Macrocosm Rules V1.5

7/23/2019 Macrocosm Rules V1.5

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/macrocosm-rules-v15 1/29

Macrocosm

Play TestRulebook

Version 1.5



Index

1. The Making of a Heroa. Choosing a Modelb. Keywords, What are They?c. Choosing a Model

d. Correct Base Sizee. Which way am I Facing?

2. Requisitioning Forcesa. How Many Command Points

do I Get?b. How many of each model can

I Recruit?3. Setting up a Game

a. Dice Conventionsb. Reading he results of the Dicec. What is Line of Sight?d. Scatter Dicee. Special Dice

f. How do I set up a table?g. When do I Determine the

Mission?4. How a Turn Works

a. When can I move?b. When can I fight?c. When can I use a Special

Rule or a Power of the Mind?5. Movement and Momentum

a. Measurementb. Hustle & Sprintc. Terrain

i. Keep the GameFlowing

ii. Area Terrainiii. Linear Obstaclesiv. Buildingsv. Impassable Terrainvi. Damaging Terrainvii. Deadly Terrain

d. Jumpe. Climbf. Leap/Fall

6. Shooting your Enemya. How do I Determine Range?b. How do I Make an Attack

Roll?i. Light Coverii. Heavy Coveriii. Poor Visibility

c. How do I Damage the Target?

7. Fighting your Enemya. Moving into Melee Rangeb. How do I Make an Attack

Roll?

i. Advantageous Terrainii. Dodgeiii. Counter Attack

c. How do I Damage the Target?8. Special Attacks

a. Ranged or Melee?b. Making a Non-Standard

Attack Rollc. Does Cover have an Effect?d. Does the Attack Inflict

Damage?9. Taking Damage

a. The Effect of Armour

b. Alternative Damage Typesc. Effects & Impediments

10. Health & Injurya. Unable to Activateb. Injuredc. Death

11. Sample Weapon12. Sample Armour13. Non-Standard Equipment14. Special Rules

a. Generic Special Rulesb. Faction Special Rulesc. Specific Special Rulesd. Powers of the Mind

15. Missions16. Setting up a Campaign

a. Linked Missionsb. The Narrative Campaign

17. Glossary



1. The Making of a Hero A game of Macrocosm represents the struggle of a particular hero (or heroes) andtheir followers and they strive to excel in a dangerous universe… one wereopposition is rife and deadly.

Each Hero and follower is denoted by a selection of statistics, each representing anaspect of their character. The statistics are:

Speed: How fast, dextrous and nimble is the hero.Accuracy: How good a shot are they and how easily do they spot hidden

opponents.Ferocity: How effective are they in close combat and how they react in the face of

overwhelming odds or imminent defeat.Resilience: How tough are they and how do they deal with mental stress and

physical impairment.

Health: How well do they resist poison, disease and dangerous environments…and how many hits can they take before they die…

Each Hero also has a number of Command Points available which they can use torecruit followers from their faction. See the Recruiting Forces section (pg.##).

a. Keywords what are they?Keywords are important as they identify factions and important aspects of the hero ortheir followers that may be important to certain special rules.

For Example: A Digger Boss has the Digger keyword and has the Elitist (Digger)

special rule. This means they are required to recruit a certain number of followerswho also have the Digger keyword.

b. Choosing a ModelEach Hero and Follower is represented on the table by a Macrocosm model. You arefree to choose any model to represent each character, but make sure your opponentknows which one is which. The easiest way to do that is to use the model that mostclosely represents the character in question. The main rule is to have fun, so don’tget too caught up on whether the models are 100% correct or not.

c. Correct Base Size

Each Macrocosm model is supplied with the correct base size. However, as a rule ofthumb, models that are human sized or smaller use 30mm round bases. Hefty models and those larger than a normal humans use 40mm round bases andImmense models or very large monsters and vehicles use 50mm+ round bases, ormay not have a base at all, in the case of some vehicles.

d. Facing on ModelsUnlike some other games you may play, Macrocosm assumes that, while your modelis static, the character it represents is constantly in motion, checking theirsurroundings and preparing for an attack. As such we do not use facing in this game

and your model is considered to be able to “see” in all directions regardless of thedirection the model is actually facing.



2. Requisitioning Forcesa. How Many Command Points do I Get?

To Be Completedb. How many of each model can I Recruit?

To Be Completed



3. Setting up a Gamea. What sort of Dice do I need to Play?

The game of Macrocosm uses eight-sided dice (abbreviated to D8) todetermine the outcome of effects. As a player, we advise that you have

a couple of D8s, one of which should be a different colour, to representspecial effects. However, you can get by with only one if necessary.b. How do I Make a Dice Roll?

