On the forums there seem to be some confusion about grenades and how aoe work. For once I think the rules are pretty straight forward, but I think it is best to post it here anyway. The actual question is:
Q: Do defenders get to roll against an AoE?
No for dodging, yes for damage resistance (excluding direct combat spells, of course).
For grenades specifically, if the guy shooting at you is using a motion sensor trigger, then you get to dodge normally because she's trying to hit you. As a side note, the motion sensor on grenades is a full-stop (or mostly-full-stop) kind of detector, so just grazing your target or skipping a grenade off of the ground won't set it off in this triggering mode.
Aaron, if I understand properly this post as well as some other you did before:
- there is no defense test for grenades with timer: the defender should be able to act between the moment the grenade lands and when it explodes --> clear
- there is a defense test for motion sensor trigger grenades. My understanding of your answers is that we consider that the attacker is trying to do a "direct hit", so a defense test apply as for a regular bullet. As you are "dodging" the grenade before it explodes, the AOE defense modifier does not apply (you state in another post that it
an error leftover from SR4). In that case, I assume the attacker only needs to score more success than the defending character to hit, if the opposed test is lost by the attacker then we roll for scatter. Can you confirm all that sentence?
What about AOE indirect spells, it is said that they are handled as grenades but:
- they cannot be handled as timer grenades because they explode immediatly
- they cannot be handled as motion sensor trigger grenades, as I understand there is no defense roll
- they obviously cannot be handled as wireless grenades
So my understanding is that:
- there is no defense roll
- in case the caster rolls less that 3 success then the spell scatter (but the damage is constant over the entire radius, correct?)
- in case the caster rolls 3 or more success, each success above 3 increase the damage value
So unlike grenades, there is
nothing the target can do, except resist damages. Can conterspelling help in resisting damages?
One other question regarding Wireless link: it is stated that "this method also reduce scatter" but without any information about how much it reduces scatter. Can you please clarify?
Furthermore, can you confirm that the following points will be errated (to match what you explained):
Ranged combat is determined with an Opposed Test between the attacker’s Weapon Skill + Agility [Accuracy] vs. the defender’s Reaction + Intuition. Net hits are applied to the weapons DV or used to reduce scatter in the case of thrown weapons and launched weapons.
--> It clearly states that thrown grenades and grenade launcher use an opposed test., which is not the case
Targeted by an Area-Effect Attack Dodging explosions is not as easy as it seems in the movies. Apply a –2 modifier when trying to defend against weapons like spells, grenades, rockets, or missiles with a blast or area effect.
--> you stated previously that it was a leftover from SR4.
