8. COMBAT

1) Combat Sequence

One combat (melee) round is 12 seconds. The sequence of combat is as follows:

• Declaration of intent – GM and players all declare what their characters will do in the next round.

• Initiative – Determine order of attack.

• Resolution of missiles and melee – Each combatant takes their turn to carry out their declared action.

• Movement of non-engaged characters – Anyone not directly involved in the combat acts after all other actions have been taken.

Details of the combat sequence are given below.

a) Declaration of intent

The GM and players declare what all their characters are going to do in the coming round. The GM should alternate between himself and the players as to who declares first. Alternatively, declaration could be done by the lowest DEX person or creature first, on the theory that faster characters can react more easily to the slower ones than vice-versa.

b) Initiative

In the chaotic whirl of melee combat, who gets to act first is all important. The concept of “do unto others before they do unto you” allows combatants the chance to kill an opponent before the opponent can strike. Initiative determines this order of attack. To determine Initiative, each combatant rolls D10 plus or minus their DEX Modifier (i.e. the bonus or penalty for having a DEX higher than 12 or lower than 9). For example, a character with DEX of 15 rolls D10 + 3 for Initiative, while a character with DEX 6 rolls D10 – 3 for Initiative. In extreme cases, this character may have a negative Initiative score.

Once initiative is determined, attacks or other actions are carried out in descending order. Should two or more characters tie on a particular Initiative score, they act in order of DEX, highest first. If there is still a tie based on DEX score, roll 1D10 for each character involved in the tie. The highest D10 score acts first; keep re-rolling the D10's until an order is reached.

c) Resolve Actions

Much detail follows later in this section. In essence, each character involved in the combat makes skill rolls to Attack, Parry, Dodge or perhaps cast spells. Other characters may perform other actions: rummaging in backpacks, running away, picking up a dropped weapon and so on.

d) Movement of non-engaged characters

Anyone not directly involved in the combat acts now. This could be, for example: the arrival of reinforcements (who may fight next round); the appearance of summoned creatures; spell effects starting or ending; characters using non-combat skills (healing a fallen comrade as the battle rages all around); and other GM-controlled events.

e) Movement in Combat

In combat or similar tactical situations where there is “time pressure”, the time scale switches to rounds. Distance moved may be critical, and knowing if your character can get from one side of a battle to the other becomes important. Typical movement rates are shown below:

• Double these distances if on horseback.

• Multiply by 2/3 if a Dwarf or Hobbit.

• If wearing plate armour and STR < 15 speed is reduced to 2/3 normal rates.

• If STR > SIZ , character is faster than average

• If STR < SIZ , character is slower than average

f) Average Movement Rates in Combat

2) Making Attacks

To make an attack simply choose your weapon and make a percentile dice roll. If the roll is less than or equal to your Attack Percentage with that weapon, you have hit the target. This does not guarantee you have hurt the target, however. The target may parry your attack; have elected to dodge this round; or his armour (or thick skin) may absorb your weapon's damage.

Assuming your attack is not blocked or dodged in some way, roll the dice for your weapon's damage and any damage bonus you may have. The total damage (allowing for armour) is subtracted from the target's hit points. If the target is still able to fight, the combat continues.

a) Attack Modifiers (Experimental, Untested)

In addition to the modifiers described in the Game System chapter, the following modifiers may be applied to attacks in combat

b) Called Shots

A “called shot” is an attack intended to cause a special effect. Some examples of these effects are:

• To disarm an opponent

• To stun an opponent

• To break an object in an opponent's hand

• To hit a specific point on a target

To make a called shot, the player declares the intent at the start of the round and gives a brief description of the intended action (e.g. “I will knock the dagger out of the Orc's hand”). The character's Initiative is halved for that round as he manoeuvres for position and/or aims the attack carefully. When the character's turn arrives, the attack skill is halved to reflect the difficulty of the aimed shot.

