Chapter 8: Character Conditions

Characters in combat and hazardous situations accumulate various conditions that affect their abilities, actions, and survival chances. This chapter details the physical states, mental states, exhaustion, and situational conditions that characters may experience, along with their effects and recovery methods.

Health States and Injury Thresholds

Characters have Hit Points (HP) equal to the sum of their three physical characteristics (Str + Dex + End). Damage reduces HP, and various thresholds determine the severity of a character's condition.

Health State Thresholds
State	Condition	HP Threshold	Effects
Healthy	Uninjured	Full HP	No penalties
Wounded	Injured	Any damage below 1/3 HP	Wound penalties apply
Seriously Wounded	Seriously Injured	Damage ≥ 1/3 HP (rounded down)	3/4 movement speed, cannot Dash
Critically Wounded	Critically Injured	Damage ≥ 2/3 HP (rounded down)	Unconscious, Immobile
Dying	Near Death	Damage > HP	End roll every round or die

Wounded

Definition: Any character who has taken damage below one-third of their total HP.

Wound Penalties: Every 3 points of damage taken applies a -1 penalty to all physical and mental rolls. This represents pain, shock, and reduced capacity.

Example: A character with 21 HP who has taken 6 damage has a wound penalty of -2 (6 ÷ 3 = 2).

Pain Management: Morphine, combat drugs, or pain management drugs can reduce wound penalties. Pain medication level reduces penalties equal to its level but may cause addiction.

Seriously Wounded

Definition: Taking damage equal to or greater than one-third of total HP (rounded down), but less than two-thirds.

Movement Restrictions

Movement speed reduced to 3/4
Dash action unavailable
Normal move becomes 4.5m / 3 spaces (instead of 6m / 4 spaces)

Special Conditions
Bleeding: If a single damage roll equals or exceeds the seriously wounded threshold (1/3 HP), the character begins bleeding. They take 1 point of damage every minute until first aid is applied.

Example: A character with 21 HP takes a single hit dealing 9 damage. Since 9 > 7 (1/3 of 21), they begin bleeding.

Critically Wounded

Definition: Taking damage equal to or greater than two-thirds of total HP (rounded down).

Effects

Automatically rendered Unconscious and Knocked Out
Considered Helpless and Immobile
Can only take Full Rest actions

Recovery

Full Rest: -1 damage per 7 days
Full Rest with Serious Care: -1 damage per 3 days

Stimulants: Adrenaline shots or combat stimulants can temporarily awaken a critically wounded character. However, any violent action causes the Bleeding condition.

Dying

Definition: Taking damage greater than total HP.

Survival Rolls

Every combat round, make an Endurance roll against Difficulty 4
Wound penalties apply to this roll
On a failed roll: the character dies
On a success: the character remains alive for another round

Stabilization

First Aid stabilizes the character for a number of hours equal to their End characteristic
After stabilization wears off, the character needs Intensive Care
Dying characters are Unconscious and Immobile

Intensive Care Requirements

Must have Medic 2+ character or AI sickbay
Difficulty 8 roll required daily unless proper resources available
Failure = must make Dying roll
Success = heals 1 damage every 3 days

Massive Damage

Definition: Taking more than total HP in damage from a single attack.

Survival Check

Roll Endurance against Difficulty 8 with wound penalties
Success means survival but may result in Crippled condition if damage concentrated in one area
Failure means death

Mental Conditions

Mental conditions affect perception, cognition, communication, and decision-making abilities.

Unaware

Definition: Characters who are unprepared, ambushed, or unable to properly defend themselves.

Combat Effects

Suffer Disadvantage on defending rolls
Attackers gain Advantage when attacking unaware targets

Synonyms: Blindsided, Flatfooted

Dazed

Causes: Strong emotions, context overload, confusion, sensory overload.

Effects

Character can only take Move or Defend actions
Cannot perform complex actions requiring thought or concentration

Duration: Typically lasts until end of round or until character can compose themselves.

Stunned

Causes: Strong emotions, fear, shock, sudden trauma, concussive force.

Effects

Unable to take most physical and mental actions
Unable to fully defend themselves
Difficulty to attack stunned target reduced by 2
PC difficulty for all actions increased by 2

Recovery: Usually recovers after one round or with medical attention.

Panicked

Definition: Overwhelming fear causing defensive reactions.

Effects

Disadvantage on all attack rolls
May only take Defensive or Move actions
Cannot perform aggressive or complex actions

Triggers: Typically caused by failed morale checks, overwhelming threat, or critical injury to allies.

Routed

Definition: Overwhelming fear causing complete retreat.

