Hit Location and Called Shots

Original creators of this tool

Local Damage (D20 Modern Variant Rule)

Local Damage

This Variant Rule is designed for those of you who wish to have some additional realism in the D20 Modern system. It is based around adding logical effects to the location a character has been shot and having realistic results. It is useful for people who still wish to rely on mechanics in combat but want something where characters are not capable of taking more extremely high numbers of shots from high powered weapons before being killed.

Another benefit of the system is it adds reason for characters to protect themselves in certain ways and to target others on the field in a more intelligent manner.

Hit Location

Body Hit Location

To find the location of a shot that was not meant to target a specific location roll a d20. Match the result to the table here to see where on the opponent you have hit.

Roll	Location Hit
19-20	Head
14-18	Torso (See next chart.)
13	Right Hand
12	Left Hand
9-11	Right Arm
6-8	Left Arm
4-6	Right Leg
1-3	Left Leg

Torso Hit Chart

When the torso is hit roll a second d20. Match the result to the chart below to see where in the torso you have hit.

Roll	Location Hit
20	Heart
17-19	Lungs
12-16	Stomach
9-11	Right Shoulder
6-8	Left Shoulder
1-5	Hips

Called Shots

This table is for attempting to hit a specific location on an enemy. Instead of rolling the hit randomly you will take a penalty to your chance to hit and if your shot lands it will hit the desired location.

Location	Penalty
Head	-10 to Attack Roll.
Torso	-2 to Attack Roll.
Arms	-5 to Attack Roll.
Hands	-6 to Attack Roll.
Legs	-4 to Attack Roll.

Damage Charts

Main Locations

The following table provides a guideline for the effects of damage to each location on the body with both a simple description of the effect and game mechanics for them.

Location Hit	EFFECT
Head	Shots taken to the head deal x4 damage to the character.
Torso	Shots to the Torso have multiple possible effects. See the next table for details.
Arms	Shots to the arms have the effect of lowering a character's accuracy. For each 5 hit points of damage decrease your attack bonus by 2 until healed. Attacks dealing over 10 points of damage cause the character to drop what they are holding if they fail a Fortitude Save with a DC of 15 + damage over 10 dealt.
Hands	Shots to the hands greatly decrease a character's ability to maintain grip or preform complex tasks with their hands. For each 5 hit points of damage reduce any skill involving the use of the hands by 5. Attacks dealing over 10 hit points in damage cause the character to drop what they are holding if they fail a Fortitude Save with a DC of 15 + damage over 10 dealt.
Legs	Shots to the legs have the effect of lowering a character's defense and movement speed. For each 5 hit points of damage to the legs lower movement speed by 20 ft. and defense by 2. Attacks causing over 10 damage to the legs cause the character to drop to their knees or prone if they fail a Fortitude Save with a DC of 15 + damage over 10 dealt.

Torso Locations

The following table provides guidelines for the effects of damage to the torso with both a simple description of the effect and game mechanics for them.

Location Hit	EFFECT
Heart	Shots taken to the heart deal x5 damage to the character.
Lungs	Shots to the lungs cause characters to have difficulty breathing. Characters who have recieved over 5 points of lung damage can no longer hold their breath and are considered fatigued until they are healed.
Stomach	Shots taken to the stomach cause bleeding damage to the characters. If a character takes over 10 points of damage to the stomach they are considered to be bleeding and take 1d8 damage per round until they are healed.
Shoulders	Shots to the shoulders have the effect of lowering a character's accuracy. For each 5 hit points of damage decrease your attack bonus by 2 until healed. Attacks dealing over 10 points of damage cause the character to drop what they are holding if they fail a Fortitude Save with a DC of 15 + damage over 10 dealt.
Hips	Shots to the hips have the effect of lowering a character's defense and movement speed. For each 5 hit points of damage to the legs lower movement speed by 20 ft. and defense by 2. Attacks causing over 10 damage to the legs cause the character to drop to their knees or prone if they fail a Fortitude Save with a DC of 15 + damage over 10 dealt.

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