Introduction
A vehicle in Twilight: 2000 adds a new set of promises the group must keep, more than it ends survival pressure. It can move people faster, carry more than anyone can carry on foot, protect occupants, mount weapons, and make a distant objective reachable. It also needs fuel, maintenance, spare parts, usable terrain, a crew, and a plan for the moment it stops moving.
This page collects the vehicle rules in one place: how to read a vehicle entry, how vehicle combat works, how mounted weapons and tanks behave, how rare aircraft fly, how to run a chase, and how to keep a machine repaired. Each section explains the procedure and then the decision it creates. It does not reproduce the official vehicle, component-damage, mishap, terrain, or weapon tables; use the Player's Manual for exact values.
Day-to-day travel planning lives in the companion Twilight: 2000 Vehicles Guide: choosing a vehicle role, building a route, assigning driver and passenger tasks, doing the fuel math, loading cargo, making the per-shift Driving roll, and keeping an on-foot fallback. This page assumes that planning and covers what happens when the rules get specific.
Hot Take
Chases and vehicle combat get the page count, but repair and maintenance are where these rules actually reach a campaign. Most groups will fight from a vehicle a handful of times. Every group will sit beside one that has stopped working, in weather, with a Reliability rating that has been sliding for three sessions and no spare parts counted against cargo. That is the scene the vehicle rules are built to produce, and it is the one tables prepare for least.
Treat the breakdown as scheduled rather than unlucky. Before the trip, say who does the repair work, what tools and parts are aboard, which shift you can afford to spend on it, and where the group walks from if the answer turns out to be none of the above. A vehicle with a named mechanic and a parts reserve is transport. A vehicle without them is a shelter you have not finished paying for.
The Vehicle Decision Loop
Before relying on a vehicle, answer five questions:
- What does this vehicle let the group do that walking cannot?
- What fuel, cargo, crew, and maintenance does the plan require?
- Which road, terrain, weather, or encounter can stop it?
- What happens if it becomes stuck, damaged, or inoperable?
- Does the group still have a safe option if it must abandon the vehicle?
A vehicle may be the best way to get an injured survivor to safety, carry a stockpile, or cross a hostile region. It may be the wrong choice when the route is impassable, fuel is nearly gone, the group needs to avoid notice, or a breakdown would strand everyone far from shelter. Every rule below feeds one of those five answers.
Vehicle Stats and How To Compare Them
The best vehicle is the one the group can fuel, crew, repair, and use to finish its present mission, which is rarely the one with the biggest gun or thickest armor. Vehicle entries are compact because every value connects to another pressure: a large cargo hold changes fuel needs, better armor changes who notices the group, a mounted weapon changes crew assignments, and a high travel speed means nothing on a route the vehicle cannot use.
Read each entry as a promise about what the vehicle can do, followed by the debts the group must pay to keep doing it.
Compare for a Specific Job
Name the job before checking the entry. A vehicle that is excellent for one job can be dangerous for another.
| Current job | Vehicle qualities that matter first | Qualities that may matter less |
|---|---|---|
| Move food, water, tools, or salvage | Cargo, route access, fuel, reliability | Heavy armament |
| Get an injured person to safety | Reliable travel, space, protection, fuel reserve | Maximum cargo |
| Scout a route | Low demand, off-road ability, speed, simple recovery | Passenger capacity |
| Escort a vulnerable group | Protection, crew, observation, communication | Peak travel speed |
| Cross difficult country | Off-road travel, reliability, recovery options | On-road performance alone |
| Avoid attention | Fuel efficiency, small footprint, quiet or indirect route choices | Armor that advertises a prize |
| Survive a likely fight | Armor facing, crew, weapon mounts, escape mobility | Extra cargo that slows movement |
Writing the job down first keeps a group from grabbing an armored vehicle for a short combat edge and discovering too late that it cannot move the people, supplies, or fuel the campaign needs.
Reliability Is the Starting Condition
REL is the vehicle's starting reliability. Wear, pushed rolls, and damage can reduce it, but it cannot be raised above its listed starting value. At zero, the vehicle is inoperable. Reliability is the margin between a working machine and an urgent repair scene.
| Reliability question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Is the vehicle already below its listed rating? | The group is taking on a future repair obligation along with the vehicle |
| Does the route force risky driving or hard terrain? | A small reliability margin can disappear when the group needs speed most |
| Can the group service it weekly? | Travel without maintenance reduces reliability even without combat |
| Are vehicle parts and a mechanic available? | A strong vehicle without support may be less useful than a modest one the group can keep alive |
| What happens if it stops here? | Reliability matters most where walking away is not safe or practical |
The repair section below covers maintenance, spare parts, and donor vehicles. Read it before deciding that an impressive but worn machine is a bargain.
Travel Speed Means Route Access
Travel speed is the number of ten-kilometer hexes a vehicle covers per shift, with separate on-road and off-road values. A dash in the off-road position means the vehicle cannot be driven off road. The gap between the two values often tells you more than the larger number.
| Pattern in an entry | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Strong on-road, weak off-road speed | The vehicle wants roads, with all the visibility and choke-point risk roads create |
| Similar on-road and off-road speed | It has more route flexibility, though terrain can still slow it |
| No off-road capability | The group must protect its road access and have an answer for blockages |
| Moderate speed with low fuel demand | It may be the better long-term transport choice |
| High speed with poor cargo or protection | It may be a scout, messenger, or escape tool rather than a group vehicle |
The driver normally picks on-road or off-road movement for a full shift unless the Referee allows a split. Night halves effective travel speed, heavy rain gives Driving rolls the listed penalty, and dense urban terrain slows movement and burns fuel like a full travel hex. Off-road movement doubles fuel consumption, and roadless hexes need a Survival navigation roll. A fast off-road value does not remove navigation, terrain, weather, or recovery problems. The Vehicles Guide walks through that route planning, and the Shift System Guide shows how driving fits into the day. A vehicle helps the group spend shifts efficiently; it does not give the group more of them.
Combat Speed Is Safe Movement
Combat speed is the safe distance the vehicle can drive in a fast action on a battle map, in ten-meter hexes. It has separate on-road and off-road values and marks the vehicle as wheeled or tracked.
"Safe" is the key word. The driver can try to go farther with a Driving roll, but failure leaves the vehicle stuck after its safe movement (the full procedure is under combat movement). The entry tells you how confidently the driver can reposition, break line of sight, reach cover, or leave a firing lane.
| Combat-speed comparison | Better question than "which is faster?" |
|---|---|
| Wheeled versus tracked | Which one can use the terrain and route the group actually faces? |
| High road speed versus high off-road speed | Where will the next fight probably start? |
| A fast vehicle with heavy cargo | Will the planned load cut that speed in half? |
| A protected but slower vehicle | Can it reach cover or an exit before its weak facing is exposed? |
| A light vehicle | Can it avoid the fight entirely rather than win a movement contest? |
Armor Is Three Values
Vehicle armor is listed separately for the front, sides, and rear. Attacks use the armor facing the attacker; attacks from above or below use rear armor. The crew must decide which facing is exposed, whether the vehicle can change facing, and whether passengers are protected or riding exposed.
| Armor reading | Tactical implication |
|---|---|
| Stronger front than sides or rear | Face the most dangerous likely attack and plan turns carefully |
| Similar armor on all sides | The vehicle is more forgiving, but not invulnerable |
| Little or no armor | Prioritize cover, speed, concealment, and avoidance |
| Good armor with exposed mount or passengers | The vehicle can still have people or components at risk |
| High armor with limited mobility | It may survive contact but still become trapped, flanked, or stranded |
Armor can be penetrated, ablated, and repaired. Components, fuel, weapons, radio, external stores, and crew can matter even when the hull survives. Use the entry to judge which threats the vehicle can endure while it completes an exit, escort, rescue, or withdrawal.
