Any character may make an untrained/unskilled hand-to-hand attack. This is also known as a Brawling attack (trained attacks use the proper skill). The Attack Bonus for such untrained attacks is the sum of the character’s Str & Dex bonuses plus any situational modifiers. Unarmed Brawling attacks may use any of the Basic Unarmed Combat Moves, but they will have a DR of 0 so long as the character has no unarmed training. Base Damage for Brawling attacks is therefore comprised of only the character’s Str bonus.

There will be times when a player wishes his character to hit a specific portion of his foe. This is what is known as a Called Shot. To make a Called Shot, the player will apply a negative modifier to his attack roll, based on where he is trying to hit. Attacks against the arms or legs receive a -4 modifier. Attacks against the head receive a -8 modifier.

If the attack is successful, the defender does not receive his normal AR against the attack. Instead, he receives Called Shot AR value of any armor worn on that specific location, and that number is subtracted from any damage dealt.

Additionally, depending upon the location and the total amount of damage dealt, other effects can occur as follows:

During a round, an action declared by a character may be canceled at any time prior to its resolution. A character who has canceled his action(s) for the round may perform one of the following:

• Melee with half his normal Attack Bonus
• Move, using up to 3 Action Points.
• Perform some other action modified by -5
• Cast an Instantaneous defensive spell.
• Cast Counterspell
• Perform a Dodge, Block or similar Combat Move as allowed by its description.

The new action is performed at the time that the old action was canceled. If the canceling and new action is declared at the same time as another character’s action, then this new action will be resolved first. However, if the character’s canceled action included a melee attack against a foe; this new attack, if selected, may not be against that same foe.

This is a 5’ area to the sides and front of the character/creature, approximately a 180 degree arc. The next 60 degrees on either side of this control zone are the flanks, attacks from the flanks gain a +2 modifier. And the last 60 degree arc, directly behind the character/creature is the rear, and attacks from the rear gain a +4 modifier. Large humanoid creatures have a 10’ Control Zone and Huge humanoid creatures have a 15’ Control Zone. Non-humanoid creatures, especially those that are Large and Huge will have similar Control Zones, but the actual shape is likely to depend upon the shape of the creature. Just keep in mind that the Control Zone rarely extends behind the creature’s shoulders, and that the rear zone will always be directly behind the creature, with the remaining sections on either side being the flank zones.

In order for a character to safely disengage from melee, without triggering an Opportunity Attack  (OA) from the foe, a character must spend 1 AP for Disengaging and then move out of the foe’s Control Zone by spending other, additional AP.

Sometimes a character will come up against something that is more powerful than he is, and he will find that it can hit him, a lot more often than he likes. This is where Fighting Defensively comes into play. When doing this, the player is able to shift part of his Melee Combat Skill, for the weapon he is currently wielding, from his Attack Bonus to his DEF.

For every 2 points subtracted from the character’s Attack Bonus, +1 may be added to the character’s DEF. Many of the Combat Moves also provide modifiers to DEF, and Fighting Defensively may be used in conjunction with many of them. However, one cannot Fight Defensively and perform any sort of Dodge. Additionally, any amount shifted to DEF when performing a Block or Parry comes off the character’s AB for the roll made to stop the incoming attack.

While a character is not required to make an attack while Fighting Defensively, he is expected and required to have the weapon(s) for the Melee Combat Skill that he is shifting towards DEF in his hand in order to actually shift those points

Melee is a constant confusion of shifting bodies as the opponents move back and forth, to the left and right, all trying to gain the best position. Attempting to make a ranged attack into this confusion is very difficult at best, and potentially hazardous for people other than the target. Any ranged attack made into a melee situation receives a -2 modifier to the attack roll.

When making an attack into a melee situation, if the attack hits its intended target, it is resolved normally. If it misses, then all other potential targets within 5’ of the path of the attack must make a Saving Throw vs. Spd, starting with those closest to the attacker and then moving outwards from there.

The TN of this Save is the attacker’s total attack roll (dice roll + skill bonus + all modifiers that applied to the attack against the original target). If the potential target makes his Save, the attack missed him and the next potential target must make a Saving Throw vs. Spd (same TN). If he failed his Save, he receives the Base Damage of the attack plus 1 additional hit of Scaled Damage for each point that he failed his Save by.

This damage may be reduced by the character’s AR. Modifiers to the potential target’s DEF, from a Shield, various Combat Moves (Dodges, Diving for Cover, etc.), Talents, magical armor, spells, etc. (GM’s discretion, but it is recommended that all other bonuses that do not rely on skill or awareness of the potential target be allowed) should also be applied to the Saving Throw.

Normally a character has only 5 Action Points to use in a given round. However, some spells and items can Haste the character, giving him a total of 10 AP for the round. This may allow the character to declare multiple attacks. However, no amount of Haste will allow for casting more than one spell per round.

Sometimes a player will want to hold off performing his declared actions for a little while.

