This document lists some of the special combat maneuvers that can be attempted against an opponent.
- Charging
- Bleeder
- Disarm Attack
- Disengage Maneuver
- Dodging
- Grab
- Great Blow
- Knockdown
- Overwhelm
- Pushback
- Shield Bash
- Using a Pole Arm from the Second Rank
Charging
Only 2 handed, pointed weapons such as spears and other pole arms may use this maneuver. The attacker uses their momentum to cause greater damage to the target. Damage is increased by 1d6 per 25 TMR, to a maximum of +4d6 at TMR 100 or higher. Thus, someone with a TMR of 75 would cause an additional 3d6 damage. Strike Chance is reduced by 10 per additional 1d6 damage. The attacker can choose to charge at a rate less than their full TMR. Charging attacks are considered to be First Strike in that they occur before any other attacks of the same initiative. The attackers Defense is reduced by 10 per addtional 1d6 damage as they are concentrating more on causing damage than defending.
With a Charging maneuver, the attacker can move at full, or even double TMR, and attack at the end of the round.
Just as 2 handed, pointed weapons can be used in a charge, they can also be set against a charge. A weapon set against a charge gains the same bonus to damage as the charging attacker but without the negative modifier to Strike Chance. However, the defender suffers the same penalty to their Defense. A weapon set against a charge is also considered to be First Strike, occurring at the same time in an initiative as other First Strike attacks.
Bleeder
A Bleeder maneuver is an attempt to hit the target with a wound that will bleed (i.e., cause additional damage automatically every round). This maneuver can only be attempted with slashing weapons. The maneuver involves the attacker extending themselves somewhat, sacrificing defense for an attempt to cause a bleeding wound. This maneuver can be attempted at any time but no more than once per round and it must be declared at the beginning of the round. The attacker declares which attack will be the Bleeder attack - first attack, second attack, etc., in order of initiative (not in the order rolled). If the Bleeder attack hits and causes damage, then it also causes a wound that bleeds at 1 hit point per round, starting at the beginning of the next round.
The defender has a 25% chance of getting a free attack. If the defender is higher ranked in his weapon than the attacker is in their's this chance goes up by 3% per level of difference. For example, if the attacker is rank 6 in their weapon and the defender is rank 8 in their's, the defender has a 31% chance of a free attack. This free attack does not count against their normal number of attacks per round.
Disarm Attack
If you want to try to disarm your opponent, roll initiative and attack roll normally and consult the table below. Note that a disarm attack must be declared before rolling the dice. The disarm attack causes no damage. Either the opponent is disarmed or he is not.
Note that this maneuver can be used to disarm an opponent of either their weapon or their shield. Only one disarm attack can be attempted per round, even if the attacker has multiple attacks.
| Attack Result | Result |
| Miss | Opponent is not disarmed |
| Normal Hit | 25% chance that opponent is disarmed. If attacker is higher ranked than target, add 3% per level of difference (or reduce by 3% per level is lower ranked). Attack causes no damage to opponent. If disarmed, weapon/shield lands 1d10 feet away in random direction. |
| Critical Hit | Opponent is disarmed. Attack causes no damage. Weapon/shield lands 1d10 feet away in general direction determined by attacker. |
| Grievous Hit | Opponent is disarmed and attack causes normal (non-critical) damage. Weapon/shield lands exactly where the attacker wants it to land within 20 feet. Optionally, the attacker can end up with opponent's weapon in hand. |
Example
Baelic is rank 6 with unarmed combat and is attempting to disarm his opponent, a snakeman who is rank 4 with the club he is using. The snakeman is actually using a club in each hand but a disarm attempt can only target a single weapon. He declares his action to be a disarm attempt and rolls initiative normally. On his initiative, he rolls a 38 to hit. His strike chance (SC) is 81 and the snakeman has a defense (DEF) of 20 so he needed a 61 or less to hit, 9 or less to critical, and 3 or less for a grievous. Thus, his roll of 38 indicates a normal hit.
