Cover

In combat, crumbling ruins and choking smoke aren't just obstacles, they're potential lifelines. Hunters must learn to snatch desperate respite from a world that wants them dead. Cowering behind a crumbling statue or crouching beneath a blasted tree can mean the difference between life and oblivion, for a little while at least.

Remember, not all cover is created equal. Before trusting your life to a flimsy table or a wall riddled with cracks, ask your Overseer about its effectiveness.

In Obscured, we categorize cover into three types: light, medium, and perfect.

Light Cover

Light cover provides minimal protection. Think a rotted tree trunk or a low garden wall. It's better than nothing, but barely. While behind light cover, combatants gain a +1 bonus to their Hit Threshold (HT) and their sneak rolls.

Medium Cover

Medium cover offers more substantial protection by blocking a large part of the body. Think of ducking behind a car or a thick pillar. While behind medium cover, combatants gain a +3 bonus to their Hit Threshold (HT) and their sneak rolls.

Perfect Cover

Perfect cover offers near-absolute protection, completely blocking the line of sight between an attacker and a target. This could be hiding behind a solid wall or ducking into a dark room. When behind perfect cover, an opponent cannot execute a line-of-sight attack at all. Hunters automatically succeed on sight-based sneak rolls and gain a +5 bonus to their other sneak rolls.

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Cover is often fragile and fleeting. That pillar of ancient stone might crumble under a Horror's claw. A rain of gunfire could turn that car into a useless, flaming husk. Relying on cover too long could be the death of you.

Example

Overseer: "John, you're up. The cryptid is charging at you, and there's a stack of old, wooden crates and a stone pillar nearby. What do you do?"

John: "I'll dive behind the crates."

Overseer: "That would count as light cover, giving you +1 to your HT and sneak rolls. Better than nothing!"

Amy: "Wait, why not use the pillar? It's way better protection!"

John: "You guys heard those cracking sounds! I'm not so sure that pillar is as strong as it looks. Besides, I saw something shiny in those crates...Maybe it's an antique cross!"

David: "John, we're fighting a were-platypus. I highly doubt it cares about religious relics."