Each time a model performs an action with any degree of difficulty(shooting, fighting, running over dangerous terrain etc.) they mustmake a roll. In order to make a roll, players must determine thedifficulty. In the case of actions directed against another model, thedifficulty of the roll is determined by the target’s opposing statistic (seebelow). When the target of the roll is neutral (terrain for example) thedifficulty will either be determined by player agreement or from astandard list (see below).

When making a roll, a player gets 1D8 to roll as standard, as eachmodel will have at least 1 star () in each stat. This is the default and aroll will never be made with less than 1 dice. The player gainsadditional dice to roll depending on the number of the model has andother factors, which may influence the action (good quality weapons orspecial equipment for example).The player’s opponent also makes an opposing roll, also using aminimum of 1 dice, which will again be altered by certain factors.Once the number of dice each player must roll is determined, they rolloff against each other.

c. Reading the results of the Dice

When both players have rolled their dice, we must determine who issuccessful.Each player must determine who rolled the highest individual result onthe dice they rolled. The player with the highest individual result on anydice is considered to be the winner. However, there is also the chancefor exceptional results. This happens when a winner gets more thanone result that beats one or many dice of their opponent.

Example – Chris and Bob are playing a game. Bob’s Digger Corpsman takes a shot

at Chris’ Infested Carrier. The target is within range of the Corpsman’s rifle and is inthe open, without cover and while the lighting is poor, the Digger has enhancedvision and can ignore this effect.The Corpsman has an Accuracy stat of and his UVasergun has a Quality of . Sothe Digger Corpsman will roll 2D8 to hit.The Infested Carrier must try to avoid being shot. He has a Speed stat of 1 and gainsno bonus dice due to cover. Normally he would gain +1 bonus dice due to the PoorVisibility, but the Digger has UV Vision, so he does not. The Infested Carrier rolls2D8 to dodge the shot.Both players roll their dice. Bob rolls and 8 and a 4, Chris rolls a 5 and a 4. Lookingat the results, the highest is Bob with one 8. However, Bob’s other dice didn’t beatChris’ highest roll. So Bob wins, but it’s not an exceptional success. The Infested

Carrier has been hit… Bob will next roll to see how much damage the shot did.



d. Getting a Draw and a StandoffIf both players roll the dice and get the same highest result, then theroll is a draw. Count up how many of those highest results each playerrolled (i.e. if both players rolled a 7 as their highest score, did one ofthem roll multiple 7s?) and use this as a tie breaker. If a model wins a

tiebreaker, it only ever scores 1 success, the success is neverexceptional. If the rolls are exactly equal, and the tie cannot be broken,the models have achieved a standoff. Fate has interceded and thingshave gone a bit haywire.Both the activating model and any opposing model immediately endtheir activation. However, they are otherwise unaffected.

e. Rerolls and how they WorkWhen a model has a special rule that allows them to reroll a certainresult (normally a 1) the player may roll dice with that score again, inorder to attempt to get a better result. However, they must accept theresult of the second roll, even if it is worse.

Dice that have been rerolled, may not be rerolled a second timeregardless of any additional special rules that may affect them.If a model gains a second special rule or attempts an action that allowsthem to reroll a certain result while already able to reroll that number,the number they are allowed to reroll is increased by 1.

Example – Chris has an Og Corpsman, who charges into combat with a MalignantHost. The Og is Hefty , which allows it to reroll results of a 1 when making damagerolls against models on a smaller sized base. However, charging also allows you toreroll 1s. Therefore, the Og now rerolls results of a 1 or 2 when making a damageroll against the Host.

f. Exceptional ResultsWhen a player makes a roll and more than one of their dice beats thehighest result of their opponent, they have achieved an exceptionalresult. This means that the level of success is more impressive than asimple success would warrant. The effect of an exceptional result islisted under the specific action.

Example – Bob’s Digger Corpsman is trying to jump across a gap between twobuildings. As the gap is more than 2”, the Corpsman must make a roll. Measuring the

gap we find that it is 4”, which gives a difficulty of 2D8. The Corpsman is Dumpy,which means he doesn’t get to add his Speed stat to run or jump actions, but hedoes still make a running jump, to get an additional +1 bonus dice. So the Corpsmanwill also roll 2D8.Bob makes his roll and Chris rolls 2D8 for the difficulty of the jump. Bob gets 8 and 7,a gr eat result. Chris gets 2 and 5. Both of Bob’s dice have beaten Chris’ highestscore, so he has rolled an exceptional result, beating the required 1 successful diceby 1.If we check the Running Jump entry in the rules, we can see that an ExceptionalResult, means that rather than just being placed on the other side of the gap, theCorpsman model can be placed anywhere within 1” per exceptional result of the

edge.



g. What is Line of Sight?

