.

I also use Headless Hollow's rules summary ( http://www.headlesshollow.com/downloads/games/WFRP3_v1.pdf ) but it is less aimed at ingame situations.

Thanks guys!

I already have searched and downloaded both of those reference sheets and they are great! I need to get my players together and tell them that we've been doing the combat all wrong. They shouldn't mind as they are completely new to the whole RPG thing, fingers crossed.

My next Question is what are some good reasons to add difficulty/challenge dice to an attack. A few ideas that I have include:

- fighting whilst on the deck of a boat while caught on a day when Manann woke up on the wrong side of his cosmic bed

- fighing a melee while submerged in water.

- fighting on a frozen lake, slipping or falling into the frigid waters on the roll of a Chaos star....

Just some ideas, any more would be great as they would help me get more into the mind set that an attack is an easy challenge and that the defense rating is added as misfortune..... oh and does agility modify the defense category or does it just give the character the dodge ability?

P 60 of the core rulebook has a list of suggested modifiers.

Agility has no direct effect on defence, other than allowing the use of dodge.

There are endless examples of situations where dice could be added - basically anything that would make it harder to succeed then add that black dice:

Fighting in mud

Fighting in mud on a hill side

Fighting in mud on a hill side during a howling storm

Fighting in mud on a hill side during a howling storm with one leg incapacitated

etc...

Don't forget though that if there is a situation where it would be easier to succeed then allow some white dice - for example on higher ground than you opponent.

Quick question about that outnumbering thing that someone mentioned

Let's say you have a group of three PCs, attacked by 5 beastmen

The three PCs are all engaged with two of the beastmen while the other 3 beastmen are at range (haven't joined the melee yet, or are using crossbows or something like that)

a)Do the PCs get forune dice because they outnumber their opponents in the engagement?

b)Do the PCs get misfortune dice because they are outnumbered as a whole?

c)All of the above

In that engagement, 3 PCs outnumber the 2 Gors, PCs get a bonus Fortune. The key point is "in the same engagement", not the encounter.

I also said to my (4) players that 4 henchmen do not count a several enemies (to be outnumbered for a Troll Feller strike for instance) or to give the henchmen group an extra fortune, the henchmen mechanics already add bonus for the numbers in that unit. the henchmen group has one Initiative, one action and one Wound pool, it is 1 Unit. It's just a cool mechanic to add flavor for battles : "You see 20 beastmen charging you with madness and rage in there eyes"