Throwing
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If you were looking for Throwing Skill, see Throwing Skill.
You can throw anything you can pick up – that is, anything with a weight of 8×BL or less. If the object you wish to throw is not already in your hands, you must take one or more Ready maneuvers to pick it up. See Lifting and Moving Things (p. 353) for details.
Throwing an object during combat – whether as an attack or not – requires an Attack maneuver. You can throw objects that weigh up to 2×BL using one hand; heavier objects require a two-handed throw. Roll against DX-3 to hit a specific target, or against DX to lob something into a general area. Apply the usual modifiers for target size, speed, and distance.
Throwing Distance
To avoid slowing down the game with math, the GM should allow any throw he deems reasonable . . . but when you need to know the exact dis- tance you can throw an object, use the following procedure:
1. Divide the object’s weight in pounds by your Basic Lift to get the “weight ratio.”
2. Find the weight ratio in the Weight Ratio column of the table below. If it falls between two values, use the higher value.
3. Read across to the Distance Modifier column and find the “dis- tance modifier.”
4. Multiply your ST by the distance modifier to find the distance in yards you can throw the object.
Example: You have ST 12, giving a BL of 29 lbs. You need to throw a 120- lb. body over a two-yard pit. Divide weight by BL: 120/29 = 4.1. This falls between 4.0 and 5.0 in the Weight Ratio column, so treat it as 5.0. The associated distance modifier is 0.12. Multiplying by ST, your range is 0.12 × 12 = 1.4 yards. Oops! The body just hit the bottom of the pit.
Damage From Thrown Objects
Thrown objects inflict thrust dam- age for your ST (see Damage Table, p. 16), modified for weight as shown on the table below. Damage is usually crushing, but the GM may rule that a sharp object does cutting, piercing, or impaling damage instead. A fragile object (or a thrown character) takes the same amount of damage it inflicts; roll damage separately for the object and the target.
Weight Damage
Up to BL/8 Thrust, -2 per die Up to BL/4 Thrust, -1 per die Up to BL/2 Thrust Up to BL Thrust, +1 per die Up to 2×BL Thrust Up to 4×BL Thrust, -1/2 per die (round down) Up to 8×BL Thrust, -1 per die
Example: You have ST 28, which gives you a BL of 157 lbs. and a thrust damage of 3d-1. You hit a foe with a hurled 50-lb. bag of cement. It is between BL/4 (39 lbs.) and BL/2 (78 lbs.). As shown on the table above, it does straight thrust damage, or 3d-1.
Weight Distance Weight Distance Ratio Modifier Ratio Modifier 0.05 3.5 2.0 0.30 0.10 2.5 2.5 0.25 0.15 2.0 3.0 0.20 0.20 1.5 4.0 0.15 0.25 1.2 5.0 0.12 0.30 1.1 6.0 0.10 0.40 1.0 7.0 0.09 0.50 0.8 8.0 0.08 0.75 0.7 9.0 0.07 1.00 0.6 10.0 0.06 1.50 0.4 12.0 0.05
Catching
If someone throws an object at you, you may make an active defense roll to avoid it. However, if he deliberately throws it to you – by suc- cessfully lobbing it into your general area – you can try to catch it. Roll against DX or a suitable Sports skill to make the catch, at -4 if you are not taking a Wait maneuver, but at +1 per two full points by which the thrower made his roll. This counts as a parry with your catching hand. You can also attempt to intercept a thrown object en route to a catch- er. Treat this as a parry against a thrown weapon (see Parrying, p. 376). On a success, you snatch the thrown object out of the air.
Throwing Skill and Throwing Art
When you throw an object that fits into the palm of your hand – such as a bottle, rock, or grenade – you may roll against Throwing skill to hit a target or a general area. Furthermore, if you know Throwing at DX+1 level, add +1 to ST before you multiply it by the distance modifier. Add +2 to ST if you know Throwing at DX+2 or better. If you have Throwing Art skill (p. 226), you can use it to throw any- thing. Roll against skill to hit. If you know Throwing Art at DX level, add +1 to ST before you multiply it by the distance modifier, and add +1 per die to thrust damage. These bonuses increase to +2 if you know Throwing Art at DX+1 or better.
Thrown Weapons
The rules above are for throwing rocks, bodies, televisions . . . anything but weapons.Hurled weapons differ in three important ways:
1. Thrown weapons use Thrown Weapon skills (p. 226) to hit, not DX or Throwing (but Throwing Art does allow you to throw weapons).
2. Many throwing weapons travel significantly farther than “ordinary” objects due to streamlining and stabi- lization. Others have less range, due to the way they are thrown. For instance, you can hurl a throwing knife as far as these rules suggest, but the range at which it will hit point-first and inflict damage is considerably shorter.
3. Throwing weapons have points, edges, dense striking heads, etc. that focus the force of impact. They almost always do more damage than these rules would indicate.