Combat in Twilight: 2000 4th Edition

Twilight: 2000 4^th edition presents the players and the Referee with its own set of rules, as does any other RPG you may be interested in. Combat is an important part of the experience the game offers, and the Player’s Manual contains a full chapter dedicated to its mechanics.

You can thoroughly read the manual, fully understand the capabilities of your equipment, and make cheat sheets or flow charts to help you have actions, modifiers and relevant tables at hand, but – of course – the best way to learn the rules is to play the game.

The purpose of this page is to share some tips (I don’t really like this word, but I’ll go with it) about how to handle combat in Twilight: 2000 4^th edition; things that I discovered while playing my solo campaign, sometimes through combat and sometimes by avoiding a fight altogether, sometimes the hard way and other times by chance.

Twilight: 2000 can offer quite a challenge even if you are not in a firefight, and its rules can be unforgiving as much as the dice you and the Referee roll. Some pointers (now that’s a better word) can be useful, and keep your alter-ego alive when combat becomes inevitable.

Consider it the second-best way to learn how to handle combat in Twilight: 2000; though it may rank lower on your personal list…

Is this an exhaustive, comprehensive list?

No,
this is what I’ve learned by playing my solo campaign. There’s surely something missing, and it could be a lot. So, I’ll have to update this page every once in a while

THE ADVANTAGES YOU HAVE

Twilight: 2000 offers some advantages for the players that are baked into its rules:

1. PUSHING ROLLS – Your initial skill roll reflects a safe and controlled action. If you fail your initial roll, or if you want additional successes, you can lean into the action, giving it everything you’ve got, pushing yourself or your gear to the limit (Player’s Manual, page 45). This mechanic is reserved to the players alone, but comes with risks to your character and his equipment; and if you push a roll, you have to accept the new result.
2. UNIT’S MORALE – When risking suppression, a player rolls for his CUF. You have even better odds of succeeding if you have line of sight to any non-incapacitated friendly fighter; if that’s the case, you also roll a die for the current unit morale. Just remember to keep close to at least another player.
3. EXCHANGING INITIATIVE – During a fight you can exchange your position in the initiative order with another willing player (or willing NPC) whose turn has not come up yet in the current round. You and the other player must be able to speak to each other (radio comms count).
4. NPCs AUTOMATIC SUPPRESSION – NPCs automatically fail their CUF rolls if you are applying simplified rules for NPCs.
5. RELOADING – NPCs have to reload after rolling at least a 1 on their ammo dice in an attack (again, this is for simplified rules for NPCs). If they attack as a group, they all have to reload. Reloading is always a slow action for NPCs, while players have a chance of reloading with a fast action if they succeed in a RANGED COMBAT roll.
6. CAPTURED vs KILLED – A captured player is more valuable than a dead player.
7. REFEREE – The Referee is (hopefully) there to give you a challenge, not a punishment…

THE ADVANTAGES YOU SEEK

Some things you have to actively seek and get. Here’s what is worth considering:

1. ARMOR – Protect your character: you’ll appreciate the difference between a bullet hitting your helmet and a bullet hitting your head.
2. COVER – Take cover when one is available. If there’s no cover within reach, or no cover at all, take a dive (it’s a free action).
3. SUPPRESSION IS KEY – Keep the enemy suppressed so that they lose all their actions; it’s the best way of staying in control of the fight. Also, it brings the risk of receiving damage down to zero.
4. GRENADES ARE AWESOME – You’ll realize that as soon as you throw your first one. It’s suppression and damage in a fist-sized package. Just don’t fail the roll for throwing…
5. LIGHT AND WEATHER – All conditions play a role and may carry penalties and limitations, keep it in mind.
6. PICK YOUR WEAPON – There’s the right weapon for the right situation. LMGs ang MMGs are great in the open, and offer an overall high chance of hitting and/or suppressing; but they are cumbersome and suffer penalties in close quarters. At the opposite of the spectrum pistols and SMGs carry a smaller penalty at short distances, but have a limited punch and need a good roll to penetrate armor. Chances are your character will carry limited weaponry, but if you can switch to something more suited for the fight ahead, you may want to go for it.
7. DISTANCE AND ELEVATION – Open fire when you are too far away or too close, and you’ll get a penalty. And get to high ground when you can, it’s an easy +1 to your roll.
8. IF IN MELEE, GRAPPLE – First: grappling can be blocked, so at least you’ll force your opponent to use an action. Second: if you succeed you both fall to the ground, the opponent drops any weapon he was holding and cannot move. You can then attack with a grapple attack consuming a fast action that cannot be blocked, while your opponent can only try to break free consuming a slow action. So yeah, grappling is the to-go action for close combat.
9. AMBUSHING – An ambush can be very effective, just make sure you are on the right side of it.

THE ADVANTAGES YOU WON’T NEED (IF YOU SO CHOOSE)

Combat is a fun part of most RPG, one most players look forward to in a session, but a single dice roll can be deadly in Twilight: 2000. Sometimes a fight will be inevitable, but any other time combat should be your last resort. It may result in a less dynamic, yet equally tense experience, and more importantly, a way forward that keeps your character – and your group – alive.

Though I do understand that taking risks is an integral part of playing an RPG.

So be prepared, because a single dice roll can precipitate a situation. And if you really cannot avoid a fight, stack the odds in your favor as much as you can.

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WORK IS ALWAYS IN PROGRESS

As the campaign progresses I gather experience (almost) as much as my characters gain XPs, so I plan on going back to this page every once in a while to review and update it.

If you are interested in reading how I did – and did not – apply the content of this page in my own campaign and in the fights my characters have faced, I suggest you check these posts:

Or if you want to get the full story, you can jump to the start of this Twilight: 2000 Solo Campaign by pressing the button below.