WEAPON PROFICIENCIES
Note:Prerequisite Skills are shown in [italics] and Bonuses shown in ()
WEAPON PROFICIENCY SKILLS
A note about Weapon Proficiencies (W.P.): Each W.P. providescombat training with a particular type of weapon. The result is hand tohand combat bonuses to strike and parry whenever that particularweapon is used. All bonuses are accumulative. Each W.P. counts as oneskill. The character may select several W.P.s or a few. Note: Characterswithout a W.P. can use any weapon, but without benefit of the W.P. bonuses. This is considered Non-Proficiency. Rules onWeapons Specialization can be found here Weapons Specialization Rules.
Axe: Battle: Training with all types of large axe weapons, includingsingle blade and double headed axes and picks. Bonuses: +1D6damage at level two! +1 to strike at levels 1, 3, 5, 8, 12 and 15. +1 tostrike when thrown or to parry at levels 2, 4, 8, and 12; not designed forthrowing.
Axe: Throwing: Training with all types of Hand Axes. Bonuses: +1 to strikeat levels 2, 4, 7, 10, and 13. +1 to parry at levels 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12. +1 tostrike when thrown, at levels 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, and 13.
Blowgun/Mouth Weapon: Includes blowpipes, mouthdarts, and other weapons that depend on a person's lungs and aim out ofthe mouth. Bonuses: +1 to strike at levels 1, 4, 8 and 12. Rate of Fire:Equal to the character's normal hand to hand attacks per melee round.- Blow-gun: 30 ft (.19 m) — 1D4 damage
Blunt: Training with all types of blunt weapons, includingmaces, hammers, cudgels, pipes, staves, and clubs. Bonuses: +1 tostrike and parry at levels 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12. +1 to strike when thrown atlevels 5, 10, and 15; not designed for throwing.
Bolos: Training with the bolos to snare/entangle. Bonuses:+1 to strike or entangle at levels 2, 5, 8, 11, and 15. +1 to parryat levels 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12.In addition to the regular entangle attack, there is one other typeof attack possible with a Bolos:Snaring an opponent's weapon: The weapon becomes entangled andis pulled out of the opponent's hand. A natural, unmodified (no bonus)roll of 18, 19, or 20 will disarm an opponent in this way, unless he canroll an equally, unmodified high parry (no bonuses).
Bow: Long: Add 20 feet (6 m) to the normal effective rangeper level of the character, +1 to parry with that weapon (effective atlevel one), and +1 to strike at levels 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, and 14.Archery Movement Penalty: The character loses all bonuses andrate of fire is half when running and shooting, flying, when riding onhorse back, or otherwise unbalanced.Archery Rate of Fire: Two at level one, and +1 at levels 2, 3, 5, 7,9, and 12.Average Ranges: Does not include W.P. bonus for range.Bow Type and Ranges Damage Per Arrow/Weapon- Long Bow — 640 ft (195 m) 2D6 damage
Bow: Short: Add 20 feet (6 m) to the normal effective rangeper level of the character, +1 to parry with that weapon (effective atlevel one), and +1 to strike at levels 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, and 14.Archery Movement Penalty: The character loses all bonuses andrate of fire is half when running and shooting, flying, when riding onhorse back, or otherwise unbalanced.Archery Rate of Fire: Two at level one, and +1 at levels 2, 3, 5, 7,9, and 12.Average Ranges: Does not include W.P. bonus for range.Bow Type and Ranges Damage Per Arrow/Weapon- Short Bow — 340 ft (104 m) 1D6 damage
Chain: Training with all types of chain weapons, including ordinarylengths of chain, the flail, ball or mace and chain, nunchaku, andsimilar weapons. Bonuses: +1 to strike at levels 1, 3, 7, 10, and 13. +1to parry at levels 4, 8, and 12. This weapon cannot be used to entangleand cannot be thrown with any accuracy!
Crossbow: Add 20 feet (6 m) to the normal effective rangeper level of the character, +1 to parry with that weapon (effective atlevel one), and +1 to strike at levels 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, and 14.Archery Movement Penalty: The character loses all bonuses andrate of fire is half when running and shooting, flying, when riding onhorse back, or otherwise unbalanced.Archery Rate of Fire: Two at level one, and +1 at levels 2, 3, 5, 7,9, and 12.Average Ranges: Does not include W.P. bonus for range.Bow Type and Ranges Damage Per Arrow/Weapon - Light Cross Bow — 340 ft (104 m) 2D4 damage
- Heavy Cross Bow (large) — 600 ft (182 m) 2D6 damage
- Pistol Cross Bow (small) — 120 ft (36.5 m) 1D6 damage
Grappling Hook: Trained use of a grappling hook for climbing,scaling walls (adds +5% to that skill), boarding vessels, tripping anopponent (by hooking the foot, ankle or leg. Does no damage, butknocks victim to the ground and he loses initiative and one melee attack)and impaling (does 1D6 damage). +1 to strike or entangle at levels3, 6, 9, and 12. This weapon cannot be used to parry!
