The 2013 version of FNFF was slightly broken, but we dealt, and RTG wrote a new version. The 2020 version of FNFF is even more broken than before; at least in the previous version it was possible to kill someone with a .22 calibre handgun. This is an attempt to fix a seriously broken system by heavily revising what's there, and adapting some mechanics from Maximum Metal. The result is FNFF the Third.
REACTION: this is a new figured statistic; it's a general rating of how well characters deal with rapidly changing situations; ie, combat. Add Reflexes + Intelligence + Cool and divide the total by 3, rounding down. Reaction is used for determining Initiative, diving for cover (add Athletics Skill), instead of Intelligence in combat situations when making Awareness rolls, etc.
INITIATIVE MODIFIER (IM): this is a new figured statistic; it's a general rating of how quickly you are able to initiate new actions. Subtract 15 - Reaction.
COMBAT TIME: each Turn of combat time is 3 seconds long, divided up into 30 segments of 1/10th of 1 second each.
INITIATIVE: roll 1D10 + Reaction + Combat Sense + Modifiers (Boosterware, or anything else).
ACTIONS: The Referee begins counting segments starting at 30 (or the highest Initiative total), and ending at 1. When a count reaches your Initiative total, you may begin an action; ie, attacking, moving, reloading, etc. When you start your action, subtract your IM from your Iniative total; this will be the segment you may start a new action, assuming you are finished with the current action. Once your Initiative total is reduced to 0 or less, you may take no more actions that Turn.
If you decide to wait, you must specify a condition that must be met before you use your held action, and you reduce your Initiative total by your IM. When that condition is met, or the segment count reaches your current Initiative total, you may begin an action as above, setting your Initiative total to the current segment minus your IM.
If two or more characters begin actions on the same segment count, they declare actions in order of Reaction, lowest to highest; then the actions are begun in order of Reaction, highest to lowest. If two or more characters act in the same segment count and have the same Reaction score, their actions are simultaneous and should be written on slips of paper and given to the Referee. Then all-Hell breaks loose :-). And, of course, the Initiative totals for everyone involved are reduced by their IM.
Note: some actions may take more segments than your Initiative Modifier would allow (ie, running across a combat soccer field, or unloading 1000 rounds from a minigun at high velocity). In such cases the Referee may disallow the beginning of a new action until the current one is finished; or she may allow the termination of the current action.
Making attacks is something now between the original FNFF (where solos were impossible to hit) and the 2020 FNFF (where everyone makes aimed head shots--and hits). The attacker rolls 1D10 + Reflexes + Combat Skill + Modifiers. The difficulty depends on whether the defender is doing one of three things. If the defender is not expecting an attack, the difficulty is equal to his Reaction + Combat Sense. If the defender is expecting attacks, but is not actively avoiding them (ie, not fully defensive), the difficulty is equal to his Reaction + Dodge Skill. If the defender is fully defensive (ie, not making an attack), the difficulty to hit is equal to his Reaction + 1D10.
Range Modifiers Point Blank (1m or less): -0 Short (x1/4 maximum): -5 Medium (x1/2 maximum): -10 Long (maximum): -15 Extreme (x2 maximum): -20
Yes, I've had to revise weapons to bring them into line more with how things should work. The results are not the most detailed, but they work fairly closely with how things work in the real world. Most of this was inspired by the quick kill system in Maximum Metal, and is geared for easy conversion to that system.
PENETRATION FACTOR (PF): A weapon's ability to do damage. Figure the average damage of the weapon (average for 1D6 is 3.5, 1D10 is 5.5) and divide by 5, rounding to the nearest whole number. For ammunition rated at x1/2 Armor SP, increase PF by 50%; for x1/3 SP, increase PF by 75%, and for x1/4 SP, increase PF by 100%. For weapons that are rated in D10s, increase PF by 50% before figuring Armor Piercing capability. Again, round PF to the nearest whole number. To convert to Maximum Metal, divide the final PF by 4. At Point Blank range PF is doubled; at Long Range PF is reduced by 25%; and at Extreme Range PF is reduced by 50%. ARMOR VALUE (AV): A substance's ability to absorb and dissipate energy (damage). Divide SP by 5, rounding down. To convert to Maximum Metal, divide Armor Value by 4. When layering multiple layers of armor, do the following: find the AV for each layer, then square the AV for each layer, total this up, and take the square root, rounding down; this is the Armor Value for all layers. The concept of Staged Penetration is now largely up to the Referee and common sense, as a 2mm flechette moving at Mach 2 will punch a hole in almost anything, but won't adversely affect armor's ability to absorb more damage.
Example:
Metal Gear (SP 25), layered over an SP 14 Jacket, layered over SP 12 Skinweave. AV for each is 5, 3, and 2; squaring each is 25, 9, and 4, summed is 38, and the square root of that is 6.
Characters now have a Damage Track with 10 boxes (this replaces the previous two versions of FNFF's boxes). As damage is taken, an appropriate number of boxes are marked off. Each box, in addition to being wounds, represents a cumulative penalty to all rolls the character makes (ie, if 6 boxes are marked off, all rolls that character makes have a -6 penalty). When all 10 boxes are marked off, the character will definitely be unconscious. And "legally" dead, though a competant Trauma Team may be able to revive him. Any additional damage beyond the 10th box is a negative modifier to the Trauma Team's roll to revive the character.
Make an Attack Roll, as described above. For each 5 points the roll is made by, add +1 to the PF of the attack. Three-round bursts add 50% of the base PF to the damage; full auto does more, but I haven't figured that yet :-).
Roll hit location, and subtract AV from the PF; if the result is less than 0, the armor did its job of spreading out the energy and the target is unhurt.
If the result is 0 or more, roll 1D6 and add it, then subtract the target's BTM; if this result is greater than 0, mark off this many boxes in the Damage Track. Luck Points may now be spent to reduce damage, 1 point of Luck removing 1 point of damage, to a minimum of 0. The target character must now make a Stun/Shock save to remain conscious.
OVERPENETRATION: something that I have yet to figure into things. Overpenetration is why a 9mmPara has less "stopping power" than a .45 ACP, even though it has more energy behind it. It's also why a 2mm steel dart moving at Mach 2 will punch through most armor, and whatever is behind it without doing all that much damage. This will probably require a total revision of the existing weapons list, probably using 3G3 as a baseline.
Example:
Two solos are in a firefight, both with 9mm handguns (PF 2) and wearing SP 14 Jackets (AV 3). Solo #1 rolls 25 for his attack roll, Solo #2 isn't actively defending so the difficulty is 18 (including range modifiers). Solo #1 makes the roll by 7, increasing the PF of his handgun to 4. He hits in the Torso, so Solo #2 gets his Jacket's defense. PF 4 - AR 3 = 1, so Solo #2 just got hurt--bad. Solo #1 rolls 1D6, getting a 4, + 1 = 5 points of damage to Solo #2. Solo spends 2 points of Luck to reduce the damage to 3, and marks off 3 boxes on his Damage Track, and now must make a Stun/Shock roll with a penalty of -3 to his Body Type to remain conscious.