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revised_weapon_rules

REVISED WEAPON RULES

Melee Weapons are defined by these categories

  • Damage Type: Bludgeoning, Slashing, Piercing, Crude
  • Length: Short, Medium, Long, Extra-Long
  • Weight: Light, Normal, Heavy, Very Heavy
  • Special: Fast Draw, Chopper, Receive Charge, Charge Bonus, Hurl, Dismount, No Dungeon, Foot Only

Damage Type

  • Bludgeoning: are designed to use heavy mass to injure through plate armor, using one of these weapons gives the user a +1 to hit against targets in Plate Armor or monsters with thick plated hides (e.g. turtles, dragon turtles, ants, beetles, crabs).
  • Slashing: are designed to inflict damage by cutting things apart, using one of these weapons gives the user a +1 to damage against targets wearing leather or no armor (for creatures who wear armor), or animals/monsters with AC 6 or worse.
  • Piercing: are particularly good at breaking through mail armor, using one of these weapons gives the user a +1 to hit against targets in Chainmail armor or monsters with scaly hides (e.g. dragons, lizards, lizard-men, giant fish). Piercing Melee (but not Missile) weapons also gain a +4 to hit against prone targets in plate armor.
  • Crude: weapons that aren’t professionally designed and built for combat get none of the bonuses that the other three types have, even if they are blunt, or have a point or edge.
  • Combination: some weapons have 2 ratings (e.g. Morning Star: B/P )and have 2 types of damage, user can choose which to apply

Length

Weapons are rated Short, Medium, Long and Extra-Long, shortest to longest, left to right. Fighter-class characters can gain some benefits to using long or very long weapons, beyond the one that all combatants may use:

  • First Contact: On the first contact round between two opponents, if a combatant's weapon is longer than the opponent, the one with the longer weapon gets a bonus attack (1 per round total, no matter how many enemies approach).
  • Long Weapons: a fighter using a Long Weapon may make an attack from the second row of a formation/group or attack a target 5’ from melee contact, taking a -2 to hit in either case.
  • Very Long Weapons: a fighter using a Long Weapon may make an attack from the second or third row of a formation/group or attack a target 10’ from melee contact, taking a -2 to hit in either case.

Weight

Weapons are rated Light, Normal, Heavy or Very Heavy for weight. Most light weapons do 1d4 damage, most normal weapons do 1d6 damage, most heavy weapons do 1d8 damage and most very heavy weapons do 1d10 damage. Some light and normal weapons are increased by 1 damage die type if used with 2 hands (see Gear Tables for details). Combatants can get Extra Attacks when using a lighter weapon against an opponent with a significantly heavier one.

  • Light Weapons: when a combatant uses a Light Weapon against an opponent with a Heavy or Very Heavy Weapon, he may make 1 Extra Attack.
  • Normal Weapons: when a combatant uses a Normal Weapon against an opponent with a Very Heavy Weapon, he may make 1 Extra Attack.
  • Heavy and Very Heavy Weapons: when a combatant uses a Heavy or Very Heavy Weapon against an opponent about his size or smaller (so human vs orc, hobgoblin or kobold, but not Ogre or Troll), and scores 5 or more points of damage on the hit, the target must make a saving throw or be knocked prone.

Type Features

  • Fast Draw (FD): daggers, knives and swords are meant to be convenient to use side-arms and so, when a character has one in a scabbard at his belt he can draw one without spending a move or attack. He does not need Quick Draw skill to do so, but without that skill, he must drop whatever else he had in his hands onto the ground (quick draw allows a smooth change between 2 sets of weaponry etc).
  • Chopper (CH): axes and picks can be used without penalty to chop down doors and chests (see Breaking Things) whereas swords and other weapons suffer a significant penalty.
  • Receive Charge (RC): when a combatant uses a spear, halberd, lucerne hammer or pike, and is charged by an opponent, if the combatant's very first attack against the charger hits, he rolls 2 damage dice instead of the normal one.
  • Charge Bonus (CB): when a combatant makes a charge with a lance from a medium or heavy war horse (or fantastic mount) he rolls 2 damage dice instead of the normal one.
  • Dismount (DM): when a combatant uses a polearm or lance against a target mounted on a horse (or similar mount) he can declare he intends to dismount the target. If he scores a hit, the target suffers no damage, but must make a Saving Throw, or he will be knocked prone to the ground, off his horse. He must make a second save or he will be stunned, missing his next round, and suffer 1d4 damage.
  • Hurl (H): some weapons may be thrown at enemies, usually with ranges of 10/20/30.
  • No Dungeon (ND): Lances and Pikes usually can’t be used inside a dungeon or building.
  • Foot Only (FO): these weapons cannot be used from horseback

MISSILE WEAPONS

Missile Weapons are defined by

  • Damage Type: Bludgeoning, Slashing, Piercing, Crude, which have the same effects as melee weapon damage types. Note that crossbows are rated as P/B because they gain the +1 to hit bonus against both plate and chain armors, not because of any actual bluntness.
  • Weight: Light, Normal, Heavy, Very Heavy: indicate how damage is calculated and also Heavy and Very Heavy weapons can inflict knockdowns, like melee weapons, but the Extra Attack benefits for using a lighter weapon against a heavier do not apply to missile weapons.
  • Rate of Fire (ROF): 1,2,1/2, 1/3: A weapon with an ROF of 1 can be shot once per round. A weapon with an ROF of 2 can be shot twice per round, if the shooter does not move in the round. A weapon with an ROF of ½ requires a full round (attack and move) to reload the weapon. A weapon with an ROF of 1/3 requires 2 full rounds (attack and move) to reload the weapon.
  • Range: each range is given in three increments (10/20/30) the first number is feet indoors or yards outdoors for short range, the second medium, the third long. Shots made at short range receive a +1 to hit, while shots made at long range receive a -1 to hit.
revised_weapon_rules.txt · Last modified: 2021/04/19 19:02 by dave