The combat system of The Equinox Institute LRP uses locations and damage calls for its combat system. This is summarised below:
Taking Damage
- All characters have six locations: the head, torso, right and left arms and right and left legs (as per the image to the right).
- Each character starts play with two hit points (“HP”) per location.
- When a location is reduced to 0 HP:
- A limb becomes unusable. When this occurs you must roleplay accordingly – a blow to the arm prevents you holding or using anything with that hand. A loss of a leg prevents you from moving (including hopping or moving around), leaving you immobile.
- On the head or torso – you become Wounded.
- If you are hit again in the head or torso while Wounded, you become Critical.
- A Character who is Wounded or Critical may be given a Condition Card representing further details on the injury they received. Further information on Condition Cards can be found here.
Wounded, Critical and Dying
After taking damage, you can be in one of three states:
- Wounded – Wounded characters have suffered an injury which inhibits their ability to act effectively. A character who is Wounded cannot use any Skills including attacking or defending others. Wounded characters can still talk, scream and, if they have functional limbs, move slowly in this state.
- Critical – Critical characters have been struck by a deadly wound. Critical characters immediately fall unconscious and cannot move or make noise. A character who is Critical enters their Death Count (“DC”) and will die within two minutes if not treated with an appropriate Skill or Item.
- Fatal Wound – A Fatal Wound only occurs once a character’s DC has passed. At this point the character may regain consciousness for long enough to have a few last words before dying. This may be no longer than 5 minutes. A character with a Fatal Wound cannot use Skills, fight or take any significant in-game action.
Healing and Treatment
All characters, with an appropriate lammie can perform First Aid which allows the character to pause a character’s DC while carrying out and focussing on an appropriate first aid procedure. This does not allow the character to heal Wounded or Critical characters – Skills that allow this are solely the remit of characters who select the “Physician” Class at character creation.
Dealing Damage
In order to deal damage in The Equinox Institute LRP, a character needs to either have a LRP appropriate firearm or melee weapon (and potentially an appropriate Skill to use them). Different weapons do different types of damage (which will be detailed on a lammie) but by default:
- Melee Weapons – Do a single point of damage unless accompanied by a damage call. Melee weapons can target any location except the head. If the target is unable to defend themselves or is otherwise unresisting you can mimic striking the head, without making contact, to deliver a blow.
- Firearms – All firearms will have a lammie attached to them that state their requirements for use – specifically the range, ammunition requirements and damage call when used by an individual with an appropriate Skill. Firearms use a call based system but by default use the damage call of “Bang”.
An example Firearms lammie is set out below:

In order to target someone with a firearm:
- You must be in range of the target;
- Aim at the target for the amount of time set out on the laminated card;
- The target location must not be in cover. A target location is considered to be in cover when two thirds of the body location are obscured from the sight of the shooter; and
- You must have a “Clip” of appropriate ammunition for the firearm to be shot.
Any character can use a firearm without an accompanying Skill. To do so they must be within 10ft of their target and may make a single “Bang” call at the cost of a full Clip of appropriate ammunition for the gun. This represents wildly firing until a bullet hits its mark.
Field Agents gain access to Skills to allow them to use Melee Weapons and Firearms more effectively and efficiently than other Equinox members.
Game Calls
The Equinox Institute LRP makes use of the following six standard calls:
STUN | – The target location is immediately reduced to 0 HP. – If the location is the head or torso, then the character becomes Wounded. |
REND | – The target location is immediately reduced to 0 HP. – If the location is the head or torso, then the character becomes Critical. |
DOOM | – The target character receives a Fatal Wound. |
BANG | – Represents a gunshot. – The target character takes a Rend to a location of their choice unless stated in the call (for example ‘Bang Head’). |
KABOOM | – Represents an explosive force. This bypasses all cover. – In a confined space, all characters take a Rend to the head and torso and are knocked to the ground. – If outside, all characters within 20ft of the source take a Rend to the head and torso and are knocked to the ground. |
RESISTS | – The character either ignores the call, or takes an alternative effect. |
During the game things such as Lammies, Research or Paranatural effects may allow people to add additional calls, either as prefixes to the above calls or as a standalone call. Unless you have a condition card or lammie that says otherwise your character will take the effect as you would normally. IE if stuck then they would take a point of damage, but nothing else.