Fuel Type, Capacity, and Consumption
Entries list a fuel type, fuel capacity, and consumption per ten-kilometer hex. Consumption doubles off road, and it also doubles if the vehicle is converted to alcohol fuel. Idling to power equipment uses the listed consumption per shift. Capacity is the maximum reserve; consumption tells you how quickly the route turns that reserve into an emergency. A large tank paired with high consumption can be a larger burden without being a longer range.
| Fuel question | What to check in the official entry |
|---|---|
| Can it reach the objective and return? | Capacity, consumption, route distance, and an emergency reserve |
| Is the off-road shortcut worth it? | Doubled off-road consumption against road danger or delay |
| Can the group supply this fuel type? | Local availability, containers, trade, and the ability to protect stores |
| Can it carry the needed fuel? | Cargo capacity after food, water, tools, medical gear, and spare parts |
| Is conversion a solution? | Alcohol use remains a tradeoff because consumption doubles |
Pick the fuel plan before picking the machine. The Fuel Guide covers supply and stills, and the Vehicles Guide covers the per-trip fuel math.
Crew and Passenger Numbers
The CREW field lists the people needed for designated vehicle positions. A second value shows passengers who can ride comfortably with their carried gear. Empty passenger seats can hold cargo instead. Extra passengers can ride in the cargo hold, but each takes a large share of that capacity; entries with no passenger value only let people ride outside for short distances.
Nobody in a vehicle is automatically free. A driver is driving. A dedicated gunner is working the main weapon. A loader, commander, observer, or radio operator may be the reason the vehicle's systems matter at all.
| Crew comparison | Campaign consequence |
|---|---|
| Small crew requirement | More survivors remain available to scout, treat injuries, or secure a stop |
| Dedicated positions | Better capability, but fewer people can dismount without losing it |
| Passenger space | A vehicle can move a group, casualties, or allies without consuming cargo volume |
| No protected passenger space | The vehicle is transport only in a narrow sense; exposure changes the risk |
| Empty seats used for cargo | More supplies now, fewer safe riders later |
Cargo, Overloading, and Trailers
Cargo is measured in encumbrance units, separate from passengers. Each empty passenger seat adds a smaller amount of space. The rules allow excess cargo up to half again the normal load, and a trailer can double cargo capacity. Both halve combat and travel speed and double fuel consumption.
| Load plan | What it gains | What it gives up |
|---|---|---|
| Normal cargo | The vehicle keeps its listed speed and fuel profile | Some supplies remain behind |
| Empty seats used as cargo | More capacity without a trailer | Fewer safe passenger places |
| Excess cargo | A larger emergency haul or salvage run | Half speed and doubled fuel use |
| Trailer | Major capacity increase | Half speed, doubled fuel use, and more route-management pressure |
A load that leaves the vehicle too slow or fuel-hungry to escape is a failed load plan. The Vehicles Guide covers packing order and access, and the Encumbrance Guide covers what each survivor can carry once the vehicle is gone.
Weapons and Support Systems
Entries may list a main weapon, secondary weapon, mount types, and support systems. A main weapon has a dedicated gunner. Crew members not doing another task can fire secondary weapons, and passengers can take over pintle-mounted weapons when no dedicated gunner is available.
| Entry feature | What to decide before a fight |
|---|---|
| Pintle or pintle with gun shield | Who is exposed, and is the additional fire worth that exposure? |
| Turret, coaxial, or hull mount | What firing arc and crew role does the mount impose? |
| Stabilizer or fire control | Does moving fire or range change the vehicle's likely job? |
| Infrared or thermal capability | What does the group gain in darkness, weather, or smoke, and who knows how to use it? |
| Smoke dischargers | When does the group use concealment to leave rather than remain visible? |
| Vehicle radio | Who communicates, and what plan survives if that system is damaged? |
A weapon that cannot be crewed, supplied, or used without trapping the vehicle adds nothing in the moment that matters. The mounted weapons section covers the firing rules.
A Seven-Step Vehicle Comparison
When the group finds, trades for, or considers stealing a vehicle, compare candidates in this order:
- Route: Can each candidate use the expected roads and ground?
- Fuel: Can the group supply enough of its fuel type for the mission and a reserve?
- Crew: Can the group fill the necessary positions without abandoning other survival jobs?
- Cargo and passengers: Can it move the essential people and equipment without speed and fuel penalties?
- Reliability and repair: Can the group service it and recover from failure?
- Protection and weapons: Does it help with the threat the group actually expects?
- Exit: If the vehicle fails, is the group safer, more mobile, or more trapped than before it took it?
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Vehicle Combat Rules
Vehicle combat is won by positioning, a clear job, and a way out. A vehicle that stays to trade shots after its job is done usually spends fuel, armor, and crew safety for nothing. Treat the vehicle as a moving position with jobs to perform: it has facing, a large silhouette, limited crew actions, vulnerable components, and a strong reason for enemies to concentrate fire on it. The Combat Guide and Combat Rules Guide cover the general rules of danger, cover, suppression, and action economy that these procedures build on.
Give the Vehicle a Job Before Initiative
"We attack" makes vehicle combat slow. A concrete job tells the driver where to face, which crew actions matter, how much risk is acceptable, and when to stop.
| Vehicle job | Immediate goal | Good exit condition |
|---|---|---|
| Break contact | Reach cover, break line of sight, or leave the map | The pursuer cannot engage effectively |
| Move people or cargo | Cross a danger area or extract someone | The passengers or cargo reach safety |
| Screen a withdrawal | Make a route too costly or uncertain to follow | Allies leave the threatened area |
| Hold a route | Delay or discourage movement through a chokepoint | The group gains time, information, or a better position |
| Deliver fire support | Create a brief opening for another plan | The supporting fire has achieved that opening |
An armored vehicle is not automatically the right lead element. It may draw the one weapon that can damage it, get stuck in a poor lane, or pull the group into a fight a lighter vehicle could have avoided. State the job, mark the exit direction, then decide how hard to push.
Combat Movement and Getting Stuck
A vehicle moves its safe combat-speed distance with one fast action, using the on-road or off-road value for the ground it is crossing. Pavement is on-road; other terrain is not.
After the safe move, the driver can make a Driving roll, modified by the terrain entered, to move farther. A failed roll leaves the vehicle stuck after its safe movement. Getting free takes a Driving roll as a slow action; if that fails too, the vehicle is bogged down and the crew must get out and work it free. Another suitable vehicle can help, which commits more people and time to the scene.
Pushing the extra-movement roll can reduce reliability. If reliability reaches zero, the vehicle breaks down before it gets the extra movement. Make the roll only when the added distance changes the outcome:
- Reach cover before a heavy weapon gets a second shot.
- Clear an exposed road or cross a dangerous lane.
- Put the vehicle's strongest face toward a known threat.
- Close enough to extract a survivor, then leave.
- Break line of sight instead of staying in a losing exchange.
A combat escape that burns the last usable fuel or breaks the vehicle still needs a recovery plan afterward.
Facing and Directional Armor
At the end of movement, a vehicle must face a side of its hex. The driver can rotate it during that movement but cannot freely change facing at other times, so the direction of travel and the direction of protection are the same decision.
Attackers strike the front, side, or rear according to their angle. Mark the facing, name the threats in front, and check whether a flanking route exposes a weak side or rear.
| Position | What it offers | What it risks |
|---|---|---|
| Strongest armor toward threat | Better chance of deflecting direct fire | Less flexibility against a second direction |
| Side presented while crossing | Faster route to a new position | Vulnerable components and weaker armor may face fire |
| Rear toward threat | A fast departure line | Often the least protected direction |
| Vehicle behind hard cover | Blocks or complicates enemy fire | May restrict movement or trap the vehicle |
| Vehicle in open ground | Many movement choices | More angles for enemies to exploit |
Protection comes with compromises. Closed-up armor reduces exposure but makes spotting harder. Riding unbuttoned improves observation and lets personal weapons fire out, but leaves passengers vulnerable. Cover and vehicle armor can combine when both protect an occupant's hit location, but neither covers a passenger who is outside, leaning through a window, or up in a hatch. The Armor Guide explains the core armor sequence.
Firing From and At Vehicles
Small-arms attacks against vehicles normally gain +2 because the target is large. Heavy weapons do not get that bonus, and neither do attacks on bicycles and motorcycles. A vehicle is easier to hit without being any easier to hurt.
