In order to resolve physical disputes, ME UTE utilises a turn-based combat system, in which each team takes turns to act. Once each character on a team has decided their course of action, it is then the next team's turn.
A turn is considered to be only a few seconds long within the game world, although players may take as long as they wish to decide what actions to take. When both teams have taken their turns this is called a "round".
Combat is ended when either all opponents are reduced to 0 Health Points, if you flee the area, or if both parties willingly cease hostility.
When a player character or opponent is reduced to 0 Health Points, they are knocked unconscious, can no longer participate in combat and receive the 'Dying' and 'Injured' status effects. (See 'Status Effects' below for more info).
Once combat has ended, any characters still standing may choose how to deal with any unconscious characters:
Revive - If the party has access to Medi-Gel, they can use this to revive an unconscious character with a small amount of health.
Stabilise - Players can perform a medical Skill Check (Mind Difficulty 10) to stabilise a character. They remain unconscious but are no longer in imminent danger.
Abandon - Any unconscious characters who do not receive medical attention within 10 minutes after the end of combat will succumb to their wounds and die.
In the event that a player character dies from their wounds, the player may choose to create a new character, take over the role of an existing NPC, or exit the game if they so wish. Alternatively if the GM permits, there are rumours of illegal cloning facilities in dark parts of the galaxy who may be able to help, if the price is right.
When dealing damage to an opponent, you will first deal damage to any active Defences they have. Only once these are all stripped away will you be able to damage their Health directly. Please see Rules > Character > Defences for more info.
In the event that the players encounter a hostile force and wish to fight back, the first step in establishing a combat is to determine which team goes first.
The main method is to flip a coin and have the player team decide if they want to be 'Heads' or 'Tails'. Whichever side the coin lands on is the team that goes first. If you do not have a coin, or if there are more than 2 teams involved in a fight, you could also use a dice roll and have each team pick a number on the dice.
In some scenarios, the turn order may be down to the GM's choice, such as if the enemy team ambushed the players, then the enemy team may get to take their turn first.
Once a turn order has been established, you may begin the combat with whichever team is first.
Each character on that team then has a chance to decide what Actions to take (See 'Actions' below). The characters on that team may act in any order they wish and do not have to maintain the same order each turn. In some cases it may be advantageous for a character to wait until their ally has acted first, such as in the example below.
Once all characters on a team have made their desired actions, their turn is over and the next team may take their actions.
In this example, the player team has just walked into a room to discover a Raider scout:
GM: "The raider does not look pleased to see you. From their movements it is clear they have no interest in talking and are about to raise their weapons against you. Would you like to engage in combat?"
[Players discuss their options, such as fleeing or attempting to engage in dialogue]
Player 1: "Yes, we will defend ourselves."
GM: "Excellent, heads or tails?"
Player 2: "Tails."
GM: [Flips coin] "It's...Tails, luckily you're quick on the draw and get to go first."
Player 2: "I'd like to shoot at him with my Avenger assault rifle, any objections?"
Player 1: "Hold on, we've just started so there's a good chance the raider's shields are still up. My Overload talent will do double damage against his shields so if I go first I may be able to drop his shields for you."
Player 2: "Good idea, while you're doing that, I'll move my character token up to this wall and use my bonus action to take cover."
Player 1: "Okay for my Overload, I rolled a 9 on my attack roll, plus my Mind bonus of 4, for a total of 15."
GM: "That is indeed above 10, so it is a successful hit against the raider, roll your damage."
Player 1: "Okay 2d4 plus Mind is a total of...8 Tech damage, and Tech damage does double against shields, right?"
GM: "Correct, which means his shields take a whopping 16 damage. As the electrical arc of your overload makes contact with the raider, you can see their shields fizzle out followed by a loud 'pop'. You can start to see wisps of smoke emanating from their shield emitter. In fact there is even enough damage left over to do 3 points of damage to their health, leaving a nasty electrical burn on their skin."
Player 2: "Nice! That leaves them open for my assault rifle shot. I got a...12 on the attack roll, so that's a hit. On my damage roll I got...7!"
GM: "7 Combat damage, got it. You open fire from your covered position and land your shots squarely in the chest of the shocked raider. With no shields to protect them your bullets strike flesh and they stagger back, clutching their wounds. After a brief moment of staggering, they slump back against the wall behind them, and combat is over!"
GM: "Now that combat is finished, you have 1 opponent on 0HP slumped against the wall. They're still breathing for now but in very bad shape, what would you like to do?"
Each character has a series of actions they can perform on their turn. They can perform each type of action only once, however they can perform them in any order they wish. Talents can vary in which action they require, and will list this in their description.
Movement
Move - You may use your Movement action to move your character across the battlefield. By default, most characters will have a movement speed of 6m (6 squares/hexagons on the map), however some characters may have more or less, depending on species/equipment bonuses.
Additionally, Movement does not need to be used all at once. You may use some movement, use another action, then use the remainder of your movement after.
Take Aim - At the start of your turn, if you decide to sacrifice all of your movement speed instead, you may double the effective range of Pistols, SMGs, Assault Rifles, and Sniper Rifles.
Main Action
Your Main Action refers to a significant activity and includes:
Attack - Attack an opponent with your equipped weapon. Refer to 'Attack Rolls' and 'Damage Rolls' in the Basic Rules for more info.
