Combat on Echoes of the Isles is roleplay first. There is no autoattack and no stream of damage lines. A fight runs in rounds, each action is described by the fighter in their own words, and the game works out what happens.
How a Round Works
Every fighter gets one combat action a round: an attack, a declared defense, a move, or an attempt to leave the fight. The round ends as soon as everyone has acted, so two quick typists can fight quickly.
Nobody is hurried. A round stays open for five minutes after the last combat action, and ordinary emotes between the fighters keep it open, so you can talk in the middle of a fight. A round lasts fifteen minutes at most. A fighter who lets a round pass loses that action, and a fight nobody acts in ends on its own.
The Actions
attack <victim> <bodypart> <emote>: strike at a part of your opponent, described in your own words.dattack <victim> <bodypart> <emote>: the same, leading with your off-hand weapon instead of your main one.spar <victim> <bodypart> <emote>: a practice fight. Blows are pulled, wounds are minor, and the loser yields instead of falling.attack <dir> <victim> <bodypart> <emote>: the same strike sent one or two rooms along a straight line, with a bow or a thrown weapon.shootis the same command.mattack <element> [dir] <victim> <bodypart> <emote>: a sorcerer throws an element at one person. Armor does not stop it.mdefend <element> [whom] <emote>: raise a ward over yourself or over someone beside you. A ward does not make you harder to hit; it catches a blow that would have landed.defend <parry|dodge|block|footwork> <emote>: spend your action on a guard for the coming round.lunge <dir> [dir] <emote>: move across the room. Where you stand decides who you can reach.charge <dir> <emote>: move to the next room without leaving the fight. It is how you close on an archer, and the only way to move once you are in a fight.escape <emote>: try to leave the fight. It is a contest against everyone still within reach of you.disengage <emote>: say you want the fight to end without a winner. When every fighter has disengaged, it ends. Any hostile act cancels it.
During a fight, combat shows the state of the round: who has
acted, how long remains, your guard and your endurance.
Your Emote
Every action carries an emote. It goes through the same engine as
emote and rpecho, with slash targeting and spoken
languages. The words you write have no hidden effect on the outcome, which
comes from the command's arguments, your training and your equipment. The
people fighting you will read it, so write it well.
Wounds
Blows land on bodyparts: head, neck, chest, stomach, arms and legs. A serious hit leaves a wound. Cuts bleed, bruises slow you and breaks ruin your guard. A wound stays after the fight, gets worse if it is ignored, and needs treating, by someone with the skill or by the physician at the Escard clinic. Armor protects only the parts it covers.
A fighter pushed past their limit falls. Whether they are killed, taken or spared is the winner's choice.
Before You Fight
Real combat is open to established characters: you need 3000 RPXP, a full description and a custom short description. Sparring needs only the descriptions. It is how new characters practice, train their weapon skills and learn the system, with nothing worse than bruises to show for it.
Combat in Detail covers defenses, armor, reach, dual wielding and how to fight well.