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TROS Combat Cheat Sheet

Initiative Phase

  1. Check for Surprise & Hesitation
    Check Reflex (TN see below), failure indicates that no action can be taken until the next round, skip ahead to the Combat Phase, Step 1. Succeed and you may defend as normal, go to Step b.
    • TN 5: Purposely standing with no stance, inviting attack
    • TN 7: Aware of opponent, but victim of a cheap shot; or hesitation
    • TN 10: Unsuspecting or inattentive
    • TN 13: Blindsided!
  2. Declare Stance
    At start of bout, or after a pause, declare stance out loud.
    • Aggressive Stance: +2 CP when attacking; -2 CP when defending
    • Defensive Stance: +2 CP when defending; -2 CP when attacking
    • Neutral Stance: offers the most flexibility and no modifiers
  3. Initiative - Establish Aggressor and Defender
    If neither party is surprised, each combatant takes a red and white die into their hands. The GM calls "throw," and each combatant drops one of the dice on the table.
    • Red: indicates aggression
    • White: indicates defense
    • Red/Red: a tie-breaker is required
      • Both parties roll Reflex against their own ATN, apply Weapon Length penalties as normal.
      • In the case of a tie, compare actual Reflex scores. Thrusts provide a +1 Reflex modifier over swings and bashes.
      • If this is still a tie then the blows are simultaneous!
    • White/White: The combatants circle each other, repeat the initiative process, return to the start of step a, but skip step b this time around.

Combat Phase

  1. Start of the Combat Round - Blood Loss Check
    Successfully roll EN/BL or lose one point of HT.
    • HT 1: all dice pools are halved
    • HT 0: character unconscious and dying
  2. Call out the Number of the Round - Fatigue
    -1 CP per 2 x EN rounds of fighting. This number is further reduced by the total CP penalty for armor, shield, and encumbrance.
  3. Dice Pool Refresh
    All dice pools fill or refresh, remember to deduct spillover Shock, unless Pain is greater. Pain is deducted from all dice pools.
  4. First Half of the Exchange of Blows
    1. Aggressor declares attack: state maneuver, CP spent, and target zone; 1-7 for swings, 8-14 for thrusts. Remember Stance (1st blow only) and Reach modifiers.
    2. Defender declares defense or attack: state maneuver, including CP. Remember Stance (1st exchange only) and Reach modifiers.
    3. Feint: The aggressor has the option to use the Feint maneuver.
    • Weapon Reach: Attacks against an opponent with longer reach are made at -1 CP per step on the reach ladder. This penalty holds until the shorter weapon makes a damaging strike. When the longer weapon is out of range, the penalty applies both to defending and attacking (time to drop your weapon and wrestle).
      • Reach Inches Feet Sample Weapons
      Hand <12 <1 Fists, daggers, knee-strikes, grappling
      Short <30 <2.5 Hatchets, short swords, long knives
      Medium <42 <3.5 Arming swords, flails
      Long <66 <5.5 Greatswords, bastard swords, spears
      Very Long <90 <7.5 Long spears, pole arms
      Extremely Long >90 >7.5 Pikes, lances
  5. Resolve Damage and/or Determine New Attitude
    • (MOS + DR) - (Opponent's TO + AV) = Wound Level
    • If the attacker’s MOS >=0 he stays the aggressor, keeping initiative
    • If the defender’s MOS >=1 he becomes the aggressor
    • Shock is immediately subtracted from all dice pools, active first then reserve, any spillover applies in the Dice Pool Refresh step.
  6. Second Half of the Exchange of Blows
    See step 4. The roles may have reversed since the first exchange.
  7. Resolve Damage and/or Determine New Attitude
    See step 5.
  8. Repeat Until a Winner is Determined
    Repeat steps 1 through 7 until the combat is over – one way or another.

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