If the intent of the called shot is to disarm the opponent, then on a successful attack roll, match the attacker's STR or DEX vs. the opponent's STR or DEX on the Resistance Table. The attacker can choose which of his character's attributes are used in this test. If the attacker wins the struggle, the foe is disarmed, his weapon landing 1D6 yards away in a random direction. Should the attacker make a critical success, the weapon lands up to 2D6 yards away in a direction chosen by the attacker. A fumble could well end up disarming the attacker!

To stun an opponent, a character must declare this called shot at the beginning of the round and then make a successful Brawl or melee attack (with a blunt weapon!) The damage is subtracted from the target's Hit Points. Then match the damage done against the target's remaining Hit Points on the Resistance Table. If the roll is successful, the target loses consciousness for 21 - CON hours. When it wakes up it will have a large bump on the head but will have recovered 1/3 of the Hit Points lost to the original attack.

3) On Guard!

Combat is not just about killing one's enemy. It is also about preserving one's own life from the attacks of those who would do the character harm. Discussed below are several methods of taking the risk out of combat.

a) Parries

The Parry skill is a life-saver. A character with a weapon or shield who is struck in combat may elect to Parry, that is, interpose a weapon or shield to stop the incoming blow.

A Parry roll is made the same way as an Attack: roll percentile dice and a roll less than or equal to the Parry skill with that weapon or shield means the blow has been stopped and the parrying character takes no damage.

A character may parry several times in one combat turn. Each time an additional parry is attempted, the parry skill decreases by 20% for each parry beyond the first (i.e. the first parry is at normal skill, the second at -20%, the third at -40%, the fourth at -60% and so on). These reductions are for the duration of that round only: the Parry skill returns to normal at the start of the next round.

Only one Parry may be attempted against each incoming blow. If your character is armed with a longsword and shield and misses an attempted parry with the shield, you may not attempt another parry against the same blow with the longsword. Neither may a character fail a Parry attempt and then elect to Dodge (see below).

b) Dodging

Dodge is a useful skill which allows the character to avoid an incoming blow. Melee attacks may be dodged providing the character has not previously attempted, and presumably failed, to Parry the incoming attack. Ranged attacks from thrown weapons (axes, rocks and spears, for example) may be dodged but arrows may not as they are travelling too fast. Only one Dodge may be attempted against each incoming attack.

A character may attempt multiple dodges in a round. As with parrying, each dodge after the first is at a cumulative -20% penalty.

A character can only Dodge a critical hit (see below) if the Dodge roll is also a critical.

c) Armour

Armour exists to absorb some or all of the damage inflicted by an attack. When an armoured character is hit in combat (or takes damage from other sources like a fall) subtract the armour's protection rating from the damage rolled. Only the excess is then subtracted from the character's Hit Points. For example, a character wearing hard leather armour is struck for five points of damage. The armour will absorb two points of this. The remaining three points come off the character's Hit Points.

Armour costs, weights, types and protection values,are detailed in the Weapons and Equipment chapter.

d) Cover

Taking cover means to use the surrounding environment as a means of protection. This could be as simple as diving to the ground to avoid a hail of arrows or fighting a desperate seige action on the battlements of a fortress. Unlike armour, cover decreases the attacker's chances of landing a successful blow on the character in cover, rather than providing a reduction in damage. Some sample cover modifiers are shown below

Cover Type	Modifier
Hard cover (walls, battlements, solid wood)	-20%
Soft cover (hedges, bushes)	-10%
Amount of target covered	-10% to -90% at GM's discretion

4) Levels of Success in Combat

The same six levels of success or failure as apply to normal skill rolls also apply in combat. There are slightly different effects for Attack rolls and Parries

a) Critical

A critical roll is any roll on any skill that is 1/10 or less of the possible skill roll. For example, a Warrior with a Longsword Attack skill of 60% would score a critical on a roll of 01 – 06%.