Base chance to disarm is 25%. Since Baelic is higher rank in unarmed combat than the snake man is in club, he gets a +3% chance to disarm per level of difference. He is rank 6 and the snakeman is rank 4, yielding a difference of 2, or an added 6% to his chance to disarm. His modified chance to disarm the snakeman is 31%. He rolls a 73 and fails to disarm the snakeman.
Disengage Maneuver
With this maneuver, the attacker attempts a feint to throw the defender off balance so that they can get away. Normally the defender would gain a free attack on the target attempting to flee. This maneuver seeks to negate that free attack.
The attacker declares his attempt at the Disengage Maneuver for any of his attacks (i.e., he can make the decision at any point in the round where he gets an attack).
The attacker makes his attack with a -20 modifier while the target gains a bonus to their DEF equal to 3% per rank of either Shield or Defense skill. Compare the result of the attack to the following matrix.
- The Disengage Maneuver fails (and the target gets a free attack) if the attacks misses without the bonus to DEF gained by this maneuver. The attacker is still committed to disengaging and the Attack and Move rules apply.
- The Disengage Maneuver succeeds (and target does not get a free attack) if:
- The attack misses due to the bonus DEF gained as a result of this maneuver. The Attack and Move rules apply.
- If the attack hits even with the bonus to DEF. The Attack and Move rules apply.
Dodging
When being attacked by a missile weapon, dodging gives the character a +20 to their DEF (or a -20 to the attacker's strike chance). The character can move at 1x TMR and continue to Dodge.
Dodging can also be used in melee combat. For each attack that the character gives up, they gain a +20 to their DEF. A dodging character cannot remain in place and must have room to maneuver around and dodge. After each dodge, the GM will move the character 1d4 feet in a random direction to indicate dodging. All attackers can automatically remain with the dodging character with no penalty to their movement.
NOTE TO SELF: What about creatures that get lots of attacks due to multiple arms?
NOTE TO SELF: What if person wanting to dodge is completely surrounded? Depending on how surrounded, reduce bonus of DEF or disallow it altogether.
Grab
A grab maneuver must be declared at the beginning of the round and only one attack is allowed regardless of the number of attacks the attacker normally gets. No other attacks can be made in the same round. The attacker makes an attack roll using Brwaling, Unarmed Combat or Martial Arts and the defender gets their normal defense. If a hit is indicated, compare to the table below:
| Type of Hit | Result |
| Normal Hit | The attacker has grabbed the defender's main weapon arm, preventing him from attacking with it until he frees it. |
| Critical Hit | The attacker has grabbed the defender around the torso (50% chance of front or back) and pinned both arms. The defender cannot attack until he frees himself. |
| Grievous Hit | As above but the attacker gains a bonus of 1d6 to his STR for the purpose of holding on. |
Size Differential Table
Use this table to determine strike chance modifier when the attacker and defender are different sizes.
| Attacker | Defender |
|
Tiny | Small | Medium | Large | Giant |
| Tiny | 0 | -50 | - | - | - |
| Small | 0 | 0 | -50 | - | - |
| Medium | +10 | 0 | 0 | -50 | - |
| Large | +20 | +10 | 0 | 0 | -50 |
| Giant | +30 | +20 | +10 | 0 | 0 |
Breaking free requires a STR vs. STR roll (see rules under Combat). If the defender's STR is greater than the attacker's STR, then they can make an immediate attempt to break free. Otherwise the defender can make one attempt per round to break free. Both the attacker and defender can temporarily increase their effective STR for the purpose of holding on, or breaking free, using the rules listed under Hitting Extra Hard and Pumping Up.
To break free, the defender must roll equal to or greater than the attacker's STR plus their roll.
Example: Harlan (STR 27) is held by a killer roper (STR 28). Harlan attempts to break free. The roper rolls a 3 on 1d6 and adds it to his STR: 28 + 3 = 31. Harlan rolls a 4 on 1d6 and adds it to his STR: 27 + 4 = 31. He succeeds in breaking free as he need to equal or exceed the roper's result of 31.
Great Blow
A great blow essentially combines two attacks into a single attack that has the potential to do much more damage. Thus, someone who normally gets two attacks per round can instead make one Great Blow attack instead. This might be a good option against a creature with a high PROT.