Effects

May only take Defend, Retreat, or Pull Back actions
Cannot attack or take aggressive actions
Automatically attempt to move away from threats

Recovery: Requires successful leadership roll, removal from danger, or time to regroup.

Physical Load Conditions

Carrying capacity affects movement, combat ability, and exhaustion rates. Characters can use either Strength or the average of Strength and Endurance (whichever is higher) to determine load capacity.

Load Conditions
Load Level	Weight Capacity	Penalty	Movement	Activity Level
Light	Str × 2 kg	None	Full	Light Activity
Medium	Str × 4 kg	-1 DM to physical rolls	75%	Moderate Activity
Heavy	Str × 6 kg	-2 DM to physical rolls	75%	Strenuous Activity
Maximum	Str × 12 kg	No other actions possible	1.5m/round (Full Action)	Intense Activity
Push/Drag	Str × 30 kg	Action required	50%	Strenuous Activity

Load Penalty Note: Load penalties apply even in Low or Zero-G environments as they affect inertia management.

Exhaustion and Fatigue

Characters performing sustained activity accumulate exhaustion damage, which functions similarly to physical wounds.

Activity Levels

Activity Levels and Exhaustion
Activity Level	Examples	Endurance Capacity	Hourly Equivalent
Resting	Eating, relaxing, chatting, watching	Unlimited	N/A
Light Activity	Marching 5kph, comfortable conditions	End × 2 hours/day	1:1
Moderate Activity	Light jog 7kph, physical labor, medium load	End hours/day	1 hour = 2 hours light
Strenuous Activity	Running 10kph, brute force labor, heavy load	End/2 hours/day	1 hour = 3 hours light
Intense Activity	Sprinting 15kph, maximum effort, maximum load	End/3 hours/day	1 hour = 4 hours light

Exhaustion Damage

Threshold Check: When exceeding daily activity capacity, roll Endurance against Difficulty 6 + hours exceeded.

Failure Effects

Take 1 damage plus 1 additional damage per Fail Effect of 3
Damage noted as "Exh Dmg" (Exhaustion Damage)
Every 3 exhaustion damage = -1 penalty to all rolls (like wound penalties)

Recovery: Exhaustion damage heals like regular injuries through rest and medical care.

Stimulants

Stimulants allow characters to ignore exhaustion penalties temporarily.

Mechanism: Stimulants remove exhaustion penalty levels equal to their potency level for a duration (typically 6 hours).

Side Effects

Additional stimulants beyond Endurance DM + 1 per 24-hour period cause 1 exhaustion damage per level
Addiction risk: Roll End Difficulty 8 to resist craving after 2-3 uses per month
Withdrawal: Failure effect = number of days with -1 to all rolls

Stimulant Levels
Level	Duration	Cost (TL7)	Weight
Level 1	6 hours	50 Cr	2000 per kg
Level 2	6 hours	150 Cr	2000 per kg

Status Effects and Movement Conditions

Various conditions affect a character's mobility and ability to act.

Knocked Back

Cause: Bludgeoning damage equal to or greater than half the character's Seriously Wounded threshold.

Effect: Character is moved one or more spaces away from the source of damage.

Calculation: Number of spaces knocked back = bludgeoning damage taken (ignoring armor) divided by half Seriously Wounded threshold.

Knocked Down

Cause: Bludgeoning damage plus bad footing or imbalance factor.

Effect: Character falls to Prone or Lying position.

Recovery: Getting up requires movement actions based on stance changes.

Grappled

Definition: Physically engaged in unarmed combat with another character.

Effects

Can only oppose the grapple on their turn
Restricted movement and actions
Limbs/extremities may be affected similar to Crippled or Bound

See Also: Grappling in Chapter 7: Outcomes

Bound

Definition: Character's limbs are restrained or tied.

Effects

Cannot use bound arms, hands, legs, or feet
Considered Helpless and Immobile unless some limbs remain free
If partial mobility, suffer Disadvantage on rolls

Recovery: Requires freeing action by self or ally.

Crippled

Definition: Limb or extremity rendered unusable through injury.

Thresholds

Limbs (legs, arms): Crippled at 1/3 HP damage to that location
Extremities (hands, feet): Crippled at 1/10 HP damage to that location

Movement Effects

Crippled leg/foot: Cannot move without crutch or assistance; 1/4 movement crawling
Crippled hand: Cannot use that hand; if both hands crippled, severely limited

Immobile

Definition: Cannot move from current position or space.

Causes

Grappled - must spend turn opposing grapple
Critically Wounded or Dying - unconscious
Bound with all limbs restrained
Crippled to extent of immobility

Effects

Cannot change position or location
Often considered Helpless

Helpless

Definition: Cannot physically defend or move from harm's way.