While critical rolls apply to any skill (as described in the Game System chapter) in combat they are much more important - and potentially very deadly. When a critical hit is scored in combat, apply the following rules:

• Normal armour does not protect against a critical hit. The blow is assumed to have penetrated a joint or other weak spot in the armour. However, armour made of Mithril does protect against a critical hit. It is this ability of Mithril that saves Frodo's life when the Cave Troll spears him in Moria.

• Roll normal weapon's damage and double it. This greatly increases the chances of killing the target with a single blow.

• If the critical hit is not fatal, the target still suffers a major wound, even if the damage would normally have inflicted only a minor wound .

• The stricken character is assumed to be at least temporarily stunned and out of action for at least five minutes.

Critical hits can be dodged or parried under the following circumstances:

• A critical hit can be dodged by a critical Dodge roll.

• A critical hit can be parried by any successful Parry roll but the parrying weapon or shield is assumed to be destroyed in the process.

If a fighter makes a critical Parry roll, the attacker's weapon is destroyed. The defender takes no damage.

b) Special

A Special occurs when the skill roll lies between 1/10 and 1/5 of the skill score. The Warrior above would score a Special on a roll of 07 – 12%. A Special has the following effects:

• Normal Damage (plus Damage Bonus if applicable) is inflicted on the target.

• The target is knocked back 1D3 yards, assuming there is enough room for such a movement.

• Whether or not the target can be knocked back, the target will be knocked down if it fails an Acrobatics roll.

Special hits can be Dodged or Parried normally and armour has its normal protective value.

A Special Parry roll does not destroy the attacking weapon but the shock of impact jars the attacker who takes an Initiative penalty of -2 on the next round. The defender takes no damage.

c) Normal

A Normal Hit occurs when the Attack roll is greater than 1/5 and less than or equal to the attacker's skill score. Thus our Longsword-armed Warrior from above scores a Normal hit on the roll of 13 – 60%.

When a Normal hit is scored, roll the weapon's normal damage (adding the weilder's Damage Bonus if applicable).

A Normal hit can be Dodged or Parried normally and armour has its normal protective value.

A Normal Parry stops the incoming attack. The defender takes no damage.

d) Failure

A Normal Miss occurs when the Attack roll is greater than the attacker's skill score but less than the roll required for a Mishap or Fumble to have occurred (as described below).

When a Normal Miss occurs, the target sustains no damage, need not Parry or Dodge, and there is no further effect.

If a Parry roll is failed, the defender is struck by the incoming weapon, normal damage is inflicted and the target must rely on armour (if any) to reduce the wound.

e) Mishap Roll

A Mishap is an unfortunate event which accompanies a failed attack. For an attacker with a skill score less than 50%, a Mishap occurs on the percentile dice roll of 96, 97 or 98. For those with a skill score of 50% or greater a Mishap occurs on the roll of 98 or 99.

When a Mishap occurs, the target sustains no damage and need not Parry or Dodge. The attacker, however, is not so fortunate. Roll percentile dice on the following table, to determine the Mishap's effects on the attacker. The descriptions are left vague enough that the GM can provide evocative descriptions depending on the circumstances of the Mishap.

Similarly, if a Mishap is results on a Parry roll, the defender rolls on the following table.

f) Fumble

The opposite side of the coin to a critical is the Fumble. Everyone makes mistakes, no matter how high their skills. A roll of 00 (100) on the percentile dice is always a Fumble. For characters with a skill rating below 50%, the roll of 99 is also a fumble.

For Fumbles in combat, roll D100 and refer to the charts below.

5) Damage and Hit Points

Each character, creature and object has a certain number of Hit Points. For normal characters this is the average of CON + SIZ with fractions rounded up. These represent how much damage that character, creature or object can sustain before being killed or destroyed. When a character suffers damage, points are deducted from the Hit Point total. When all Hit Points are gone, the character is dead or an object is destroyed.

Damage in combat comes from two sources: the weapon being used and the physical power of the wielder of that weapon.

