Combat

While most of combat is run by the Pathfinder 1E combat rules, blasters and other setting specific situations require a little extra attention.

Starting Health
At first level, your total health at first level is twice your hit die maximum + your Constitution modifier.

Wound points and Vitality points
Half of your total health(rounded up) is vitality points, the rest is wound points. Vitality points represent close calls, bruises, small scratches, or other things that strain the character much more mentally then physically. Wound points represent things that actually do damage to the character bodily, and will require time and bacta to heal. You always lose vitality points before wound points. Vitality points are recovered in full any time the character rests for more than 4 hours. Wound points heal naturally at a rate of your level+Con mod per 8 hours of rest.

Using Ranged Weapons in Melee
Because of ease of use, blaster pistols and other one-handed blaster-like weapons do not incur attacks of opportunity when used in melee range.

Cover and Concealment
Given that most combat encounters in the Star Wars universe take place at range, cover and concealment become a lot more important. While Pathfinder has rules for that, the expanded cover table from the Star Wars core rulebook may serve us better.

Striking an object
Objects are easier to hit than characters because they usually don't move, but many are tough enough to shrug off some damage from each blow.

How Striking an Objects Works
Hitting an object is often just the first and easiest step to destroying an object. Most objects have damage reduction, sometimes referred to as Hardness, which will soak some of the damage. Also, each object has a pool of wound points as a character does, and the object isn't considered destroyed until it is out of wound points. Note, some weapons, like lightsabers, ignore some or all of an object's damage reduction.

Object Defense and Bonuses to Attack
Objects are easier or harder to hit depending on several factors.


 * Held Objects: An object held by an opponent has a base Defense equal to 15+ its size modifier+ the character's Dexterity modifier+ the character's class bonus to Defense. This also applies to held weapons. (Sunder?)
 * Carried or Worn objects: An object that is carried or worn
 * Inanimate or Immobile objects: An inanimate or immobile object has a Defense of 10+ its Dexterity modifier(which is -5 since it can't move)+ its size modifier. When attacking such an object with a melee weapon, you also get a +4 bonus on the attack roll. If you take a full-round action to line up a shot, you get an automatic hit with a melee weapon, or a +5 bonus on your attack roll with a ranged weapon.

Specific Objects.

Aiming
As a full-round action, you can try to steady yourself and zero-in on a target with a ranged attack that is not a thrown weapon. If, by the time your next turn comes around the target is still in sight and is still within the same range increment, your first attack against the target gains a +4 to hit and automatically confirms a critical.

Additionally, Lowering the shooter's center of gravity or bracing the weapon reduces range increment penalties. Crouching or kneeling reduces range penalties by 1, and lying prone reduces range penalties by 2. Supporting the weapon with something improvised(vehicle, crate, tree, or wall) decrease range penalties by one, while a fixed support(bipod, tripod, or weapon mount) decrease range penalties by 2.

Called Shots
Sometimes you don't want to just shoot someone, but to do something a little more specific. Before a character makes an attack, they may choose to aim for specific body part, and take an appropriate penalty. If the attack hits, it deals half damage, but imposes a different effect. A critical hit deals normal damage, and can impose a much more severe effect. [Table needed]

Combined Fire
With many blasters comes a much greater chance of being hit. For each character who contributes to the effort, the primary shooter gains a +1 synergy bonus on his attacks(to a maximum bonus of +5). The contributing characters essentially give up any chance of hitting the target to increase the primary shooter's bonus. Combining fire is a full-round action for both the contributing characters and the primary shooter.

For example, if a squad of 12 stormtroopers fires at a fleeing scoundrel, the GM may pick two stormtroopers to be the primary shooters. Each one is assisted by five other stormtroopers, and each primary shooter gains a +5 on their attacks.

Feat Replacements
The following options replace the feats Power Attack, Deadly Aim, Fight Defensively, Combat Expertise, Scorpion Style, and Stand Still.

Defensive Stance
Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +1

You can choose to take a -1 on attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +1 dodge bonus to your Defense. When your base attack bonus reaches +4 and every +4 after, the penalty increases by -1 and the dodge bonus increases by +1. You must choose to use Defensive Stance before making an attack roll, and its effects last until the beginning of your next turn.

Hamstring
You can attempt to hamstring an opponent's movement in place of a melee attack. You can only hamstring an opponent who is no more than one size category larger then you. If you do not have the Powerful Maneuvers feat, or a similar ability, initiating a Hamstring provokes an attack of opportunity from the target of your maneuver.

If your attack(CMB) exceeds the target's CMD, the target is entangled for one round. For every 5 by which your attack exceeds your opponent's CMD, the penalty lasts for one additional round. Creatures that are immune to critical hits cannot be hamstrung. Flying creatures can be hamstrung, but only if they use a natural means of flight(such as wings).

Risky Strike
Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +1

You can choose to take a -1 on attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +2 bonus on all damage rolls. This bonus is increased by half(50%) if you are making a melee attack with a two-handed weapon, a one handed weapon using two hands, or a primary natural attack that adds 1-1/2 times your Strength modifier on damage rolls. This bonus to damage is halved(-50%) if your are making an attack with an off-hand weapon or secondary natural weapon. When your base attack bonus reaches +4 and every +4 after, the penalty increases by -1 and the bonus to damage increases by +2. You must choose to use Risky Strike before making an attack roll, and its effects last until the beginning of your next turn. The bonus damage does not apply to touch attacks or effects that do not deal health point damage.

Pulling a Blow
When engaged in melee combat, some characters find the need to occasionally reduce the damage they deal with a weapon. This could be because an opponent is needed for questioning, needed alive as part of a bounty, or, in the case of the Jedi, killing the target could be the first step on the road to the dark side. Especially in the case of those who deal massive damage with their weapons, the ability to “pull” a blow and deal less damage can be valuable.

When using a melee weapon, a character may opt to pull a blow. Doing so imposes a -4 penalty on the attack. The attacker can choose to deal only vitality damage or deal damage normally, but only deal half damage.

Ranged Combat Maneuvers
Using a ranged weapon to attempt combat maneuvers is difficult, but sometimes you gotta shoot the weapon out of someone's hand. Unless noted in the weapon's description, all attempts must be within the weapon's first range increment, and take a -5 on the CMB check. Additionally, the GM has veto power over an attempts that make no sense(using a blaster to bull-rush probably isn't going to work).

Suppression fire
A standard tactic when facing off with an enemy that has taken refuge behind impervious cover is to use suppression fire to force them to keep their head down and reduce the accuracy of their aim. A character on the receiving end of suppression fire has less time to peek out from behind the safety of cover, and as a result must take shots before getting a chance to target them properly.

A suppression fire action can only be performed with a ranged weapon that has multifire or autofire capability. To lay down suppression fire, a character must target a 10ft by 10ft area and make an attack roll against a defense of 10(modified by the range increment penalty for the area they are firing on).

If the attack roll succeeds, the character now threatens the targeted area, just as if they threatened the area with a melee weapon, and may make attacks of opportunity with their ranged weapon. In addition to actions that normally provoke attacks of opportunity, any melee or ranged attacks within the targeted area also provoke attacks of opportunity from the suppressing character.

Using suppression fire is a full-round action that provokes an attack of opportunity.

Combined suppression fire
Multiple characters may combine fire to better suppress an enemy location. They can suppress adjacent areas(to increase the area covered), or overlap their areas of suppression. When an attack of opportunity is provoked in an area being suppressed by more than one character, each suppressing character may make an attack of opportunity.