1) If an attack has a 100% chance to hit, then it hits not matter what? Likewise a hit with a 0% automatically misses? I see where max bonus and penalties are 60, but I want to make sure there isn't something like "a roll of 01 always hits" or "a roll of 00 always misses".

2) If engaged in melee and using a pistol to fire at the person in melee with you, what are the bonuses/penalties to hit? Page 249 notes that Point Blank does not apply, and p. 247 lists a -20 "to hit a target engaged in melee", for a grand total of -20. Is that right?

3) In a grapple, can the "Use Item" option be used to use a weapon (that is, attack)? I'm assuming not, but then that means you cannot use a knife (or any weapon) in a grapple?

As always, thanks for the help. The campaign is going great so far - just working on ironing out a few wrinkles with the r

1) I asked the same questions a couple of weeks ago in an argentinian forum. Apparently, there isn't any rule for automatic success nor automatic miss. So, if your total is 00 or lower, you miss... and if your total is 100 or higher you always hit (although remember that ranged weapons can still jam or overheat and miss even if you have 125% success chance).

Of course, you can houserule that a 01 is always success and 100 is always a miss.

2) You have this wrong. Once you and your enemy are in melee, all modifiers for ranged weapons don't apply. You don't get any bonus for being at Point Blanck range nor you suffer any -20 for being in melee. So, if you have a Hellpistol and you have 38 Ballistic Skill, you have 38% chance to hit your opponent (unless you Aim or perform another kind of action, like a Semi/Auto or Full-Auto attack).

Check the Pistol Class weapon description in the Armoury Chapter for more info.

Maese Mateo said:

What he said!

And for 3):

No. You can only use each action once per turn, so no trying to get another attack this way.

Actually, any test that rolls a 96 or higher is an automatic fail. It is technically a jam, but even weapons that never jam (Best Quality) automatically miss instead. I can't find the rule, but as I recall a 96 or higher automatically fails on any test. With no page reference to give, you'd have to take me at my word, but I'm 90% sure this is the case.

I house ruled that rolling 100 is always a failure and rolling 01, though a weapon even with 100+% chance to hit will still miss on a 96-100 (unless it can't jam. I'm not sure where the above poster saw that ruling but I'll scour through my books and see if I can find it). The reason I house ruled the 01 hit / 100 miss is simply do to sheer chance should always be a factor (even if a minor one) as even the best shot in the universe with the most accurate weapon will always have that one shot that will miss once in a blue moon, it shouldn't irk the players to much either considering they have fate points.

I don't understand your answer. But anyway (to the forum in general), is there a way to attack in a grapple with something other than unarmed?

I read the stuff on pistols on p.114 and I don't see anything that says you are immune to the -20 to hit for shooting a target in melee. It says you don't take penalties (or bonuses) for range, but that's it. I'll house rule it regardless (so no penalty), but I always like to know that the RAW are before I start making modifications.

the start of the above post was aimed at Rifts (can't seem to edit?).

I see on page 249 it says "an unmodified result of 96 to 00, in addition to being an automatic miss, also indicates the weapon has jammed."

I don't know if there are similar rules for automatic hits, or for automatic success or failure on things other than ranged weapon attacks.

Ki_Ryn said:

The "Shooting into Melee Combat" doesn't apply if you are the one engaged in melee combat with the target.

Ki_Ryn said:

1) There's always a 5% miss chance. There's technically no 0%, as 00 == 100. Conversely, a roll of 01 is not a guaranteed success, since penalties can reduce the chance of success to 0% or less. You can house-rule some things, though. When I was running a Dark Heresy game, I allowed my PCs to spend a Fate point to make a 100 a 1, since the game is much harsher for Acolytes than everyone else. I'm not as certain I'd allow it in Rogue Trader.

2) No penalties apply, since you're basically using your pistol as a melee weapon (though it still using the BS characteristics and everything else for guns). The -20 applies to shooting in a melee you're not involved in, as you generally have to avoid hitting the other guy. Of course, the GM may allow you to negate this penalty if you don't care who you hit, but that's a house rule.

3) At least from the base rules, this one is up to the GM. The Use Item action allows you to use a "readied item", and nothing says it can't be a weapon. I'd only allow small weapons, such as a pistol or knife, to be readily used in a grapple. Larger weapons are too unwieldy to be properly brought to bear. Drawing said weapon would be a half-action that would require a successful grapple test, and I'd allow tests to take control of the weapon, etc.