Knife: Training with all types of knives. Bonuses: +1 to strikeat levels 2, 4, 7, 10, and 13. +1 to parry at levels 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12. +1 tostrike when thrown, at levels 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, and 13.
Lance: Note: The use of the lance is limited to the Knight andPalladin O.C.C.s. It is not normally available to other O.C.C.s. See thedescriptions under The Way of the Lance in each of the respectiveO.C.C.s.
Lasso/Net: Primarily a gladiator or slaver's skill, the net is used totrip an opponent (same as grappling hook), parry or snare/entangle. Bonuses:+1 to strike or entangle at levels 2, 5, 8, 11, and 15. +1 to parryat levels 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12.In addition to the regular entangle attack, there are two other typesof attacks possible with a net:Snaring an opponent's weapon: The weapon becomes entangled andis pulled out of the opponent's hand. A natural, unmodified (no bonus)roll of 18, 19, or 20 will disarm an opponent in this way, unless he canroll an equally, unmodified high parry (no bonuses).Snare one's opponent by throwing the net over him: The intendedvictim must dodge or be netted — only characters with a spear, polearmor staff can parry a thrown net attack. If caught in the net, the victimis -8 to strike, -10 to parry and dodge, and running is impossible. Itwill require 1D4+1 melee rounds to cut free of the net.If the character dodges or the net thrower misses, it is the net wielderwho will suddenly find himself weaponless. Even if the net has a drawstringattached to it, the thrower will need one melee action/attack topull it back to him or to grab a different weapon; the throwing of a netto capture an opponent requires the use of two hands. However, if thenet is being used to parry, entangle or whip an opponent, it can be usedwith one hand, while the other wields a sword or other weapon; parrythe same as usual. Using the net as a whipping weapon does 1D4 damage.
Paired Weapons: Users of paired weapons can:- Strike and parry simultaneously. In other words, warriors skilledin paired weapons can often perform two actions for every one meleeaction/attack.
- Twin, simultaneous strikes against the same target. Both weaponshit, but is considered ONE melee attack/action, (roll only once tostrike). The defender can only try to parry one of the weapons in theparry! The other will strike, unless he too is using two weapons, or aweapon and a shield, and has the W.P. paired weapons skill.
- Strike two different targets (or strike one and parry the other), simultaneously;both must be within reach.
- Weapons are limited to the one-handed types and can be used in anycombination; for example, two short swords, or short sword and broadsword,sword and knife, mace and shield, etc. Two-handed weaponscannot be used as a paired weapon.
Polearm: Training with all types of large, bladed spear-likeweapons, including the glaive, sabre halberd, runka, scythe and voulge,among others. Bonuses: +2 damage at levels two and eight! +1 to strikeand parry at levels 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12. +1 to strike when thrown at levels3, 7, and 12; not designed for throwing.
Shield: Combat skills with large and small shields used primarilyfor parrying and self defense. Bonuses: +1 to parry at levels 1, 3,6, 9, 12 and 15. A shield can be used in one hand and a weapon in theother. +1 to strike with a shield (1D4 damage) at levels 4, 8, and 12. Nobonus to strike when thrown.Shields! The average small wood & leather shield has 30 S.D.C. andcosts 35 gold. A small wood & metal plated shield has 50 S.D.C. andcosts 65 gold. Small shields can be thrown about 15 feet (4.6 m), inflicting1D6 damage. Hitting or butting somebody with a small or largeshield does 2D4 damage.A large wood & leather shield has 60 S.D.C. and costs 75 gold. Alarge wood & metal plated shield has 100 S.D.C. and costs 110 gold. Alarge iron shield has 130 S.D.C., costs 180 gold, but requires a P.S. of22 or higher to use (otherwise -4 to parry). No large shield can bethrown.Damage to shields (optional): Subtract 10% of the damage thatwould normally be inflicted by a weapon when blocked/parried by ashield. When all S.D.C. is gone, the shield has too many holes, cracksand weaknesses to offer protection. The next strike will punch rightthrough or shatter it and hit the user at full force and full damage.
Siege: An understanding of the use and mechanicsof siege weapons, including balista, catapult, onager and trebuchet. +1to strike at levels 2, 5, 9, and 12
Sling: Training with all types of sling weapons. Bonuses: +1 to strike at levels 2, 4, 7, 10, and 13.- Sling or Slingshot: 80 ft (2.44 m) — 1D6 damage
Small Thrown Weapons: Expertise with a thrown weaponand proficiency with missile weapons, such as the sling, sling-shot, bolas,boomerangs, throwing sticks, throwing axes (small), throwingknives, shurikens. (the use of the bow is a separateskill; see archery). Bonuses when thrown or slung: +1 to strike at levels1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13. Characters who select both W.P. Small Thrown Weapons andW.P. bow, or W.P. crossbow (See W.P. Archery), or W.P. spear get theusual bonuses for that W.P., plus a bonus of +1 tostrike at levels 2, 5, and 10. Rate of Fire: Equal to the character's normalnumber of hand to hand combat attacks. Note: The character losesall bonuses and rate of fire is half when riding on horseback.Typical Effective Range & Damage per Projectile WeaponType: - Boomerangs: 60 ft (18 m) — 1D6 damage
- Dart: 30 ft (. 19 m) — One point of damage.