Weapon damage can be found on the Weapons Tables. The wielder's physical power comes from a combination of strength and size. Add the character's STR and SIZ and find the result on the table below. This gives the character's damage bonus to be applied whenever that character makes an unparried hit in combat.

a) Damage Bonus

STR + SIZ	Damage Bonus
02 - 12	-1D4
13 - 24	No Bonus
25 - 32	+1D4
33 - 40	+1D6
41 - 56	+2D6
57 +	additional 1D6 damage for each additional increment of 16 or fraction thereof

When a hit is scored with a hand-held weapon, roll the damage for the weapon and the full modifier shown above. When using a thrown weapon or bow add half the damage bonus modifier.

For example, a character with STR + SIZ totaling 26 has a damage bonus of +1D4 with any melee weapon and +1D4 / 2 with a thrown weapon or bow. Should this character score a hit with a longsword, the damage roll will be a total of D10 + 1 (for the longsword) + 1D4 (for STR + SIZ). This gives a maximum damage potential of 15 points - more than enough to kill a strong Man in a single blow. With a missile weapon, the character's damage bonus is +1D4 / 2, the theory being that a bigger, stronger character can pull a heavier bow, but that the person's SIZ is not as big a factor over a distance. Thus, if this character scores a hit with a shortbow, the damage is 1D6+1 (for the bow) plus 1D4 / 2 (or 1 - 2 points for STR + SIZ), giving a maximum damage of 9 points. This is enough to seriously wound a normal Man.

When a hit is scored, roll damage according to weapon type and damage bonus. Any damage which penetrates the target's armour is a wound. There are three severities of wound:

b) Minor Wounds

Minor wounds are defined as those that do less than half the character's original Hit Point total. These are typically cuts and bruises, not amputations, impalements or broken bones. A character can be killed by taking too many minor wounds which reduce his Hit Points to zero.

Players must keep track of the number of Hit Points lost to minor wounds. For every four (4) Hit Points lost to minor wounds a character suffers the following penalties

• The character's Initiative is decreased by 1 per minor wound

• Skills involving movement and coordination (most Agility, Manipulation, Attack, Parry and Stealth skills) are reduced by 5% per minor wound

When the lost Hit Points are restored, the penalties are reduced. Otherwise, minor wounds do not hinder a character from fighting right up until the end.

c) Major Wounds

Major wounds are defined as those doing more than half the character's original Hit Point total in a single blow, but less than all the points. A character's major wound level is equal to half his total hit points, with fractions rounded up. A character with 15 Hit Points, therefore, suffers a major wound if he sustains 8 points of damage from a single blow. Major wounds are typically amputations, impalements or broken bones. No character can take more than one major wound and live.

If a character takes a major wound, the following penalties instantly apply:

• His Initiative rolls are halved, rounding up fractions. This represents the pain of the wound slowing the character's reactions. The initiative penalty remains until the character is healed to full Hit Points.

• Skills involving movement and coordination (most Agility, Manipulation, Attack, Parry and Stealth skills) are halved.

• Shock and blood loss mean the character cannot keep fighting indefinitely. If possible, the character should withdraw from combat immediately. If sorely pressed, however, the character may keep fighting for a number of rounds equal to his remaining Hit Points. At the end of this period, the fighter collapses.

• The character must roll on the Major Wounds Table below to determine any long term effects of the wound

• Major wounds carry a risk of death, even if the character survives the initial wound. The character must receive medical (or magical) treatment for his injury within one hour or risk death. If no such aid is received, he must roll his CON or less on 1D20 to avoid death. If he rolls higher than his CON, he dies on the spot. Those that make the roll will eventually heal, but they will be partially crippled and will lose 1D6 CON points permanently, in addition to any penalties incurred on the major wounds table below.

Major Wounds Table

Each time a character suffers a major wound it must roll on the table above to determine the effects of the injury. Refer to the descriptions of the First Aid and Healing skills for information on how to treat such wounds. Short of magic, there is no way to reattach a severed limb. However, a Healing skill roll, made promptly after a character suffers such an amputating or crippling injury, means that the wound is not as serious as the chart above might indicate and that the healer has saved the limb. Furthermore, the use of a Fate Point can cancel one of these effects but will not restore the Hit Points lost to the wound.