Firing from a vehicle that has moved since the shooter's previous turn takes -2, for handheld and mounted weapons alike. Stabilizers remove that penalty. A target vehicle that has moved since the attacker's previous turn gives the attacker -1. Speed can protect the crew and spoil its return fire at the same time.
A useful sequence:
- Move to a place where the vehicle protects the crew or gains a firing lane.
- Decide whether the vehicle must move again to survive.
- Fire only if the shot advances the stated job.
- Prepare smoke, cover, or a withdrawal instead of hoping next round is better.
Called shots against specific external components take -2; small arms offset that with their normal +2 against vehicles. Called shots do not penetrate armor, so use them on an exposed external element instead of as a way around a protected hull.
The Armor Penetration Sequence
Damage against a vehicle starts like an attack on a person: the weapon's base damage plus extra successes. Then:
- Identify the angle: front, side, or rear.
- Use that face's armor level.
- Apply the weapon's armor modifier.
- Check the penetration limit.
- If it can penetrate, reduce damage by the modified armor.
- Resolve component damage using the official procedure.
If the weapon's base damage is too far below the modified armor, the attack is fully deflected no matter how many extra successes it has. A penetrating hit can ablate armor: the official follow-up roll can lower that armor level, and a Tech roll plus a shift restores it, capped at its original value.
Most hits land between "no effect" and "vehicle destroyed." Deflected fire can still force a crew to move, hide, change route, or stop exposing passengers. Penetrating fire can knock out one system while the vehicle keeps its role. Resolve the rules cleanly, then show the table what changed.
Component Damage and Crew Priorities
After a penetrating hit, use the official component-damage procedure rather than picking a result that fits the narration. It can hit fuel, engine, suspension, ammunition, cargo, crew, radio, a weapon, or other systems. A non-penetrating hit can still affect external or exposed elements. Damage beyond what is needed to destroy or incapacitate one component can carry on to another, which is why a vehicle fight can turn fast.
| What changes | Immediate crew question | Practical response |
|---|---|---|
| Engine, suspension, track, or wheel is damaged | Can the vehicle still move or leave? | Change the objective to cover, repair, or evacuation |
| Fuel system is hit | Is fuel leaking or is fire now a risk? | Get clear, limit exposure, and prepare to abandon if necessary |
| Ammunition is hit | Is the vehicle still a safe firing platform? | Stop treating onboard ammunition as a reason to stay |
| Driver, gunner, commander, or passenger is hit | Who can take over, and who needs aid? | Reassign the crew before the next action is lost |
| Radio or fire-control system is hit | What coordination or accuracy has been lost? | Use prearranged signals, simplify the plan, or disengage |
| Cargo or external stores are hit | What essential supplies are now at risk? | Protect, retrieve, or write off the load based on the mission |
Explosive penetration also hits the occupants with the explosion's effects. Fuel or ammunition damage can turn a recoverable vehicle into a permanent loss. The right answer after a bad hit may be a Coolness Under Fire roll, a bail-out, and an on-foot plan instead of another attack.
Occupants, Exposure, and Bailing Out
Vehicle armor protects people inside from the matching direction. It does not protect anyone outside, leaning out a window, or standing in a hatch. Exposed riders spot better and can use personal weapons, but non-penetrating hits and explosions in the hex can reach them. Before combat, decide whether each passenger is buttoned up, exposed to observe, working a mount, or ready to dismount. One character cannot have all four at once.
Penetration forces every occupant to make an immediate Coolness Under Fire roll. Failure means bailing out on that occupant's next turn. Getting in or out of most vehicles is a slow action; motorcycles and bicycles take a fast action. Starting a vehicle is typically fast. The Coolness Under Fire Guide explains how stress turns into lost options, and in a vehicle it often decides whether the crew leaves in order or gets forced out at the worst moment.
Smoke Launchers and Ramming
Firing a smoke launcher is a slow action with no dice roll. It fills every hex adjacent to the vehicle with dense smoke, and dense smoke blocks visibility into and out of its hex. Use it to turn, load a passenger, pick up a casualty, break a firing lane, or leave a position that has become too exposed. Before firing, ask what the crew will get done while the smoke still covers it. If there is no answer, the launcher only delays the same problem.
Ramming is a fast action against a target in the same hex, resolved as an opposed Driving roll against another vehicle or Mobility against a person. A successful ram damages the target, and ramming a vehicle also damages the attacker. The attacker always takes that damage to its front, while the target takes it on the struck side. Ram to end a worse problem, such as forcing a barrier, stopping an enemy escape, or protecting someone right now, and not to solve an ordinary firing problem when the vehicle could reposition, smoke, or leave.
Mounted Weapons
A mounted weapon earns its place when it helps the vehicle finish its mission. It gives a survivor group reach, sustained fire, and protection that handheld weapons cannot, and it creates a crew problem: someone must operate it, someone must drive, ammunition must be ready, the vehicle may need to stay in a firing lane, and the gunner may be exposed. Treat a mount as a tactical position with a gun attached.
Before initiative, say why the weapon needs to fire and what ends that need.
| Weapon job | Useful result | When to stop firing |
|---|---|---|
| Protect an extraction | Keep a lane unsafe long enough to move people | The people are loaded or reach cover |
| Cover a turn or withdrawal | Force hesitation while the vehicle changes position | The vehicle has broken sight or reached its next position |
| Deter close approach | Make a roadblock or exposed route costly to use | The opposition turns, talks, or creates distance |
| Defend a fixed site | Control the approach that threatens the site | The group has time to leave, negotiate, or reposition |
| Support dismounts | Cover a specific route or rescue action | The dismounts finish their task or no longer need the lane |
"Shoot until they stop" wastes ammunition, leaves the vehicle in view, and can become the reason the group cannot disengage.
Mount Types, Arcs, and Exposure
The mount type matters more than the weapon's name when deciding where the vehicle goes and who takes the risk.
| Mount type | What it allows | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Turret | The weapon can fire without exposing the gunner | The vehicle still needs a useful line of sight and may become a priority target |
| Coaxial | Protected fire alongside the main system | It cannot fire in the same round as the main weapon |
| Hull mount | Protected fire in its specified front, side, or rear direction | The driver must create the firing arc through vehicle facing |
| Pintle | A weapon can cover a practical exterior firing position | The gunner is partly exposed, typically at the arms and head |
Some pintle mounts have a gun shield that protects the gunner's arms but not the head. A pintle gunner is trading safety for capability, and the rest of the crew should know whether that trade still makes sense once fire starts coming back.
Driver, Gunner, Loader, and Observer
The vehicle entry says what is installed; the group decides who runs it in this scene.
| Role | Primary responsibility | What fails without it |
|---|---|---|
| Driver | Position, facing, movement, and escape route | The weapon loses its arc or the vehicle gets trapped |
| Gunner | Aim, fire, and decide whether the shot serves the mission | Ammunition is spent without a useful result |
| Loader | Reload weapons that require it and keep ammunition ready | The weapon loses its firing cadence after the first shot |
| Observer or commander | Identify threats, manage communication, and call disengagement | The crew misses flanks, targets, or the moment to leave |
| Dismounted support | Watch blind ground, secure an exit, and guide the vehicle | The mount becomes the only answer to a close problem |
One survivor cannot fill all of these at once. If the gunner is also the observer, the table should acknowledge the gap. If a passenger must climb out to reload or work an exposed weapon, that timing belongs in the plan.
Firing Mounted Heavy Weapons
Mounted weapons use the Heavy Weapons skill with Agility instead of Strength. Aiming is a fast action and firing is a slow action; heavy weapons must be aimed before firing, so they cannot take quick shots. Heavy weapons generally need reloading after every shot. Reloading is a slow action, but a second person acting as loader, or an autoloader, keeps the weapon firing every round.
Machine guns are the exception. They use Heavy Weapons but fire under normal ranged-combat rules, so a vehicle-mounted machine gun skips the heavy-weapon reload and targeting process entirely. The Ranged Combat Guide covers those rules.
