Damage Types (Action)

Heroic Action Role-Play

Damage comes in many varieties; the following types of damage exist in Action. Most of them work the same, but many special powers and defenses work differently against different types of damage. Physical damage is the most common type. If the type of damage is not specified, the default Blunt.

Biological

Biological damage attacks body chemistry, and thus has no effect on objects. It is soaked using Body. While armor is of no use against biological weapons, bio-hazard suits, gas masks, anti venom, and various inoculations can increase resistance or even give complete immunity. Biological damage and the defenses against it are often used as plot devices. Creatures without a metabolism are never affected by biological attacks.

Infection

This is biological damage that has little or no instant effect, instead killing the target days or weeks later. Often associated with Death. Examples include disease, metabolic poison, and parasitic infection. A target damaged by infection does not risk immediate death; no Damage Setback is inflicted as you lose your last Hit. But neither do hits from Infection heal normally - they linger and the victim's metabolism must fight them off over time.

Record the total number of Hits taken by infection, even if the character was not defeated. Each morning, make a Body roll and read the outcome on the table below.

Body Roll	Result
4 or lower	Take another Hit from Infection
5-8	No effect
9-12	Reduce Infection Hits by one
13+	Remove all Hits hits

A creature that has taken as many Hits as his role allows is bed-ridden with the Infection. A creature that has taken Hits matching his Body from Infection dies. Certain infections might be more virulent.

Only living creatures are subject to Infection, and in many cases a particular infection can only target certain living creatures - specific ones target one family of species (hominids), generic ones a whole subgroup (mammals). Most infections a character in Action is in danger from are fast-acting, but some kinds of infection can differ in detail, primarily in how fast-actin they are; some infections are rolled for hourly, weekly, monthly, or even yearly rather than each day. Some also turn their victims into an Infection Vector with an effective Know equal to their Body + Infection Hits taken. This is the exception rather than the norm, tough.

Medic can be a great boon when fighting infection.

Neurotoxin

Most poisons used as attacks are neurotoxins, fast-acting and deadly. Threat these as regular attacks, except that they are soaked with Body and follow the other rules of biological damage.

Wounding

Wounds spontaneously open on the body of the target. Generally a supernatural effect. It is typically soaked by Toughness. Some Wounding attacks only affect living creatures.

Disruption

Disruption, heat, and chemical reactions that seek to break down the structure of the target.

Acid

Corrosive action. Action normally makes no distinction between acids and strong alkaloids; most attacks described as acid could just as well be alkaloids or other highly reactive chemicals, even destructive nanomachines or swarms of very small creatures.

Cold

The raw power of frost and the chill of the grave. Causes cells to rupture, objects to turn brittle, and the processes of life and machinery to slow down and fail. Does not include damage caused by frozen objects used as projectiles or weapons; icicles do Piercing damage.

Enervation

Chi drain that destroys cohesion, reducing the essential energy and identity of flesh and objects alike, reducing everything to a fine ash.

Fire

Searing flame, including lasers, plasma, and explosions.

Energy

An overdose of energy, causing the target to fuse internally and cease to work normally. Commonly caused by electricity, radiation, and light.

Electricity

Electrical damage disrupts neural activity and leads to internal burns. Objects crack and shatter.

Exposure

Overexposure to light, chi power or radiation causes cellular damage, disrupts the immune system, gives surface burns, and can in extreme cases cut like a knife. Electronic devices and robots can be affected, as their circuits fuse. Other inorganic objects do not take exposure damage, but it can have side-effects on them, making them glow, emit static electricity, or otherwise be jinxed.

Sonic

Sonic attacks include loud noise, but are mainly vibrations outside the audible range. They cause vertigo and nausea; in extreme form they induce vibrations that cause blood vessels to burst and muscle tissue to collapse. Traditionally stone, crystal and pottery structures and creatures tend to be sensitive to sonic damage.

Physical

Also called normal damage, this is basic physical injury, caused by bullets, blades, and bludgeoning. This is without compare the most common type of damage, and is the standard against which the others are compared. Concussion is the odd bird here; still physical but soaked in an entirely different manner.

Blunt

The most common damage in the game, crushing damage is caused by things like clubs, falling rocks, and fisticuffs. In real life, blunt damage causes internal hemorrhaging and is quite lethal; in Action it is often nonlethal.

Concussion

Mainly caused by throws, falls, and collisions with heavy obstacles. When falling or being thrown the force of the impact depends on your own body mass, meaning Body does not help to soak; concussion is more dangerous the heavier you are. Thus, it is soaked using Reflexes rather than Toughness.

If the object you collided with is lighter than you are, damage turns Blunt. This applies to the heavier vehicle involved in a collision, for example. Few things are heavier than the ground.

Cutting

Cutting and slashing damage, like scimitars and axes do.

Impact

Kinetic damage, caused by the impact of bullets and other high-speed projectiles. Melee weapons and even primitive missile weapons like bows, crossbows, and shotgun pellets do not have speed to cause impact damage and generally do Piercing damage instead.

Piercing

Slow moving weapons that do damage by penetrating the body. Examples include arrows and spears. Firearms with slow-moving projectiles, such as dart guns and shotgun pellets, also do piercing damage.

Psychic

This damage is mental; it inflicts fear and pain directly to the mind. Thus, it is soaked using Mind instead of Toughness. Most psychic damage is supernatural in some way. Objects, automatons, and creatures without a true mind are immune to psychic damage.