A character who suffers the same wound twice in separate fights need not take the damage twice. After all, once an Orc has clawed out one's right eye, a bandit cannot do the same. Instead, the character gains another scar. However, organ damage, concussions and broken ribs are cumulative at the GM's discretion.

After a character suffers an injury on this chart, recalculate all skill bonuses based on the reduced attributes.

d) Gruesome Injuries (optional, experimental, untested)

As an optional rule, a combatant sustaining a Major Wound may be the victim of a Gruesome Injury. These are typically amputations, severe bleeding and other maiming injuries that often cause loss of Attribute points and have a long term effect on a character. The GM should use these injuries with care on PCs as they may make a character unplayable or simply not fun to play. However, they are good ideas to add colour and characterisation to NPCs: a grizzled Warrior of Rohan who lost a hand fighting an Orc warband raiding a Rohirrim homestead; or perhaps those self-same Orcs with their numerous scars and afflictions caused by the brutal society in which they live.

D4	Location
1	Arm
2	Leg
3	Head
4	Torso

Arm Roll 1D6. 1 – 3 = Left , 4 – 6 = Right

D6	Damage
1	Maimed. Doesn't heal properly. Lose 2 DEX.
2	Lose 1D4 fingers. Lose 2 DEX and 10% off all Manipulation skills.
3	Amputate hand. -3 DEX, 20% off Manipulation skills.
4	Amputate at forearm/wrist. -4 DEX, 20% off Manipulation skills.
5	Amputate at elbow. -4 DEX, 20% off all Manipulation skills, Climb and Swim.
6	Amputate at upper arm. -4 DEX, 40% off all Manipulation skills, Climb and Swim.

Leg Roll 1D6. 1 – 3 = Left , 4 – 6 = Right

D6	Damage
1	Maimed. Doesn't heal properly. Permanent and noticeable limp. Lose 2 DEX.
2	Hamstrung leg. Becomes useless. -4 DEX.
3	Lose foot. -2 DEX, 20% off all Agility skills
4	Severed artery. Blood loss 1D4 Hit Points per minute
5	Amputate at knee. -3 DEX, 20% off all Agility skills
6	Amputate at thigh. -4 DEX, 40% off all Agility skills.

Head

D10	Damage
1	Lose Left Eye. -2 CHA, -2 DEX
2	Lose Right Eye. -2 CHA, -2 DEX
3	Lose Left Ear. -1 CHA, -5% from Perception Bonus
4	Lose Right Ear. -1 CHA, -5% from Perception Bonus
5 – 6	Jaw/Teeth. Lose 1D6 teeth, -2 CHA and -1 CON
7	Lose Nose. -4 CHA, -3% from Perception Bonus
8	Throat/Neck. Severed artery, blood loss 1D6 Hit Points per minute. If this wound is survived, the character will forever speak with a gutteral rasping voice.
9 – 10	Skull. Concussion or Brain Damage. -3 INT, -3 CHA. Possible personality change (GM discretion)

Torso

D6	Damage
1	Spinal injury. Ability to move and handle heavy weights severely impaired. STR and DEX halved.
2	Damage to internal organs. Lose D6+2 CON points and recalculate Hit Points based on the new CON value. Possible delayed fatality.
3 – 4	“Bleeding like a stuck pig”. Lose 1D6 Hit Points per round.
5	Broken ribs. Lose 1D4 CON points and recalculate Hit Points accordingly.
6	Heart shattered. Instant fatality regardless of number of Hit Points remaining.

e) Fatalities

A fatality is any wound that deals more damage than the character has current Hit Points. This is instant death. There is no resurrection in this game. Unless you are Gandalf!

f) Near Death (Optional, experimental, untested)

On receiving a fatal wound as described above, the character is dying. Prompt medical attention (either magical or mundane) is required to save the character's life. The character will cling to life for his CON / 2 (round up fractions) in minutes. For each minute thereafter, the character must make CON x 10, CON x 9, CON x 8 etc down to CON x 1 saving rolls. As soon as one of these rolls is failed, the character dies at the end of that minute.