Prerequisite: In order to do a Great Blow, the character must be high enough rank with their weapon to get two or more attacks per round. For most characters, this is rank 6 though it may be rank 5 for some. Note that the number of attacks per round must be based on rank in order to do a Great Blow. It cannot be based on a Haste spell or other spells or effects that allow additional attacks.
The character declares a Great Blow at the beginning of the round and it goes off on their second initiative. If the character is high enough ranked to get 4 attacks per round, they can instead do 2 Great Blows which must be declared at the beginning of the round and go off on their 2nd and 4th initiatives. The DEF penalty indicated below lasts for the entire round.
A Great Blow suffers an initiative penalty of -3. It cannot be done in conjunction with any other maneuver that reduces initiative (e.g., drawing a weapon, half move, etc.).
Consult the table below to determine the effect of a Great Blow
 | Single Class Fighter, Mariner, Ranger, Paladin or Beastmaster | Dual Class Fighter, Mariner, Ranger, Paladin or Beastmaster | Non-Fighter Type |
Small Weapon
- Dagger, hand axe, blackjack, etc.
|
- Strike Chance: +5
- Damage: +2d6
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +0
- Damage: +2d4
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +0
- Damage: +1d6
- Defense: -30
|
Medium or Large 1 Handed Weapon
- Most weapons not otherwise listed.
|
- Strike Chance: +10
- Damage: +2d8
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +5
- Damage: +2d6
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +0
- Damage: +2d4
- Defense: -30
|
Large Weapon Wielded 2 Handed
- Battle axe, 2 handed sword, bastard sword being wielded 2 handed, etc.
|
- Strike Chance: +20
- Damage: +4d6
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +10
- Damage: +3d6
- Defense: -25
|
- Strike Chance: +5
- Damage: +2d6
- Defense: -30
|
NOTE: This combat maneuver takes the place of the Overhand Attack skill, which will be retired.
Knockdown
A knockdown manevuer is used to try to knock the target to the ground. The attacker must state their intent at the beginning of the round. If the attacker is normally allowed multiple attacks for the round, they lose one of their attacks. The attacker makes a normal attack roll with a -5 initiative and the defender gets their normal defense. If a hit is indicated, compare to the table below:
| Attack Result | Result |
| Normal Hit | 25% chance that opponent is knocked down. If successful, target loses all remaining attacks for the round. Target loses half their attacks (round down) the following round as they get to their feet. Attacker may flee combat without reprisal from knocked down opponent. Attack causes no damage. |
| Critical Hit | Opponent is knocked down and loses all remaining attacks for the round. Target loses half their attacks (round down) the following round as they get to their feet. Attacker may flee combat without reprisal from knocked down opponent. Attack causes normal (non-critical) damage. |
| Grievous Hit | Opponent is knocked down and loses all remaining attacks for the round. They drop anything in hand (e.g., weapon and shield). Target loses half a round each to recover weapon, recover shield and stand up (1 and a half rounds total for all three). Attacker may flee combat without reprisal from knocked down opponent. Attack causes critical (non-grievous) damage. |
Size Differential Table
Use this table to determine strike chance modifier when the attacker and defender are different sizes. A hyphen (-) indicates that a Knockdown maneuver cannot be attempted (i.e., a Tiny attacker can't attempt to knockdown a Medium or larger defender).
| Attacker | Defender |
|
Tiny | Small | Medium | Large | Giant |
| Tiny | 0 | -25 | - | - | - |
| Small | +5 | 0 | -25 | - | - |
| Medium | +5 | +5 | 0 | -25 | - |
| Large | +10 | +5 | +5 | 0 | -25 |
| Giant | +10 | +10 | +5 | +5 | 0 |
Stability Modifier
Knockdown attack assumes a two-legged opponent. If defender has more than two legs, strike chance is modified by -10 for each additional leg. Thus, a human attempting to knockdown a centaur is at -25 for size differential and another -20 because the centaur has 4 legs, for a total of -45 to their strike chance.
