[Gareth]

1/ Where actions stipulate a duration, such as Full Defense:

A character can add their Willpower to all Defense tests until their next combat round.

This means until the start of your turn next combat round, right?

i.e.: it lasts for the remainder of the current round, and next round right up until you get your turn?

---

2/ Effects with Durations
Exactly when do these effects end?

e.g.: Electrical damage: <snip> ...but if they suffer even a single box, the character gets the Zapped status for 2 combat rounds.

So, does it end:
a/ At the end of the second combat round from now (meaning that zapped will last for 2 - 3 turns of the victim depending upon when the victim got zapped in the round),
b/ At the start of the second combat round from now (zapped lasts 1 - 2 turns depending on when he got zapped in the round) or,
c/ Until the same initiative it got applied, two combat rounds from now (zapped always lasts 2 turns unless target initiative changes for some reason or the attackers initiative was somehow changed at the time they made the attack)?

---

3/ Take Cover
Just to be clear, it is a minor action to enter cover, and it costs an additional minor action each time I attack from cover?
It isn't clear, but I assume that significant movement discards the Cover condition, etc and that the cover condition is situationally applied (i.e.: the cover bonuses and penalties will not apply if the cover is flanked?)

It seems like the wording of this action means I have to spend an action to enter "cover 4" (full cover) when I run around a corner from the enemy? I'm guessing that this is not the intent though?

[Michael Chandra]

I would assume that if an effect is generic until a combat round, it works with end/start. If it's a character's combat round, however, I'd assume it's specifically about their turns instead. If it's an effect, I don't know what would be good, I'm leaning towards 'initiative score of the effect'.

For cover: Yes, each attack from cover requires a minor to do so while maintaining the cover. Not described what happens if flanked but yeah, I'd say the GM decides when you are not in cover enough. Note that cover explicitly is for when you fire back, there's a section explaining it doesn't apply for when you simply are obstructed by an obstacle. So Cover IV (which comes with a -2 penalty) is when you dive around a corner and lean there to fire back. Simply turning the corner and staying out of combat is a different thing. Can't access the pdf, here are my notes:

- Cover X based on how much can be hidden behind the cover while you can still fight and duck back in (p111)
- When hiding completely behind an object, rather than being ready to return fire, half the Structure rating (rounded up) is subtracted from the incoming unmodified damage, remaining damage gets net hits and needs resisting (p111)

[Banshee]

Full Defense is an Anytime action so you can use right out of the gate before anyone has a chance to attack regardless of initiative or as a response to being targeted.

That means it will last until the beginning of the next round when initiative resets

For status effects (like zapped) based on how status damage is applied I would also use the initiative reset as the trigger for timing ... so a 2 round zap effect would last the rest of the current round and all of the next

MC answered the cover for you

[Gareth]

Thanks all,

[Gareth]

So Cover IV (which comes with a -2 penalty) is when you dive around a corner and lean there to fire back. Simply turning the corner and staying out of combat is a different thing.

I must confess that I had assumed that when attacking from cover 4 you where essentially firing blindly to preserve as much cover as possible,

I was struggling to justify the penalties otherwise (the cover penalties for being in cover seem harsh on the face of it),

[Xenon]

Firing from 100% cover in SR5 gave you a negative dice pool modifier of -6 dice. With a camera (such as a smartgun system or an imaging scope that both come with a mini camera) this penalty was reduced to -3 dice. With a periscope the modifier was reduced to -2 or -1 if wireless enabled.

Firing from Cover IV in SR6 give you a negative dice pool modifier of -2 dice. With the 2-edge boost action 'Fire from Cover' this modifier is eliminated. With a periscope it is reduced to -1 or completely eliminated if wireless enabled. With a Smartgun System the modifier is also eliminated.

[Gareth]

Firing from Cover IV in SR6 give you a negative dice pool modifier of -2 dice. With the 2-edge boost action 'Fire from Cover' this modifier is eliminated.

Can I just note that the cover status says you can't gain or use Edge on attack checks...

I will concede that it's unclear whether this only applies to cover 4 or not...

[Xenon]

Can I just note that the cover status says you can't gain or use Edge on attack checks...

Cover does not prevent you from spending edge. Only from gaining edge (and only when attacking).

p. 52 Cover I, II, III, IV
Attacking from Cover requires an extra Minor Action in order to get clear enough to take a shot, and you cannot gain Edge while attacking from Cover (you can gain it from defending).



I think it is pretty safe to assume that you are allowed to take the Fire from Cover edge action while in Cover IV

p. 47 Edge Actions

Fire from Cover (Ranged Attack, must be in Cover IV):
You sneak an attack out while maintaining your cover. Attacks from full cover may be made without the –2 dice pool penalty.
Cost: 2 Edge

[Gareth]

My mistake,

[penllawen]

Can I just note that the cover status says you can't gain or use Edge on attack checks...

Cover does not prevent you from spending edge. Only from gaining edge (and only when attacking).

p. 52 Cover I, II, III, IV
Attacking from Cover requires an extra Minor Action in order to get clear enough to take a shot, and you cannot gain Edge while attacking from Cover (you can gain it from defending).

Does anyone think it makes a lick of sense that you can’t gain Edge when attacking if you’re stood behind a knee-high wall?

[markelphoenix]

Can I just note that the cover status says you can't gain or use Edge on attack checks...

Cover does not prevent you from spending edge. Only from gaining edge (and only when attacking).

p. 52 Cover I, II, III, IV
Attacking from Cover requires an extra Minor Action in order to get clear enough to take a shot, and you cannot gain Edge while attacking from Cover (you can gain it from defending).

Does anyone think it makes a lick of sense that you can’t gain Edge when attacking if you’re stood behind a knee-high wall?

No.

[Xenon]

No.

I think the idea here is that an offensive tactical advantage "is earned from a combination of guts, risk, and heedless ignorance of danger..." (see p. 38 Edge). I guess remaining stationary behind a trashcan sort of goes against that concept a bit.

But cover also award you with higher defense rating (as well as one of the only positive dice pool modifiers when defending) which in turn increase the odds that you may gain defensive tactical advantage (and not being hit at all to begin with) by staying in cover.

In the end it becomes a tactical choice you have to make. You are trading tactical offense for tactical defense. Sometimes it will be worth it. Sometimes it will not.