...than to punch him in the face ?

IIRC in former systems it got a bonus for the attack ?

It really should make a difference if the target is unaware, surprised or helpless.

Or have I overread something in the beta ?

Another thing I seem to miss is grappling.

To be honest, the former rules for grappling were...bad.

But having no rules at all is worse.

It would be nice to get some simple and good rules - does anyone have a good proposal ?

Maybe something to deal fatigue to an enemy while grappling him ?

It would also be nice to have some rules to grapple & use manacles on someone to take him into custody.

It really should make a difference if the target is unaware, surprised or helpless.

When they are surprised, they probably lose initiative. When that happens, you can attack them and they can't evade because they have no AP (yet). Evasion is pretty strong in this system (IMO), so that's a pretty good bonus; it's a 1 AP action that can remove all the Dos from a multi-action attack, plus it's a skill roll vs. a straight characteristic roll.

Now, I'd be fine with an additional bonus on top of that. A bonus to hit would be reasonable, given the circumstance. Or a free aiming and called shot action, which would be kinda similar to the original surprise rule.

Now, I'd be fine with an additional bonus on top of that. A bonus to hit would be reasonable, given the circumstance. Or a free aiming and called shot action, which would be kinda similar to the original surprise rule.

If they are totally unaware helpless targets, apply the Helpless condition +30% to hit.

Helpless is defined as something like unconscious.

I wouldnt call that unconscious though, just unaware / surprised.

Maybe it would just need a change in the definition of helpless to also include surprised targets that did not yet realize their opponent.

Now, I'd be fine with an additional bonus on top of that. A bonus to hit would be reasonable, given the circumstance. Or a free aiming and called shot action, which would be kinda similar to the original surprise rule.

I would not mind seeing an automatic crit applied to attacks against truly unaware targets, or at least an increased chance of a crit. Perhaps roll twice for damage and choose whichever result you like better. A free called shot and/or aim also makes sense to me. I do not want surprise to be an overwhelming factor all of the time, but I feel like getting the drop on a lone sentry should mean he can be eliminated without raising alarm, which in turn means that surprise should give a reasonable chance of dropping a single target instantly.

Perhaps it is not possible to have that and still have otherwise balanced encounters, but I feel like stronger foes and PCs will have access to the sorts of skill ranks and talents that make it much harder for them to be caught unawares.

I think the idea of a crit hit somehow being connected to a silent backstab kill is a good idea, especially as it would directly eliminate novice and elite opponents...

I would not mind seeing an automatic crit applied to attacks against truly unaware targets, or at least an increased chance of a crit. Perhaps roll twice for damage and choose whichever result you like better. A free called shot and/or aim also makes sense to me. I do not want surprise to be an overwhelming factor all of the time, but I feel like getting the drop on a lone sentry should mean he can be eliminated without raising alarm, which in turn means that surprise should give a reasonable chance of dropping a single target instantly.

Yep. Heck, forget about realism and thinking game experience, I'd be perfectly happy with a rule that makes a successful surprise attack automatically take out novice NPCs. I don't want my players getting into hour-long gunfights with mooks. An auto-crit would do that. On the downside, it would automatically take out Elites too. That may be too powerful.

Then dont make it an auto-crit, but give a higher chance to a crit.

How about called shot melee attacks against unaware surprised targets (only if they are really unaware) getting Vengeful (7).

If the attack already has Vengeful, it gets Vengeful (5) instead.

This is a high chance of a deadly sneak attack without being a guarantee, especially since PCs may use fate to re-roll.

... or make something like this a talent.

Perhaps even one that requires a fate point to empower if you want an autocrit mechanic but don't want it overused and can't think how to limit it sufficiently with circumstance.

Good idea !

Something like "Assassin Kill Strike" as a part of a Martial Arts Talent tree.