Thus, a character with CON 12 takes a Fatal wound. He will cling to life for six minutes (12 / 2 = 6) before Death comes for him. On the seventh minute he must make a CON x 10 roll; on the eighth minute, a CON x 9 roll; on the ninth minute, a CON x 8 roll. This continues until 17 minutes after the fatal wound when the saving roll is CON x 1. For each minute thereafter the save remains at CON x 1. The character dies at the end of any minute in which the CON roll is failed.

6) Injury and Healing

a) Non-combat sources of injury

Middle-earth is a dangerous place and there are many ways a character can be injured apart from combat. Fire, drowning, falling, acids, poisons and diseases are all life-threatening hazards.

b) Fire Damage

Fires cause damage per round of exposure. How much damage depends on the size of the fire.

A hand-held torch causes 1D6 Hit Points of burn damage per hit. The target gets a Luck Roll to see if it catches fire. (Add +20% to the Luck Roll if the target is wearing all metal armour.) Burning targets take a further 1D6 damage per round without needing to be hit again.

A bonfire causes 1D6+2 Hit Points damage per round of exposure and engulfs the target's clothes and hair. The character may attempt a POW x 1 roll to avoid burning.

To be in a burning hut or ship is similar to a bonfire (1D6+2 points of damage per round). In addition, the character must make a Luck Roll each round to avoid asphyxiation, rules for which are described below.

Exposure to hotter fires, such as molten lava, a blacksmith's forge or kiln, causes 3D6 Hit Points of damage per round of exposure.

Serious burns, those causing more than half the character's total Hit Points, also cause the loss of 1D4 Attribute points if the burned character fails a Luck Roll. It is at GM's discretion which attributes are affected but the first point should always be from the character's CHA.

c) Asphyxiation - Drowning and Suffocation

If drowning, sinking in a marsh, starved of air or being strangled, the character must make CON rolls each round to avoid asphyxiation. Start at CON x 10% on the first round and work down the multiplier each subsequent round until CON x 1% (minimum) is reached. A failed roll causes loss of 1D6 Hit Points per round thereafter; the character is suffocating.

A critical CON roll (at the last level before the failed roll) could allow the character to stop taking damage.

d) Falling or Being Thrown

Falls cause 1D6 Hit Points Damage per 10 feet of fall. A successful Acrobatics skill roll can negate this damage, but only for falls of less than 30 feet.

Armour does not protect against falling damage. In fact, platemail (Chainmail with plates in Middle-earth) increases the damage sustained by 1D6.

If a character is thrown (by large creatures like Trolls, for example) apply the same rules, i.e. 1D6 damage per 10 feet thrown.

e) Acid

Uncommon in Middle-earth, acid, like fire, causes damage per round of contact. The contact must be significant, like the immersion of a hand, for damage to be applied (incidental splashes do not cause significant damage). Damage is done based on the strength of the acid as shown below:

Strength	Damage per round
Weak	D3 - 1
Strong	D4
Very Strong	D6 + 1

Armour provides half its normal protection value versus acid for 1D3 rounds. After this duration, the armour does not protect the wearer.

Use these rules for exposure to other caustic substances, like alkalies, as well.

f) Poisons

There are many sources of poison. Each poison may be classified in terms of its Potency rating (POT), onset time and effect. Some poisons are described below.

* = these are species-average POTs; individual spiders or snakes may have greater or lesser toxicity.

The poisons presented above are “real world” poisons. In Middle-earth, it will be necessary for the GM to invent names for specific poisons and assign POT ratings and effects in line with these examples. So a poison bladderwort from the Forest of Mirkwood might have the same effects as Black Widow venom, a POT of 7 and cause chills, sweating and nausea.

