Damage by level in SF

[Schadenfreude]

Can anyone explain to me how damage (or expected damage output) changes from level to level now?

I understand that, with stamina and hit points, PCs have about double the hit points they do in Pathfinder.

I believe that NPCs and monsters have hit points but not stamina, and so would have about the same number of hp as in PF.

With the new full attack rules, everyone can make up to 2 attacks per round (or operatives and soldiers, up to 4 if they're high enough level). There's no Power Attack or anything to add to damage output, but everyone now gets Weapon Specialisation, and weapons themselves scale with level (or at least, you can always go out and buy a more high-powered weapon).

I just don't have a good sense of how damage by level works in SF compared to PF. Does a soldier put out about the same as a fighter or paladin of equivalent level? An operative and a rogue?

Is 3 rounds still the average length of a combat?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[d'Eon]

Most play reports I've seen say combat has lengthened some, but I'm still waiting on my book at the moment.

[Voss]

By and large it's an escalating curve that starts lower than PF, but it isn't smooth.

The first rise is obviously at third level, but the escalation from weapons doesn't really start until 7th, and doesn't kick into full gear until 11th. At the late side of the teens it's incrazy town, but it's the late teens, so largely doesn't matter.

There is power attack (deadly aim Is universal), but it's terrible until double digit levels (at least).

Direct comparisons are tricky, and depend a lot on build. Primary is if your turning feats into proficiency and specialization in real weapons. For soldiers and solarions, are you taking class features that bump damage? Are you optimizing your weapons and stats?

You could, for example, build an envoy with a high strength and big axe, and upset the expected damage curve at level 1 (which seriously expects you to pew pew for 1d4 damage), but you can throw feats and get heavy weapon specialization by level 3 if human and have a big cannon and damage bonus and nothing like the unbalanced stat investment required for crazy axe maniac.

Someone could sit down and do the math, comparing a rough DPR with chances to hit from iterative attacks vs SF full attacks, and when the d8 progression 2 levels behind catches up with sneak attack (and bearing in mind that sneak attack can apply on multiple attacks), but you'd need to compare hit bonuses and expected ACs as well, both of which also change radically.

But keep in mind all SF classes are on roughly the same damage curve, because specialization applies to everyone, everyone can use the same weapons with a couple feats, and most buffs and bonuses are gone.

[Lausth]

What you mean by sneak attack?Did ı miss something on operative class page? I thought it was a single attack as a full action.

[Voss]

That is what I mean. Trick attack damage applies to one attack. Sneak attack (PF) applies to however many attacks you can force out of the system (which is lots).

So trick attack starts becomes a d8 at Level 3 then progresses every level, why sneak attack progresses by a d6 starting at level 1, and you can get multiple sneak attacks. SF damage is going to be way lower. At least until guns start their own progression in the teen levels

Operatives can also do multiple attacks, but don't get trick damage, and are sadly diminished by pistols and operative weapons being bad (because they get multiple attacks, which... Is frankly unfortunate for any other class that wants to do finesse or gunslinging)