Line of Sight is how we determine what a model can see and interactwith. In order to find this out, all a player needs to do is get down to eyelevel with the model and literally look through it, to see what thecharacter the model represents could potentially see.

Can you see any enemy models? Can you see objectives and terrain?Then the character could see those things too.Line of Sight is important as it tells you where a model can move tooand what it can shoot at. If a character does not have a clear line ofsight to a target enemy model, it either won’t be able to fir e at them, orthe target will gain considerable advantages when trying to dodge andresist a potential shot.

h. Measuring Ranges During the game, you will be required to measure ranges for movementand weapon range. You can measure range at any time, just try tomake sure you don’t interrupt your opponent or disrupt the game too

much. All ranges are measured in inches.

i . Scatter Dice

Sometimes a weapon will have the potential to scatter, even if it missesits target. If you use such a weapon, one of your dice must beconsidered a Scatter Dice. This dice will indicate both the distance anddirection a weapon will scatter, by the number of the dice and thedirection the top point of the dice indicates.When using a scatter weapon, if all attack dice miss the target, thenmove any blast marker, a number of inches indicated on the scatter die

and in the direction it is pointing. If the blast marker lands on top of anymodels (friendly or enemy) they each take Quality dice of damage,resisted by Resilience + Armour.

j. Special Dice Some weapons have additional effects in addition (or perhaps insteadof) damage. When using such a weapon, you will be informed to use anumber of special dice (these may be bonus dice). It is probably best touse a different colour of dice, or to roll them separately, if these dicehit, then they will have a specific effect, as indicated on theirdescription. If the dice misses, the effect will not trigger.

k. What Else do I need to Play?

In order to play, you will need a collection of Macrocosm miniatures, aruler or tape measure (in inches) and a selection of dice. Mostimportantly, you will need a surface to play on. We suggest a 3 foot X 3foot section of table, on which you can place model terrain (or anyother things you may have to hand) to indicate one of the battlefields ofthe Macrocosm universe.

l. How do I Determine the Mission?In Macrocosm, players must determine the primary mission of thegame. This is done by each player rolling 1D8 and checking themission grid (see below). However, each faction in Macrocosm has aspecific agenda and goal; this is represented by their Default Mission.

Regardless of the goals of the primary mission, Factions can alwaysscore Mission Points (MP) by completing the Default Mission. So even



if the mission rolled is not the best for your particular build, you canalways hope to at least salvage some kind of victory by sticking to yourfaction’s overall aims.

If you want to get into the action quickly, we recommend that you play

the Crossed Purposes mission. This is a simple mission, whereplayers score 1MP for each enemy model injured and a bonus +1MPfor injuring an opposing Hero. You can also score using your DefaultMission.

m. How do I set up a table?

Each primary mission will have a specific deployment setup. Thismeans that you and your opponent will be initially able to place yourmodels in certain areas of the table before play begins.However, there is also a standard (or default) setup and table size. Tohelp you get started quickly.

We suggest that you use a 4 foot by 4 foot [4’X4’] playing surface toplay a standard game of one to three Heroes. With more heroes, youmight want to increase the playing surface to 4’X5’ or even 4’X6’ forreally big multi-hero battles. However initially, for games of one Heroeach, a 3’X3’ is fine.

Initial deployment on a standard table is as follows:Each player sets up their models up to 12” from a corner of theirchoice. To determine which player set up their models first (andchooses the initial corner) roll 1D8 + 1 bonus die for each point ofLeader your Hero has. The player that wins the rolls chooses, sets uptheir models and activates first. In missions, they will also bedetermined to be the Aggressor.



4. How a Turn Works A player’s turn in Macrocosm consists of activating a number of models, thosemodels moving and shooting, or perhaps even fighting in close combat orinteracting with objectives or terrain on the table.

a. How do I activate models?To activate a model, you simply have to declare to your opponentwhich model you wish to activate, and then place your hand on it tomove, attack or take an action. It’s good form to use the model’s officialname, so that your opponent knows which model it is you are moving,but if you want to use your own names, why not. Just as long aseveryone knows exactly which models are moving and when.

b. How many models can I activate?Each player gets to activate five models. After a player has moved thatnumber of models play passes to their opponent and vice versa.

c. When can I mov e and how far?

Each model can move up to 4” (+1” per of Speed) when theyactivate. They may have different forms of movement or they maydecide to sprint or perhaps some other type of moving, these arediscussed below. But in general, a model will be able to move at thestandard rate of at least 4”. A model can move at any point during its activation, either before orafter taking an action. However, if they have used certain forms ofalternate movement, they may be precluded from taking action or fromusing that type of movement, depending on what action they took.

d. When can I f ight?

