Grenades

The trigger of the grenade activates the weapon, and the sudden deceleration on the target hex detonates it. The grenade can also detonate if it were to hit a solid object after activation. Grenade triggers are mainly descriptive.

Grenades come in six-packs, not unlike a famous mundane terran beverage. However, only 1-6 (1d6) grenades will be in a pack. For powerful campaign-altering grenades, five of the six will be missing.

Even the same grenade type may have different shapes and colours. The random descriptions of grenades in EXP arise from the technological chaos. Different companies, species, technologies, and regulations are all mixed. Grenades lack identifying markings. Identification of a grenade depends on instinct, feel and other indicators. Expeditions often blow themselves fiddling with grenades. If flashy colours, appendages and strange shapes are your jam jump to Appearances.

For details on the special elements of grenade combat jump to GrenadeCombat.

The big bertha is a massive concussion grenade. Aside from inflicting massive damage, big bertha stuns and topples targets.

These effects are cumulative. A target within eight hexes takes damage, gets stunned and gets toppled. To avoid being stunned, the player must win a Damage System Shock roll (anthros only). To avoid being toppled, the player must win a dexterity Attribute Roll.

The name big bertha has its roots in mundane terran war history Big Bertha.

A chemical explosive grenade is a more powerful version of the typical fragmentation grenade. The chemical explosive is the big sister of the Fragmentation grenade and the little sister of the Big Bertha.

The corrosive grenade bathes the area of effect with acids, alkalis, or non-neutralizing combinations of both. The corrosive grenade’s contents are highly volatile but neutralize themselves on organic surfaces. This grenade is selectively more destructive to inorganic materials and robot personas. Organic targets suffer damage from the initial grenade explosion.

After the initial explosion, the residue will continue to eat away at inorganic materials. Metals, plastic, rubber, etc., continue to take damage until washed clean. Items such as armour, weapons, or robots will take an additional 2-20 hit points of damage for each of the continuing 1-8 units of reaction. E.g., an unwashed robot could take an additional 2-20 HPS for four units after the initial blast. Corrosive grenades are also known as acid baths and Drainoh bombs.

The cryoblast grenade freezes everything in its area of effect to a blast of extreme cold. The grenade can freeze things solid and can trap personas in ice. Medium or smaller, sized targets have a % chance, equal to the damage inflicted, of being trapped in the ice. So a medium-sized beastie that took 19 points of damage has a 19% chance of being frozen immobile. The cryoblast grenade can also freeze swords in scabbards, render buttons frozen, jam weapons, etc. The cryoblast is also known as a cryofrag, a berg bomb, or a rink maker.

An energy drain grenade will suck the life out of nearby potential energy stores (batteries) and self-destruct. Any batteries within a ten hex radius will be instantly devoid of charge. The grenade will shower a smaller three hex area of effect with its exploding fragments. This explosion will inflict 1d4 hit points of damage for every battery drained. An unlucky target has 16 batteries within the area of effect. The grenade explodes in 0 to 3 units—​inflicting 16d4 of damage to all within three hexes.

The energy drain grenade only works on discrete batteries storing potential energy. Continuous battery sources like broadcast or psionic batteries are immune. The energy drain grenade does not affect robots, powered armour, or vehicle power plants.

The energy drain grenade is also known as an Amp-ire grenade or a Never-ready.

The energy grenade emits a controlled lazer explosion of the given volume (15h x 15h x 1h). Regardless of the terrain in which the grenade, the detonation always occupies the given volume. The grenade’s blast area will race along corridors, through open doors, around corners, and down escalators. Using this weapon in unfamiliar terrain could have its effects hurtling directly back at the user. The energy grenade is also known as an anti-trench grenade or a mouser.

The exploding pin grenade is a sadistic version of a micro grenade launcher. When an EPG goes off, it showers the four hex area of effect with tiny pins. These tiny pins will stick into the hardest of alloys (AR less than 1000). Whenever a pin hits, it will immediately explode, inflicting the 1d6 damage described above. The number of pins that hit a target depends on the target’s size. The larger the target, the more pins inflict damage.

The fragmentation grenade is your run-of-the-mill shrapnel grenade. These are commonly called frags or grenades.

A fusion grenade delivers a micro-nuclear explosion. The explosion includes a host of other nasty effects beyond damage.

The effects of a fusion grenade are cumulative and lethal. A persona that is within ten hexes taking 60 HPS of damage. First, she subtracts 60 HPS from HPS Total. Then she has a 60% chance of catching fire and a 30% chance of being blinded. Finally, she must make a roll versus intensity six lethal radiation.

