Reflex System Quick Start Rules: System Basics

Basic Task Resolution Exceptional Success

All task checks are based on your character’s rating in the If more than one die indicates a success, use the lowest result
appropriate skill and his value in the relevant attribute. Skill to determine your base MoS. Then increase your MoS by 2
rating determines the number of dice you roll, while attribute for each additional successful die.
value determines your base target number (TN). Roll the
Example: You roll 4d20 against a TN of 9, with die results of
dice and take the lowest die result. If the result is equal to or
5, 6, 11, and 20. Your MoS is 6: 4 for the die result of 5, +2
less than your target number, you succeed. If it’s greater than
for the die that came up 6.
your target number, you fail.
From highest to lowest, the possible skill ratings are: Opposed Checks

Master 5d20 If two actions are in direct opposition to one another - for
Expert 4d20 example, hiding in foliage (a Fieldcraft skill check) and
Professional 3d20 trying to detect an ambush (an Awareness attribute check),
Competent 2d20 the check with the greatest MoS (or lesser MoF) indicates the
Novice 1d20 winner. If MoS is relevant to the outcome of the check,
subtract the loser’s MoS from the winner’s to determine the
Example: Attacking with a rifle uses the Longarm skill and actual MoS.
the Coordination attribute. If your character has Longarm
Professional and Coordination 7, you roll 3d20 and take the Survival Points
lowest die result, hoping to roll under your TN of 7. If you Survival points (SPs) represent the natural resilience,
roll 4, 12, and 19, the 4 indicates a success. The 12 and 19 reflexes, or dumb luck that keep player characters alive.
have no effect. Your character begins play with a number of SPs determined
If your character has no rating in a skill, he’s considered by his age (younger characters have more SPs to ensure that
unskilled. You can still attempt certain actions, but at a they survive their own stupidity long enough to continue the
significant penalty. Roll 2d20 and take the highest of the two species). You may spend your SPs for the following benefits:
die results. Mitigate injury: When your character receives a wound,
Attribute Checks spend one or more SPs to reduce reduce its severity by one
level per SP spent.
You may need to make a task check using a base attribute
rather than a skill. This works the same way as a skill check, Boost check: Spend one or more SPs to add a +4 bonus
except that you always roll with a Competent skill rating per SP to any one skill check. You may spend SPs after
(2d20). you roll.
Ignore wound penalties: Spend one SP to negate all
Bonuses and Penalties wound penalties for a single skill check.
Both beneficial and adverse effects can modify your base
Aid Treatment: As per Boost Check, but adding bonuses
TN. Bonuses raise your TN, while penalties decrease it. No
to someone else’s attempt to perform a medical procedure
bonus or penalty can have an absolute value more than 5 (so
on your character.
bonuses range from +1 to +5, and penalties from -1 to -5).
You earn SPs at the GM’s discretion for performing acts of
Success, Failure, and Margins Thereof heroism, entertaining your fellow players, roleplaying your
Sometimes, simple success or failure doesn’t provide enough character well, or doing things that “look good on screen.”
detail - you need to know how well you succeeded or how
Contacts
catastrophically you failed. In such instances, the relevant
value is the difference between your TN and your die result. You begin play with a set of undefined contacts, which
This is referred to as the margin of success (MoS) or margin represents people you know who haven't yet been important
of failure (MoF). to the story. To define and activate a contact, tell the GM that
your character knows someone in the area and provide a
Example: With a TN of 7 and a die result of 4, you succeed
general description of that person. Then make a COG check
with a margin of success of 3.
(a good description may give you a bonus). With success,
A MoS of zero (i.e. a die result equal to your TN) indicates you locate the contact in ((15 - MoS) hours. With failure, it
that you barely succeeded, snatching victory from the jaws of takes you (1d6 + MoF) days.
defeat.
Four basic types of contacts exist. Information contacts have
useful data, Reinforcement contacts may be willing to fight
alongside you, Service contacts have useful skills, and Trade
contacts have stuff to sell you. Contacts also are rated on a
scale of quality, ranging from Green through Regular,
Experienced, Veteran, and Elite. Higher-quality contacts
provide better benefits.
 Reflex System Quick Start Rules: Combat

