Characters who exert themselves - whether in personal combat or other forms of physical activity - become fatigued. This system is a revision and expansion of the brief rules given under the Stamina skill description in the SW2ed book. Following the rules there, every failed Stamina roll results in increasing a character's Fatigue rating by one level. Optionally, for activities of high physical stress and short duration (such as a session of unarmed combat), the GM may ask the player to make a Stamina roll with the GM comparing the success level of the roll to the following chart:
| fatigue level | mortal | severe | heavy | moderate | light | none |
| success roll | Very Easy | Easy | Moderate | Difficult | Very Difficult | Heroic |
| fatigue level | severe | heavy | moderate | light | none |
| success roll | Very Easy | Easy | Moderate | Difficult | Very Difficult |
Fatigued characters will not perform up to their peak potential, suffering from disadvantages accruing from their exhausted state.
Lightly Fatigued characters have their available number of Moves reduced by 1 per round while fatigued. (If you are playing SW2R&E, characters who are lightly fatigued may not make an "All-Out" Move.) Lightly fatigued characters may have a slight headache or just "feel tired."
Moderately Fatigued characters have their number of moves reduced by 2 per round. (SW2RE characters may not make "High-Speed" or "All-Out" Moves.) In addition, all activities taken while moderately fatigued have a -1D penalty. Characters may suffer from a constant headache, distorted vision, or muscle aches.
Heavily Fatigued characters have only 1 move per round available. (SW2RE characters are limited to "Cautious" Moves only.) All activities suffer a -2D penalty. Warning signs include feeling "wrung out," a splitting headache, all-over body aches, and so on.
Severely fatigued characters have trouble standing up, let alone moving. Any activity attempted is at -3D and the GM may call for a DEX check (with penalty) for a character to remain upright. Any character in this shape will have problems focussing on things for more than a second or two, may hear a high-pitched ringing in their ears, and so on.
Mortally fatigued characters are in serious trouble. They are unable to manage any physical activities and collapse in a trembling heap. Such a character must make an immediate Stamina check (penalties applied for wounds only). Failure of this check means the strain of the activities has proven too much for the character, causing immediate death. A successful check leaves the character unconscious for 1D hours. Upon regaining consciousness, the character is severely fatigued.
Just as fatigue accumulates through physical exertion, physical inactivity gives the body a chance to shake off the effects of fatigue. This is represented by the character making a Very Difficult Stamina check after a certain length of time, as indicated below:
Recovering from Fatigue
| Fatigue Level | Rest Period |
|---|---|
| Light or Moderate | 1 minute |
| Heavy | 10 minutes |
| Severe | 1 hour |
The Stamina check starts out at Very Difficult and is reduced one level of difficulty for each full rest period a character takes. A roll is made at the end of each rest period until the charascter succeeds and his fatigue level is reduced one level. After reaching a new fatigue level, the rest and difficulty cycles start over. Penalties for being wounded apply to this roll, but penalties incurred from a character's current Fatigue level do not.
Boric has really put out some effort trying to dig himself a shelter and finds himself heavily fatigued. He sits down to rest and finally succeeds at a Stamina check after thirty minutes of rest (Very Difficult, Difficult, Moderate). His fatigue level is now Moderate and he must rest for another full minute before making a Very Difficult Stamina check to reduce his fatigue level again.
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