Catching Fire

A single hit that inflicts at least 3
points of basic burning damage
ignites part of the victim’s clothing.
(The Ignite Fire spell does this at its
third level of effect; see p. 246). This
does 1d-4 burning damage per second
and is distracting (-2 to DX, unless the
damage simply cannot harm the tar-
get). To put out the fire, the victim
must beat it with his hands. This
requires a DX roll, and each attempt
takes a Ready maneuver.
A single hit that inflicts 10 or more
points of basic burning damage
ignites all of the victim’s clothes. This
does 1d-1 burning damage per second
and is very distracting (-3 to DX,
except when rolling to put out the
fire). To put out the fire, the victim
must roll on the ground. This requires
a DX roll, and each attempt takes three
Ready maneuvers. Jumping into
water takes only one second, and
automatically extinguishes the fire.
If a wooden shield takes 10 or more
points of burning damage in one sec-
ond, the bearer is at -2 to DX, and
takes 1d-5 burning damage per second
until he gets rid of it.
Clothing that is wet or worn under armor is
almost impossible to ignite, and won’t stay lit.
On the other hand, fancy dresses, lace cuffs, and
so on, ignite if they take even 1 point of burning
damage!
In all cases, remember to apply
shock penalties to DX if the flame
inflicts injury!
The above guidelines assume ordi-
nary clothing. Armor is good protec-
tion against fire; clothing worn over
armor (e.g., a surcoat) might burn, but
the armor’s DR reduces the damage
normally. Clothing that is wet or worn
under armor is almost impossible to
ignite, and won’t stay lit. On the other
hand, fancy dresses, lace cuffs, and so
on, ignite if they take even 1 point of
burning damage!
Remember to divide damage from
tight-beam burning attacks by 10
when applying the rules above.