- Throwing Sticks and Knives: 40 ft (12.2 m) — 1D6 damage
- Throwing Irons and Axes: 40 ft (12.2 m) — 2D4 damage
The "Typical" effective range applies to most characters unlessstated otherwise in the description of the Occupational CharacterClasses (O.C.C.s). Greater range and proficiency for an O.C.C. orR.C.C. is typically the result of special training or natural ability.The average giant weapon does one additional die of damage plusP.S. bonus, and range is increased by 20%.
Spear/Fork: Includes skill with large and small spears (the use of arifle equipped with a bayonet also falls into this category), the trident, militaryforks, the sai, tiger fork, javelins, and other weapons with tines. Bonuses: Startswith +1 to strike or entangle at levels 1, 3, 5, 8, 11, and 13. +1 to parryat levels 1, 3, 6, 10, and 13. +1 to strike when thrown at levels 4, 10,and 15; not designed for throwing.- Javelin: 300 ft (9.41 m) — normal
- javelin damage +1D4 Spear: 100 ft (30.5 m) — normal spear damage +1D6
Staff: Combat skill with large and small staffs. Bonuses: +1 tostrike at levels 1, 3, 7, 10 and 13. +1 to parry at 2, 5, 8, 11 and 14. +1 tostrike when thrown at levels 5, 10, and 15; not designed for throwing.
Sword : Combat skills with large and small swords, includingfencing type training. Includes rapiers, sabers, broadswords, twohanded,and short swords. Bonuses: +1 to strike at levels 1, 3, 6, 9, 12and 15. +1 to parry at levels 2, 4, 7, 10 and 13. +1 to strike when thrownat levels 4, 8, and 12; swords are not designed for being thrown.
Targeting/Missile Weapons: Expertise with a thrown weaponand proficiency with missile weapons, such as the sling, sling-shot, bolas,boomerangs, throwing sticks, throwing axes (small), throwingknives, shurikens, javelin, and spear (the use of the bow is a separateskill; see archery). Bonuses when thrown or slung: +1 to strike at levels1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13. Characters who select both W.P. targeting andW.P. bow, or W.P. crossbow (See W.P. Archery), or W.P. spear get theusual bonuses for that W.P., plus a bonus (from W.P. targeting) of +1 tostrike at levels 2, 5, and 10. Rate of Fire: Equal to the character's normalnumber of hand to hand combat attacks. Note: The character losesall bonuses and rate of fire is half when riding on horseback or in amoving vehicle.
Typical Effective Range & Damage per Projectile WeaponType: - Blow-gun: 30 ft (.19 m) — 1D4 damage
- Boomerangs: 60 ft (18 m) — 1D6 damage
- Bow, Short: 340 ft (104 m) — 1D6 damage
- Bow, Long: 640 ft (195 m) — 2D6 damage
- Cross Bow, Small (pistol size): 120 ft (36.5 m) — 1D6 damage
- Cross Bow, Light (rifle size): 340 ft (104 m) — 2D4 damage
- Cross Bow, Large (rifle size): 600 ft (182 m) — 2D6 damage
- Dart: 30 ft (. 19 m) — One point of damage.
- Javelin: 300 ft (9.41 m) — normal javelin damage +1D4
- Throwing Sticks and Knives: 40 ft (12.2 m) — 1D6 damage
- Throwing Irons and Axes: 40 ft (12.2 m) — 2D4 damage
- Spear: 100 ft (30.5 m) — normal spear damage +1D6
- Sling or Slingshot: 80 ft (2.44 m) — 1D6 damage
Note: Swords, large axes, (non-throwing) knives, hammers, clubs,maces, pole-arms and most other hand-held weapons are NOT designedto be thrown. Consequently, the average throwing range is a mere 20feet (6.1 m) and the character is -1 to strike. An attacker can try tothrow such weapons farther, but is -3 to strike for every additional 1-10feet (3m) beyond 20 (6.1m).
Spears, javelins, slings, throwing knives/sticks/axes, and bows, canbe thrown or fired by anybody without penalty at the typical effectiverange listed above.
The "Typical" effective range applies to most characters unlessstated otherwise in the description of the Occupational CharacterClasses (O.C.C.s). Greater range and proficiency for an O.C.C. orR.C.C. is typically the result of special training or natural ability.The average giant weapon does one additional die of damage plusP.S. bonus, and range is increased by 20%.
Unarmed:Training with attacking without any types of weapon save the hands and feet. Bonuses: +1 to strike at levels 2, 4, 7, 10, and 13. +1 to parry at levels 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12.
Whip: Skill at "whipping" or snapping with long, flexible,light weapons, typically made of leather or reeds. Bonuses: +1 to strikeor entangle at levels 2, 4, 7, 10, and 13. +1 to damage (special) at levels2, 4, 8, and 12. This weapon cannot be used to parry!
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