The stargate itself is the single most important plot device, piece of equipment, and drama engine in the game. It is the centerpiece of the TV show, and the raison d’etre for the entire SGC. Inevitably, stargates becomes more than a simple means of transportation. Firefights rage around them, characters are forced to dial hasty, barely remembered destinations, and people decide to fire a weapon through them. Below are several simple rules that make refereeing the stargate itself quick and easy.

There are three main ways to dial the stargate – using the DHD, using an integrated computer system, or dialing manually.

Under ideal conditions, dialing the stargate requires no skill check. All the options below are to be used when the characters are dialing under less than ideal conditions.

A DHD is a Dial Home Device. It allows the gate to be operated by dialing up a quick succession of symbols, then pushing a central activation button. This is a fast and efficient process. Using a DHD requires either one full action or three half actions.

Using one full action requires that the character dedicate his complete attention on the dialing. If combat rages around the stargate – as it so often does – then the character must succeed with a Concentration check (DC 15) in order to dial the gate.

Alternately, an experienced combat veteran may simply use his calm under fire to allow him to keep his head. In this case, the character adds his base attack bonus + his Wisdom modifier to his Concentration check in order to stay calm as combat continues around him. Failure with the check, however, means that the character types in the wrong sequence and, most likely, nothing happens (the GM may spend two action dice to cause the gate to dial into an alternate world of his choice).

If the character must participate in the combat, he may dial using three half actions. This is most useful when the character must squeeze off hasty gunfire while slapping in the dialing sequence his free hand. In this case, the first half action punches the first three symbols into the DHD, the second half action punches the next three symbols into the DHD, and the final half action hits the activation button. The character need not perform these half actions in succession, though if he leaves a partially dialed gate untouched for 5 rounds, the gate resets and all progress with the current address is lost.

Since the dialing sequence is complicated and often hard to remember, the character must succeed with a Concentration check (DC 15) to correctly complete each of these three half actions. Once again, failure with the check, however, means that the character types in the wrong sequence and, most likely, nothing happens (the GM may spend two action dice to cause the gate to dial into an alternate world of his choice).

Using an integrated computer system, such as the one employed by the SGC, is highly efficient – an operator merely selects the destination and allows the computer to dial for him. Unfortunately, an integrated computer system is much slower than a DHD. Only two chevrons are encoded per full round, and as noted below, it takes about half a round for a gate’s wormhole to form after an address is dialed. meaning that 4 full rounds are required to open the gate using this system.

No special checks are required to dial a gate address in this manner.

Finally, assuming a power source is available, a character may manually dial the gate. Manually dialing a destination is a difficult, exhausting, and slow proposition – the gate must be rotated by hand to lock in each individual symbol.

One character must be selected as the primary dialer. This character makes a complex Strength check (DC 40), modified as described within the cooperation rules for each additional person assisting the manual dialing process (see page XX). No more than three additional people may assist the dialer.

When the complex skill check result hits 40, the chevron locks and encodes and a new complex Strength check (DC 40) must be attempted for to lock and encode the next chevron. When all seven chevrons are encoded, the gate opens automatically, requiring one additional half action as the wormhole forms (see below).

Because of the time required for this process, it’s much more difficult to make a mistake. If dialing the gate manually during calm conditions, then no Concentration check is required. During combat and other distracting conditions, the primary dialer must succeed with a Concentration check (DC 5) as each chevron is locked. Failure with this check means that the wrong chevron is locked and the process must begin again. If the character suffers a critical failure with this Concentration check, the character doesn’t notice that the wrong chevon was dialed and the process continues (in this case, if the address is completed, the GM may spend two action dice to cause the gate to dial into an alternate world of his choice).

There may come a time when the characters attempt to dial an address before someone else can dial into their gate. The rules for resolving this differ depending on the dialing methods used, as follows.

If the two dialers use different methods (e.g. one dials with a DHD and another with an integrated computer system, as is usually the case when someone tries to dial into the SGC gate), then the dialing processes are resolved and the fastest of the two establishes the one-way wormhole. In the case of the Earth and an off-world DHD, the DHD is always faster unless someone is distracted or misdials, thus necessitating the use of the SGC’s iris).

If misdials, distraction, or something else causes two wormholes to open during the same half action, then only the wormhole created using the fastest method opens (e.g. if a DHD and a computer are used, then the DHD-dialed wormhole is created).

In these cases, the dialer with the highest initiative count establishes a wormhole first.

In this case, the dialing process is completed per the normal rules, and the dialer who completes his address first establishes the wormhole from his planet.

Firefights happen quite a bit around stargates. They should be resolved per the normal combat rules, with a few additional considerations.

When a character tries to dial out during a firefight, he is subject to Concentration checks as described above. He is also considered flatfooted when dialing manually or when using a DHD to open a gate with 1 full action.

When inactive, the stargate is considered 1/2 cover. When active, the stargate is considered total cover.

Weapons fire directed at an active wormhole (a stargate’s front side) travel through the wormhole to the destination without losing velocity or distance. Weapons fire directed at a stargate’s back side while the wormhole is open is simply annihilated.

It’s impossible to target those standing on the other side of an active wormhole.

A character may leap through an active stargate, firing wildly as he does and hoping that his split-second reactions help him hit an enemy – all people targeted in this manner receive the benefits of total concealment. Also, if such an attacker suffers a critical miss, the GM may spend two action dice to cause the attack to hit any other person or important scenery within 30 ft. in any direction from the designated target.

A stargate’s wormhole forms over the course of 1 half action, at the start of the dialer’s initiative count. Use this timing to determine where everyone is when the wormhole forms.

When a stargate establishes a wormhole, it creates a funnel that extends out 20 ft. forward of it, destroying all matter in its path, including characters. There is a brief warning when this funnel forms, allowing any character in its path with freedom of movement to make a Reflex save (DC 15) to leap to the nearest safe square. With success, the character enters the safe square and suffers no damage. With failure, he enters the safe square, but also suffers 1d6 normal damage per point by which he missed the DC. With a critical failure, he’s struck by the funnel and instantly reduced to -25 wound points (i.e. his body is instantly destroyed).