Combat Timing Basics Burst Fire

Combat is divided into exchanges of fire (brief flurries of Many military firearms are capable of burst fire, which fires
action), each of which is divided into ticks (single instants multiple bullets with a single pull of the trigger. A burst-
within the firefight). A typical exchange of fire lasts 5 to 10 capable weapon has a “Bx” notation in its Rate of Fire trait,
seconds, while a single tick is between ¼ and ½ second. with “x” representing the number of rounds fired per burst.
At the beginning of an exchange of fire, an initiative check When your character fires a burst, he receives a bonus equal
establishes the speed with which your character acts. When to the number of additional rounds he’s sending downrange
your character’s initiative value is the highest among all (e.g. a 3-round burst provides a +2 bonus). If the attack hits,
combatants, it’s his turn to act. Each action has a tick cost, roll for hit location normally, then roll 1d6 for each
which represents the time required to perform it. When your additional bullet. A result of 1 indicates that the round strikes
character takes an action, resolve it, then subtract its tick cost in the same hit location. A result of 2 or 3 indicates that the
from his initiative value. round strikes in a randomly-selected location. A result of 4
through 6 is a clean miss.
Example: Your character has an initiative value of 12. You
select an action with a tick cost of 5. After the action is Damage
resolved, your character’s initiative value drops to 7.
Every weapon has a base Damage rating. The total damage
When every combatant’s initiative value is zero (or so low inflicted by a successful attack equals this rating plus the
that no player has anything else to do), the exchange of fire attack’s MoS. Roll for hit location, then compare the attack’s
ends and a new one begins. damage to the target’s wound thresholds. The target suffers a
wound equal to the highest wound threshold that the attack’s
Initiative Checks total damage equals or exceeds. If the target already has a
At the beginning of an exchange of fire, your character’s wound of equal severity, his wound condition worsens by
base initiative value depends on how heavily-encumbered he one level. If the target already has a wound of greater
is: severity, the hit has no additional effect.

Overloaded 5 The Rule of Zero Exception: Regardless of the weapon’s

Heavily encumbered 7 Damage rating, any attack with a zero MoS is a grazing hit
Moderately encumbered 9 and cannot inflict more than a slight wound.
Lightly encumbered 12 Example: You successfully attack with a MoS of 3, using a
Unencumbered 15 weapon whose base Damage is 6. Your attack’s final damage
Your initiative check is an OODA attribute check. If you fail, value is 9. Your target has wound thresholds of Slight 1,
your character receives only his base initiative for this Moderate 7, Serious 11, Critical 14. Your attack inflicts a
exchange of fire. If you succeed, add twice the MoS to his moderate wound. If your target is already moderately
base initiative (for a MoS of zero, add 1). wounded, his condition worsens to serious.