Should the player decide to hold his character’s actions prior to declaring his character’s actions for the round, there is no penalty. However, should the player decide to hold his character’s action after he has already declared his actions, he will lose 1 AP from the total that he has available for the round and must re-declare his actions to fit within this revised number of AP.

The player may then perform have his character perform his actions at any initiative point that he desires, so long as it is lower than the initiative point rolled for the round.

Should the player want his character to perform his actions in the initiative point as somebody else (PC or NPC), the GM should Opposed Saving Throws to determine which goes first.

There will be times when characters will want or need to use unusual objects as weapons. The GM should determine what the improvised weapon most resembles, and then the character will either use his skill for that weapon or his Brawling attack bonus, whichever is higher, with a -4 modifier due to the inadequacy of the weapon for combat.

Improvised weapons should do half of the damage of the weapon that they most resemble.

This is similar to a moving attack, but performed while the character is mounted, and thus it is the mount that is doing the moving. Performing a Mounted Charge requires a total of 8 Action Points (AP), 4 more than is required for a normal attack. If the character has the Talent, Mounted Combat II, then the charge will only require 6 AP.

If the character has the Talent, Mounted Combat I, then he has a +4 modifier to his Attack Bonus (AB) and a -4 modifier to his DEF. Without that Talent, the character has a -1 to his AB and a -9 to his DEF.

When making charging attacks, the character will deal an extra amount of damage equal to 15 times the pace of his mount, so long as the mount moves faster than a human normally, and it must have a pace of at least 2x its normal movement rate. If his mount is moving at 2x its normal pace, the attack will deal an extra 30 hit points of damage. If the mount is moving at 3x its normal pace, the attack will deal an extra 45 hit points of damage. If the mount is moving at 4x its normal pace, then the attack will deal an extra 60 hit points of damage.

Moving at 2x the mount’s normal base movement rate will require a Riding skill roll (TN 20). Moving at 3x the mount’s base movement rate will require a Riding skill roll (TN 25), and moving at 4x the mount’s base movement rate will require a Riding skill roll (TN 30). These Riding skill rolls are required, but do not use any of the character’s Action Points for the round. If the player fails the Riding skill roll, he will receive an additional -1 modifier to both his DEF and AB in addition to those listed above.

When making a Mounted Charge, if one of the combatants has a lance, a long spear, or other weapon from the Pole Arm family of weapons and the other does not, then the combatant with the longer weapon will resolve his attack first, regardless of initiative order. All other actions will be determined by initiative normally.

If a Mounted Charge is being made against an unmounted foe, that foe may decide to use Dodge in an attempt to avoid the charge. If the dodging character waits until the last moment to perform the Dodge (i.e. such as with Canceling an Action), the modifier to his DEF will be doubled before being applied.

o make attacks while mounted, the player must make a Riding skill roll for his character each round. This roll will cost the character no Action Points, and it has a TN of 23 if the mount is untrained for combat and a TN of 18 if the mount has been trained for combat. If the player fails the Riding skill roll, he will receive an additional -1 modifier to both his DEF and Attack Bonus (AB) in addition to those listed below.

Attacks against other mounted foes, when neither combatant is involved in a Mounted Charge, have a -0 DEF modifier and a -0 AB modifier. If the character does not have the Mounted Combat I Talent, these modifiers are -5 and -5 respectively.

Attacks against foes that are not mounted have a -3 DEF modifier and a -2 AB modifier. If the character does not have the Mounted Combat I Talent, these modifiers are -8 and -7 respectively.

All mounted attacks, excluding Mounted Charges, which are covered separately, require an extra 2 Action Points (AP) to perform. If the character has the Mounted Combat II Talent, then attacks only require 1 extra AP to perform.

As characters gain ranks in their melee Combat Skills, they gain the ability to make multiple attacks. For every 10 points in a given skill’s total bonus, the character gains the ability to make an additional attack. The character’s Attack Bonus receives a modifier of -4 for each attack beyond the first, and a modifier of -2 for each foe beyond the first to be attacked (i.e. making 1 attack each against 2 foes results in a -6 to the character’s Attack Bonus, 2 attacks against a single foe has only a -4 modifier). The remaining Attack Bonus is then divided between the individual attacks in whatever split the player desires. Any modifiers for Fighting Defensively are also subtracted from the Attack Bonus before the player splits it between the individual attacks.

The Talent, Advanced Combat Training, supersedes this capability. This capability cannot be used with combat styles or skills that grant multiple attacks (i.e. Two Weapon Combo).

There are some combat skills, talents, capabilities or situations that will allow characters to declare and make multiple attack rolls in a single round. When this happens, the primary attack roll is made at the character’s initiative point, and any remaining attack rolls are made at the end of the round. In making multiple attacks, once the first of the attacks is made, the character may no longer cancel his action to perform other actions as described in though he may still cancel his remaining attacks.

