CHAPTER 6: COMBAT SKILLS
Combat skills determine which weapons a character can use effectively and how they use them. They are purchased with Skill Points — a resource allocated at character creation and expanded as a character advances.
Learning Skills
Characters receive skill points at 1st level and gain additional points as they advance. Skill points not spent at character creation are lost — they represent training completed before play, not banked resources. Points earned at later levels may be saved, but can only be spent during level advancement. The GM may require that a character find a trainer to acquire particularly difficult or specialized skills.
Table 6.1: Skill Points by Class Group
| Class Group | SPs at 1st Level | Additional SPs |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior | 7 | +2 per 3 levels |
| Priest or Rogue | 5 | +2 per 4 levels |
| Wizard | 6 | +2 per 3 levels |
Multiclass characters use the most favorable row and do not add points from multiple classes. A Fighter/Mage uses the Warrior row.
Intelligence bonus. The bonus languages score from Table 1.4 may be added in whole or in part to skill points at 1st level, at the GM's discretion.
Starting trade or knowledge. Every character receives one free Trade or Knowledge skill at character creation, representing their life before adventuring. This skill is chosen freely and does not cost a skill point.
Minimum Skill Spend. At character creation, Wizards need to spend at least 4 SP in Non-Combat Skills. Fighters need to spend at least 3 SP in Combat Skills. Rogues and Priests have no minimum spend, except that no character can start the game with all their SP allocated in only one group (Combat Skills or Non-Combat Skills).
Combat Skill Points
Any character can purchase Combat Skill Points at 1st level. These must be purchased from the permitted weapon list or purchased outside at a higher cost.
Skill points not spent at character creation are lost — they represent training completed before play, not banked resources. Points earned at later levels may be saved, but can only be spent during level advancement. The GM may require that a character find a trainer to acquire particularly difficult or specialized skills.
A character is considered unskilled with any weapon or combat method for which they have not spent a SP. The consequences of fighting unskilled are detailed below.
Once a combat skill has been chosen, the choice is permanent.
Unskilled Penalties
A character who fights with a weapon they have no skill in — no individual skill, no relevant group skill, no applicable type skill — suffers a penalty to their attack rolls. The penalty varies by class group.
| Class Group | Unskilled Penalty | Related Weapon Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior | −2 | −1 |
| Priest or Rogue | −3 | −2 |
| Wizard | −5 | −3 |
The unskilled penalty applies when the character has no skill with the weapon and no skill with any weapon in its group. The related weapon penalty applies when the character is unskilled with the specific weapon but skilled with another weapon in the same group — for example, a Mage skilled with a knife who picks up a dagger.
Training Outside the Permitted List
By default, a character can’t use weapons outside their permitted weapon list, as listed in Chapter 3: Classes. However, by spending twice the normal Skill Points, they can.
So, for example, if a Mage decides to have training in Greatsword, it will cost 2 SP instead of 1. Normal requisites for minimum Strength or any other attribute still apply.
It’s possible to purchase individual weapon training outside the permitted list, not weaponry groups or types. So, the Mage can purchase training in Greatsword by spending 2 SP, but not Swords (group) or Slashing Weapons (type). As an optional rule, the game table might decide to allow the purchase of weaponry groups and/or types. In this case, the necessary SP would also be twice the normal number.
Weaponry Skills
Single Weapon
Cost: 1 SP. The character becomes skilled with one specific weapon. This eliminates the unskilled penalty for that weapon and reduces the related weapon penalty when using other weapons in the same group.
Weaponry Group
Cost: 2 SPs. A weaponry group consists of weapons of similar design — swords, axes, pole arms, and so on. Spending 2 SPs grants skill with every weapon in the group that the character's class permits. When the GM introduces new weapons, they should determine which group they belong to.
The arquebus, blowgun, and quarterstaff belong to no group and must be learned individually.
Table 6.2: Weaponry Groups
| Group | Weapons |
|---|---|
| Axe | Battle axe, hand axe, throwing axe, pole axe (all) |
| Bow | Bow (all) |
| Cavalry | Horseman's flail, horseman's mace, horseman's pick |
| Club | Club, morning star, war hammer |
| Crossbow | Crossbow (all) |
| Infantry | Footman's flail, footman's mace, footman's pick |
| Lance | Lance (all) |
| Long Blade | Bastard sword, long sword, scimitar, two-handed sword |
| Medium Blade | Broad sword, cutlass, khopesh |
| Short Blade | Dagger, dirk, knife, sickle, short sword |
| Pole Arm | Pole arm (all, including pole axes) |
| Release Action | Lasso, net, scourge, sling, staff sling, whip |
| Spear | Harpoon, javelin, spear, trident |
Weaponry by Type
Cost: 3 SPs. Weaponry types cover the broadest range. They group weapons by the kind of damage they deal: Slashing (S), Bludgeoning (B), or Piercing (P). Spending 3 SPs grants skill with every melee or hurled weapon of that type that the character's class permits.
