There are several key types of rolls in Jovian Wars, which we'll discuss here so we can reference them later in the rules.
An Unopposed Roll is by far the most common type of roll you'll be asked to perform in Jovian Wars. To perform an Unopposed Roll, follow these steps:
In most cases, the Value of the Result isn't relevant, just the Magnitude.
An Opposed Roll represents the clash between two forces trying to accomplish competing goals. In general, one player will be attempting to do some action while the other player is trying to prevent the action from occurring. For clarity, we'll refer to them as:
When performing an Opposed Roll, both players calculate the number of dice rolled and the results of their rolls as if they were each making independent Unopposed Rolls. The Secondary Player may now Diminish the Primary Player's [Results] in the following ways:
The Secondary Player chooses which result to negate. For example, if the Primary Player rolled [D2,D3] and the Secondary Player rolled [D], the Secondary Player may choose either of the two results to Diminish. This would result in either [D2] or [D3].
Skill Tests are used to represent the training and experience of a Model's pilot or crew. To perform a Skill Test, make an Unopposed Roll using the model's Skill as the Base Pool.
If there are any modifiers, the effect requiring a Skill Test will specify. Typically there will be none.
The Result determines if the Skill Test was successful. An [N] is considered a failed test and a [D+] is successful, although the effect requiring the test may specify different outcomes for the actual Result.
Example: A Jovian Alexander has been damaged to the point that its Thrusters Rating is 0. It is attempting to make a Turn, so it must make a Skill Test. An Alexander is Skill 2, so it rolls 2d6, resulting in 1,4. That is a [N] result, which is a failed Skill Test. Thus, the Alexander cannot make its desired turn!