Player Handout: Session 1
Where we left off
Comms with Nov Elysia went dead, the city's under Vestan attack, and Captain Farris and Ambassador Bannerjee are missing. You were dropped toward FOB Saber, but Kingfisher 2-2 got shot down and crashed into Kirmani Plaza. Sefi and Danny didn't make it. Ollie tried to do some dodgy shit with Danny's dogtag that contains his last message to his sister, Arthur took the tag off him. Your mechs are fine, comms are jammed, and there are enemy mechs coming in from every side.
We start right in the middle of that fight.
Your tokens
It would be really fucking cool if you could all post a PNG of your mech that we can use on owlbear before the session. It could be literally anything, a crayon drawing, a picture from some anime, whatever. If you wanted you can use https://retrogrademinis.com/ to create a custom pixel art mech, you have to pay to download them but you can just screenshot it.
Your character
You don't need it all worked out. Characters mostly come together while you play, so if you've only got a vague idea that's fine. Pick something your pilot wants and something they're bad at, and go from there. After each session, have a think about why they did what they did. That's usually where the good stuff comes from.
It helps a lot if your pilot has an opinion on the others in the squad, even if it's just who annoys them. But remember you are a squad, it's probably more fun if your characters like each other and operate well together.
Being in the military
Lancers are allowed to be weird. Callsigns, paint jobs, attitude, all fine. But you're still Union officers on an operation, so there's a chain of command, civilians and the LSA are on your side, and the squad doesn't turn on itself.
Do something super fucked up and the military, or Rio will notice and there will be consequences (depending on how funny the warcrime was).
Combat: the short version
Click any rule for the full explanation.
Turns
No initiative. Players go first and pick who starts, then it goes one player, one enemy, one player and so on. When you finish your turn you pick which player goes next. See Turn Order.
On your turn
You get a move (up to your Speed, 4 for an Everest) plus either two quick actions or one full action. You can move before, between or after your actions, but you can't do the same action twice in a turn unless you Overcharge.
Quick actions
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Skirmish | Attack with one weapon. |
| Boost | Move again. |
| Lock On | Mark an enemy. The next attack on it gets +1 Accuracy. |
| Scan | Find out what an enemy is and what it does. |
| Hide | In hard cover or out of sight, enemies can't target you. |
| Invade | Hack an enemy: 2 heat, and it's Impaired and Slowed. |
| Bolster | Give an ally +2 Accuracy on their next check or save. |
Full actions
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Barrage | Attack with two weapons. |
| Stabilize | Clear your heat, or spend a Repair to refill your HP. Also lets you reload or clear a condition. |
| Disengage | Move away from enemies without them getting a free hit. |
Extras
- Overcharge: once per turn, take an extra quick action for some heat. It costs 1 heat the first time in a mission, then 1d3, 1d6, 1d6+4.
- Everest Initiative: one free quick action per fight. It costs nothing, so use it.
- Everest Power Up (core power): once per mission, +1 Accuracy on everything and a free Boost every turn for the rest of the fight.
Reactions (one per round, on someone else's turn)
- Brace: when you get hit, take half damage. You get less to do on your next turn.
- Overwatch: when an enemy starts moving next to you, get a free attack on it.
Rolling
d20 plus your bonus. Meet or beat the target and it works. Accuracy adds a d6, Difficulty takes one away, and Witchdice does the maths. 20 or more on an attack is a crit. Outside of fights, a skill check is d20 plus one of your triggers, and 10+ passes.
Cover
Soft cover (smoke, half hidden) gives +1 Difficulty to anyone shooting you. Hard cover (walls, wreckage) gives +2. If you move next to an enemy you're Engaged: your movement stops there, and your guns get +1 Difficulty while you stay.
Damage and heat
When your HP hits 0 you lose a point of Structure, roll to see what breaks, and your HP refills. Everests have 4 Structure, so getting knocked down a point or two is normal. Heat works the same way: go over your heat cap and you lose a point of Stress. You've got 5 Repairs to patch things up during and between fights.
Conditions you'll see a lot
| Lock On | Next attack on you gets +1 Accuracy. |
| Slowed | No Boosting. |
| Impaired | +1 Difficulty on everything. |
| Prone | Slowed, easier to hit, and standing up costs your whole move. |
| Immobilized | Can't move. |
| Exposed | You take double damage until you Stabilize. |
| Stunned | Can't do anything. |
Weapon tags
Arcing fires over cover. Loading needs a reload after each shot. Ordnance has to be fired before you move, and not at anyone next to you. Reliable does some damage even on a miss. Smart uses your tech bonus instead. AP ignores armour.
A few tips
Stay in cover. Use Initiative. Scan anything you don't recognise. Gang up on one enemy at a time. Talk to each other between turns, since you choose who goes next. And don't panic about losing Structure, that's what it's there for.
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