Weapons that deal multiple damage types are included in each relevant type. A halberd that deals both slashing and piercing damage falls under both.
Non-lethal weaponry, ranged weapons, and the arquebus and blowgun are excluded from type skills.
Ambidexterity
Cost: 1 SP. Available to all classes. Only Warriors and Rogues may use ambidexterity to fight with a weapon in each hand.
An ambidextrous character suffers no penalty when using their non-dominant hand for any action. In combat, this reduces the attack penalty to the non-dominant hand by 2 when fighting with two weapons. This reduction stacks with the character's Dexterity missile attack modifier. Ambidexterity is not a combat method and does not count against method limits.
Combat Methods
Beyond weaponry skills, characters may invest SPs in combat methods — specialized fighting disciplines that provide additional benefits when used with appropriate weapons.
Single-class Fighters may become skilled in any or all methods, with one restriction: only one melee method may be chosen at 1st level. All other classes and all multiclass combinations are limited to one combat method, ever. Single-class Wizards and Sorcerers may only choose from ranged weaponry and unarmed methods.
A method's bonuses apply only when the character is both skilled with the weapon being used and meets the method's specific conditions. A character skilled in the Single-Weapon Method but using an unskilled weapon gains no method benefit.
Melee Methods
Single-Weapon Method
Cost: 1 SP. Fighting with a single weapon in the dominant hand, nothing held in the other. No shield, no off-hand weapon — small items may be held passively (a potion, a torch) but not used offensively. Grants +1 to AC.
Specialization (1 additional SP): Increases the AC bonus to +2.
Two-Handed Method
Cost: 1 SP. Fighting with a weapon that requires or permits the use of both hands. For weapons that can be used one- or two-handed, the bonus applies only when both hands are in use. Reduces the weapon's combat speed by 3 (minimum 0).
Weapon-Shield Method
Cost: 1 SP. Fighting with a shield in one hand and a weapon in the other. Used defensively, grants +1 to AC. Used offensively, allows a shield bash in place of a standard attack or as a secondary weapon attack, subject to non-dominant hand penalties.
Specialization (1 additional SP): Defensively, increases the AC bonus to +2. Offensively, reduces the non-dominant hand attack penalty by 2 or eliminates it entirely if the character is also ambidextrous.
Shield Bash. A normal attack using the shield as a weapon. Damage by shield size: buckler or light shield 1d3, medium shield 1d4, large shield 1d6. Spiked shields deal Piercing damage; standard shields deal Bludgeoning. Strength modifiers apply to the attack roll and damage. Magical shields provide no enchantment bonus to shield bash attacks. A character who makes a shield bash in a round loses their shield's AC bonus for that round.
Dual-Weapon Method
Cost: 1 SP. An advanced form of two-weapon fighting that allows any combination of two one-handed weapons. Reduces the attack penalty to both the dominant and non-dominant hand by 2. Combined with Ambidexterity, this eliminates all penalties to two-weapon attacks.
Rangers who take the Dual-Weapon Method may use any combination of one-handed weapons but gain the penalty reduction only when wearing armor that would otherwise deny their class two-weapon fighting bonus.
Ranged Methods
Each ranged method applies to a single weapon chosen at the time of purchase. The character must already be skilled with that weapon individually before selecting a method for it.
Missile-Weapon Method
Cost: 1 SP. Open to all classes, including Wizards using a sling. Applies to any single missile weapon requiring ammunition, excluding the arquebus.
Benefits: The character may move up to half their movement rate and still make their full attack rate. If they do not move during the round, they gain +1 to AC and +2 to attack rolls when making a called shot with the chosen weapon.
A Fighter who has also specialized in the chosen weapon and does move while firing gains +2 to attack rolls within point-blank range.
A mounted character who selects a bow or crossbow method reduces mounted firing penalties by 2 (minimum 0). If the chosen weapon is not a bow or crossbow, the character gains the ability to fire while riding at all.