Overwhelm
This attack can be used when a target is outnumbered by at least 4 opponents. The opponents might use this if the target is very difficult to hit or badly outmatches them with their weapon. The overwhelm attack does not need to be planned or orchestrated in advance, making it a suitable mob attack.
To make an Overwhelm attack, one attacker dives at/on the target and is quickly followed by more attackers. This attack happens as soon as movement is allowed (i.e., initiative 10). If the attacker is 5 feet or less from the target, the initial attack happens on 10. Otherwise it happens as soon as the attacker arrives. If three or less attackers attempt this, then the Overwhelm attack automatically fails and the attackers are at -20 to DEF for the rest of the round and the following round.
All of those attempting an Overwhelm attack lose all normal attacks for the round. For each Overwhelm attacker after the third, the target must make a special resistance roll equal to ((STR + Brawling rank) x3)). This chance is reduced by 10% for each attacker after the fourth.
Example: Barbario has a STR of 25 and rank 10 Brawling. Three attackers have already dived at him and are trying to wrestle him to the ground or otherwise put him at a disadvantage. A fourth attacker throws himself at Barbario forcing him to make his first resistance roll. His chance of success is ((25 + 10) x 3) = 105% (though 96-100 is automatic failure). He rolls a 48 and continues to stand and fight (making his attacks normally on his initiatives). Then three more attackers throw themselves at Barbario. Three more overwhelm attacks are made with each roll reduced by 10%. So Barbario's resistance rolls are 95% for the fifth attacker, 85% for the sixth attacker and 75% for the seventh. Barbario makes his rolls for the fifth and sixth attackers but fails on the seventh.
For each successful Overwhelm attack, roll on the table below:
| Result |
| 01-20 | Disarmed of weapon (or object in primary hand) (no effect if already disarmed) |
| 21-40 | Disarmed of shield (or object in offhand) (no effect if already disarmed) |
| 41-60 | Fall to the ground and take 1d3 NL damage (no PROT) (if already down, take 1d4 NL damage) |
| 61-70 | Suffer 1d6 damage (no PROT) |
| 71-80 | Suffer 1d8 NL damage (no PROT) |
| 81-90 | Suffer 2d6 damage (no PROT) |
| 91-95 | Suffer 3d6 damage (no PROT) |
| 96-100 | Suffer a grievous Crush critical |
Once an Overwhelm attack has succeeded, the target is consider to be in Close Quarters (see rules for Close Quarters).
On following rounds, the target suffers 1d3 of the above effects. These are the only attacks that the attackers can make. Alternately, they can choose to make Close Quarter attacks but then they do not count as an attacker for the purpose of the target breaking out of the Overwhelm (q.v.).
To break out of an Overwhelm, the target must give up all attacks for the round and make a successful ((STR + DEX) x2) roll that is reduced by 5 for each overwhelm attacker.
Pushback
A pushback manevuer is used to try to force a target backwards. The attacker must state their intent at the beginning of the round. If the attacker is normally allowed multiple attacks for the round, they lose one of their attacks. The attacker makes a normal attack roll with a -5 initiative and the defender gets their normal defense. If a hit is indicated, compare to the table below:
| Attack Result | Result |
| Normal Hit | 25% chance that opponent is pushed back 1d6 feet plus 1 foot per 2 points that penetrate PROT, round down. 50% chance that the attack causes normal damage. Each is rolled separately. Thus it is possible to push a target back, but not cause damage. It is also possible to cause damage without pushing the target back. Percent roll is increased by amount of damage that gets through PROT. |
| Critical Hit | Opponent is pushed by 1d10 feet plus 1 foot per point of damage that penetrates PROT. If the attacker makes a 2x LUCK roll, the attack also causes critical damage. Otherwise it causes normal (non-critical) damage. |
| Grievous Hit | Opponent is pushed back 1d10 feet plus 1 foot per point of damage that penetrates PROT and must make a 2x DEX roll or they are also knocked down. If knocked down, they lose all remaining attacks for the round and half their attacks the following round as they get to their feet. The attack also causes critical (non-grievous) damage. |
Size Differential Table
Use this table to determine strike chance modifier when the attacker and defender are different sizes. A hyphen (-) indicates that a Pushback maneuver cannot be attempted.
| Attacker | Defender |
|
Tiny | Small | Medium | Large | Giant |
| Tiny | 0 | -10 | -25 | -40 | -60 |
| Small | +5 | 0 | -10 | -25 | -40 |
| Medium | +10 | +5 | 0 | -10 | -25 |
| Large | +15 | +10 | +5 | 0 | |
| Giant | +20 | +15 | +10 | +5 | 0 |
Shield Bash
Someone skilled with a shield can use it to attack a target with a Shield Bash. The following rules apply.
