The Modern Armory · Chapter 12

Grenades and Thrown Explosives

Explosives thrown by hand. Each is used once. Readying one, which includes pulling a pin or lighting a fuse, is a maneuver; throwing it is the attack.

Range is Short for nearly everything. The attack is made against the target as normal, at Easy difficulty at Short range.

Blast is the point of the family: spend 2 Boons to deal the Blast damage to everyone Engaged with the target. When the throw fails, spend 3 Boons from the failed check to apply the Blast damage to the target and everyone Engaged with it.

A Calamity on the throw may be spent by the GM to land the grenade Engaged with the thrower or an ally.

Skill: Light Ranged. A Universe may substitute Athletics.

Fragmentation Grenade

Mk 2 pineapple, M67, F1, Mills bomb

A steel body around a bursting charge, with a four-second fuse.

Damage 8 to the target and Blast 6 to everyone Engaged with it. This is the standard the rest of the chapter is built around.

Stick Grenade

Stielhandgranate 24, RGD-33

A charge on a wooden handle. The handle is a lever, and it throws farther.

It reaches Medium range, the only hand-thrown explosive that does. It gives up a point of damage and a point of Blast for it.

Concussion Grenade

Mk 3 offensive grenade, RG-42 in offensive role

A thin-cased grenade that kills by blast, not fragments. It is meant to be thrown into a room the thrower is about to enter.

Concussive 1: spend 2 Boons and the target is Staggered for a round and cannot take actions. Damage and Blast are lower than a fragmentation grenade's.

Stun Grenade

M84 flashbang, G60, Zarya

A magnesium charge that produces a flash and a report and very little else.

All of its damage is Stun Damage, applied to Strain. Disorient 3 for 2 Boons. It is the standard tool for taking a room with people in it who are wanted alive.

Tear Gas Grenade

CS and CN canisters, M7A3

A burning canister that fills a room with irritant smoke.

It deals 3 Stun Damage when it lands and again to anyone who starts a turn in the cloud without a respirator. The cloud covers everything Engaged with the point of impact and lasts three rounds indoors, one outdoors. The Apothecary has a fuller Tear Gas entry, with resist checks, gas masks, and other agents for the same canister.

Smoke Grenade

M18, AN-M8 HC, RDG-2

A canister that burns for about a minute and produces dense coloured or white smoke.

It deals no damage. Attacks into, out of, or through the cloud add 2 Bane Dice. The cloud covers everything Engaged with the point of impact and lasts five rounds in still air.

Incendiary Grenade

AN-M14 thermite, white phosphorus M15

Thermite or white phosphorus. It is issued to destroy equipment and it does the same to people.

Burn 3 on a thrown weapon. Thermite also burns through a lock, an engine block, or a gun breech if it is placed on one and left.

Molotov Cocktail

Petrol bomb, improvised firebomb

A bottle of petrol with a burning rag in the neck.

It costs almost nothing and anyone can make one. Inaccurate 1 covers throwing a bottle. Fragile 1: on a Calamity it breaks in the hand, and the thrower suffers its Burn.

Dynamite Stick

Mining and quarry charges, blasting gelatin

A commercial blasting charge with a cap and a length of fuse.

It equals a fragmentation grenade and is bought at a quarry. Prepare 1 is lighting the fuse.

Pipe Bomb

Improvised explosive devices, jam-tin grenades

A length of pipe packed with whatever was available.

Inferior: it generates 1 Bane on the attack and deals 1 less damage than printed. That Bane counts toward running it dry, which for a single-use weapon means it fails to go off.

Dynamite Bundle

Geballte Ladung, bundled charges

Six or seven sticks taped around one cap.

Damage 12 and Blast 8 at arm-thrown range. It needs Might 2 to throw properly. A thrower at Short range of the target is not Engaged with it and takes nothing; the GM should watch where everyone else is standing.