A model can shoot either before or after movement, similarly they may

fight in close combat, before or after movement, provided (in bothcases) a suitable opponent is within range of the weapon they intend touse. In the case of close combat, this will typically mean they should bein base contact with the enemy. If at any time two enemy models moveinto base contact, they are considered to be in close combat, strugglingwith each other and trying to gain the upper hand. This will stop themoving model from travelling any further, even if it is not the controllingplayer’s turn.

e. When can I use a Special Rule or a Power of the Mind?

In general a model can use a Special Rule or Power of the Mindinstead of moving or taking an action. The description of the rule/powerwill tell you which. However, certain Special Rules and Powers of theMind are passive and can be activated at any point. Passive powers donot take the place of a model’s movement or action.

f. Out of Turn ActionsIf a model is not activated during your turn, they are eligible to take anout of turn action. The two out of turn actions that can be taken are PotShot and Scramble (each of which are defined below).



5. MovementEach model that activates in a turn may move. There are various types ofmovement that can be selected, including some special types that will bedescribed either in Special Rules, or on the models description.

a. Hus tle & SprintThe basic form of movement a model can perform is to Hustle. Thisallows the model to move 4” (+1” per of Speed) and assumes thecharacter is moving with haste, while trying to avoid enemy fire andgenerally keep a low profile. A model that Hustles can shoot or fight asnormal. In addition, they gain the full benefit from cover and terrain.Sometimes a character may wish to move faster than a Hustle. If this isthe case, they may choose to Sprint. When Sprinting, the model movesan additional 4” faster than their Hustle rate. However, if you Sprint,you may not shoot a weapon and your reckless movement means youdo not gain any bonus dice to Dodge from terrain.

A character may choose to Sprint into base contact with an enemymodel. If they do, this is considered to be a charge. Charges arediscussed under the Fighting your Enemy section below.

b. Terrain

Every battlefield consists of terrain. This breaks up the battlefield,provides vital protection for characters and just generally looks good.There are different types of terrain, most of which can be traversed, jumped over, climbed up or dropped down from. At the beginning of a game, players should agree which pieces ofterrain represent what types.

i . Keep the Game Flowing

In order to keep the game from getting jammed up with toomany dice rolls, we must consider that some terrain is easy forcharacters to traverse or jump over. If an obstacle is under 2”tall, a gap is 2” or less wide, or a drop is 2” or less. Then themodel is assumed to be able to easily move across or leap thedistance required. The controlling player can still take a roll ifthey want to try for an Exceptional Success, but in most cases,we simply measure the distance of the move, including theobstacle and move the model the full Hustle or Sprint distance(remember, certain terrain still cannot be Sprinted across).

i i . Rough Terrain

This type of terrain represents areas of ground that are brokenor otherwise difficult, but not impossible to cross (i.e. a river). Amodel can Hustle across Rough Terrain, but cannot Sprintacross it.

i i i . Damagin g Terrain

This type of terrain represents terrain that may hurt anyonetrying to cross it (i.e. lava flows, pools of acid). This terrain actsas Rough Terrain, but a model takes a number of Damage dicedepending on how dangerous the terrain is (generally 1-3).When crossing this terrain, a player can use a model’s Speed or

Resilience to resist the damage of the terrain.



iv. Deadly Terrain

This type of terrain is so dangerous that it will instantly kill anymodel that fails to cross it (e.g. a chasm). This terrain acts asRough Terrain, but a model takes a number of Damage dicedepending on how deadly the terrain is (generally 1-3).

When crossing this terrain, a player uses a model’s Speed toresist the damage. If they fail and take any damage, the modelis removed from play, regardless of how much Health they haveremaining.

v. Imp assable Terrain

This type of terrain cannot be traversed by normal means. Itserves to block a model’s movement and to make the battlefieldless regular.

vi. Lin ear Obst acles

These are walls, fences, rock piles etc. essentially any terrainthat has height and is laid out in a line. In order to traverse this

terrain a model must climb (see below) provided the obstacle ismore than 2” in height. In general, Linear Obstacles grant HeavyCover. However, hedges and vegetation will usually only grantLight Cover (see below).

vii. Bui ld ings This terrain represents habitation cubicles and bunkers, whichthe civilisations of Macrocosm use to live in or to protectthemselves. In general Buildings will be impassable terrain.However, you may be able to climb onto the roof, or indeed getinside the building, should your model allow.

vi i i . Ruins

The battlefields of Macrocosm are littered with the remnants ofprevious settlements or the evidence of recent conflict. As suchruins are common. A ruin is generally considered to be acollection of Linear Obstacles, typically in close proximity andperhaps with one or two floors. Ruins provide Heavy cover.

c. Jump & Running Jump

Sometimes a character in the game will be required to jump across agap to reach another area of the battlefield. In order to do so, they mustdecide to either make a standard jump or a running jump. Provided thegap is more than 2” (see above) and less than 6”. No model may

attempt to jump more than 6”, unless they have a special rule thatallows them to.If the player decides to make a standard jump, they roll their Speedwhich is resisted by the difficulty of the distance. For each 1” over the2” allowed, the opposing player rolls 1 dice to resist the jumping model.If the jumping model fails to make the jump, then it falls (see below). Amodel making a standard jump can continue to move if they have anyinches of movement left.



