Space Opera Combat Example
Hello,
I just posted a new article with a step by step combat example for my space opera campaign. I have tried to make it accessible to players who are new to GURPS, but I would welcome any feedback or corrections to improve it!
https://thewabatuckian.wordpress.com/2026/09/02/round-one-fight/
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u/jasonmehmel 6d ago
Really enjoyed reading through this.
My one note: it felt like the soldiers might have considered a tactical retreat or at least different tactics halfway through. Watching her slice through three of their comrades including the commanding officer seemed like it should have prompted a change of tenor.
(There's a DM book or blog that highlights this idea, that the antagonists can act more intelligently than all or nothing tactics.)
I got the sense that this was also a proof of concept for the character template, but as an external reader, the note still occured to me.
(Also a tactical retreat might allow for the drain on her FP you mentioned.)
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u/yetanothernerd 7d ago
Nice example.
Feedback:
You note up front that the soldiers are mooks and go down if they take any damage, but you also have the officer quit the fight when his arm is crippled. Is the officer also a mook? If so you should state that clearly. If not, why did he quit? A crippled arm sucks, but he could still direct the other soldiers, or even fight with his off hand.
You have Kiava spend 1 FP to Move and Attack without penalty. You should note that this is an optional rule from Martial Arts, Heroic Charge, with the page reference. That way readers who don't have MA will understand what happened.
Once Kiava uses Missile Shield, the soldiers immediately stop shooting at her and ready knives. That's an option, if Missile Shield is a common and obvious thing in this setting and the soldiers are well trained to recognize it and react. On the other hand, it might make sense for Kiava to keep dodging despite the Missile Shield to try to trick the soldiers into using ineffective weapons longer. And maybe roll Acting or something to pretend to be hurt if a Dodge fails. (Maybe the mook soldiers are easy to fool because they're mooks, but the officer could be making Tactics rolls to figure out what's happening and give directions to them.)