I'm not sure what you mean by "honest". If you mean it is the GM's job to read the results of the dice rolls and apply them as such to whatever is going on then the GM would be failing in that role.
Given that I see the GM's task to make the player's experience as enjoyable as possible then the outcome of the fight is whatever is appropriate *at that time*. This is of course determined by the actions of the players and the way the GM makes the NPCs act so is not necessarily deterministic. Neither side knows in advance what the other will do so the mix of their actions is undetermined beforehand.
On the other hand, in a pulpish game it is usual for the villain to disappear at the end in some mysterious way so his/her ultimate fate is undetermined. If this means falling off a cliff to what should be certain doom then fair enough. The manner in which this is accomplished is still open to doubt as the players may well be trying their damnedness to avoid it.
A bit like in CoC, you can have all the dice rolls you want, in the end you'll go mad.
GB Steve
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