If the model makes a running jump, they roll their Speed (as above) butgain +1 bonus dice to make the jump. However, making a running jumpends their movement and does not allow them to shoot afterward (orhave shot beforehand). A running jump can be used as a charge (seebelow).

If the model succeeds at their jump, then place the model on the otherside of the gap and continue with the activation.

d. Climb

When trying to cross a section of linear terrain or a wall, the modelmust climb. A climbing model must roll their Speed, resisted by theheight of the obstacle/wall. The wall resists with 1 Dice per 1” over 2”,up to a maximum of 3 Dice. If a model fails in their climb roll, they fall.To make things easier, the distance they fall is considered to be halfthe total height of the structure they failed to climb. However, they mustalways roll a minimum of 1 Dice damage.

e. Leap/Fall

When a model tries to descend from a height, they must leap down (orfall). A model can descend up to 2” without a roll. However, if theydescend any greater distance, they take a damage roll of 1 Dice per 1”over the 2” allowed, up to a maximum of 3 Dice. The damage from Leaping/Falling can be resisted with Speed, orResilience.

f . Hiding

If a model ends its turn in base contact with a section of terrain thatcovers more than 25% of the miniature, it can elect to hide. A hiddenmodel cannot move or take out of turn actions, but enemy modelscannot draw a line of sight to the hidden model if their line of sightpasses through the piece of terrain that is hiding the model. Thismeans that enemy models cannot shoot the hidden model, use specialabilities or powers that require line of sight against it, or charge intohand-to-hand combat with it, while it remains hidden. A hidden model may elect to shoot, charge, use a special rule or poweragainst an enemy model during its activation. If it does so, the enemyis considered to be ambushed (see below). If a model shoots, charges,uses a special rule or power or moves out of cover, it is no longerconsidered to be hidden.

i . Spott ing Hidden Models

In order to spot a hidden model, an enemy needs to make a rollof 1D8 + 1 bonus dice for each of Accuracy, opposed by thenumber of dice the terrain grants for difficulty (1-3) + any bonusdice for Poor Visibility.If the spotter wins the roll, the model is no longer considered tobe hidden. This applies to all enemy models, as the spotter isassumed to relay the position of the discovered model to theirallies.



g. Scarper

Scarper is an out of turn move action that can be taken by a model thathas not activated during a player’s turn. If an enemy model finishes a movement action within the line of sight ofa model that has not activated the model that as not activated can elect

to Scarper. This allows the model to make a normal Hustle move in anydirection, to escape detection. The model may not climb or jump duringthis movement, but they may elect to Hide (see above).If a model makes a Scarper move, they cannot be activated during theplayer’s next turn.

h. Except ional Results

When rolling to traverse terrain, it is possible to obtain an ExceptionalResult. For each success rolled, over and above the 1 required forsuccess, the model may move an additional 1” through the terrain, orover the gap. This additional movement is entirely voluntary and amodel is not required to use it… but it may be useful.



6. Shooting your Enemy An essential part of Macrocosm is the ability of characters to engage theirenemies in ranged combat. Whether this be shooting a gun, throwing agrenade or the ability to avoid those attacks, high risk firefights are integral to

the game.a. How do I Determine Range?

The range of weapons are measured by placing your tape measuretouching the base of your model and measuring the distance to thebase of the target you are firing at.Ranged weapons can target enemies over a great distance. In fact,almost all ranged weapons (except thrown weapons such as grenades)have a range that far exceeds the areas designated by our 3’X3’ table.While weapons may have great range, they are not all equally effectiveover greater range. As such, all weapons have a Range stat to indicatethe effective range of the weapon. Beyond this range the weapon is too

inaccurate or lacks the impact to properly affect a target. It cannotaffect any target beyond its effective range in inches.

b. How do I Make an A ttack Roll? When rolling to hit a target, you must first have a line of sight to thetarget. This means that your model can “see” a significant portion of thetarget (typically the torso or head). Due to the dynamic posing ofmodels, we can generally ignore arms, weapons and flailing legs, whendetermining Line of Sight.To make the attack roll against a target, the player rolls 1D8, but gets abonus dice for each of Accuracy stat the model has and each ofQuality the weapon has. The roll is opposed by the target’s Speed, plus

any bonuses they get for environmental effects, special rules orpowers.

