Rrrrrrrrrrrrange!

This might be an odd question, but I bet you smar/tg/uys will have some great answers. So! What are your favorite ways for RPGs to handle range?

I'm talking about ranged weapons -- bows, guns, cruise missiles, whatever. How do you like 'em handled? The two kinds of systems I'm most familiar with are the ol' Hexes-based range principle (really more wargamey than RPGish) and just describing distance in meters. But I'm sure there must be other, more creative ways of handling the subject. Got any for me?

The most popular systems use a square or hex grid, so many systems use that for range. I've never seen someone get really picky with exact ranges in meters in any system, since those distances are trivial.

I once heard someone on here talking about breaking an encounter map up into "zones" (for example, Courtyard Center, East Staircase, Behind Parked Car, etc.) and using the zones instead of squares or hexes. You can only melee-attack someone in the same zone, ranged weapons can usually attack people in adjacent or faraway zones, and some types of zones provide buffs/debuffs due to cover and stuff like that. Oh, and movement is simplified so that you can move into an adjacent zone as a move action.

It sounded kind of neat but I don't remember what system it was for.

That's Fate

Hand-wave it into pluses, minuses, and "he's too far for you to hit."

Basically I don't like handling it at all, and find any attempt to do more than the bare-minimum to be a level of crunch that I find obnoxious.

Star Wars Edge of the Empire has "range bands". The longer the distance, the more difficulty dice you roll against. Also, most weapons have range limits: only sniper rifles can fire at extreme ranges. And you can't fire stun blasters at ranges greater than short.

It's meant to be fairly abstract for theater-of-the-mind gameplay. Also, the bands don't increase linearly: short is 1-3 meters, medium is 3-30, long is 30-70, extreme is 70-140.

Ah yes, I remember that being discussed here too. I wouldn't have remembered it's from Fate... That's actually pretty good.

I guess range is generally a matter of "playing on a map/board" versus "theater of the mind," yeah.

I truly do wonder if there's a system that's good for both. That Zones idea might be it.

>I've never seen someone get really picky with exact ranges in meters in any system, since those distances are trivial.

Well, in Cyberpunk for example, guns have ranges measured in meters -- your typical pistol has a Range of 50m.

A gun's listed Range is its Long range. That's a Target Number of 25 to hit. Half that (25m) is Medium range, and that's a TN of 20 to hit. Half of that (1/4 of Long range, 12m) is Close range, that's TN15 to hit. 2x Long range (100m) is Extreme range, that's a TN of 30 to hit. So you'll wanna know from your referee how far away your target is.

I think Rifts lists ranges in meters (or maybe feet) too, not that that's an endorsement.

hitting things at close range

Doesn't "Fight!" have an unusual system for determining range?

>Favorite
Grid or hex combat, with ranges described in terms that are easily translated to grid squares or hexes. If we're going to use in-depth rules for combat, then I want to at least know concretely where everything is.

Also, just want to say that I think 'theater of the mind' is trash unless you have an extremely abstract or bare-bones combat system to go with it, in which case it's cool. As long as I don't find the GM suddenly deciding mid-combat that I'm 20ft closer to the bad guys with no cover because he pulled it out of his ass.

>others/unique
I think AngryDM had something about zones.

>Grid or hex combat, with ranges described in terms that are easily translated to grid squares or hexes. If we're going to use in-depth rules for combat, then I want to at least know concretely where everything is.

I feel ya. The thing I don't like about that is that everybody in the battle has superb spatial awareness. If I was in a gunfight with a buncha dudes out in the street, I wouldn't have this "God's eye view" of everything -- it's a huge tacitcal advantage that I'm not crazy about for most RPGs.

>Also, just want to say that I think 'theater of the mind' is trash unless you have an extremely abstract or bare-bones combat system to go with it, in which case it's cool. As long as I don't find the GM suddenly deciding mid-combat that I'm 20ft closer to the bad guys with no cover because he pulled it out of his ass.

Only a bad GM would allow you to not know whether you're behind cover or not. Gauging distances is another thing -- but generally, I'd tell the player if the target is within Close Range or Medium Range or whatever.

The cool thing about "theater of the mind" is that I actually had an incident of friendly fire. It was highly amusing.

>>others/unique
>I think AngryDM had something about zones.

Hmmmm! I'll check it out. Thanks!