- Confirm the weapon and mount. Heavy weapon or machine gun? What arc and exposure does the mount create?
- Assign the crew actions. Who aims, fires, reloads, and keeps the vehicle safe?
- Check line of sight and purpose. Is the target worth revealing the vehicle or delaying its movement?
- Aim and fire. Apply range, target, terrain, light, weather, and movement modifiers.
- Resolve ammunition and readiness. Does the weapon need a loader, a reload action, or a new plan?
- Reassess the position. Is the firing lane still worth staying in?
Movement and accuracy pull against each other, which gives the crew three real choices:
| Choice | Best when | Main risk |
|---|---|---|
| Move first | The current position is dangerous or the mission is escape | The gunner fires less accurately |
| Hold position | The firing lane is decisive and the vehicle has protection | Enemies gain time to flank, aim, or bring heavier weapons |
| Move into cover, then fire later | The group can trade one round of output for a better position | The objective may change before the shot is available |
Stabilizers and Fire Control
Stabilizers remove the -2 for firing from a vehicle that has moved since the shooter's previous turn. Advanced fire-control systems do that too, and also remove range modifiers out to extreme range, resolving those attacks as short range.
These systems do not remove the need for line of sight, target identification, cover, crew coordination, or an escape route, and they can be damaged. A hit to fire control can knock it out and put the crew back under ordinary firing conditions. Use the equipment to keep an accurate threat while moving when standing still would be fatal, to engage at range when the mission requires it, to keep the best armor toward danger while still shooting, or to withdraw faster after opening a gap. It does not justify turning every contact into a long-range exchange.
Choosing Targets for Mounted Weapons
Heavy weapons are normally used against large targets such as a vehicle or a whole hex, and they do not get the large-target bonus. Firing one at an individual takes -2. Range, target movement, elevation, light, weather, and target terrain all apply, and explosive attacks have their own results when they miss.
| Target choice | Ask first |
|---|---|
| Vehicle | Can this attack stop, divert, or deter it before it changes our position? |
| A hex or obstacle | Does the effect open a route, block a route, or protect a withdrawal? |
| Individual | Is there no better target or more appropriate tool for this risk? |
| Weapon or exposed external component | Does the called shot advance the mission more than a normal attack? |
| Suppressing position | Can a smaller, safer weapon produce the needed delay instead? |
The Suppression and Overwatch Guide helps when the goal is delay rather than damage.
Protecting the Gunner and the Weapon
Penetrating damage can hit a gunner, and a partly exposed gunner can also be hit by non-penetrating damage or explosions. The mounted weapon, fire control, antenna, and external stores can all be damaged through the component procedure. A damaged weapon whose reliability falls to zero is inoperable until repaired.
Set withdrawal triggers in advance: what makes the gunner button up, what makes the vehicle pop smoke, and what makes the crew leave the lane.
| Danger signal | Useful crew response |
|---|---|
| Gunner is exposed to return fire | Button up, change position, use cover, or stop operating the mount |
| Weapon or fire control is damaged | Reassess whether a different weapon or withdrawal serves the mission |
| The vehicle is penetrated | Resolve the official procedure, protect occupants, and update the objective |
| Ammunition is running low | Reserve the next shot for the threat that blocks escape or extraction |
| Enemy closes to blind ground | Coordinate dismounts, movement, smoke, and protected arcs |
Smoke launchers count as mounted systems, and they are often the most useful one aboard; see smoke launchers and ramming.
Tank Rules for Armored Vehicles
Main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles combine armor, mobility, crew protection, and mounted heavy weapons. They also make the group visible, commit several people to crew roles, depend on fuel and maintenance, and attract enemies who want the vehicle, fear it, or know how to disable it. The best use of a tank is usually to change the terms of a problem, then leave before fuel, ammunition, terrain, or attention changes them back.
What Heavy Hardware Costs
| Asset | New capability | New liability |
|---|---|---|
| Armored transport | Protection, passengers, cargo, and difficult-terrain mobility | Fuel demand, maintenance, crew needs, and attention |
| Tank or IFV | Powerful armor and mounted weapons | Ammunition, spare parts, route limits, and scarcity of support |
| Truck or pickup | Cargo, flexible travel, and a mobile stockpile | Limited protection and dependence on roads or workable ground |
| Motorcycle or bicycle | Scout mobility and lower resource demand | Little protection and little cargo |
| Horse or boat | Alternative movement when engines or bridges fail | Different care, terrain, and tactical constraints |
A tank can escort civilians, haul a repair workshop, force a dangerous crossing, negotiate from strength, or become the prize another faction wants. It can also become an immobile stockpile with a broken track, a fuel problem, a wounded crew, or no safe place to park.
Tank Missions and Exit Points
"Destroy the enemy" is rarely enough. A mission with a concrete end keeps the crew from staying until the tank's advantages wear away.
| Mission | What the tank provides | When to disengage |
|---|---|---|
| Escort civilians or cargo | Directional protection and deterrence | The convoy clears the threatened route |
| Force a crossing or roadblock | A protected vehicle that can control a dangerous lane | The group creates a route or finds a safer alternate |
| Recover people under fire | Cover, speed, and a protected extraction point | The people are aboard or have reached safe cover |
| Secure a temporary site | A strong visible presence and a heavy weapon | The site is searched, negotiated, or abandoned |
| Deter a hostile group | A bargaining position that changes risk calculations | The group obtains passage, information, or time |
The tank does not have to fire to succeed. Showing it, placing its armor toward a threat, or using it as a protected communications and extraction point can be enough.
Tank Crews and the Tanker Specialty
Driving tanks and other tracked vehicles uses the Driving skill. The Tanker specialty gives +1 to Driving rolls for tracked vehicles. Core rules do not normally require a specialty to use a skill, although a Referee can use specialty requirements as an optional rule. A Tanker is valuable, and the tank still works when that survivor is hurt or absent.
| Role | Question to answer before contact | Consequence of leaving it vague |
|---|---|---|
| Driver | Which route, terrain, and facing preserve mobility? | The vehicle may expose a weak face or become stuck |
| Gunner | Which target or firing lane serves the mission? | Ammunition and actions disappear into low-value shots |
| Commander or observer | What can the crew see, and when does it leave? | The vehicle stays too long or misses a flank |
| Loader or weapon support | What ammunition is ready, and what is protected? | A weapon system becomes slower or more dangerous to use |
| Dismounted support | Who watches blind ground, guides movement, or secures exits? | The vehicle is surprised at close range or isolated |
Passengers are not spare gunners. Someone watching, navigating, running a system, resting, or preparing to dismount has a distinct job.
Positioning a Tank
Tanks use the same penetration sequence as any vehicle, and most carry different armor values at the front, sides, and rear. The table question is what the tank should show the enemy while it does its job.
| Position choice | Benefit | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Strong front toward a known threat | Maximizes protection from that lane | May limit a fast exit or expose a flank elsewhere |
| Hull-down or behind solid cover | Reduces available firing angles against the vehicle | Can restrict sight, movement, and rapid withdrawal |
| Crossing open ground quickly | Reaches a new position before the enemy can adapt | May present side armor and invites risky Driving rolls |
| Turning to leave | Establishes a departure route | Can expose a less-protected rear during the transition |
| Holding in place | Gives the gunner a stable job and clear fields of fire | Lets enemies choose better angles or call for heavier weapons |
"Front toward enemy" is not a full plan. Identify every relevant threat, the route to cover, the escape direction, and whether a dismounted enemy can reach a weak angle.
A Fire Plan for Tank Guns
Tank guns and vehicle cannons follow the mounted heavy weapon rules. A tank can carry several weapons, but it still has one crew and one position, so decide which threat matters most before spending the action.
| Threat or need | Better question than "what weapon does the tank have?" |
|---|---|
| Enemy in cover | Can the main weapon create the opening without endangering the mission? |
| Enemy vehicle | Is the angle, range, ammunition, and escape route worth the exchange? |
| Infantry near the vehicle | Can the crew use terrain, movement, dismounts, smoke, or a protected weapon? |
| Uncertain contact | Can observation and movement avoid a costly first shot? |
| Multiple directions | Which threat can actually stop the vehicle from leaving? |
The main gun announces the tank, uses limited ammunition, and can cause damage, fire, or consequences well beyond the target. Even with stabilizers and fire control, make the call in order: can the crew identify the target and the purpose of the shot; does the tank need to move now; which system and crew member can act without unacceptable exposure; what happens if the target survives or the tank is hit back; and where does the tank go when the exchange ends. A tank that fires well but cannot resupply, turn, or withdraw is still in trouble. Use the exact weapon procedures, ammunition effects, and ranges from the Player's Manual.