Combat Effects

Attackers gain Advantage or automatically succeed on attacks
PC still rolls on their turn
Roll relevant survival skills (typically Endurance) plus favorable conditions

Examples

Unconscious characters
Characters performing Full Actions that prevent defense
Bound characters with no free limbs

Unconscious

Definition: Not conscious; cannot perform mental or physical actions.

Synonyms: Knocked Out, Out Cold

Effects

Considered Helpless and Immobile
Automatically occurs at Critically Wounded state
No actions possible

Definition: Cannot see or use visual perception.

Effects

Cannot Directly See threats or targets
Must use non-visual means to Indirectly Know locations
Suffers Invisible Threat conditions if cannot determine attack sources

Recovery: Depends on cause - may require medical treatment, time, or equipment repair.

Situational Combat Conditions

Temporary conditions arising from the combat environment and tactical situation.

Under Fire

Definition: When adversaries have initiative and are actively covering an area with attacks.

Effects

Adversary's Skill and Aim Modifier (if applicable) adds to difficulty of actions
Harder to act or return fire
Penalty applies when adversary can Directly See the character or action would expose them

Mitigation

Stay under cover or move quickly between cover
Use Supporting Actions to split adversary attention
Use Coordinating Actions to force adversaries to divide attention

Synonyms: Taking Fire

Concealed or Hidden

Definition: Character is undetected by adversaries.

Effects

Adversaries are Unaware of character
Character benefits from concealment modifiers
Can set up ambush or avoid engagement

Breaking Concealment

Attacking while concealed reveals position (unless silenced weapon and hidden)
Movement or noise may reveal position
Adversaries using Scan/Search may detect hidden character

Flanked

Definition: Character faces multiple threats from different directions.

Effects

Must divide attention and resources
Suffers Superiority condition modifiers
Increased difficulty in defense

Environmental Conditions

Environmental factors affect character performance and can cause damage or conditions.

Extreme Temperature

Heat and Cold Effects

Uncomfortable heat/cold: Counts as Light Activity
Difficult heat/cold: Counts as Moderate Activity
Extreme heat/cold: Counts as Strenuous Activity
Inhospitable heat/cold: Counts as Intense Activity

Damage: Extreme conditions deal 1 exhaustion damage per hour or per day of exposure.

Gravity Conditions

Zero-G / Micro-Gravity

Characters without proper skills/tools suffer Disadvantage
Can use Zero-G or Athletics skill to prevent loss of control
Must limit combat skill by Zero-G/Athletics skill level
Need anchoring: thruster packs, magnetic grapples, lanyards, or physical aid

Firearms in Zero-G

Non-recoilless firearms suffer Disadvantage without anchoring
Recoilless firearms function normally
Combat thruster packs offset recoil at Delta-V cost

Terrain Hazards

Terrain Effects
Terrain Type	Concealment	Cover	Movement	Notes
Open Ground	None	None	Full	No penalties
Broken Ground	Prone only	Prone only	1/2	Roll Athletics/Dex when moving >12m/round
Light Foliage	Partial	Partial	1/2	Managed wilderness
Heavy Foliage	Mostly	Mostly	1/2	Dense, impassable areas
Ankle Deep Water	—	—	1/2	Hazardous - hides hazards
Knee Deep Water	Prone only	Prone only	1/4	Murky water hides more
Chest Deep Water	Crouching	Crouching	Swim	Difficult wading
45°+ Slope	Behind slope	Behind slope	Climb	Requires climbing

Failure on Hazard Rolls: Ordinary Failure typically results in falling, stopping, or losing cover/concealment.

Characteristic (Stat) Damage

Characteristics can suffer damage separate from HP damage, affecting specific abilities.

Intelligence and Education Damage: Can occur from mental trauma, certain weapons, or critical effects.

Recovery

Recover 1 stat damage per 3 days of Physical or Psychological Therapy
Can only undergo therapy for 1 stat at a time
Must fully heal HP damage first

Psionic Strength: Falls under Exhaustion Rules - each Psionic Point used equals 1 hour of moderate activity.

Healing and Recovery

Characters recover from damage through natural healing, medical treatment, and rest.

Natural Healing

Recovery rates depend on wound severity, activity level, and medical care quality.

