Actions & Engagements#

The move phase gets a figure to the problem. The fire and utility phase decides whether that figure actually changes the room. Modern CQB keeps the action list short on purpose. The depth comes from timing, line of sight, cover, morale, and what the room is hiding, not from memorizing thirty micro-actions.

Fire#

To make a ranged attack, choose a Confirmed target in line of sight and resolve an Attack Test.

1. Build the attacker's Attack Pool from:
   • the weapon's fire value
   • the figure's Aim
   • any stance, doctrine, or gear modifiers
2. Build the defender's Guard Pool from:
   • Armor
   • cover
   • shields, posture, smoke, or other defensive effects
3. Roll both pools as d8s.
4. Each 6-8 in the attack pool is a Strike.
5. Each 6-8 in the guard pool cancels one Strike.
6. Apply the net result.

Common attack modifiers:

• +1 Attack die: target is flashed, freshly breached, or badly exposed in a doorway
• +1 Attack die: shooter did not move this round and has a stable lane
• -1 Attack die: shooter is Suppressed
• -2 Attack dice: attack passes through smoke
• -1 Attack die: shooter is dragging a civilian or restrained suspect

The attack system is meant to resolve quickly. If a shot requires a long argument, the table is probably overcomplicating a lane that should be obvious.

Overwatch#

Instead of firing immediately, a figure may enter Overwatch. This is one of the most important actions in the game because it turns movement into risk.

Choose one watched lane:

• a doorway
• a corridor segment
• a stair mouth
• a blown breach lane

The first enemy figure that:

• crosses the watched lane
• opens the watched door
• peeks through the watched angle

immediately triggers the Overwatch attack.

Rules for Overwatch:

• it triggers once, then is spent
• a flashed or Suppressed figure cannot enter Overwatch
• Overwatch attacks lose 1 Attack die if the trigger happens through smoke

Overwatch is strongest when it locks down the exact piece of movement the other side must make to keep the mission alive.

Breach#

Use Breach to force open an entry that cannot be handled with ordinary movement. This includes locked doors, barricaded doors, reinforced internal gates, and any soft wall the mission specifically allows to be opened.

Roll Control:

• 1 success: open a locked door
• 2 successes: open a barricaded door or reinforced internal gate

On a failed breach, the entry stays shut and the mission's Noise or Heat rises if the scenario tracks it.

Breaching with explosives:

• automatically opens a standard door
• turns the threshold into rough half cover
• forces adjacent figures to test Nerve
• always counts as loud

The point of a breach is not simply to remove a door. It is to change who owns the next second.

Use Utility#

A figure may spend its action to use one carried utility item. Unless the item says otherwise, one utility action affects one room, one lane, or one adjacent target. Typical uses include:

• mirroring a closed room
• throwing a flash device
• deploying smoke
• placing or removing a wedge
• cloning or freezing evidence
• stabilizing a casualty

Utility actions are often what separate a clean entry from a reckless one. Use them before the room punishes impatience.

Arrest#

Arrest is a core response action, not an afterthought. Modern CQB is built around the idea that the best win is often the living one.

You may attempt Arrest against an adjacent target that is:

• Suppressed and isolated
• Wounded and cornered
• already surrendering
• stunned or disoriented by a flash, shield rush, or equivalent effect

Roll Control opposed by the target's Nerve.

• If the arresting figure scores more successes, the target becomes Restrained.
• If the target ties or wins, the arrest fails and both figures remain engaged.

Use Restraint Kits if you want capture to stick. Otherwise even a successful arrest may not hold under pressure.

Secure#

Use Secure when the figure is trying to control something that matters more than a body count.

Common Secure targets include:

• civilians
• evidence
• hostages
• planted devices
• mission terminals

Routine Secure tasks require 1 Control success. Hard Secure tasks require 2 Control successes.

If the room is still live, ask whether the figure is actually in a position to Secure anything yet. A server rack at the back of an uncleared room is not meaningfully under control.

Recover#

Use Recover to remove friction and keep the team functioning.

Choose one adjacent target or token:

• remove Suppressed from an ally
• stabilize a Downed ally
• remove a wedge
• disarm a visible trap
• pull a civilian into control

Recover does not look dramatic, but it is often the action that keeps a mission from unraveling after one bad exchange.

Surrender#

Hostiles may surrender when the tactical and moral pressure becomes too obvious to ignore. The exact trigger may vary by faction, but common causes are:

• failing a Nerve test while outnumbered
• being isolated in a cleared room
• being flashed and covered by at least two response figures
• seeing a leader captured or Downed

Fanatics, martyr cells, and some private security leaders may ignore the first surrender trigger each mission.

Reaction Fire and Close Exchanges#

Modern CQB does not use a universal opportunity attack rule. Close reactions happen through:

• Overwatch
• faction doctrine
• shield intercept rules
• specific trap or room effects

This keeps movement dangerous without turning every hallway into a pile of free attacks and corner-case timing arguments.