Vent - Venting your current weapon's heat. Refer to 'Weapon Heat' in the Combat Rules for more info.
Equip - Equipping a different weapon from your Inventory.
Sprint - Gain an extra 6m of movement for this turn.
Block/Dodge - Focus entirely on defence. Your saving throws gain advantage, and attack rolls against you gain disadvantage until the start of your next turn.
Bonus Action
Bonus actions refer to quick and easy actions and include:
Heal/Repair - Use one of your available Medi-Gel or Omni-Gel packs to apply a small amount of healing/repair.
Shove - You and an opponent within 1m both make a Body check. If your roll is higher, push them back 1m in the opposite direction.
Take Cover - If a suitably sized obstacle is available within 1m, you may cover behind it. Attack rolls made against you this turn suffer a -2 penalty.
Use Object - Use an object in the environment. Must be a simple action such as opening/closing an unlocked door, or pressing a button.
Speak - Choose a short sentence for your character to speak aloud, or type into their Omni-Tool. This can be anything, but some examples may be sending a private message to a team member about a strategy, speaking words of encouragement to an ally, taunting an opponent, or trying to open a dialogue with the enemy to try and end the hostilities.
Reaction
A Reaction is a very fast response action that can be taken at any point during the round, but only in response to an enemy's actions. There are no default Reactions, however some Talents can be used as a Reaction and in some cases you may be asked to make a Reaction in response to an enemy's Talents.
During Combat there are Talents and environmental factors that may inflict your character with certain Status Effects. The duration of these effects can vary depending on the origin or the strength of the Talent used.
Blinded - Your character's vision has been blocked or obscured. Attack/skill rolls that rely on being able to see the target suffer from Disadvantage.
Braindead - Your character is feeling mentally drained and unfocused. Suffer Disadvantage on all rolls that use the Mind attribute. If you are inflicted with Braindead whilst already under its effects, you fall unconscious for 8 hours.
Burning - Your character has been exposed to fire or acid. Suffer 1d4 Combat damage at the start of your turn.
Dampened - Your character's abilities are being blocked. You cannot use non-passive Talents.
Despair - Your character is in emotional turmoil and distress. Suffer Disadvantage on all rolls that use the Will attribute. If you are inflicted with Despair whilst already under its effects, you fall unconscious for 8 hours.
Dying - Your character has been reduced to 0HP. You are unconscious and cannot make any actions until medical attention is received. This effect can only be removed by being 'Revived' or 'Stabilised'.
Exhausted - Your character has reached their physical limits and is in need of rest. Suffer Disadvantage on all rolls that use the Body attribute. If you are inflicted with Exhausted whilst already under its effects, you fall unconscious for 8 hours.
Immobilised - Your character's movement speed has been reduced to 0.
Incapacitated - Your character is stunned, frozen, or otherwise bound. You cannot take any actions.
Injured - You are suffering from a serious wound, whether physical, mental, or emotional. You can no longer add attribute bonuses to any rolls. This effect can only be removed via a long rest or treatment from a medical professional.
Lifted - Your character is weightless and floating. Ground movement is reduced to 0 but creatures with wings, or characters with zero-g thrusters can use these to move through the air and attack as normal. You cannot benefit from cover while Lifted and attack rolls made against you have advantage.
Panic - Your character is overwhelmed with fear. You may only take Movement, Sprint, and Take Cover actions.
Prone - Your character is laying on the ground. Your total movement speed is halved, and you cannot take Actions that require Movement (for example Havoc Strike or Vanguard Charge). You may sacrifice your entire movement speed or an action to stand up, removing the effect.
When dealing or receiving damage, there are 3 types of Damage that can be inflicted:
Combat Damage
This refers to physical impacts such as melee strikes, bullets, and explosions. Deals double damage against Armour Points.
Tech Damage
This refers to elemental damages such as electrical shocks, icy blasts, or poisons. Deals double damage against Shield Points.
Biotic Damage
This refers to damages caused by gravitational forces used by Biotic Talents. Deals double damage against Barrier Points.
When dealing or receiving damage, there are certain effects that can enhance or reduce the damage dealt.
Resistance - Having Resistance to a certain type of damage means that you halve any incoming damage of that type. For example if you are wearing armour that provides resistance to Tech damage, and an attack deals 8 Tech damage to your character, you instead only receive 4 Tech damage. If the halved damage results in a fraction, round up to the nearest whole number.
Weakness - The opposite of a Resistance, if you or an opponent has a weakness to a certain type of damage, then any damage received of that type is doubled.
Immunity - Immunities can apply to damage types or to Status Effects. If a character is immune it means they receive no damage from attacks of that type and cannot be inflicted with that particular Status Effect.
In the Mass Effect universe, guns no longer rely on ammo or reloading. Instead of bullets, guns use mass effect fields to fire near-microscopic metal shards at high-speeds, impacting with a greater force than traditional bullets. Whilst this gives the user functionally limitless ammo, it comes at the cost of generating large amounts of heat, which must periodically be vented to prevent the weapon from overheating and causing internal damage.
Each weapon will have a 'Heat Capacity' listed in its description. Every time the weapon is fired this ticks down by 1 until it reaches 0, at which point the weapon can no longer be fired.
To make the weapon functional again you must spend a Main Action to 'Vent' the weapon, which rapidly cools the weapon back to full capacity.
When combat ends, all weapons are automatically cooled back to their full heat capacity.