disquisition

Here’s an excerpt of something I’ve been working on:

When engaging a foe one-on-one in close combat, perform a contest of Sinew—or another quality or skill, as the situation demands. The winner of this contest takes the difference between their roll and the loser’s roll as their result on their weapon’s damage table.

When more than two combatants engage in close combat, each participant chooses a target and rolls a d6 on their weapon’s damage table. In the frenetic clash of a mêlée, chaos reigns.

I like the idea that engaging an opponent one-on-one is a completely different affair that an all-out mêlée. It feels real. Being ganged up on is almost certainly lethal, and while ganging up on a target means the same for them, the chaos also ensures you won’t escape unscathed yourself. The only way to avoid injury is a genuine one-on-one test of mettle—but you better be sure you can beat your opponent.

Here’s a version lightly rewritten to be easier to use in other fantasy games:

When engaging a foe one-on-one in close combat, perform a contest of Strength. The winner of this contest rolls damage against the loser.

When more than two combatants engage in close combat, each participant chooses a target and rolls damage. In the frenetic clash of a mêlée, chaos reigns.

This works best if you don’t use a turn-based initiative procedure.