When a character has been exposed to poison, time is of the essence. It may be that the character knows, or suspects, the exposure: after being bitten by a rattlesnake or giant spider it is pretty clear that the character could have been poisoned. A First Aid or Healing roll applied to the character may be enough to suck or cut the poison out of the wound. The character may still take damage (perhaps a dagger wound's worth as the poison is excised).

After the onset time, match POT vs. CON on the Resistance Table. If the poison wins the struggle, the character takes full effect of the poison. Normally this is a number of Hit Points equal to the poison's POT. However, this need not be the case. The creative GM can work out game effects of the symptoms listed above. A character could be incapacitated by such effects and this may add pressure to the character's companions as they race to find a healer to cure the poison's effects.

If the character's CON resists the toxin, there is a lesser effect, normally half the poison's POT in Hit Points damage, a shorter duration of effect or less serious symptoms.

g) Diseases

Disease and illness are similar to poisons. They have a Virulence rating (VIR) which is equivalent to a poison's POT rating.When exposed to a disease, match the disease's VIR against the character's CON on the Resistance Table. If the VIR wins, the character is infected. A sick character loses 1D3

Hit Points per day until the total lost is equal to the VIR of the disease. If the character survives, his immune system has triumphed over the microbes and he starts to recover the lost Hit Points. First Aid skill does not affect diseases but Healing skill does.

Disease	VIRulence
Common Cold	3 to 5
Influenza	4 to 8
Pneumonia	6 to 10
Cholera	12 to 15
Plague	14 to 20

h) Healing

Review the effects and applications of the Healing and First Aid skills.

Natural healing occurs at a rate of 1D3 Hit Points per week. This assumes the character has the chance to rest and take no more physical exercise than a gentle stroll. For more strenuous exercise (like combat) the character must make a CON x 5% roll or regain no Hit Points that week.

7) Combat Tactical Notes

a) Ambushes

This rule-set supports an Ambush skill. Most ambush situations will be set up by the GM, which are much easier (and much more dangerous) than PC-planned ambushes. Should a PC (or group) decide to lay an ambush, use the following guidelines.

• The ambushing party (PCs) describe the ambush: who is involved; how it will be set up; what triggers it; and who will attack whom, and with what.

• The GM describes play naturally until the point where the ambush will take place, then rolls D100 against each ambusher's Ambush skill.

• If the Ambush roll is successful, the GM rolls 1D4-1 to determine how many combat rounds the surprise effect of the ambush lasts. During these rounds, the victims may not Parry, Dodge, or fight back. They are completely at the mercy of their enemies.

• Once this D4-1 rounds passes, the ambushed party is able to fight normally, assuming it has not been wiped out.

• If the Ambush roll is not successful, the ambushed party is allowed a See roll. Any characters in the ambushed party successfully making this See roll may Parry on the first combat round, and fight back normally on the second and subsequent rounds. All who fail the See roll are completely surprised and may do nothing on the first round; they may Parry on the second round; and they may fight normally on the third round.

• If a number of characters are engaged in springing the Ambush, choose one of those characters to be the leader of the ambush. This will normally be the character with the highest Ambush skill. The leader of the ambush must make a successful Ambush roll and a successful Warcraft skill roll in order to coordinate the ambush. If either roll is failed, the ambush has failed as described above.

In the event that a player specifically states their character is watching for an ambush, the GM should conduct a POW vs. POW struggle between that PC and the leader of the ambush to see if the ambush is detected ahead of time.

b) Weapon Mastery

Characters whose Attack and Parry skills with a given weapon are both 90% or better qualify as a Master of that weapon. Weapon mastery grants a number of advantages.

Training

Masters may train others in the use of that weapon, and may charge whatever the student can afford for such training.

The student must practice full-time with the master for at least one game week. At the end of training, roll D6-2 for both Attack and Parry skills to see by what percentage the character's weapon skill has improved. (It is possible to get worse after studying with a Master, in cases where the Master's style differs radically from the student's).

Characters may only train with one master in one week. Before any Master can train the same character in the same weapon again, that character must have participated in real combat with that weapon and have learned from the experience.

