The Lancer RPG pulls substantial inspiration from its predecessor, the 4th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons (aka 4E). Like 4E, Lancer classifies its mechs using a “Role” system, which broadly indicates how the mech will behave in tactical combat. 4E originally had four roles for its character classes, exploring the dynamics of Damage (dealing and receiving) and Action Efficiency (enfeebling and enhancing). As written, Lancer adapts 4E’s four roles, but splits the “damage giving” role into short-range (Striker) and long-range (Artillery) roles.
However, Lancer’s “Sitreps” combat system introduces a dynamic missing from 4E’s design philosophy: Taking and holding objectives. As a result, I posit that Lancer should actually use six combat roles: Assailants (damage dealers), Tanks (damage receivers), Vanguards (objective takers), Rearguards (objective holders), Controllers (action enfeeblers), and Supports (action enhancers).
Lancer’s Three Combat Dynamics
Encounters in 4E primarily had the “objective” of “solve the damage puzzle”: Determine how to efficiently distribute damage to opponents while defending against hostile interference. Therefore, 4E combat revolves around the offensive and defensive aspects of the Damage and Action dynamics. These dynamics spawned a wide range of character classes, each categorized under one or two major roles: Strikers (damage dealers), Defenders (damage receivers), Leaders (action buffers), and Controllers (action debuffers). These roles are not mutually exclusive; a character can fulfill both a Striker and Defender role depending on their build and context of the combats they fight.
In an effort to add more variety to combat encounters, Lancer includes “Sitreps”: Packaged alternative win conditions for ending a fight. These are akin to gametypes from competitive shooter video games, like Capture the Flag, Territory Control, and Escort a Payload. With Sitreps in play, gameplay places less weight on “kill before you’re killed” and more on “score before the opponent.” Thus, a new Objective dynamic emerges in Lancer: Offensively take the objective from the opponent, and defensively protect your own objectives. The Damage dynamic remains necessary for managing opponents, while the Action dynamic broadens its portfolio to buttress the others. With these three dynamics in mind, I will delve into each with more detail.
Damage
The most ubiquitous and quantifiable dynamic, Damage encapsulates the delivery of damage to opponents and reception of damage to allies. Its associated roles are Assailant and Tank.
Assailant (Damage Dealer)
Assailants focus on the most efficient means of permanently removing opposing forces from combat: Damage to hit points. Dead opponents take no actions, kill no allies, and score no points. This goal may be achieved in a variety of ways:
- Several small attacks vs. one big attack.
- High risk/reward short range vs. low risk/reward long range.
- Consistent damage per round (aka DPR) vs. explosive damage packed all in one turn (aka “going (super)nova”).
- Single-target damage vs. area of effect (AoE) damage.
- Many, many more.
This role covers 4E’s Strikers (surprise surprise) and many of Lancer’s Strikers and Artilleries. Under this paradigm, if a character primarily cares about killing the opponent, they’re a Assailant regardless of their distance from that opponent. Sometimes, Assailants can also be Vanguards, but only if they can survive long enough to take an Objective.
Tank (Damage Receiver)
Tanks manage their team’s reception of damage in order to preserve their game plan. The Assailant can’t kill high-value targets if they’re bleeding out on the floor. As the most durable role, Tanks typically draw the aggression of opponents away from allies with fewer defenses. In 4E, this is usually accomplished through Marks (a taunt that reduces accuracy against the Tank’s allies) and Punishments (negative effects inflicted when an opponent disregards a Mark). Example punishments include (but are not limited to):
- Dealing damage to an opponent.
- Reducing an opponent’s damage.
- Inflicting a negative condition on an opponent.
- Forcing an opponent to move.
Thus, Tanks play a balancing act between making their allies unattractive targets and making themselves unattractive targets. Tanks thrive on these Catch-22s, forcing opponents through a dilemma every time they act. Tanks enhance these dilemmas with “sticky” abilities that prevent opponents from easily escaping their reach (e.g., Grapple). With abilities that augment who is the “least attractive target,” Tanks direct the flow of incoming damage where it will do the least harm. Usually, this is the Tank themself, but this calculus changes when the Tank facing a dragon has 10 HP while an ally has 100. If everyone is conscious, everyone can keep doing their jobs, Tank included.
4E’s Defenders define this role through their Mark mechanics. However, few of Lancer’s “Defenders” truly create a Catch-22 like 4E’s; the most prominent specimen is the Goliath NPC. The Goliath is huge, bulky, and resists damage from long-range attacks. It uses Crush Targeting to “mark” opponents and encourage them to attack it. The Goliath’s Siege Armor encourages opponents to get within its zone of threat in order to effectively damage it. Once close, the Goliath is “sticky”, discouraging further movement with Grapple and Overwatch with its shotgun.
If a character is bulky, but oriented on securing a specific area moreso than managing incoming damage, it may be a Rearguard instead of a Tank.