c. Dodging a Shot

When being shot at, it is assumed that a target is going to dodge. Thisis not always the case. If the target is ambushed, they will find it harderto Dodge, the player may also choose for the character to HunkerDown, where they simply take the hit and hope their innate toughnessand amour can ignore the damage.When the target chooses to dodge, the player opposes an incomingshot with 1D8, plus a bonus dice for each of Speed their model has.This is further increased by environmental factors, such as cover andvisibility (see below).

i . Light Cover

A model in light cover gains a +1 bonus dice to dodge incomingshots. Light cover is described as terrain that obscures morethan 33% of the target, but is made of soft or easily penetratedmaterial (e.g. vegetation, advertising signs, crates etc.).



i i . Heavy Cover

A model in heavy cover, is not only harder to hit, but protectedfrom a measure of the damage inflicted. Heavy Cover, grants +1bonus dice to dodge and grants +1 bonus dice to resist damage,should the target be hit.

Heavy Cover is described as terrain that obscures more than athird of the target and is made of a solid material (e.g. rocks,walls etc.)

i i i . Poor Visib i l i ty

It is not always possible to fight in the most advantageous ofcircumstances. The most common battlefield effect thatinfluences shooting is poor visibility. Poor Visibility represents,smoke, darkness, deep shadow or some other effect thatobscures a target, but can’t accurately be represented byterrain. If there is poor visibility, a target shot at is permitted toreroll any D8 roll of a 1 when making a dodge (or any ability to

reroll dodge dice is increased by +1). If they reroll any dice, theymust accept the result of the second roll.

iv . Ambush

Sometimes it is possible to ambush a target. If a model beginsits activation completely out of sight of an enemy, or they wereHidden (see above) then they have ambushed their target.It is much harder for a target enemy to dodge an attack whenthey are ambushed. As such they may only roll 1D8 whenmaking their dodge roll.

d. How do I Damage the Target?

Once a hit has been determined, you should then roll for damage (seebelow).

e. Aimed Shots A model can elect to make an aimed shot. In order to make an aimedshot, the model cannot also move during its activation (it is too busytaking aim). If the model does not move and shoots with an aimed shot,it makes a single attack roll (i.e. no additional attacks due to specialrules) and can reroll results of a 1 when making the attack roll. A model can only make an Aimed Shot during their activation; theycannot apply the Aimed Shot bonus to Pot Shots or any other type ofout of action shooting.

Note – Some weapons are more accurate than a standard gun andcan reroll results of 1 and 2, or even 1, 2 and 3 for very accurateweapons.

f . Pot Shots

If a model has not activated during a player’s turn, it can declare an outof action Pot Shot, at any enemy model that ends its movement actionwithin line of sight that is not also hidden.When a model makes a Pot Shot, they make a normal attack roll,exactly as above, but they may only ever fire a single shot (i.e. Burst

Fire and Rapid Fire have no affect).



A model that makes a Pot Shot, cannot then be activated during thecontrolling player’s next turn.

g. Firing into Hand-to-Hand Combat A shooter is able to fire into a melee combat, in which they have alliedmodels. However, this is dangerous. Calculate the dice as normal,

however, if the shooter rolls a 1, then their ally must take a dice ofdamage (which is resisted normally but increased by +1 for each ofPower the weapon has).

For Example – Chris gets his Infested Thug to shoot into hand-to-hand against

Henry’s Digger Corpsman, who is engaged in combat with a Malformed Host. Chrisrolls to hit with 2 dice and gets a 7 and a 1. Henry rolls to Dodge and gets a 5… HisDigger has been hit by one dice. However, because Chris rolled a 1, his model (theMalformed Host) is also hit with one dice.

h. Firing into Hand-to-Hand with Multiple Combatants

When shooting into a melee with multiple combatants, the shootermust first determine how many of their own friendly models are in thecombat. Each additional combatant adds +1 to the likelihood that afriendly model will be hit (i.e. 1 and 2 for 2 friendly models). A model hitin this way, is always chosen by your opponent.

i. Exceptional Results

When rolling to hit with a ranged weapon, it is possible to achieve anexceptional result. For each additional success rolled (above the onerequired to hit) the attacking model gets to roll an additional DamageDice when making their damage roll… they have obviously hit withmultiple shots or even a particularly vulnerable spot.