- Reduced DEF - Defense (DEF) is reduced by 1 per shield rank. Thus, someone who is rank 7 with a shield and normally has a DEF of 50, would have a DEF of 43 during the round that they are using a Shield Bash maneuver.
- Number of Attacks - Number of attacks per round is dependent on rank in the same manner as weapons. Thus, someone who is rank 6 with shield can make 2 Shield Bash attacks per round. If, for example, the character normally gets 3 attacks per round with their sword, and can get two with their shield, they can make two shield bash attacks and one sword attack in the same round.
- Strike Chance - Strike Chance is equal to Base (see below) + (Rank x 4) + DEX. The target gets normal DEF to avoid the attack.
- Damage - PROT does not apply to Shield Bash damage though Lack of Weakness (LOW) does. STR damage is halved (round down). Magic shields apply their bonus directly: +1 or +5 shield = +1 damage, +2 or +10 shield = +2 damage, etc. No damage bonus for rank.
| Shield Type | Base SC | Base Dmg |
| Buckler | 35 | 1d2 |
| SR Shield | 40 | 1d3 |
| LR Shield | 45 | 1d4 |
| Kite Shield | 50 | 1d6 |
| Tower Shield | 55 | 1d8 |
The following table assumes that the wielder of the shield is of medium size.
Target Size |
| Tiny | Small | Medium | Large | Huge |
| LUCK save or roll additional damage (using base damage die) | Roll 1d10 + base damage (no STR/magic mods)
- 1-6: No further effect
- 7-10: LUCK Save or knocked back 1d6 ft
- 11-13: Knocked back 2d4 ft, LUCK save or knocked down (half round to get to feet)
- 14-18: Knocked back 2d4 feet and fall down, LUCK save or weapon dropped 1d4 ft away
| Roll 1d10 + base damage (no STR/magic mods)
- 1-8: No further effect
- 9-12: LUCK Save or knocked back 1d6 ft
- 13-16: Knocked back 2d4 ft, LUCK save or knocked down (half round to get to feet)
- 17-18: Knocked back 2d4 feet and fall down, LUCK save or weapon dropped 1d4 ft away
| Roll 1d10 + base damage (no STR/magic mods)
- 1-10: No further effect
- 11-14: LUCK Save or knocked back 1d6 ft
- 15-18: Knocked back 2d4 ft, LUCK save or knocked down (half round to get to feet)
| No further effect |
Using a Pole Arm from the Second Rank
Second Rank Attack with Pole Arm
An attacker with a pole arm can attack from the second rank with modifiers depending on relative sizes of the attacker with the pole arm, the target, and the first rank ally.
| 2nd Rank Attacker | 1st Rank Ally | Target | Attack Modifier | Auto Miss | Hit Ally | Also |
| Medium | Medium | Medium | -20 | 91-95 | 96-100 | Any case where all three are the same size. |
| Medium | Medium | Small | -30 | 86-93 | 94-100 | LLM, HHL, SST |
| Large | Medium | Medium | -15 | 93-97 | 98-100 | HLL, MSS, STT |
| Large | Medium | Small | -30 | 88-95 | 96-100 | HLM, MST |
| Large | Small | Medium | -10 | 94-98 | 99-100 | HML, MTS |
| Large | Medium | Large | -10 | 95-99 | 100 | MSM |
| Medium | Medium | Large | -15 | 93-97 | 98-100 | LLH, SSM |
Note: H = Huge, L = Large, M = Medium, S = Small, T = Tiny
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