Objectives
The Objective dynamic is oriented around achieving combat goals rooted in the fiction of the game other than “kill the enemy dead.” This catchall can cover holding territory, disarming bombs, expelling intruders, chasing thieves, and so on. In tactical games, Objective-oriented capabilities often revolve around taking and holding space. Its associated roles are Vanguard and Rearguard.
Vanguard (Objective Taker)
Freedom of movement is a Vanguard’s strongest tool, as it allows them to quickly reach and contest an objective. Vanguards are the ones to take the hill and carry the football (or object-like objective). They shine in game systems where combat encounters can be won by completing objectives. Vanguards prioritize the following mechanics:
- High, unfettered movement speed for precise positioning and evading opponents (e.g., flight or ignoring difficult terrain).
- Forced movement for displacing opponents.
- Terrain/cover destruction (encouraging opponents to move away to safety).
- “Soft threat” effects that can punish opponents who refuse to disengage (usually Damage, but sometimes heavy debuffs).
- Self-protective effects to shrug off the occasional attack or negative effect.
- Context-sensitive effects that allow efficient scoring of objectives, for example:
- Bonuses or guarantees for skill checks (like D&D 5e’s Rogues with Reliable Talent or Pathfinder 2e’s Assurance).
- High carrying capacity for moving bulky objects around.
- Special senses for finding hidden objectives (like secret doors or trap control panels).
While D&D 4E tends to be the poster child for tactical RPGs, I feel D&D 5E has stronger examples of Vanguard classes. Due to 5E’s broader focus on exploration and social play, more classes have abilities dedicated to fiction-rooted objectives. The 5E Monk and Rogue are exemplars of Vanguard play due to their skill expertise, unfettered movement, and “soft threat” capabilities (e.g., Stunning Strike, Sneak Attack).
Lancer Vanguards on the player side are typically high-speed, close-range mechs like the Nelson or Mourning Cloak. On the GM side, NPCs like the speedy Cataphract and threatening Berserker fall squarely in a Vanguard role. Cataphract achieves this through quick charges and grappling foes away from objectives, while Berserkers exude “soft threat” by charging in and threatening huge damage against anyone in reach.
Rearguard (Objective Holder)
Rearguards are anchor points on the map. They maintain a zone of threat to repel enemy Vanguards and secure their objectives. Whereas Tanks typically wish to lock down opponents and keep them from moving towards allies, Rearguards instead lock down an area and deny all entry. They blunt Assailants’ attacks to ensure uninterrupted control of objectives. As such, Rearguards favor the following mechanics:
- Reduction or immunity to forced movement.
- Inflicting their own forced movement.
- Exuding a threatening zone to discourage approach.
- Creating obstructions that prevent or punish approach.
- Fortifying themselves and nearby allies.
Rearguards sit still and nail down a “Keep Out” sign in their general vicinity. They only need enough speed to reach their “campground” before planting their flag and becoming impossible to dislodge. Lancer’s Saladin showcases several examples of Rearguard mechanics through its ENCLAVE-Pattern Support Shield, Hardlight Defense System, and Flash Anchor (though Saladin does possess several Tank abilities, as well).
On the GM side, Lancer’s Demolisher and Pyro are slow, sturdy NPCs with threatening close-range weapons. They do not actively force opponents to pick between targets to shoot, but they passively threaten opponents to choose between contesting an objective and being punished for it, or losing an objective by playing safe.
Actions
I cover the Actions dynamic last because its roles exist to enhance and support the Damage- and Objective-based roles. Controllers undermine and erode their opponent’s actions, while Supports enhance and maintain their allies’ actions.
Controller (Action Enfeebler)
Controllers take the opponent’s action economy and encase it in cement. Under this role paradigm, anything that directly denies a target the maximum efficacy of its turns is a control effect, such as:
- Slowing an opponent’s movement.
- Moving opponents out of position/into danger (thus forcing actions to be spent re-establishing its position).
- Preventing an opponent from taking certain actions (e.g., Silence preventing spellcasting, Jammed preventing tech actions).
- Reducing available actions (like with Stun effects).
- Reducing enemies’ chances to hit and/or deal damage.
- Reducing enemies’ chances to avoid negative effects.
4E carries a smattering of control effects ranging from the Wizard’s wide debuffing zones to the Warlock’s single-target debilitations. Lancer’s control effects primarily express themselves through tech actions, like the Invade action, but numerous pieces of equipment (like the Black Witch’s Ferrous Lash or the Minotaur’s Mesmer Charges) can apply control effects without touching the system’s “hacking” tools.
Support (Action Enhancer)
Supports work both proactively through buffs (like granting allies extra damage or movement) and reactively through “cures” (like healing and removing negative effects). They are force multipliers that maximize the action efficacy of their allies. Example Support effects include:
- Restoring HP and granting “buffer” HP (like Temporary Hit Points).
- Removing negative conditions.
- Granting extra movement for offensive or defensive repositioning.
- Improving allies’ chances to hit and/or deal damage.
- Improving allies’ chances to avoid negative effects.
D&D 4E has Supports in spades under its “Leader” role. Clerics carry potent healing, Warlords enhance allied attacks, and Bards reposition allies (among many other effects). One of the system’s (in)famous supporting Paragon Paths, the Morninglord, inflicts vulnerability to radiant damage. In Lancer, the Black Witch carries several pieces of movement and anti-debuff equipment, while the Swallowtail enhances allied attacks with its defense-shredding Lock On abilities.
(As an aside: Some may consider Lancer’s “Shredded” condition to be a Control tool, since it debuffs enemy defenses. However, under this post’s role paradigm, Shredded does nothing to directly affect an enemy’s action economy. Instead, I treat it like a “target-specific buff” for allies, aligning it more with the Support category.)
Applying the Six Combat Roles
By adding the granularity of the Objective dynamic, this paradigm of six combat roles can create fights with more texture. By differentiating Vanguards from Assailants, it’s possible for a GM to budget a fight to target both the immediate objective (Vanguards) and long-term damage attrition (Assailant). Players benefit from this paradigm’s higher specificity, allowing for stronger focus on their mech’s power fantasy, as well as shoring up a team’s weaknesses.
Finding Niches through Reclassification
Applying this paradigm Lancer’s NPC roster, many NPCs would be classified differently:
| NPC Class | Original Role | New Role |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | Striker | Assailant |
| Aegis | Support | Rearguard |
| Archer | Controller | Controller |
| Assassin | Striker | Assailant |
| Assault | Striker | Assailant |
| Barricade | Controller | Rearguard/Controller |
| Bastion | Defender | Tank |
| Berserker | Striker | Vanguard/Assailant |
| Bombard | Artillery | Assailant |
| Breacher | Striker | Vanguard |
| Cataphract | Striker | Vanguard |
| Demolisher | Defender | Rearguard |
| Engineer | Striker | Rearguard |
| Goliath | Defender | Tank |
| Hive | Controller | Controller |
| Hornet | Controller | Controller |
| Mirage | Support | Support |
| Operator | Artillery | Assailant |
| Priest | Support | Support |
| Pyro | Defender | Rearguard |
| Rainmaker | Artillery | Assailant |
| Ronin | Striker | Assailant/Vanguard |
| Scourer | Striker | Assailant |
| Scout | Support | Support |
| Seeder | Controller | Controller/Rearguard |
| Sentinel | Defender | Tank |
| Sniper | Artillery | Assailant |
| Specter | Striker | Assailant |
| Support | Support | Support |
| Witch | Controller | Controller |
Notably, there are a lot of Assailants. Many of Lancer’s melee- and CQB-range NPC Strikers could skirt by as Vanguards due to their implicit threat or ability to drive opponents off an objective. However, many longer-range NPCs lack an inherent incentive to take objectives, relegating their role to simply inflicting damage. In order to supplement the Vanguard roster, I introduce the Torrent and Zealot in Prototype Pattern Groups. The Torrent rushes an objective and knocks foes away from it, while the Zealot helps allies approach objectives with unfettered movement.
Also notable is a distinct dearth of Tanks, in which category Goliath stands literally head and shoulders above the rest. Sentinels can be “sticky” with the threat of their shotgun and Eye of Midnight, but they have the least bulk out of all of Lancer’s Defender NPCs. Bastions possess damage mitigation, but struggle to maintain it on allies. It perhaps shouldn’t be shocking that I create a whopping 4 Tank-oriented NPCs in Prototype Pattern Groups, with varying ways of redirecting aggression towards themselves and away from allies:
- The Anchor forces long-range attacks to target itself instead of allies.
- The Knight compels a single target to a duel, imparing attacks against other opponents.
- The Mesmerist penalizes hostile actions that do not target itself, while staying “sticky” with a threatening Overwatch.
- The Prism fires a gun that restricts hostile line of sight to only itself.
By recognizing these roles, I found new potential niches for NPC designs that could add additional texture to my Lancer combats.
Closing Words
In practice, no individual character or game mechanic falls solely within one combat role; 4E and Lancer would likely be very bland if they did! Instead, these roles mix and intertwine to make novel combinations. 4E’s Fighter class is nominally a Tank, but it punishes foes with attacks, an Assailant-aligned mechanic. Lancer’s Saladin license carries a mix of damage mitigation (Tank) and zone defense (Rearguard) equipment. Abilities that force characters to move can be a Support tool against allies and a Control tool against enemies.
Many folks chafe under the explicit classification of combat roles; this is fair and valid! It is possible to have an enjoyable and engaging tactical roleplaying game without roles. Pathfinder 2nd Edition manages just fine without them. However, I personally believe that roles can be a useful design tool for inspiring new content from a “game-first” perspective. My project Prototype Pattern Groups arose from mixing and matching interesting combinations of NPC combat roles as a creative constraint. Hopefully, these six combat roles for Lancer stimulate creativity for homebrewing mechs and NPCs!