By Evie Moriarty, Lead Game Designer
Photography by Fatima Martín Pérez

 

The brand new edition of Fallout: Wasteland Warfare is on the horizon, and of course, there are a few changes made along the way. One such is how armor works within the game, especially as the dice have changed. Lead Designer Evie Moriarty walks us through what to expect.

 

If you’re looking to avoid ending up a corpse only fit for the rad roaches, some armor is a good thing to grab! But with the Armor Dice going away in the new edition, how does it all work now?

 

How Has the Combat Changed?

 

At the core of the new armor system is the defend test, which you make when you’re shot at by an enemy model.

 

One of the goals we had for the new edition was that all the rolls should be made for the models in your warband, not for the AI-controlled enemies they face. They’re the heroes after all, and so they’re what matters!

 

That means that instead of enemies rolling to hit, they blast away and you try to dodge out of the way or find some cover!

 

What Is the Defend Test?

 

The Defend test is a standard S.P.E.C.I.A.L. test that a model makes if they get attacked. It’s made against their Endurance stat, as they try to endure the enemy attacks.

 

Succeeding the Defend Test

 

Success doesn’t necessarily mean that a model avoids harm, but rather they get to apply their armor against the attack.

 

If they’re not wearing armor, you might think there’s no point making the check - but a success will allow them to take cover (if there’s a solid object nearby). And on a critical success, they dodge out of the way completely!

 

That said, having some armor is a really good idea…

 

Failing the Defend Test

 

Failing the Defend test means that a model doesn’t get to apply their armor. However, not all is lost.

 

As well as armor, models can also have resistances - what used to be called “strong armor” in the first edition. Resistance can be applied against hits even if you fail that Defend test, which makes it a good insurance policy.

 

Armor Penetration

 

Of course sometimes you’ll find that the enemy benefits from some armor penetration - when you roll a Defend test, you might roll some effect dice. But unlike other tests, those effect dice are for the enemy’s weapon and only make things worse for you!

 

That’s how enemies can unlock Special effects on their attacks, and also armor penetration results that crack your defenses.

 

If they do score some armor penetration results then your armor will be reduced (if you succeed on the defend test) or your resistance will be reduced (if you fail).

 

That might seem that facing off against enemies with lots of armor penetration renders your defenses useless, but here’s the secret sauce - if you succeed on that Defend test you can choose to apply your resistance instead of your armor. If you do, then that resistance can’t be reduced in any way.

 

Think of it as your defensive super power - you’re blocking that hit no matter what.

 

Just like in the previous edition armor can protect differently against different types of damage. Metal armor is better at shrugging off physical hits, while leather shines against energy blasts.

 

Time to leave the Vault and get playing? Pre-order a Fallout: Wasteland Warfare Starter Set today! Got more questions, or ready for your campaign? Grab a (Nuka) cola and come and join us on our Discord.

 

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