Multiple Attacks

The weapon master can make more than one Attack each round. During the Statement of Intent phase, the player decides how many Attacks will be made. The first Attack takes place on the character's Initiative, the second on Initiative -5, the third on Initiative -10, and so on. Each Attack made beyond the first is at -20%. So the first Attack is on normal percentage; the second at -20%, the third at -40%, and so on.

The Riposte

Masters have the ability to turn a successful Parry into an extra Attack whenever the Parry may fall during the combat round. This is called a riposte. The riposte is used against the opponent whose attack was parried: it cannot be used against a different foe.

For example, if a Master makes three successful Parries in a round, he may also make three ripostes, one against each foe he parried. However, the chance for each Attack made during the round, whether normal Attack or riposte, decreases by -20% for each Attack beyond the first. This penalty is cumulative: 0% for the first Attack; -20% for the second; -40% for the third, etc.

c) Helpless Enemy

This covers situations like back-stabbing, sneaking into a camp and slitting the throats of sleeping enemy, and similar circumstances.

If the attacker can see (or at least be certain of) what he is doing, a helpless enemy will be slain automatically if it fails a POW x 1% saving roll. If this roll is successful, the victim takes the attacker's normal weapon damage and immediately becomes aware that he is under attack. On combat round two, the victim may Parry or Dodge, if he is able to. On combat round three, normal melee rules apply.

If the attacker cannot be certain of what he is doing, he gets one free surprise Attack at normal skill level, and the victim may be protected by any armour he is wearing. After the first round of surprise, combat reverts to normal melee.

d) Unaware Enemy

In the whirl of melee combat, a fighter may have no idea a foe is about to hit him from a blind side. In such a case, the victim is allowed a POW x 1% saving roll to become aware of the possible surprise attacker. If this roll fails, the attacker's skill is doubled for the surprise attack, with the corresponding doubled chance of a critical hit.

e) Fortifications

When attacking someone who is behind fortifications of some sort (a wall or barricade, for example) the defender counts as “in cover”. The GM should rule on the extent of the cover the barricade provides and apply modifiers to the attacker's Attack skill as described in the section on Cover.

The defender's attack skill is unchanged, unless he has height advantage (see below).

f) Narrow Positions

A warrior who is fighting from a narrow position (in a doorway, a narrow pass or one-log bridge, for example) has no modifiers to his attack skill. Similarly the opponents have no adjustments. However, the fighter in such a position gains the “advantage” that the number of opponents who can attack him at once is limited. This is a GM call, based on the width of the position being fought over.

See below for rules on Superior Numbers.

g) Height Advantage

A significant height advantage (horseback to infantry, hilltop to slope, wall to ground) between combatants puts the fighter on the lower elevation at a -5% penalty to both Attack and Parry skills. It is harder to strike up at a higher opponent, hence the Attack reduction; similarly, it is harder to defend oneself from attacks from above, hence the Parry reduction.

Height advantage does not apply if one character is merely a bit taller than another. Thus, a Man fighting a Man (or Elf, Orc or perhaps even a Dwarf) on level ground would not have any adjustments. A Hobbit fighting a Man would suffer the penalty, as would a Man fighting a Troll.

h) Superior Numbers

As a rule of thumb, no more than five man-sized attackers can surround and attack a single man-sized target in one melee round.

8) Weapons Tables

The Weapons Tables list the STR and DEX requirements for using a given weapon effectively. In desperate times, however, a character may have to use a weapon for which he does not have the correct attributes. In such a case, the following rules apply.

• The character's skill with that weapon is 5% or his Attack and Parry bonuses whichever is higher.

• With insufficient STR to wield the weapon, the character is slower and clumsier. He automatically strikes last in the combat round, unless another character is also fighting with a forbidden weapon, in which case these unfortunates determine initiative normally.

• With insufficient DEX, the character strikes at his normal initiative in the round but any successful hit does only half damage as the character lacks the DEX to control the weapon properly.