Natural Healing and Medical Care Table
Wound State	Moderate Activity	Moderate + Care	Light Activity	Light + Care	Full Rest	Full Rest + Care
Wounded (Dmg < 1/3 HP)	No Healing	-1 dmg/3 days	-1 dmg/2 days	-1 dmg/day	-1 dmg/day	-2 dmg/day
Seriously Wounded (Dmg < 2/3 HP)	No Healing	No Healing	-1 dmg/3 days	-1 dmg/2 days	-1 dmg/2 days	-1 dmg/day
Critically Wounded (Dmg < 2/3 HP)	Immobile	Immobile	Immobile	Immobile	-1 dmg/7 days	-1 dmg/3 days
Dying (Dmg > HP)	Immobile	Immobile	Immobile	Immobile	-1 dmg/7 days	-1 dmg/3 days

Lost Progress: Performing more strenuous activity than allowed loses the day's healing progress and requires restarting the next day.

Note: Wound penalties persist while wounded and affect all rolls including healing-related checks.

First Aid

Effect: Reduces damage equal to the Effect of the Medic check (minimum 1).

Actions Required

Minor Action to get materials from ready First Aid Kit
Significant Action to perform first aid
Duration: 3 minutes (30 rounds) or shortened by success effect

Difficulty

Difficulty 8 to perform on another character
Difficulty 10 to perform on oneself

Critical Functions

Stops Bleeding condition
Stabilizes Dying characters temporarily for End hours

Trauma Kits: Provide DM bonus to First Aid rolls based on Tech Level (TL+1 = +1 DM, etc.)

Surgery

Requirement: Character must be Seriously Wounded (after first aid applied).

Procedure

Difficulty 8
Duration: 30 minutes
Tools, assistance modify the roll

Success Effects

Reduces damage by twice the success effect

Failure Effects

Reduce Fail Effect by Medic skill
Remaining Fail Effect multiplies surgery time
Fail Effect exceeding half character's End causes double Fail Effect damage

Requirements: Hospital or sickbay facilities needed.

Medical Care Levels

Medical Care Requirements
Care Level	Patient Condition	Care Requirements	Capacity Equivalent
Light Care	Damage < 1/3 HP	Monitor rest, medicine, food, water	1 patient = 1 light care
Moderate Care	Damage > 1/3 HP	Therapy, medicine application, cleaning	1 patient = 2 light care
Serious Care	Damage > 2/3 HP	Feeding, changing, exercise, movement	1 patient = 4 light care
Intensive Care	Damage > HP (Dying)	Constant supervision by Medic 2+ or AI	1 patient = 8 light care

Medic Capacity

Medic 0: Can care for 8 light care patients
Each Medic level above 0 doubles capacity
Medic 2+ supervising doubles capacity of medics they oversee

Medical Consumables: Budget 100 Cr per 0.5kg. No single medicine type exceeds 20% of budget.

"On the Brink" Rule

Characters who lose their turn due to conditions can still contribute to the narrative.

Eligibility: Bound, Immobile, or Helpless PCs who cannot take actions to affect their condition.

Benefit Options

Grant Advantage: Grant an Advantage to another PC of their choice. That player adds to what happens on their turn.

Future Advantage (Dying Characters Only)

State a course of action they will do if they survive
Gain Advantage for future rolls relevant to that intended action
Can transfer to any character the player chooses, including future characters

Purpose: Keeps players engaged even when their character is incapacitated, allowing them to shape the story.

Condition Summary Table

Quick Reference: Character Conditions
Category	Condition	Key Effects	Recovery
Health States	Wounded	Wound penalties: -1 per 3 damage	Rest, medical care
	Seriously Wounded	3/4 movement, no dash, may bleed	First aid, surgery, rest
	Critically Wounded	Unconscious, immobile	Serious/intensive care
	Dying	End roll/round or die	Intensive care, stabilization
Mental States	Unaware	Disadvantage defense	Gain awareness
	Dazed	Only Move or Defend	Compose self
	Stunned	Limited actions, +2 attack difficulty	Time, medical care
	Panicked	Disadvantage attacks, defensive only	Remove from danger
	Routed	Only defend/retreat	Leadership, regroup
Physical Status	Knocked Back	Moved spaces	Automatic
	Knocked Down	Prone/lying position	Stand up action
	Grappled	Restricted actions, oppose grapple	Win grapple, escape
	Bound	Limbs restrained, helpless	Freeing action
	Crippled	Limb/extremity unusable	Medical treatment, time
Severe Status	Immobile	Cannot move position	Resolve underlying cause
	Helpless	Cannot defend or move	Resolve underlying cause
	Unconscious	No actions possible	Time, medical care
Environmental	Exhaustion Damage	-1 per 3 damage to all rolls	Rest, stimulants (temp)
	Load Penalties	-1 to -2 DM, reduced movement	Reduce carried weight
	Under Fire	Increased action difficulty	Cover, suppressing fire
	Flanked	Superiority penalties	Reposition, regroup