Any flammable object within 15 hexes of the epicentre has a chance of immolating. The immolation chance includes personas and equipment. The chance of immolation is equal to 1% per point of damage. Anything ignited by the grenade will burn until extinguished.

Any personas within 20 hexes have a chance of being blinded. The chance of being blinded is 1/2% per point of damage. This attack affects both organic and inorganic personas and devices. Video sensors will restore vision in 1-10 (1d10) minutes.

Any target within 30 hexes is subject to a lethal radiation attack. The intensity of the attack is equal to 1/10 of the damage.

For effect, the ref can make the ten hex radius of effect become a lingering radiation zone. The radiation intensity is 1/10 of the blast damage. The radiation zone’s intensity level will decrease by one point per hour, day, or week, depending on how dirty the grenade was.

The reader should have noticed that this is not a close combat weapon. More observant readers have noticed that a persona cannot throw a fusion grenade safely out of range.

Fusion grenades are also known as micro-nukes, CQ bombs, and tactical nukes.

The gas grenade discharges a dense mist of poisons. The nerve agents are both contact and respiratory poisons. All organic targets must roll vs poison attack or suffer the described effect. The cloud of gas will dissipate in 1-8 units. Prevailing winds may affect the duration and intensity of the gas cloud. The gas’s intensity will vary from 4-24 (4d6). This value is generated once for the entire cloud.

The gravruptor grenade generates 1-6 random gravities of anomalous attraction. The effect will either smash targets into the ground, throw them high into the air, or fling them off into space. The gravruptor grenade produces an instantaneous burst of random acceleration. Newtonian physics conveniently need not apply. Objects greater than 2 tonnes in wate are not affected by this grenade’s attack.

25% of the time, the gravruptor grenades reverses gravity by 1-6 (1d6) gravities. Reversing gravity accelerates everything in the opposite direction to the present gravity. The general effect is that things go flying into the air. All items fly one hex in the air per anomalous gravity. There is no damage from flying into the air or accelerating back down to the ground. However, the deceleration of hitting the ground inflicts 1-6 (1d6) hit points per gravity. Colliding with an immobile object along the path of the toss will also inflict 1-6 (1d6) hit points per gravity.

The remaining 75% of the time, the gravruptor grenade will add 1-6 g to the local terrain. Increasing gravity causes personas to crash to the ground and vehicles to grind into the dirt. This pressing problem will also inflict damage to all targets in the area of effect. This damage is 1 to 12 (1d12) hit points in damage per extra gravity. E.g., three gravities would smash targets into the ground for 3-36 (3d12) hit points of damage.

This weapon is a ZOG (zero gravity) combat weapon. The gravruptor flings enemy combatants off into space. All targets accelerate away from the epicentre at 1-6 (1d6) gravities. This acceleration inflicts 1 to 6 (1d6) hit points of damage per gravity of acceleration. The targets are also flying away at one h/u for every 2 points of damage. Consider a gravruptor grenade that generated five gravities on detonation The referee generates 16 HPS of damage using 5d6. Each target subtracts 16 HPS from their HPS Total and is flying away at eight h/u.

The gravruptor grenade is also known as a downer or a jump bomb.

The magnetic disruptor grenade resembles an implosive super magnet. When detonated, this grenade attracts loose items towards its epicentre. The disruptor will attract anything inorganic: metals, alloys, plastic, wood, etc. Armour may get ripped off of personas. Tools may tear from utility belts. Weapons may fly from the paws of personas. Unless the terrain is intentionally completely barren, there will always be stuff to attract.

These high-speed projectiles smash into all targets within the area of effect. The targets closest to the detonation endure more hurtling stuff. The damage increases the closer the target is to the epicentre of the grenade detonation. A persona 12h out from the target hex takes 1d4 hit points of damage. A persona in the target hex takes 12d4hit points of damage.

A Strength attribute roll is required if the referee feels something could fly out of a persona’s grip. The closer to the epicentre, the harder it is to hang onto stuff. The attribute challenge is versus 24 at the epicentre and two at the periphery (12 hexes).

Mini grenades are so small and light that they don’t throw very far. The player must win an attack roll to damage a target using a mini grenade. A miss with a mini grenade explodes loudly and harmlessly. The target’s size determines its Defence Rating, and bigger targets are easier to hit. The target does not use its regular combat Defence Rating and must use the target size AR. The target’s Defence Rating should decrease, which follows the spirit of grenades being Zone Attacks.

Mini grenade users may wish to throw a handful of these micro explosives at their target. The persona can throw up to three mini grenades at once. If the persona does not have a grenades skill, there is an attack roll penalty. Three grenades have attack roll penalties of -100, -200 and -300. Two grenades have attack roll penalties of -100 and -200. A single mini grenade attack has no penalties.

