Called Shots and Anatomy

You can make called shots, where you attempt to target specific parts of a target’s anatomy, in exchange for having to roll against a higher AC/resistance and lowered crit range.

Before making an attack roll against a target, you may declare that you will make a called shot against some specific part of that target. If this attack still lands, then you also trigger whatever effects occur whenever that part is hit.

If the part has hit points of its own, separate from the target’s overall hit points, it can also be grappled, but the target can add that part’s bonus to AC/resistance to any checks to avoid having it grappled. If these hit points are depleted, the part is destroyed and any leftover damage spills over to the target’s overall hit points.

There several types of common anatomical parts that can be targeted, given in the format of Part (X) (+Y). X is how many of that part they have (if only one, this is omitted). Y is the bonus to the target’s defenses and a penalty to the attack’s crit range, minimum 20.

• You have a crit range of +2 (crit on a d20 attack roll of 18-20), and your target’s AC is 14. You choose to go for the Head (+4). The AC is now 18, and your crit range is now -2 (minimum 20 meaning you’re back to crits only on nat 20s).

Common Called Shot Targets

• Head (+4): Attacks against the head deal 50% bonus damage. Critical hits against the head deal an extra 50% bonus damage.
• Wings (+4): Creatures with wings lose flight for 1 round if their wings are hit or grappled.
  • Alternately, it may have hit points and permanently remove flight from the target if destroyed, such as the Wolf-Chancellor’s jetpack.
• Arm (+2): If the target is grappling someone with this arm when it is damaged, the grappler must immediately make a grappling check against the attack roll to maintain it, otherwise the grapple is released. If the target isn’t grappling anyone, they have disadvantage to attempt a grapple for 1 round.
  • Some creatures, like the Basilisk, have a Tail that serves the same purpose.
  • And others, like the Landshark, have Jaws for the same purpose.

• Leg (+2): Attacks against the leg that inflict any effect besides damage also inflict Cripple (10) for 1 round. Since Cripple stacks with itself, a crippling strike against the legs can seriously slow someone.
  • Some creatures, like Basilisks, have four or more legs. In these cases, at least half the target’s legs must be targeted and affected. See below for details.
• Tool (+2 to +6): Some creatures, like carapacians, carry around weapons, shields, psionic focii, or other types of tools. These have hit points, so they can be destroyed or grappled. Additionally, forced movement effects knock tools out of their wielder’s hands for the given distance.

The following types of attacks cannot make called shots:

• Attacks that automatically hit.
• Area of effect attacks.
• Attacks that still deal damage or other effects on a miss.
• Attacks that use skill checks to hit.

There are also secret called shots. To make a called shot on a secret, you first need to locate it on that target using Discern or Scrutinize on them, ideally before the strife begins. The difficulty of this check is based on the target’s DC.

When you make a called shot, after taking the crit penalty, if you still have crit range on the attack equal to or greater than the AC/resistance bonus, you can reduce your crit range by that bonus to nullify the AC/resist bonus.

• You have a crit range of +9 (crit on a d20 attack roll of 11-20), and your target’s AC is 20. You choose to go for the Head (+4). The AC is now 24, and your crit range is now +5 (crit on 15-20). You choose to trade your crit range to ignore the AC bonus. You now have +1 crit range (crit on 19-20) but the target’s AC drops back to 20.

The ability to make a called shot on one target does not carry over to the next; it’s easy to know that every Basilisk has a shatterpoint on its hide, or every Carapacian Bishop has a psi focus on them, but no two Basilisks are guaranteed to have one in the same spot. Secret called shots represent some type of vulnerability that is common to all creatures of its type, but unique to the individual.

Some types of anatomy, such as legs on quadrupeds, require that multiple copies be hit at once to cause an effect. When it comes to targeting multiple called shots at once on a target, it depends on the method used. Area of effects cannot make called shots, so only abilities that make multiple attacks can be used. More specifically, you must use an ability that lets you target the same target multiple times, then target a different copy with each of them.

• Developer’s Note (2022-12-11): In practice, most players won’t have the tools to make this happen. Turns out all those legs aren’t just for show. They’ll have to cripple them the old fashioned way.

Common Secret Called Shots Types

• Psi Core (+2): Attacks against the psi core deal 50% bonus damage, just like headshots, and are easier to pull off, but only psionic attacks can target them. Typically, only psionic creatures will have them.
• Artery (+4): This represents what it sounds like. The DC for spotting this is higher than normal, and it has hit points. If this is destroyed, the target gains a permanent DoT that can only be removed by being psionically healed or two Medicine checks.
  • This also represents fuel lines on many mechanical carapacian constructs. In this case, swap out healing and Medicine with repairs and Engineering.
  • Developer’s Note (10/29/2020): Or specify psionic healing and swap Medicine with Occult for psionic creatures. This variant isn’t in the bestiary as of this writing, but the possibility exists, if your SM is of that bent.
  • If they do somehow cauterize their bleeding wounds shut, just hit them there again to resume the bloodletting.
• Opening (+0): This represents some weakness within the creature’s strife techniques that you use against them. Attacks against this have +2 to hit.
• Shatterpoint (+0): This represents some weak, brittle spot on a creature, and is no harder to hit than a normal, uncalled attack. Attacks against this part have +2 crit range, and critical hits Daze the target for 1 round.
• Vitals (+2): This represents some soft, vulnerable part of a creature. It can be grappled, despite not having hit points, and creatures whose vitals are damaged or grappled are Dazed for 1 round or as long as the grapple lasts.
• Tools (+2 to +6): No different than their more visible counterparts above, though psionic focii tend to be more secret than not.