I've been using a house system loosely derived from Ambush Alley Games' Force on Force. The intent is that the side capable of generating the greater volume of fire can dominate the fight.
Each side (not individual) in a firefight has an Initiative value calculated as follows:
• 1 per combatant actively fighting (those down, or doing other things than shooting, do not contribute)
• +1 if wielding a light support weapon (UBGL, LMG, RPG)
• +2 if wielding a heavy support weapon (GPMG, HMG, GMG, ATGM)
• +1 if flanking at least one enemy - "flanking" loosely defined as "offset from the fight's main axis of fire by about 90º and able to target at least one enemy without interposed cover"
If a side has surprise, it automatically wins Initiative on the first turn and doubles its Initiative on the second turn. This makes ambushes deadly.
The side with the higher Initiative acts first. In whatever order the combatants desire, each character may choose to act or hold. Resolve all actions.
Once the side with the higher Initiative has resolved all actions, the side with the lower Initiative acts in whatever order the combatants desire. However...
... each combatant who elected to hold may now attempt to interrupt one opponent's action with an attack. I've run that with a tacked-on Tactics skill but I might use a straight opposed AGL check in the future. If the interrupter wins, he resolves his attack before the action he's interrupting goes off. If he loses, he resolves after the action he tried to interrupt.
I have found this to get my players a lot more invested in coordinating their tactics rather than acting as individuals who happen to be present in the same fight scene. Also, after being on the winning side of an ambush, they will go to extreme lengths to ensure the same isn't done to them...
- C.
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