Ammunition, Fuel, and Mobility Limits
Fuel capacity and consumption decide whether the tank can reach an objective, maneuver off road, idle equipment, and still get home. Off-road travel doubles consumption, and overloads or trailers add their own penalties.
Onboard ammunition is a liability too. Penetrating damage can hit the ammunition store, destroying part or all of it, and heavy-weapon ammunition can explode under the official rules, permanently destroying the vehicle. Fuel damage can cause a leak or fire. Track, wheel, suspension, or engine damage can make the tank inoperable, and a failed Driving roll can leave it stuck or bogged down. An immobile tank may still look frightening, but it can no longer extract, escort, or offer a protected exit.
| Resource | Ask before committing | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel | Can the tank finish, detour, and retreat? | The route spends the reserve needed to leave |
| Ammunition | Which rounds are worth carrying and risking? | Firing at every contact without a resupply plan |
| Reliability | Can the vehicle survive a pushed roll or new damage? | The crew assumes maintenance can wait |
| Spare parts and tools | Can the group fix the likely failure safely? | Essential parts are inaccessible or absent |
| Crew endurance | Who watches, drives, repairs, and rests? | Every survivor is committed to the tank at once |
After a Tank Is Penetrated
After the component-damage roll, the first question is whether the tank can still do its current job safely. Say the answer out loud.
| Damage pressure | Better immediate decision |
|---|---|
| Mobility impaired | Move only if possible to cover; otherwise secure, repair, or evacuate |
| Crew position hit | Replace the operator, give aid, and simplify the mission |
| Weapon or fire control damaged | Do not stay merely because the armor remains intact |
| Fuel or ammunition threatened | Increase distance, manage bail-out risk, and abandon the exchange if needed |
| Radio damaged | Use backup signals or a smaller plan that the crew can coordinate |
| Cargo damaged | Preserve only what remains important to the mission and fallback |
Ablated armor can be repaired with Tech work up to its original rating. That time, plus routine maintenance, belongs in the campaign schedule. A tank that survived the fight may still be days from ready.
Dismounts and Blind Spots
Armor protects the people inside the hull, leaving every approach around it exposed. Open hatches, exposed crew, nearby infantry, mines, roadblocks, and close terrain create problems the main gun cannot solve alone. Dismounted survivors can watch a blind approach, check a road obstacle, search a building, spot a target, guide a turn through tight ground, or secure a repair scene, while the tank provides cover and a protected retreat. The Explosives and Grenades Guide covers the close-range threats that make this pairing matter.
Do not reverse the relationship. A nearby tank is no reason to send people into a hopeless danger. If the tank cannot see, move, or support the action, the group needs a different plan.
Run the seven-step comparison honestly and it usually eliminates the tank first. A working truck the group can fuel and fix will shape more of a campaign than a main battle tank that burns the reserve, pins four survivors to crew seats, and ends up parked in a barn as the most expensive shelter in Poland. Take the tank for one job with a clear end, then decide again.
Helicopter and Air Rules
A helicopter should solve a problem no ground vehicle can solve. It can cross terrain that stops a truck, reach a wounded ally, observe a route, move a small team fast, or make an impossible extraction possible. It can also burn an irreplaceable fuel reserve, draw attention, and turn one hit into a crisis no roadside repair can fix. A working airframe is only part of flight: the group also needs a competent pilot, usable fuel, maintenance, a place to land, a reason to take the risk, and a plan for when the aircraft cannot continue. This section covers the published air procedures at a planning level and does not reproduce aircraft entries, locations, armament, or scenario material.
Flight Missions
State the mission in one sentence before anyone turns a rotor. A clear mission tells the table what success looks like and when to stop accepting risk.
| Mission | Useful outcome | Question before launch |
|---|---|---|
| Medical extraction | Move a casualty before ground travel becomes fatal | Is the landing site safer than the route to it? |
| Reconnaissance | Confirm a route, threat, bridge, or settlement | Is the information worth revealing the aircraft? |
| Essential delivery | Move a small, critical load or person | Could a ground vehicle do it with less fuel and attention? |
| Emergency evacuation | Get a group out of a collapsing position | Where will the aircraft land if the primary site fails? |
| Limited insertion | Put a team where roads and terrain block access | Can the team still complete its objective if the aircraft cannot return? |
Treat most flights as one-way decisions until the crew has confirmed fuel and landing options for the return.
Flying Uses Driving and the Pilot Specialty
The rules use Driving to fly fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, and the Pilot specialty gives +1 to those rolls. The Urban Operations helicopter examples add that a character can start the aircraft and take off with a successful Driving roll, while a character with the Pilot specialty does not need that roll for the listed start-and-takeoff situation.
A capable ground driver may be able to attempt flight, but attempting a takeoff is a long way from running a whole air operation safely.
| Crew question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Who has Pilot specialty? | It improves relevant Driving rolls and can remove the listed start-and-takeoff roll requirement |
| Who confirms fuel and route? | The pilot cannot make a sound decision from an unknown reserve |
| Who watches the landing area? | Flight can bypass terrain, but it cannot make a bad landing zone safe |
| Who handles the mission on the ground? | The pilot must retain attention for departure, damage, and an abort decision |
| Who decides to turn back? | A named authority prevents a risky flight from continuing by inertia |
What Flight Bypasses
While flying, a helicopter ignores terrain and travel encounters and always counts as being in an elevated position. That lets it skip roadblocks, mud, destroyed bridges, dense streets, and difficult ground. The aircraft still has to launch and land somewhere, the ground team still has to reach the pickup, and fuel, weather, observation, hostile fire, and cargo limits still apply.
| Ground pressure bypassed in flight | Pressure that remains |
|---|---|
| Terrain slowing or blocking a route | Fuel, reliability, and the need for a landing area |
| Travel encounters on the route | Detection and threats at launch, landing, and while visible |
| Roadblocks and damaged bridges | The ground team's ability to reach or secure the pickup point |
| Slow vehicle movement across a map | The cost of moving a limited crew and cargo load by air |
| Some line-of-sight problems | Exposure from being a visible, elevated target |
Aviation Fuel
Urban Operations presents operational helicopters that fly rarely because fuel is scarce, and one example has no reliable way to be refueled. Treat aviation fuel as a mission resource. Establish current fuel, the official consumption for that aircraft, and a reserve the crew will only spend in an emergency. Do not invent a universal range; use the official entry. Then test the plan:
- Can the aircraft reach the primary landing area?
- Can it wait, divert, or abort if the landing area is unsafe?
- Can it reach a viable alternate location?
- Does the plan leave fuel for the return, or is the mission intentionally one-way?
- Can the group protect, carry, and account for the fuel it has left on the ground?
A grounded helicopter may be shelter, something to trade, or a target, but it is not transport until the fuel question is solved.
Elevated Position and Visibility
Elevation improves the crew's view and changes how it engages people on the ground, and it also makes the aircraft a conspicuous object with few places to hide. Treat every low pass, hover, approach, and parked aircraft as a visibility decision.
- The crew should know what it needs to see from the air before launch.
- The ground team should know what signal, smoke, light, radio call, or timing confirms a safe approach.
- The landing zone needs an approach, an exit, and a reason the aircraft will not sit exposed longer than necessary.
- The crew should decide whether observation is enough or whether the aircraft is being asked to fight.
Mounted weapons give an aircraft options but do not create fuel, repair capacity, safe firing lanes, or immunity to hits. The mounted weapons section applies, with the difference that an aircrew has far fewer chances to disengage once mechanical trouble starts.
