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Other Combat Issues

Attacking from Behind

AC bonuses from shields are negated.

Attacking with Two Weapons (Optional Rule)

Characters with DEX or STR as a prime requisite may choose to wield two one-handed weapons, as follows:

Blindness

A blind character is unable to attack.

Bombing

Flying creatures may pick up rocks or other objects and drop them from above.

Altitude: At most 300’.

Chance to hit: 16 or higher on 1d20.

Affected area and damage: Depend on the size of the bomb—larger creatures can carry larger bombs. For example, a bomb from a flying creature able to carry a human might inflict 2d6 damage to all creatures hit in a 10’ × 10’ area.

Charging into Melee (Optional Rule)

Once per combat, a character may charge into melee and attack, as follows:

Invulnerabilities (Optional Rule)

Some monsters can only be harmed by magical or silver weapons. The referee may allow such monsters to also be harmed by attacks from:

Missile Attacks on Targets in Melee (Optional Rule)

The constant and unpredictable movement of characters in melee makes firing or throwing missile weapons at combatants an uncertain proposition.

When this happens, randomly determine which character in the melee is actually targeted by the missile attack before making the attack roll.

Typically, all characters involved in the melee have the same chance of being targeted, but especially large creatures may count as two or more characters.

Paralysed Opponents

Helpless opponents, such as those magically paralysed or frozen, can be automatically hit in melee. Only a roll for damage is required.

Parrying (Optional Rule)

Characters with a STR of 13 or above may opt to act purely defensively in melee, forfeiting their attack that round. When parrying, the character’s STR bonus to melee attacks is applied as an Armour Class bonus that round.

Spacing

The referee should judge how many attackers can strike at a single opponent, bearing in mind the size of the opponent and the available space around it.

10’ passage: Normally at most 2–3 characters can fight side-by-side in a 10’ wide passageway.

Splash Weapons (Optional Rule)

Targeting a Surface

Characters may attempt to throw a splash weapon so that it smashes on a hard surface close to one or more creatures. This is handled as an attack against AC 9 [10]. If the attack succeeds, all creatures within 5’ are splashed with the liquid and, if it is harmful to them, suffer 1d2 damage.

Misses

When an attack with a splash weapon misses its target (whether a character or a surface), it lands in a random location:

Subduing (Optional Rule)

Characters that wish to subdue an intelligent opponent must announce that they are attacking without the intent to kill.

Blunt blows: Only bludgeoning attacks may be made. Bladed melee weapons may be employed to deal blunt blows with the flat of the blade.

Subdual damage: Combat and damage are calculated normally, but subdual damage is noted separately from actual damage.

Effect at 0hp: An intelligent character or monster reduced to 0 hit points due to subdual damage will surrender, realising that its opponent could have killed it.

Unarmed Attacks

Attack rolls: Unarmed combat is handled the same as melee combat.

Damage: Unarmed attacks inflict 1d2 damage, modified by STR.

Unstable Surfaces

Characters on an unstable surface, such as a ship in rough seas or riding a flying animal, are affected as follows:

Note that magical means of flight (e.g. a magic broom, carpet, or the fly spell) generally do not count as unstable.

Water

When fighting in or beneath water: