Capture is both a distinct action type and a possible consequence of normal combat. As an action, it is useful for both "bloodless" captures and the collecting of objects from a dungeon floor.
To allow explicit attempts to capture, set acp-to-capture
to 1 or more.
Whether the capture attempt is explicit or a consequence of combat,
its basic probability of success is derived from the table
capture-chance
.
If the unit being captured is independent, there is a separate
table independent-capture-chance
; if its value is the default
of -1, then the value of capture-chance
will be used instead.
For capture attempts that are going to succeed, you can allow
the victim a chance to wreck itself first, by setting scuttle-chance
.
The main effect of capture is simply to change the side of the
unit that was captured. If the unit cannot be on the capturing
side, then it will vanish instead. In any case, the occupants
will also be captured or vanish,
although you give them a chance to escape first via
occupant-escape-chance
. They will also attempt to
scuttle themselves if possible.
You can also require a sacrifice from the capturing unit,
via the table hp-to-garrison
. This is the number
of hp that will be taken from the capturing unit.
You can set it to the unit's hp-max
to make it
disappear entirely. Although this table is inspired
by realism, it can also serve a pragmatic purpose,
namely to prevent a single unit from capturing an
entire country without being affected at all!
You should set this table according to the "feel"
you want for the game, since it can have a major
effect on speed and pacing of the play.
As with normal combat, the experience of both the
capturing and captured unit may change.
For the capturing unit, this is a gain defined by
cxp-per-capture
, while the effect on the
capturing unit is set by cxp-on-capture-effect
,
which is a multiplier (defaulting to 100) that may
increase or decrease experience. In practice,
a decrease is more realistic, representing perhaps
the replacement of ship or airplane crews, although
a increase might be more appropriate for mercenaries
whose response to capture is simply to go to work
for the new bosses!