Mini grenades are also known as pea grenades or pill grenades. High-tech level mini grenades can become extremely small.

A molecular disruptor is a temperamental disintegration grenade. When discharged, this grenade converts solid matter into a warm, seething cloud. The problem is that neither the thrower nor the grenade has any idea what is going to happen. The Extent of Disruption Table determines the amount of disruption.

Targets in this area of effect take 8-64 (8d8) hit points of damage. Damage comes from slivers of disruption that burst from the grenade. These slivers punch microscopic holes through anything in the damage area of effect.

The disruption area of effect utterly destroys any target within it. Any matter within this area of effect transforms into a warm homogenous gas. There is no explosion, no noise, just a giant cloud of effervescent warm gas. The effect of getting disrupted is devastating and final. All personas, equipment, terrain, and good ideas disappear.

The molecular disruption grenade is also known as a disintegration grenade.

The multiple explosive grenades are the "exploding cigars" of lethal combat. This grenade initially explodes like any other grenade, but similarities end there. After the first explosion, the grenade flies into the air, only to land and explode again. The number of detonations, area of effect and damage is determined each time.

The successive explosions will occur 0 to 3 units apart. The location of the explosion is 0-5 (1d6 - 1) hexes in a random direction. The easiest way to determine is to make a random facet roll.

These grenades are dangerous to the expedition for obvious reasons. Unless identified, a multiple explosive grenade is indistinguishable from a regular lethal grenade. If used indoors, the grenade will explode, each unit bouncing around the room.

Multiple explosive grenades are also known as jumping jacks.

The napalm grenade covers an area with an adhesive flaming goo. The napalm grenade is unique in that it has a swath area of effect instead of a spherical area of effect. The grenade launches itself into the air for an eight hex trip raining adhesive flammables all along its course. Usually, this grenade will launch itself in the same direction that the persona threw it. If the thrower is unskilled in grenade combat and rolls less than 200 on her attack roll, the napalm grenade will launch itself in a random direction.

Anything caught in this blazing area of effect will take 6-60 (6d10) hit points of damage and immediately immolate. Immolation lasts for 2-8 (2d4) units, inflicting 2-24 (2d12) hit points of damage every unit. The two hex by eight hex patch of flaming death will burn itself out in 1 to 10 minutes. Referees should also be prepared to consider the effects of smoke inhalation if used indoors.

Napalm grenades are also labelled phosphorous grenades and Smoky the Fear bombs.

The pin grenade is the needler of Zone Attacks. The pin grenade pierces everything in 1 hex radius of effect with explosive pins. The initial detonation is relatively quiet. The size of the target determines how many pins stick.

The pin grenade is also known as a porcupin(e), or inoculator grenade.

Pyrotechnic grenades are smoke, sonic, and flash weapons. The pyrotechnic grenades appear in military actions or violent magic shows. Pyro grenades can be devoted to one attack type or a mix of all three. Targets must win a saving roll for each different type of pyro attack.

The radiation grenade bathes the area of effect with lethal radiation types. Any target caught in the bath area will take 3 to 24 hit points of damage. There is a simultaneous radiation attack of intensity equal to the damage rolled. If the blast doesn’t get you, the radiation will. The radiation grenade is entirely silent.

The grenade attack leaves ongoing lethal residual radioactivity. The area of effect will remain toxic one day per intensity level of radiation. A radiation intensity 12 attack would remain toxic for 12 days. The intensity decreases by 1 per day until there is no lethal radiation. The detonation site will remain anomalous to radiation detectors forever.

The radiation grenade is also known as a Neutron grenade or a Micrograve Oven.

The sky lighter is an outdoorsy grenade. On detonation, the grenade launches a projectile into the sky. After 2-6 (3d3) units, the enormous area of effect is deluged with jagged hail. The initial explosion does no damage, but the hailstorm is like nails that melt. This grenade depends on complex meteorological mechanisms. This grenade is useless if used indoors, underwater, in zero gravity or a vacuum.

The skylighter grenade is also known as a Painmaker, Rainmaker, or Chicken Little.

The torc grenade is the anti-force field grenade. A torc grenade does no damage unless the target is within a force field. The grenade affects any force field that makes contact with the radius of the torc grenade. Any tactical, personal or battery-powered force field will instantly be exhausted. A force field powered by a renewable power plant returns in 1 to 10 minutes. The torc grenade cannot damage a civic or naval force field. The grenade may create a temporary hole in such force fields to assist the story.

The collapse of the shield delivers 12-144 (12d12) hit points of damage. The damage is only for those targets inside the force field.

The torc grenade is also known as a force field disruptor.