7. Fighting your EnemyIn addition to shooting at opponents, a character may also get up close andpersonal, fighting an enemy in hand-to-hand combat. As this sort of fighting ismuch more chaotic and brutal, it follows slightly different rules from ranged

combat.a. Mov ing into Melee Range

The majority of hand-to-hand combat will be conducted while in basecontact with the opponent. As such, a model is required to move intobase contact in order to initiate hand-to-hand.Hand-to-Hand combat is automatic and begins as soon as two modelsmove into base contact. Hand-to-hand occurs, even if the movingmodel has already shot a ranged weapon during their activation.

i . Charging

If a model Sprints into base contact, they are considered to havecharged. The increased momentum allows them to reroll 1s on

their damage dice when rolling for damage against the targetthey charged.If a model already has a special rule that allows it to rerolldamage dice with melee attacks, charging increases thisnumber by +1 (so reroll 1, becomes reroll 1 & 2).

i i . Mult ip le Fighters

Sometimes a fighter may come into base contact with multipleenemies, or they might be dog-piled by more than one enemyafter combat begins. If a model is in base contact with more thanone enemy model, they lose the ability to add their Speed asbonus dice to dodge. In addition, the enemy attackers gain +1

bonus dice to their attack roll, due to the added support of theirfriends.

i i i . No Melee or Inapp ropr iate Melee Weapon

Not all fighters in Macrocosm are armed with melee weapons;some may only have rifles or heavy weapons; both of which arenot ideal for hand-to-hand combat. If a model is only armed witha ranged weapon, it does not add its Quality to their hand-to-hand attack rolls. In addition, they must reroll results of an 8when making melee damage rolls.

b. How do I Make an Attack Roll?

Making an attack roll in hand-to-hand is similar to that of a rangedattack, except that the fighter uses their Ferocity stat to make theattack roll. The fighter rolls 1D8 + a number of bonus dice equal to theirFerocity and they get to roll bonus dice equal to the Quality of anymelee weapon they may have

i. Pistols in Hand-to-Hand CombatPistols are a special case in close combat. A Pistol is smallenough that it can be used in close combat as a weapon. Assuch, it counts as a melee weapon and adds its Quality indice to the Ferocity attack roll as normal.



ii. Multiple Melee WeaponsSometimes a model may be armed with more than one meleeweapon. If this is the case, you may choose which weapon tofight with at the beginning of each combat. Some exceptionalopponents can wield more than one melee weapon at once.

This ability will be described on their character description.iii. Adv antageous Terrain

Terrain generally has little effect on hand-to-hand combat.However, there are a couple of exceptions. If a target is behinda section of Heavy Cover, then a model does not gain a reroll forcharging into hand-to-hand with them (the cover is assumed tocause the momentum of the charge to falter). If an attacker is ona higher section of terrain than the model they are fighting, thenthey gain +1 bonus dice to their Damage roll (the higherelevation allows them more access to vulnerable areas of theirtarget).

c. Deal ing with Enemy Melee AttacksIf your model is attacked in hand-to-hand, they have a choice, theymay dodge the blow, or they may counter attack and try to outfight theiropponent.

i . Dodging a Hand-to-Hand attack

Dodging an attack is similar to dodging a ranged attack. Themodel opposes the incoming attack, using 1D8, plus a bonusdice for each of Speed. If they successfully dodge the attack,the model is moved 1” away from all attackers in the combat andis no longer considered to be in hand-to-hand.

i i . Counter Attack

If a character decides to Counter Attack, then they oppose theincoming attack, using 1D8 plus a bonus dice for each of theirFerocity with an additional bonus dice for each point of Qualitytheir weapon possesses. If they succeed, they damage theirattacker, exactly as if they had instigated the combat.

i i i . Ambush

Just like a ranged attack, if a model begins its activationcompletely out of sight of an enemy, or they were Hidden (seeabove) then they have ambushed their target.It is much harder for a target enemy to dodge an attack when

they are ambushed. As such they may only roll 1D8 whenmaking their dodge roll. d. How do I Damage the Target?

Once a hit has been determined, you should then roll for damage (seebelow).

e. Except ional Results

It is possible to achieve and exceptional result with an attack roll,dodge roll or counter attack roll. In the case of an attack or counterattack, exceptional results add an additional damage dice for eachsuccess over and above the one required to hit. For the dodge roll, themodel can be moved an additional 1” out of combat, for each additional

success.



8. Special Attacksa. Ranged or Melee?

To be Completed b. Making a Non-Standard Attack Roll

To be Completedc. Does Cover have an Effect?To be Completed

d. Does the Attack Inflict Damage?To be Completed



9. Taking DamageThe ultimate purpose of combat is to injure or kill your opponent. As such, wemust have a way to determine who if anyone is not going back to their lovedones after this battle.

a. Making a Damage RollTo make a damage roll, the attacking player takes the Damage Dice,as determined by the success of the attack roll, plus a number of bonusdice equal to the Power of the weapon they are using. In responsethe target being damaged, tries to resist the impact, using 1D8 for each of Resilience they have.If the attacker succeeds, they reduce the Health of the target by .If the defender succeeds, they have shrugged of the damage and cancontinue to activate as normal.

b. The Effect of Armou r

Armour is key to survival on the brutal battlefields of Macrocosm.

