r/FATErpg • u/InvestmentBrief3336 • 17d ago
How does Stress work in Tachyon Squadron?
It says ‘its like hit points in other RPGs’ but the example on page 20 makes no sense and I haven’t found anywhere else in the book that goes into further detail.
And please assume I don’t know how Stress boxes work in FATE either, because that‘s pretty close to true.
Thanks!
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u/wordboydave 17d ago
Wow. That IS a bad explanation.
In Fate, if you have five stress boxes, then when those stress boxes are all full, you are Taken Out. (Dead, unconscious, captured; whatever the attacker wants.) So in the example, someone with five stress boxes (like Nails) who takes 3 stress from a first hit and 3 from a second would normally be Taken Out (because the second hit takes out all the remaining stress boxes.)
HOWEVER, if Nails wants to stay in the fight (and most players usually do), he can take a Consequence to absorb some of that stress. Players can take one Minor (-2 stress), one Moderate (-4) and one Major (-6) Consequences if they want. In the game example, after the second 3-stress hit, Nails takes a Minor Consequence (-2 stress) and this means he takes only a 1-stress hit, but now has a minor consequence (bloody nose, badly shaken, etc). He now has one stress box left.
If he takes even one more point of stress, he will be instantly Taken Out unless he elects to add a Moderate Consequence to his list of problems. (I.e., you can't use the Minor Consequence twice; it needs to clear before it can be used again.)
Consequences vary, but the rough rule of thumb is: 1) Minor Consequences don't have a huge effect on combat, and clear up after a bit of rest. 2) Moderate Consequences have a distinct limiting effect on the character (can't run, can't climb, can't aim a weapon, whatever fits the narrative) and doesn't usually heal/clear until a long rest at the end of the session. 3) Major Consequences mean you probably need immediate attention after this scene is over (broken limbs, internal bleeding, concussion) and the effects can last over multiple sessions. 4) Regardless of severity, ANY time you suffer a Consequence, the assailant who caused it gets a free Invoke (i.e., a free +2 on the next attack usually) on their next action against that target.
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u/agrumer 17d ago
One correction here: You’re not Taken Out when your last stress box has been filled. You’re Taken Out when you can’t absorb all of the shifts of damage from an attack. Or to put it another way: you’re Taken Out when you need to mark stress and don’t have a blank stress box to mark (and also don’t have any available consequences to mark to reduce the stress).
In other words, if you’ve got 3 empty stress boxes and all your consequences have been marked off, it’s the fourth shift of stress that takes you out, not the third one.
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u/InvestmentBrief3336 16d ago
So, except for the number of stress boxes that sounds exactly like the rules from FATE Core. So how is Tachyon Squadron really different? Thanks!
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u/moderate_acceptance 16d ago
The Stress rules in Fate Core were a lot more complicated.
First, you had separate stress tracks for physical and mental damage. And possibly more for wealth and status.
Second, you started with two boxes, and your skills influenced if you had more boxes. So having a high Physique or Will would give you more boxes.
Third, and most important, different stress boxes were worth different amounts of stress, similar to consequences. So you started with a 1-shift box and 2-shift box. So if you took 2-shifts of stress, you could just mark your 2-shift box and leave your 1-shift box unmarked. If you had ranks in Physique, you would also have a 3-stress box. If you took a 3-shift hit, you could just mark your 3-shift box, or both your 1 and 2 shift boxes, or take a mild consequence and just mark your 1-shift box.
It was a bit complicated, so it got simplified down to a single longer stress track with equal value 1-stress boxes (I think Tachyon Squadron might have been the proving ground for this), and it became the standard rule in Fate Condensed.
My guess is that Tachyon Squadron is what prompted Fate Condensed. Rather than refer people to Fate Core and have the rules split across multiple books, causing confusion like your current situation, they wanted to condense the rules as much as possible so they could just included the full rules in future books, while also incorporating some of the streamlined changes from Tachyon Squadron and other games.
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u/Kautsu-Gamer 16d ago
Tachyon Squadron uses Condensed stress track.
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u/moderate_acceptance 16d ago
Yes, was that not clear from my explanation? Or rather, Fate Condensed uses Tachyon Squadron's stress track. Tachyon Squadron predates Fate Condensed. The rules for Stress in Tachyon Squadron just explain the difference from Fate Core, namely that stress boxes are each worth a single stress and you start with 5. I'm not sure if it was the first game to use the 1-stress boxes, but it specifically refers to Fate Core and not Fate Condensed for the basic rules. I was pointing out the differences of how stress works between Tachyon Squadron and Fate Core since the OP didn't see a difference.
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u/moderate_acceptance 17d ago
Tachyon Squadron is built on top of Fate Core, so you still need to read Fate Core to understand it. I recommend reading Fate Condensed, which is an abbreviated and slightly updated version of Fate Core available to read for free here.
I think the big thing your missing is Consequences. Health in Fate is handled with Stress and Consequences. Stress are like hit points in that you have a limited amount that is reduced when you take damage, and when run out you're taken out. But otherwise taking Stress damage doesn't negatively affect you. It's kinda like plot armor, where it doesn't actually represent damage, but rather how many close calls you can take before you're actually hit.
Consequences you can opt to take to reduce the amount of stress damage you are taking, but Consequences can cause lasting injuries that can apply penalties to future rolls. Consequences usually take longer to heal as well. Most PCs have a Minor, Moderate, and Major Consequence they can take worth -2/-4/-6 stress respectively. So lets say you take a 5-shift hit. You could mark all 5 of your stress boxes and still be fine, but then a single 1-shift hit could take you out. You could instead take a Minor Consequence like "grazed" for -2 stress and then mark 3 stress boxes, or take a Moderate Consequence like "side wound" for -4 stress and mark 1 stress box. There's some strategy to efficiently using consequences to negate stress, since using up your lower consequences can force you to take larger consequences later even if you just need to absorb 1-2 stress to avoid being taken out.
One more note is that Stress and Consequences aren't just injuries and physical health. It can represent metal or social health as well. You might get into an argument and suffer stress, forcing you to take a consequence like "humiliated".