Rotor Damage
For a flying helicopter, hits that would affect a vehicle's suspension or tracks/wheels affect the rotor instead, with the same effects. The component that keeps the aircraft mobile sits above the crew, exposed, and is critical to a safe landing. Update the mission the moment a rotor effect lands.
| New condition | Best immediate question |
|---|---|
| Aircraft remains flyable but is damaged | What is the nearest defensible landing site, and can it be reached now? |
| The aircraft is inoperable | Where can the pilot attempt a controlled landing? |
| The crew is under fire | Is extraction still more valuable than putting the aircraft down? |
| The landing site is compromised | Is there a safer alternate, or must the ground team change its plan? |
| The aircraft lands away from support | Can the group secure the airframe, crew, fuel, and essential gear? |
After a safe landing, the repair section gives the general reliability, tools, and parts logic. It does not make a damaged aircraft easy to restore; aircraft stay scarce because their maintenance and fuel support are hard to replace.
Controlled Landings and Crashes
If a helicopter becomes inoperable, the pilot makes a Driving roll for a controlled landing. Failure, or permanent destruction of the helicopter, means a violent crash: occupants take the equivalent of a ten-meter fall and the aircraft is permanently destroyed.
Set an abort point before takeoff. Waiting until the aircraft cannot continue turns a hard decision into a crash roll.
| Before flight | During flight | When damage occurs |
|---|---|---|
| Name primary and alternate landing areas | Watch fuel, visibility, route changes, and the landing site | Decide immediately whether to divert, land, or continue briefly |
| Identify who has Pilot specialty | Keep the ground team informed of timing | Protect the pilot's ability to attempt a controlled landing |
| Pack only the mission-critical load | Avoid unnecessary delay or exposure | Secure people and essentials for an unplanned landing |
| Agree on an abort threshold | Reconfirm that return fuel remains real | Treat safe landing as success when it preserves the crew |
A controlled landing that saves the crew may end the aircraft's part in the scene, and it keeps the campaign going.
Landing Zones
The published rules give no general landing-zone checklist, so leave exact site rulings to the Referee rather than inventing dimensions or modifiers. The group can still plan well:
| Landing-zone question | Why it changes the plan |
|---|---|
| Is the ground usable and the approach clear? | A fast mission becomes a dangerous stop if the aircraft cannot safely set down |
| Who controls or watches the site? | The aircraft may arrive directly into an ambush, crowd, or contested area |
| What blocks a quick departure? | Cargo, people, debris, and panic can keep the aircraft exposed |
| Where is the alternate? | A visible primary site may be unsafe by the time the aircraft reaches it |
| What does the ground team do if the aircraft cannot land? | The team needs a survival plan that does not depend on rescue arriving |
In cities, height and access mislead. A rooftop may look clear with no reliable approach, exit, or way to move casualties. An open yard may have space and be visible from every surrounding building. Run the landing site as a scene.
Keeping Aircraft From Owning the Campaign
Apply the same pressure that makes ground vehicles interesting: fuel, reliability, repairs, crew, cargo, security, routes, and other people's attention.
| If the group wants to... | Put this pressure on the decision |
|---|---|
| Fly every trip | Track the finite fuel and the maintenance burden |
| Carry the whole group and all supplies | Require an honest accounting of people, cargo, and the landing area |
| Use the helicopter as a gunship | Make visibility, incoming fire, mission purpose, and disengagement matter |
| Hide it forever | Ask who supplies, guards, and maintains it, and why others will not seek it |
| Take a high-risk flight | State the alternate landing plan and the consequences of not having one |
Chase Rules
The core rules have no separate chase minigame, and they do not need one. A pursuit already has its procedures: vehicle travel, encounters, visibility, Driving, terrain, combat movement, smoke, attacks, fuel, reliability, and getting stuck. The strongest chase scenes end because one side changes the situation. A chase can be a truck fleeing a roadblock, a motorcycle scout racing back to the group, a tank following a lighter vehicle through broken ground, or survivors on foot escaping a motorized patrol. The question each round is what each side must accomplish before the situation changes.
Chase Goals on Both Sides
"They chase us" is not enough. Give both sides a goal and an ending condition.
| Pursuit goal | Escape goal | Natural ending |
|---|---|---|
| Capture people | Reach a safe settlement or friendly force | The target gets protection or the pursuer can no longer press the approach |
| Recover cargo | Keep, hide, or deliver the cargo | The cargo changes hands, is secured, or becomes unreachable |
| Stop a vehicle | Cross an obstacle or reach cover before a disabling attack | The vehicle escapes, is immobilized, or the pursuer gives up |
| Reach a location first | Arrive before the other side can interfere | One side reaches the site with enough time to act |
| Gather information | Identify the pursuer without being trapped | One side learns enough and breaks contact |
| Force a negotiation | Make a group stop or choose a route | The parties talk, separate, or the threat becomes a fight |
"Get away" is too broad; "cross the bridge before the roadblock closes it" creates choices. Tension comes from every turn, hex, or shift asking whether to spend fuel, take a risky route, leave cover, fire, hide, or drop something important.
Choosing the Chase Scale
Twilight: 2000 already has two scales. Use the one that matches the distance.
| Current situation | Use this scale | What matters most |
|---|---|---|
| The sides are in sight and can shoot, ram, block, or turn immediately | Combat rounds on the battle map | Combat speed, facing, cover, smoke, shots, and risky movement |
| The sides are separated by roads, terrain, or travel hexes | Travel and encounter procedures | Route, off-road capability, fuel, navigation, weather, and detection |
| A contact is about to occur but neither side is committed | Encounter and Recon procedures | Who spots whom, distance, backing off, and ambush or negotiation choices |
| The scene moves from distant pursuit to immediate contact | Transition to the appropriate scale | Preserve the distance, terrain, damage, fuel, and objective already established |
Travel speed (ten-kilometer hexes per shift) and combat speed (ten-meter hexes per fast action) are not interchangeable. Switching scale keeps everything already established; exact position simply starts to matter more. For example, a group spots a hostile force far down a road during travel. It can back off unseen, detour off road, or approach. If the pursuer closes to a roadblock, firing lane, or immediate turn, move to combat rounds and map the ground. Once line of sight is broken and no immediate action can change it, go back to travel or encounter resolution.
Terrain in a Chase
Terrain decides what the listed speeds mean. Roads give predictable movement and obvious routes. Off-road travel can avoid a roadblock or use cover, but doubles fuel use and can require a group Survival navigation roll when entering a roadless hex. Terrain can reduce travel speed, force movement to accumulate across shifts, or make vehicle movement impossible.
| Terrain or route choice | It can offer | It can cost |
|---|---|---|
| Road | Fast, clear movement and a simple route | Visibility, predictability, roadblocks, and an easy pursuit line |
| Roadless ground | Concealment, detours, and a route around a known threat | Doubled fuel use, navigation pressure, and slower or impossible travel |
| Woods, debris, or dense built areas | Broken line of sight and places to hide or turn | Reduced movement, collision risks, and limited vehicle access |
| Swamp or shallows | A barrier against many vehicles | Ground vehicles cannot enter unless amphibious |
| Hills or elevation | Sight advantages and a way to block observation | Slower movement uphill and fewer direct routes |
| A bridge, crossing, or narrow street | A chokepoint that gives a clear objective | A place where pursuit can become immediate combat |
Skip generic "chase modifiers." State the physical consequence instead: the road is blocked, the field is too wet for the truck, the woods break sight but cost movement, or the bridge forces both vehicles into one lane.
Driving Rolls in a Pursuit
At combat scale, safe movement and the optional extra-movement roll already give a pursuit its tension. Ask for the roll only when extra movement changes an outcome: reaching cover before a clear shot, crossing a gap before a roadblock closes, turning down a route the pursuer cannot safely follow, getting close enough to pick someone up, or keeping the strongest armor toward a threat while escaping. A pushed roll trades the vehicle's future reliability for the current escape.