However, it is expensive and not always available to the standardsoldier. Armour is rated on a scale of 1-3 , with each point allowingyou to reroll a D8 of up to that number when resisting damage.Some weapons in Macrocosm have the ability to penetrate amourmore easily. They effectively reduce the number that can be rerolled by-1, if the reroll number reaches 0 then the reroll is lost. The level of thiseffect will be recorded on a character’s description.

c. Altern ative Damage Types

While all damage can be ultimately fatal, certain weapons deliverdamage of a specific type, be it burning, freezing or spraying theirtarget with virulent acid. Some armour types and races will be more

resistant to certain types of damage. This will be recorded on theircharacter descriptions.

i. Fire Damage This weapon sets opponents alight. Not only do they take initialdamage from the weapon, but they also take an additionaldamage roll at the end of the opposing player’s turn. Thisadditional damage roll is made using a number of dice equal tothe weapon’s Damage and is opposed as normal. Each turn, the additional damage roll is reduced by 1 dice, untilno more are rolled and the fire has gone out.

d. Effects & Impedim ents

Not all damage is designed to cause instant death. Some is moreinsidious and causes an effect that will limit the model for a shortduration or even for the remainder of the battle, making them lesseffective or easier to defeat. These effects are listed on a character’sdescription, but here are some general types:

i. Knocked Down A model that is knocked down is in a prone position. A modelthat is knocked down can choose to either stand up, or crawl 2”as their movement portion of their action. If they elect to crawl,the model remains knocked down.



While knocked down, a model only ever rolls 1D8 to dodge andcannot elect to Counter Attack opponents in hand-to-handcombat.If they were engaged in hand-to-hand combat, they areimmediately disengaged.

A model that is knocked down while in base contact with aterrain feature is considered to be Hidden until it stands up ormoves out of base contact with the terrain. Any model (friendly or enemy) in base contact with a model thatis knocked down can claim Light Cover from the knocked downmodel. A knocked down (or injured model) can be carried or draggedlike an object of size 1-3. 1 for standard (30mm base) models, 2for Hefty (or 40mm base) and 3 for Immense (or 50mm base)models.

e. Except ional Results

It is possible to achieve an exceptional result with a damage roll. Foreach success, over and above the one required to succeed, theattacker reduces the Health of their target by one additional .If a damage resistance roll gains an exceptional result, it is possible touse the additional successes to remove existing ill effects, or preventadditional effects from the resisted attack. As the target gains a suddenadrenalin burst. For each success over and above the one required,the model may remove one ongoing effect they are suffering from, ormay stand up if knocked down.



10. Health & Injury A characters Health stat represents their ability to take damage and still keepmoving and fighting. If this stat ever drops to zero, the model is injured andcan no longer activate.

a. Unable to Act ivateSometimes a model will be affected by an attack or effect that stopsthem activating. In this case, the model’s activation immediately endsand it cannot be selected for a normal activation, until the requiredduration is up, or in the case of injury, it receives healing.When a model is unable to activate normally, it can still select to usethe Gotta Keep Fighting action (see below).

b. Injured

When a model’s Health drops to zero, they are injured. They’re notdead (at least not yet), but they are Unable to A ct ivate and Knocked

Down (see above) for the rest of the game, or until they receive some

form of treatment or healing. Those that can provide healing have thisnoted on their character descriptions. In any case, an injured modelcan still receive an activation, but the only action it can take is GottaKeep Fighting!

i . Gotta Keep Fight ing!

This is the last ditch attempt of a fighter to keep going and finishtheir mission (or escape from harm). In order to keep going, amodel must make roll using Resilience. This is always opposedby 3 Dice from your opponent.If the injured model succeeds, it can activate normally, but mustconsider all of its stats to be a single for the remainder of the

battle.If the injured model fails… the effort of trying to get back into thebattle causes them to take one of Health damage. If it isinjured, then the strain is too much and it is removed as acasualty…

c. Becom ing a Casualty

This is the most decisive effect a model can suffer from during a gameof Macrocosm. If an injured model is attacked and damaged again, it isremoved as a casualty.In a campaign, the exact result of what happens to the model isdetermined randomly. However, in the case of a one-off or skirmishbattle, the model is considered to be dead.

d. Except ional Results

It is possible to get an exceptional result when rolling for Gotta KeepFighting. For each success over and above the one required, themodel can be moved 1” from its starting position, potentially getting itinto some lifesaving cover.



11. Sample Weapon



12. Sample Armour



13. Non-Standard Equipment



14. Special Rulesa. Generic Special Rulesb. Faction Special Rulesc. Specific Special Rulesd. Powers of the Mind



15. Missions



16. Setting up a Campaigna. Linking Missionsb. The narrative Campaign



Glossary

Macrocosm Rules V1.5

Documents

Transcript of Macrocosm Rules V1.5