When a character learns to use a weapon, he does so in a specific hand. Attempting to use that weapon in his other hand, or off-hand, will result in a -4 modifier being applied to the attack unless the character is ambidextrous.

There are times when a character using a one handed weapon may want to put a little extra oomph! behind it by using both hands. In such cases, the attack requires 1 additional AP to perform, and does 2 additional points of Base Damage.

This is an attack that happens outside the normal initiative cycle, but it still counts against the character’s available actions for the round. If the character is only able to make a single attack each round, making an Opportunity Attack will count as his attack for the round. If the character has multiple attacks (high skill, multiple weapons, etc.) each round, he may use any number of his attacks for the OA. If the character doesn’t use all of his attacks for the OA, then he makes the rest of his attacks normally according to normal initiative procedures. Opportunity Attacks are triggered by a potential foe entering or crossing a character’s Control Zone without the intention of attacking the character.

A character may prepare for one round, using 4 AP of that round, in order to reroll his initiative in the following round. This new IP will be the character’s IP for the remainder of the combat.

A character that does this is not allowed to make an attack of any sort in the round in which he is preparing to Reroll Initiative. He may, however, use up to half of his Melee Combat Skill in Fighting Defensively during the preparation round. This may not be done in a round in which the character has received a modifier for being surprised.

A character may use 2 AP of his available activity in a round to prepare for the next round of combat. In such cases, the character is treated as if he rolled a 20 on the 2d10 for determining his Initiative. This may not be done in a round in which the character has received a modifier for being surprised.

This IP modification lasts only for one round, and it cannot be performed on consecutive rounds. Additionally, the character may not make any attacks in the round in which he is preparing for this. He may, however, use up to half of his Melee Combat Skill in Fighting Defensively during the preparation round.

While the Action Point table provides a number of example actions, there is no way that it can cover all of the possibilities. When a player declares an action that is not on the Action Point table, the GM will have to decide if it is a Simple or a Complex Action. A Simple Action is just that, very simple. It usually involves only a single activity or goal and often requires only a simple, single movement to complete (i.e. drawing a weapon, picking something up off the floor, etc.). Simple Actions also rarely, if ever, require a roll of any sort. Simple Actions will normally take from 1 to 2 AP to perform.

Complex Actions, on the other hand, usually require somewhere between 2 and 5 AP to accomplish, and will often require a roll to successfully complete. Some examples include changing weapons, applying first aid, starting a fire, or other actions that involve multiple or complex motions to complete.

In both cases, it is up to the GM to determine which category the declared action belongs to, and how many AP are required to complete it.

There are times when players will want to attempt to perform multiple actions at the same time. Usually, this is a combination of wanting to perform and action while moving. Simultaneous Actions often combine two or more normal actions that do not usually require any sort of roll on their own, such as moving across a room and picking up an item from the floor.

By combining the actions into a Simultaneous Action, these normal actions may end up requiring a roll to make sure all are completed properly.

When the player declares what he wants to do, the GM needs to first decide if the actions can or cannot be performed at the same time. He must then decide how many Action Points are required, and whether or not a roll of some sort is required.

The following example shows how one GM works this out.

As we can see from the example, the GM determined that drawing a sword and moving at the same time was possible, and doesn’t really slow each other down, and doesn’t require a roll. Kicking the rope into the opening, on the other hand, as he is moving is what requires the roll, according to the GM’s reasoning. Moving and performing an action with his feet could upset his balance, thus the need for the Save vs. Spd. The GM then points out that the Combat Move, Snap Attack, fits the bill for the attack Mark wants to make.

Sometimes situations can occur that interrupt the normal flow of activity. For example, if one combatant is holding a dagger to the throat of another, from behind, and threatens to slit his throat if that combatant or their friends make any moves, then it is quite likely that the combatant holding the dagger will be able to complete his act before those others could do anything. This can likely be reflected in a large initiative bonus and by ruling that the slicing of the throat would not be a normal attack, but a Simple or Complex Action requiring only a small portion of activity to accomplish, especially since the action is already poised to occur.

The possibilities for situations like this are too numerous to properly codify, but the GM needs to be aware that they can occur. If they do, then the GM will have to use his discretion and judgment in determining modifiers. Since modifiers larger than 20 imply situations beyond normal ability, the GM should generally keep such modifiers below that range unless they have a very good reason to do so.

When two or more groups meet up with one another and neither is explicitly aware of the other, both groups are required to make a single perception roll, using the character with the highest skill bonus. The results are determined as follows:

The rule above applies to two groups stumbling onto each other. If one group is aware of the other for more than a round before combat starts, they can set up to attempt an ambush of the other group.

If a group is surprised, it receives a -20 modifier to Initiative for the first round of combat, and if this puts an individual character’s Initiative at or below zero, then that character will not be allowed to take action until the following round. If the character is allowed to act, even with the -20 modifier, then he is limited to performing only those actions allowed when Canceling an Action (p. 43).

When attacking a person who is surprised, the attacker gains a +4 modifier to his Attack Bonus.