At travel scale, every driving shift starts with a Driving roll modified by terrain; off-road entry into a new terrain type needs another roll, and heavy rain gives -2. Failure causes a mishap somewhere in the shift. A mishap, wrong turn, roadblock, blown tire, bogging, crash, or engine problem is already a pursuit turning point, so no chase overlay is needed. The Vehicles Guide covers how to handle those mishaps on an ordinary trip.
Breaking Line of Sight
Distance helps only when it changes what the pursuer can do. Dense smoke, blocking terrain, high barriers, enough woods or foliage, darkness, weather, elevation, and full cover can all break line of sight. Use them to decide whether the pursuer can still see, shoot, or reliably follow. Smoke buys a turn, rescue, extraction, or direction change; it is not a permanent escape.
| Escape action | What it must accomplish next |
|---|---|
| Turn behind blocking terrain | Put another route, obstacle, or concealment choice between the sides |
| Use smoke | Move, turn, load people, or reach cover before the smoke ceases to matter |
| Enter a different terrain type | Make the pursuer accept a speed, fuel, or Driving risk it may not want |
| Take an off-road detour | Gain a route advantage worth the fuel and navigation cost |
| Stop and hide | Avoid detection and create a new encounter instead of a running fight |
| Back off before being spotted | Spend extra off-road movement to circle around the encounter |
At travel scale, a group that backs off from an encounter without being spotted can circle around it off road, paying the added off-road movement. That is a chase decision made before any chase begins.
Shooting During a Chase
Combat should serve the chase goal. A shot that neither delays the target nor opens an escape may only reveal position, burn ammunition, or invite return fire.
| Chase problem | Useful combat question |
|---|---|
| A pursuer is gaining | Can smoke, cover, suppression, or a damaged route buy a turn? |
| A target is escaping | Can the pursuer block the only road, damage mobility, or force a turn? |
| A vehicle is exposed | Does movement or facing matter more than a low-odds return shot? |
| A passenger is in danger | Can the group extract them without trapping the vehicle? |
| A roadblock is ahead | Is talking, turning, or backing off safer than forcing it? |
The moving-fire penalties mean the faster side is often safer and less accurate at once. A penetrating hit that damages mobility, fuel, ammunition, cargo, crew, or systems can end a chase without destroying the vehicle.
Foot Pursuits
A vehicle beats people on foot in open ground, but it is not free of them. A roadblock, blocked terrain, swamp, minefield, fuel problem, damaged suspension, dense urban obstacle, or a rescue can force it to slow or stop. People on foot may know shortcuts, hold cover, or sit at the only crossing.
Vehicle crews also see less. A group traveling on or in a motor vehicle takes -2 to spot an encountered group on foot, and if everyone is inside an armored vehicle with hatches closed, the spotting roll fails automatically. An exposed observer helps and accepts personal risk. Let each side use its real advantage: speed on open ground for the vehicle, and a dangerous, unclear, or impassable route for the people on foot.
A Seven-Step Chase Procedure
- Name the goals. What does each side need, and what would end the chase?
- Set the scale. Travel and encounter procedures for broad pursuit, combat rounds for immediate contact.
- Describe the route. Road, off road, weather, light, cover, obstacles, and visible exits.
- Assign crew tasks. Driver, lookout, navigator, gunner, passengers, and any dismounted support.
- Resolve the next meaningful choice. Travel movement, Recon, an extra-movement Driving roll, a shot, smoke, a turn, or backing off.
- Apply the actual consequence. Fuel, terrain, movement, visibility, reliability, a mishap, or damage should change the next decision.
- End or change scale when the goal is resolved. Stop rolling once the goal is settled, even if the scene started as a chase.
If the pursuit stretches into a longer travel problem, keep food, rest, and camp needs visible through the Shift System Guide.
Vehicle Repair and Maintenance
The best repair is the maintenance shift the group protected before the breakdown. A working truck, APC, or motorcycle decides which routes are possible, how much water and food can move, whether an injured person can travel, and how quickly the group can leave danger. Repair scenes work best as group scenes: the mechanic needs time and tools, the driver explains what happened, someone keeps watch and manages cargo, and everyone decides whether a scarce spare part belongs in this vehicle now.
Identify the Kind of Problem
Name the condition before rolling, so a lost point of reliability does not get treated like a wreck.
| Condition | What it means in play | Immediate question |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced reliability | The item still works, but is closer to failure | Can the group spend a shift restoring it before the next hard drive? |
| Broken item or component | Reliability has reached zero and it cannot be used | Does the group have tools, time, Tech, and the correct spare part? |
| Vehicle maintenance due | The vehicle has travelled during the week and needs service | Which safe shift will the mechanic reserve? |
| Battle damage | Armor, mobility, fuel, weapons, or exposed equipment has been hit | Can the vehicle still complete the current escape or transport mission? |
| Travel mishap | The route itself has caused a mechanical or mobility problem | Is this a repair stop, a recovery job, or a reason to change route? |
The Weekly Maintenance Shift
In any week when a vehicle has traveled one or more travel-map hexes, a mechanic must spend a shift servicing it and make a Tech roll. If the work is skipped or the roll fails, reliability drops one step. No spare part is needed.
Put that shift on the same board as water, sleep, guard duty, scavenging, and shelter. A group that spends every daylight shift moving is choosing a less reliable vehicle later.
| End-of-week choice | Short-term gain | Later cost |
|---|---|---|
| Service the vehicle now | One shift not spent moving or searching | A chance to preserve reliability before the next leg |
| Skip service to travel | More immediate distance | Reliability automatically drops |
| Attempt service and fail | The group still spent the shift | Reliability drops, requiring a new plan |
| Park and work from a safe site | Time to organize tools and security | The group may lose a travel opportunity or become predictable |
The Mechanic specialty helps Tech work on engines, vehicles, generators, and pumps. Even so, one character should not silently own the vehicle. Others can secure the garage, find a donor vehicle, organize the tool kit, and decide what the group can afford to use up.
Restoring Reduced Reliability
An item with reduced reliability still works. Restoring it takes a shift of repairs and a Tech roll, with no spare part; each success raises reliability by one, up to the listed value. This is the cheapest repair in the game. It costs time but saves the parts that may later decide whether a broken engine, weapon, or radio can be fixed.
Before leaving a settlement, base, or defensible ruin, ask: "If this loses one more point at the wrong time, do we still have a route home?" If not, repair it first. Pushing on is sometimes necessary, and it should be a conscious trade of reliability for urgency.
Repairing a Broken Item
At zero reliability, an item is broken and unusable. Repair normally needs:
- A shift of work.
- Suitable tools.
- A Tech roll.
- One spare part of the relevant type: vehicle, weapon, electronic, or general where none of the others apply.
On a success, the part is consumed and the item works again, with reliability equal to the successes rolled and never above its listed rating. On a failure, the group can try again the next shift. That makes a broken vehicle a time problem as well as a parts problem: ask what the weather, locals, fuel reserve, and security look like one shift later.
Do not casually swap an unrelated item for the correct part. If the table wants to improvise, let the official rules and the Referee decide whether jury-rigging applies.
Spare Parts as a Group Reserve
Vehicle spare parts are the group's reserve of future mobility. Store them where they can be found fast, count their weight in the cargo plan, and decide which failures deserve them.
| Spend a part when... | Hold the part when... |
|---|---|
| The repair restores escape, medical transport, water hauling, or the only viable route | The vehicle is usable and the group can make a safe maintenance stop first |
| The group can secure the repair location for the needed shift | The repair site is exposed and moving on foot is safer than remaining there |
| The fixed vehicle has a real role in the next objective | The vehicle is likely to become stranded again before it can matter |
| The group has enough fuel, crew, and route access to use it | Fuel, ammunition, terrain, or crew loss has already made the vehicle a liability |
A larger machine may offer cargo or protection while needing more fuel, more support, and more specific parts than a light vehicle.
Scavenging Donor Vehicles
A character can spend a shift and make a Tech roll to scavenge vehicle parts from a functional or inoperable vehicle. The yield depends on successes. A permanently destroyed vehicle yields one fewer part, and the donor is permanently destroyed by the process in every case.
