Chart in SWADE RPG (Savage Worlds Adventure Edition) is a versatile and dynamic tabletop role-playing game (RPG) system that allows Game Masters (GMs) to create exciting adventures in various settings. One of the essential tools in the SWADE rulebook is the Hardness Chart, which plays a crucial role in determining the durability of objects and structures within the game. Whether you’re smashing through doors, destroying walls, or trying to break into a vault, understanding how the Hardness Chart works can add depth and realism to your gameplay.
In this article, we will explore the Hardness Chart in the context of SWADE RPG, explaining how it operates, its role in gameplay, and providing some examples to help you integrate it into your campaigns.
What Is the Hardness Chart in SWADE RPG?
The Hardness Chart in SWADE provides a guideline for determining the Toughness of various materials and objects. Toughness is a key mechanic in Savage Worlds that measures how difficult it is to damage or break an object. In general, Toughness represents the ability of a material to withstand damage, and it is used to calculate how much damage an object can absorb before being destroyed.
In SWADE, Toughness is a value assigned to objects (like doors, vehicles, and weapons), and it serves as a threshold for the damage they can withstand. The higher the Toughness, the more damage it will take to destroy or break the object.
How the Hardness Chart Works
The Hardness Chart is typically found in the SWADE core rulebook and contains a range of common materials, along with their associated Toughness scores. The materials listed in the chart are ranked according to how resilient they are to damage. These Toughness scores help the GM determine how much damage is required to break through or destroy a specific object or structure.
The chart includes a variety of materials, ranging from fragile substances like wood and glass to tougher materials like steel and adamantium. Each material has a corresponding Toughness score, and the GM can refer to this table when players attempt to damage or destroy objects within the game world.
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Example Hardness Chart
Here’s an example of what a Hardness Chart for SWADE might look like:
| Material | Toughness |
|---|---|
| Wood (Thin) | 5 |
| Wood (Thick) | 7 |
| Glass | 4 |
| Stone | 8 |
| Steel | 12 |
| Reinforced Steel | 15 |
| Adamantium | 20 |
| Concrete | 10 |
| Leather | 6 |
| Cloth | 3 |
In this example:
- Wood (Thin) has a Toughness of 5, which means it is relatively easy to break compared to other materials.
- Steel, with a Toughness of 12, is significantly harder to damage and would require more force to break or penetrate.
- Adamantium, with a Toughness of 20, represents one of the toughest materials in the chart and would be extremely difficult to damage.
These values help players and GMs calculate the difficulty of damaging or breaking specific objects and structures within the game world.
How Toughness Affects Gameplay
Toughness isn’t just a number for determining how long an object survives; it directly impacts the flow of gameplay, particularly in combat situations. For example, if a player uses a weapon to attack an object (such as a door, wall, or vehicle), the GM will compare the damage dealt by the weapon with the Toughness of the object.
If the damage exceeds the Toughness of the object, the object takes damage. This can result in the object breaking, opening, or being destroyed, depending on the nature of the object and the situation at hand. If the damage is less than the Toughness, the object resists the attack and remains intact.
Damage Thresholds and Armor Penetration
In some cases, the weapon used may have armor-piercing capabilities. Armor-piercing weapons reduce the Toughness of an object, making it easier to damage. For example, a bullet might penetrate a wooden door with ease, but it would have a harder time breaking through a reinforced steel vault door.
Armor-piercing attacks are often treated as a modifier that subtracts from the Toughness value of the object. For example:
- A bullet might have an armor-piercing modifier of -2. If the Toughness of a door is 8 and the bullet is fired at it, the GM would subtract 2 from the Toughness of the door, reducing it to a Toughness of 6 for this specific attack.
- A sledgehammer might have no armor-piercing qualities but could still cause significant damage to a wooden or stone structure.
This adds an extra layer of strategy when players choose their weapons or tools to interact with the environment, creating interesting tactical choices during encounters.
Using the Hardness Chart in Gameplay
The Hardness Chart is an invaluable tool for GMs when designing and running encounters that involve physical interactions with objects and environments. Here are some practical ways the Hardness Chart can be used in your campaigns:
- Breaking Through Doors: If players are trying to force their way through a locked or barricaded door, the GM can use the Toughness of the door to determine how much damage they need to do to break through it. A simple wooden door might have a Toughness of 6, while a reinforced steel door could have a Toughness of 12.
- Damaging Structures: When players are in a fight and cause collateral damage to the environment (such as destroying a wall or vehicle), the Toughness of the structure comes into play. A concrete wall may have a Toughness of 10, while a steel vehicle might have a Toughness of 12.
- Weapon Selection: Players can choose weapons based on the Toughness of the objects they intend to break. If they need to smash through a wooden crate, a hammer might suffice, but if they need to penetrate a vault door, they may need explosives or specialized tools.
- Environmental Challenges: The Hardness Chart can also be used for challenges where players must interact with the environment, such as climbing up walls, breaking free from restraints, or using tools to bypass obstacles.
Conclusion
The Hardness Chart in SWADE RPG is an essential tool for determining how materials and objects hold up to damage. By assigning Toughness values to different materials, GMs can create more realistic and engaging environments where the players must think carefully about how to interact with the world. Whether they are attacking enemies, breaking through barriers, or solving puzzles, the Hardness Chart helps keep the game exciting and grounded in the rules.
By understanding the Toughness of various objects and materials, players can make more informed decisions about their actions and improve their strategic thinking in combat and problem-solving situations. The Hardness Chart not only adds complexity to the game but also provides a sense of consistency and fairness when it comes to handling object durability and destruction.