Attacks Armor and Penetration

A character can use any weapon to make one of three basic Every weapon has a Penetration rating, which reflects its
attack types. Each weapon has a Speed rating, which ability to punch through armor and cover. If an attack strikes
provides the tick costs for these attacks in order. Each attack an intervening object, multiply the Armor value by the
is a compromise between accuracy and speed. weapon’s Penetration, then subtract it from the attack’s
damage before determining wounds.
Blind Strike/Hip Shot: Fast but wild. Suffers a penalty
equal to the weapon’s Bulk (miniumum -2, even for Bulk 1 Example: Your attack strikes your target’s body armor, which
or 0 weapons). has Armor 2. Your weapon has Penetration x2. This
generates an effective Armor 4, which is subtracted from
Snap Strike/Snap Shot: Standard attack. No bonuses or your damage of 9 to yield a final damage value of 5.
penalties.
Calculated Strike/Aimed Shot: Slow but steady. Total
penalties are halved.
Wound Effects Movement
Wounds are the only effect which subtract dice from skill Movement in combat is a 5-tick action. The distance your
checks rather than penalizing TNs. Wound penalties are not character covers depends on his movement speed, which is
cumulative - if multiple wounds affect an action, only the limited by any leg injuries (see above) and his current
most severe penalty applies. If a wound penalty reduces you encumbrance.
to zero dice, make an unskilled check (2d20, take the higher
die result). While moving, your character may also take any one other
action with a tick cost of 5 or less. Movement imposes
Attribute checks are not affected by wounds. penalties on most physical actions, but it may also make your
character harder for attackers to hit.
Common Wound Effects
Speed Encumbrance Penalty To Hit You
Whenever your character suffers a moderate or serious Sprint Unencumbered -5 -3
wound to any location, make a Fitness check. If you fail, Run Light or none -3 -2
your character enters shock; a CUF check is required to act Trot Moderate or less -2 -1
on all subsequent exchanges of fire. If you fail by 5 or more, Walk Heavy or less -1 None
your character is unstable and will bleed out in a matter of Stagger Any -1 None
minutes unless he receives first aid. Crawl Any -4 Prone
Head Wounds
Other Actions
Slight: -1 die to all actions.
Action Tick cost
Moderate: -2 dice to all actions. Activate/deactivate equipment 1
Assess situation (look around) 1 to 6
Serious: -3 dice to all actions. If MoF on fitness check is 5 Block in close combat 1 + weapon Speed
or more, character falls unconscious. Change stance down 2
Critical: Character automatically becomes unstable and Change stance up 4
unconscious. Communicate 1, 3, or 5
Ditch clothing/pack all remaining
Torso Wounds Ready item item Bulk
Reload weapon weapon Bulk
Slight: -1 die to all physical actions.
Stow item item Bulk
Moderate: -2 dice to all physical actions. Wait see following
Serious: -3 dice to all physical actions. Waiting to Act
Critical: -4 dice to all physical actions. Your character's OODA represents his reaction speed.
Accordingly, waiting for something to happen is an action
Arm Wounds whose speed depends on OODA. Characters with higher
Slight: -1 die to all actions with that limb. OODA can pause, assess, decide on a new action, and act
with greater speed. The Wait action represents this, and its
Moderate: -2 dice to all actions with that limb. Make a tick cost depends on the character's OODA:
Muscle check to avoid dropping anything held in that
hand. OODA Wait tick cost
15 1
Serious: -3 dice to all actions with that limb. Make a 13-14 2
Muscle check (TN -2) to avoid dropping anything held in 10-12 3
that hand. 7-9 4
4-6 5
Critical: Limb unusable. Drop anything held in that hand.
1-3 6
Leg Wounds
Stances
Slight: -1 die to all actions with that limb. Character can’t
sprint. Standing: Default stance; no modifiers.

