Initiative

In a duel, initiative works differently than it does in a normal melee. Roll initiative normally at the beginning of the fight, but disregard any critical events—this is a contest of skill, not luck. The character that wins initiative is called the attacker, and his opponent becomes the defender.

After the first round, duels don’t have initiative rolls. Instead, the attacker retains the initiative until one of the following events occurs:

· He chooses a combat action that does not require an attack roll in a round;

· The defender disarms or traps the attacker’s primary weapon;

· The attacker is knocked down or forced to retreat by the defender;

· The defender overbears, trips, or otherwise grapples the attacker.

When the initiative shifts, the effects are immediate—if an attacker loses the initiative in the fast phase, his opponent is considered to have the iniative in the average, slow, and very slow phases of that same round, as well as the following round (or at least until the new attacker loses the initiative.)

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