Only single-class Fighters may select both Missile-Weapon Method and Hurled-Weapon Method. All others may choose one.
Hurled-Weapon Method
Cost: 1 SP. Applies to any single hurled weapon the character is already skilled with, including daggers and darts for Wizards and Sorcerers.
Benefits: The character may move up to half their movement rate and make their full attack rate. If they do not move, they gain +1 to AC and +2 to attack rolls on called shots with the chosen weapon. The character also gains the ability to hurl the chosen weapon while mounted.
Unarmed Methods
Brawling-Attack Method
Cost: 1 SP. Grants +1 to attack rolls and +1 to damage while brawling. A skilled brawler may choose the next highest or lowest result on the brawling maneuver table. With both hands empty, the character may make one additional brawling attack per round.
Wrestling-Attack Method
Cost: 1 SP. Grants +1 to attack rolls and +1 to damage while wrestling. A skilled wrestler may choose the next highest or lowest result on the wrestling maneuver table and gains +2 to Strength checks made to maintain a hold.
Only single-class Fighters may select both brawling and wrestling. All others may choose one.
Unarmed Specialization (Fighter only). A single-class Fighter may spend up to 4 SPs on one or both unarmed methods. Each additional SP beyond the first increases all applicable bonuses by 1 and expands the range of maneuver results the character may choose by two (one higher, one lower). At maximum investment, a single method provides a pool of 9 possible maneuver results to select from.
Special Methods
Messalyan Fighting Style
Cost: 1 SP. Grants +2 to attack rolls and +2 to AC while fighting with a spear and no shield. These bonuses cover both melee and ranged attacks. For a Messalyan warrior, spears have Speed 4 instead of 6. The character must have a background growing up in Messalya or being taught by a Messalyan warrior.
Weaponry Specialization
Specialization represents total commitment to a single weapon — years of focused practice that produce capabilities unavailable to any other class or through any other means.
Available to: Single-class Fighters and Champions only. Paladins, Rangers, and all multiclass combinations cannot specialize through SP investment. Champions receive one free specialization at character creation as a class feature (Chapter 3); that specialization follows all rules below.
A Fighter may specialize in any weapon they are already skilled with. Specializing in a melee weapon costs 1 additional SP beyond the skill cost. Specializing in a bow or crossbow costs 2 additional SPs beyond the skill cost.
A Fighter may specialize in only one weapon at 1st level. Additional specializations become available as SPs are earned.
Specialization Benefits
Melee weapon: +1 to attack rolls, +2 to damage.
Bow or crossbow: +2 to attack rolls when firing within point-blank range (bow: 6–30 feet; crossbow: 6–60 feet). The specialized character may fire before initiative is rolled, provided the weapon was knocked and trained on a visible target at the end of the previous round.
Extra attacks: Specialization also grants additional attacks per round as the character advances. See Table 6.3.
Table 6.3: Fighter Specialization Attack Rate
| Fighter Level | Melee Weapon | Light Crossbow | Heavy Crossbow | Thrown Dagger | Thrown Dart | Other Missile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–5 | 1/round | 1/round | 1/2 rounds | 2/round | 3/round | 1/round |
| 6–12 | 3/2 rounds | 1/round | 1/2 rounds | 3/round | 4/round | 3/2 rounds |
| 13+ | 5/2 rounds | 3/2 rounds | 1/round | 5/round | 6/round | 5/2 rounds |
Attack rates expressed as attacks/rounds. 3/2 means three attacks every two rounds.
Class-Specific Notes
Champion. Champions receive one free weapon specialization at character creation, representing the focused training their Code demands. This does not cost a SP and does not count against the 1st-level limit on melee methods. All other SP expenditures for Champions follow Warrior group rules.
Sorcerer. Follows Wizard group rules for SPs and method restrictions. May select one ranged or unarmed method only.
Ranger — Scout Path. Rangers who take the Scout path at 8th level receive the Master Archer bonuses as a class feature, not through method investment. If a Scout has also purchased the Missile-Weapon Method, the bonuses stack only where the rules explicitly permit stacking — the attack bonus from Master Archer and the called-shot bonus from the method are separate conditions, and both apply when conditions are met.
Ranger — Dual-Weapon Fighting. Rangers receive two-weapon fighting as a class feature. This does not require SP investment. If a Ranger also purchases the Dual-Weapon Method, the method's penalty reduction applies on top of the class feature, subject to the Ranger's armor restriction.