A functional vehicle might be future transport, shelter, a decoy, or a trade asset. Once stripped, it is gone. Before starting:
- Is this vehicle more useful whole than the parts it might yield?
- Does the group need general vehicle parts or a particular working capability right now?
- Can the group stay here for a shift without losing security or daylight?
- Can the parts be carried without pushing out water, fuel, medical gear, or food?
- Will taking this vehicle apart make the group more visible, trapped, or dependent on one route?
The Scavenging Guide treats that work as a time and risk decision. Mark the donor as spent once the parts are taken so it does not quietly become an endless supply.
Repairing Battle Damage
Combat can damage mobility, fuel storage, weapons, radio equipment, external stores, and exposed passengers as well as armor. The component procedure sets the exact result; the table's job is to update the mission.
| Damage pressure | Mission-level response |
|---|---|
| Mobility is compromised | Seek cover, shorten the route, and avoid terrain that could turn a delay into immobilization |
| Fuel system is damaged | Account for lost capacity or fuel, separate fire risk from the crew, and prioritize a safe stop |
| Weapon or fire-control system is unavailable | Stop planning around its deterrent value; change facing, escort, or withdrawal plan |
| Radio or antenna is damaged | Replace distant coordination with prearranged signals, close observation, and simpler objectives |
| Armor has been ablated | Treat the exposed facing as a new weakness until it is restored |
Reduced armor can be repaired with a Tech roll and a shift; each success restores one point up to the original value. A vehicle that can still move may need to disengage first and repair later.
Securing the Repair Stop
A repair shift fixes the mechanical problem. The stop itself has to keep a second problem from arriving first.
| Repair-stop job | What it protects |
|---|---|
| Park with a usable exit and a clear approach | The group can leave if the site becomes unsafe |
| Assign a lookout away from the engine noise | The mechanic is not the only person noticing danger |
| Separate fuel and ammunition from sparks, tools, and work areas | A minor repair does not create a catastrophic hazard |
| Keep essential packs and medical supplies ready to move | The group can abandon the site without losing survival basics |
| Stage cargo for access without blocking departure | Tools and parts are available, but the vehicle is not trapped by its own load |
| Define a stop-work trigger | Everyone knows when security overrides finishing the repair |
An enclosed garage gives concealment and weather protection and may have a single exit. A roadside shoulder allows a fast departure and advertises the group to everyone on the road. No repair site is safe; there is only a site whose risks the group has named and accepted.
Mishap Recovery
Driving mishaps include a stuck vehicle, a blown tire or thrown track, a broken axle, a crash, an overheated engine, or engine failure. Some fixes use Tech and a vehicle spare part; some recoveries need labor, traction, or a different route. The official travel and mishap procedures set the exact requirements. When one happens, ask more than "can we fix it?":
- Can the vehicle be made mobile within the current shift?
- Is the route worth the fuel, parts, and time now required?
- Can another vehicle tow, carry supplies, or provide security?
- Would reducing cargo make recovery or repair safer?
- Is the right answer to wait, retreat, detour, or continue on foot?
A repair attempt, a watch, sleep, navigation, and a forced drive all compete for the same finite day.
Repair Priority Order
When several things are wrong, fix whatever restores the most choices. A strong default:
- Immediate safety: fire, exposed crew, an unsafe position, or a vehicle that cannot leave danger.
- Mobility: the engine, axle, tire, track, or other problem that decides whether the group can move.
- Fuel and range: the capacity and consumption problem that decides whether movement can continue.
- Communication and observation: the systems that keep the group from driving blind or splitting by accident.
- Protection and armament: armor and weapons that matter once escape and supply are covered.
- Convenience and optimization: improvements that help later but do not decide the present mission.
A repaired heavy weapon is often worth less than a vehicle that can retreat. Groups that repair firepower first can end up defending a stranded asset.
Pre-Mission Vehicle Checklist
Before committing a vehicle to a fight, escort, flight, or long leg, confirm:
- The vehicle's job and the condition that ends it.
- Driver, gunner, loader, observer, navigator, passenger, and dismount roles, plus replacements.
- Route, terrain, weather, fuel reserve, current reliability, and any maintenance owed.
- The primary threat and the armor face that should meet it.
- Each mounted weapon's purpose, mount exposure, ammunition readiness, and whether it is a heavy weapon or a machine gun.
- Which passengers are protected, exposed, or ready to dismount.
- Nearby cover, smoke, the exit route, and an alternate landing site for aircraft.
- Which hit result would change the plan at once: fuel, mobility, crew, ammunition, or radio.
- After a repair stop: what was fixed, which parts were used, and when the next maintenance shift falls.
- The on-foot fallback if the vehicle stops.
Common Vehicle Mistakes
Comparing Only Armor and Guns
Fuel, crew, route access, reliability, and cargo decide whether the vehicle can reach a fight, avoid it, or leave it. Travel speed is movement per shift; fuel capacity and consumption decide how long that movement lasts.
Assuming Armor Makes a Vehicle Invulnerable
Armor is directional and weapons interact with it differently. A vehicle can be flanked, immobilized, hit by a heavy weapon, or pinned in a bad position before any catastrophic hit.
Making Every Extra-Movement Roll
Safe movement is already available. A stuck or broken-down vehicle in open ground is often worse than one that stopped behind cover. The same goes for calling for Driving every turn of a chase.
Treating Mounts as Free Actions
The gunner aims and fires, the driver positions, and many weapons need a loader. A pintle gun shield is not full protection, and a coaxial weapon cannot fire in the same round as the main weapon.
Staying After the Job Is Done
Once the cargo is delivered, the opening made, or the people out, withdrawal is often the win. That applies double to a damaged tank or an aircraft with weapons.
Flying Without an Alternate Landing Site
The controlled-landing rule makes this a survival issue. Fuel that exists only on paper cannot cover a diversion, delay, or return, so set the reserve before takeoff.
Breaking Sight and Then Doing Nothing
Smoke, darkness, and cover are openings. Use the moment to turn, load, hide, change terrain, or switch scale. Remember why the pursuer cares, too: an enemy after cargo may stop once the cargo is dropped.
Skipping Maintenance Until Reliability Hits Zero
Restoring reduced reliability costs no part. Waiting for total failure turns a service stop into a multi-shift, part-consuming emergency, and forgetting the weekly shift drops reliability on its own.
Stripping Every Wreck on Sight
Scavenging destroys the donor. Consider its transport, shelter, trade, and decoy value first, and count spare parts against cargo capacity like everything else.
Refusing To Abandon the Vehicle
Abandonment is costly and can still be the right call. Keep essential gear accessible, know where cover is, and do not sacrifice the group to save a machine that no longer serves the mission.
Where To Go Next
Plan the trip itself with the Twilight: 2000 Vehicles Guide, which covers vehicle roles, routes, crew and passenger tasks, fuel math, cargo loading, per-shift Driving rolls, and the departure checklist. Pair both pages with the Survival and Resources Guide for fuel, shifts, shelter, load, and the other needs that make mobility matter.
Where To Go From Here
Firefights around a vehicle rarely stay in the vehicle. The Combat and Weapons Guide covers Suppression, armor, explosives, and the injuries that follow the crew out of the hatch. Routes, terrain, and the hex-scale travel these rules run on are laid out in the Maps and Hex Crawl Guide. Crew quality is a character question as much as a machine one, so the Character Creation Guide is where Driving, Tech, and the specialties behind a working crew get built. Coming to this from outside the collection, the Twilight: 2000 hub frames the campaign these vehicles are trying to survive.
Source Scope
This guide summarizes Player's Manual rules for vehicle entries, vehicle combat, mounted and heavy weapons, tracked vehicles, the Pilot and Tanker specialties, travel, encounters, visibility, reliability, repair, maintenance, vehicle scavenging, armor repair, and travel mishaps, plus the Urban Operations helicopter examples. The core book has no separate chase subsystem, so none is added here. It does not reproduce vehicle-stat tables, individual entries, the component-damage table, mishap or terrain tables, weapon or ammunition statistics, aircraft data, prices, or scenario material. Use the official books for exact values and Referee adjudication.
