{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/tactics-defense--t079","type":"mechanic","id":"tactics-defense--t079","lang":"en","title":"Positioning, flanking and cover","summary":"Position changes protection and target access, while flanking circumvents the advantage of a frontal engagement.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/tactics-defense--t079/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/tactics-defense--t079.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/tactics-defense--t079.md","aliases":["Position, flanks and cover"],"tags":["Tactics and defense","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-32d0598945d8807a","source-135697a6b5dd7a69"],"sources":[{"id":"source-32d0598945d8807a","title":"OpenRA","url":"https://www.openra.net/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-135697a6b5dd7a69","title":"XCOM® 2","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/268500/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Position changes protection and target access, while flanking circumvents the advantage of a frontal engagement."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t079-variants\"></a>\n\n- Cover protects only against specified directions. <a id=\"t079-v1\"></a>\n- Crossfire removes a safe facing direction. <a id=\"t079-v2\"></a>\n- Height expands vision at the cost of exposure. <a id=\"t079-v3\"></a>\n- Suppression restricts a change of position. <a id=\"t079-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"Two fighters occupy separate doors so one barricade cannot protect the opponent from both.\n\nPrototype check: Test that protection is shown relative to the selected attacker rather than as a fixed cell property."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Tactics and defense turn positioning, action order and preparation into limited resources. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"tactics-defense","id":"t079","title":"Tactics and defense","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/tactics-defense/#t079","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Position, flanks and cover","description":"Position changes protection and target access, while flanking circumvents the advantage of a frontal engagement.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/strategy-xcom2-04.webp","width":615,"height":346,"game":"XCOM® 2","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/268500/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/268500/ss_50b987ea0074e44de58a9b4df87efb529cc8f625.1920x1080.jpg?t=1772813016","credit":"Firaxis Games / Feral Interactive (Mac) / Feral Interactive (Linux) / 2K / Feral Interactive (Mac) / Feral Interactive (Linux)","rights":"© Firaxis Games / Feral Interactive (Mac) / Feral Interactive (Linux) / 2K / Feral Interactive (Mac) / Feral Interactive (Linux). All rights reserved.","caption":"Position affects the shot calculation","alt":"Position affects the shot calculation","markers":[{"x":24,"y":88,"label":"Aim and weapon range contribute to the shot calculation"},{"x":73,"y":88,"label":"Flanking the target adds a bonus"}]},"tips":["Explain changes in hit chance through the actual position and cover."],"examples":[{"title":"XCOM® 2","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/268500/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/tactics-defense"}}