Moderate: -2 dice to all actions with that limb. Character Kneeling: -1 to ranged attacks against you; +1 to close
can’t move faster than a walk. combat attacks against you; can only walk or stagger; double
movement penalties to your actions; +1 MUS for recoil
Serious: -3 dice to all actions with that limb. Character resistance.
can’t move faster than a stagger.
Sitting: No movement; +2 MUS for recoil resistance.
Critical: Limb unusable. Character falls down and can
only crawl. Prone: All ranged attacks and observation against you occur
at one range band farther than actual; +2 to close combat
attacks against you; can only crawl; your ranged attacks to
your sides and rear take twice as long; x2 MUS for recoil
resistance.
The Cast Communism in 1990 did little to affect Casimir's work,
aside from making border crossings easier and bringing
Lieutenant Commander Dillon King, Royal Australian in occasional legitimate money as a hunting guide for
Navy (Fleet Air Arm), wasn't even supposed to be in rich Westerners. The Twilight War, on the other hand,
this war. The helicopter pilot had the misfortune to be was a serious obstacle to his daily routine. Although he
serving as an exchange officer on board HMS Montrose was too old to volunteer for military service, Casimir's
when the Twilight War erupted, and England suddenly eyes were as good as ever, and a lifetime of hunting was
had other priorities than repatriating an allied aviator more than enough to overcome the first twinges of
whose services the Royal Navy needed anyway. King's arthritis. He linked up with a Polish infantry division
Merlin went down on the Baltic coast in February, whose commander was smart enough to see his value as
leaving him stranded. He linked up with EU ground a scout, and for the past year he's been back in the other
forces, where he's been a reluctant infantryman ever family business: stalking and killing Russians.
since.
Casimir is a squat, thick Slav, standing only 1.6 meters
Dillon is 1.9 meters tall, in his late thirties, and healthily tall. With his graying beard, scarred and weathered
tanned despite the long, gloomy Balkan winter. He's face, and work-gnarled hands, he can fit into virtually
usually attired in a hodgepodge of secondhand any survivor community in the region without arousing
camouflage fatigues and, if expecting combat, his flight so much as a second glance. He carries his old hunting
helmet and an assault rifle. As befits an aviator, his shotgun, a Russian sniper rifle whose previous owner no
mustache is perfect. longer needs it, and a fine collection of cutlery.
Stabsunteroffizier (Sergeant) Roswitha Kuhlberg's Jurgen Presser is a German freelance photojournalist with a
unladylike fascination with construction and destruction history of sticking his lens in humanitarian crises. The
led her into a combat engineering career in the German good news is that he doesn't have to look very far for
Army, only a couple of years after the specialty was material now. The bad news is that he's just as deep in
opened to women. Until the nuclear strike on her base in the shit as everyone else. Jurgen has a decent amount of
Malbork, she was a pionierpanzer commander. Now rescue training and is a lifelong adrenaline junkie (rock
she's happy to have a good shovel. climbing, SCUBA, and skydiving). He's staying with
Roswitha is a tall, athletic twentysomething blonde who the rest of the group for protection, as the only
never quite seems to get the dirt and grease out of her embedding a lone reporter's likely to do these days is in
well-worn Bundeswehr camouflage. Although most of fresh-turned earth.
her prewar experience was in civil engineering - road, No matter how bad things get, Jurgen somehow
bridge, and building construction - the past year has put manages to look at least somewhat clean. He usually
the "combat" back in her combat engineering job. Her looks at least a decade younger than his actual age of
primary weapon is whatever large armored vehicle is 34. Although he's seen as much of the war as anyone
available - or, failing that, an assault rifle and grenade else, Jurgen is as much of a moral compass as the group
launcher. has. He does know how to use a rifle - barely - but if a
Corporal Lee Watkins had the dubious fortune of being on fight breaks out, he's more likely to have a camera or his
the last flight out of Malbork before the nukes hit. aid bag in his hands.
Unfortunately, his destination was even worse. He and Michael Kemp was an infantry platoon leader in the Blues
the rest of II Squadron of the RAF Regiment dropped on and Royals regiment of the British Army until a training
Siauliai, attempting to retake the Lithanian airport accident ended his military career. After an extended
before the Russians could consolidate their hold on it. convalescence, he used his regimental connections to
The squadron held up its end of the operation, but EU secure a job in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office,
follow-on support never materialized. After the bloody working for the military attache of the British embassy
breakout into the Lithuanian countryside, Lee spent a in Warsaw. He's a bit vague on how he wound up so
couple of months on his own before linking up with the close to the front lines during the latter months of the
rest of the team. war, mumbling something about fact-finding missions
Lee's a working-class Brit of average height and (for and ministers without portfolios.
2013) average build, a man for whom the RAF was the Michael is as close to average-looking as it's possible to
best possible option for getting out of his old get without a computer model. With a change of clothes
neighborhood. The euphemism that best applies to him and accent, he'd look like a native anywhere from his
is "good with his hands," whether the game is fisticuffs native Southampton to the Mediterranean basin.
or his preferred light machine gun. Although he carries a chopped-down assault rifle for the
Casimir Rakowski was born in rural Poland in 1956, when sake of appearances, he's much better up close and
the hand of Communism rested heavily upon the personal with a pistol.
country. His father and grandfather had both been anti-
Soviet partisans in World War II, and Casimir was raised
on two generations' worth of hatred for the Russians. As
soon as he was old enough, he was inducted into the
family business: a loose coalition of poachers,
smugglers, bootleggers, and occasional local assets for
the NATO espionage community. The collapse of