Fallen Syndicate Combat Mechanics

All Players will have 3 base HP if they wear no armor. HP represents their ability to fight effectively. Wearing armor grants additional HP.

·        Light armor gives +1 HP (such as padded,
gambeson, hide, leather, or studded leather).

·        Medium armor gives +2 HP (such as a chain mail
shirt, scale mail shirt, a breastplate with no additional armor, or some
combination of light and heavy armor).

·        Heavy armor gives +3 HP (such as full plate mail
covering the entire body).

Legal Hits:

Legal hits are soft to medium-strength hits to the torso (front and back), arms, and thighs. The player aims to make contact with speed but not cause injury. Stabs and slashes are legal hits. When a player is hit in any of these locations, they lose 1 HP. When a player’s HP reaches zero, their PC is knocked out (KO’d).

When a PC is KO’d, they must either:

   1) Fall down and pretend to be unconscious/dead, or

   2) Raise their arms and weapons above their heads and move
to a respawn point or safe location.[1] 

  Players use the honor system and must admit when they have been hit. Referees can end combat or dismiss a player if they feel a player is not playing fairly. If a player is “hit,” they do not have to act “as if they are injured.”[2]  However, they must keep track of their remaining HP.

 The lore explanation for this is that with their adrenaline pumping, fighters will not notice their injury until it “overwhelms” them and they are KO’d. After a battle, the PC can “act injured” and request healing items if appropriate for the scene (or if the GM demands it for injured/KO’d PCs).[3]   

Fallen Fighters: It is illegal to hit a player who has fallen to the ground or lost their footing. If a player is on the ground, the attacker must back up five to ten feet to allow them to resume their footing. The lore explanation for this is that the groups at war have a powerful warrior’s code, and to break that code is to risk banishment (or death). Hitting someone who has fallen to the ground is Unnecessary Roughness.

Grappling: This is grabbing, throwing, or wrestling with another player. Grappling is not allowed and is considered Unnecessary Roughness and will result in fouls as appropriate.

Grazing Hits: Most grazing hits also count as legal hits. The only time a grazing hit doesn’t count is if it only contacts loose clothing (i.e., a stab that hits a PC’s shirt but misses their body.)

Hits to the head, neck, hands, lower legs, feet, and groin are illegal and do not count. When an illegal hit occurs (intentionally or unintentionally), all players involved must break combat and separate a distance of five to ten feet before resuming combat.

There is no penalty for accidentally hitting in an illegal area, but intentional hits to illegal areas are Unnecessary Roughness and will be fouled accordingly.

Hitting Too Hard: This game uses a light to  medium-strength hit. If a player is hitting too hard, they are using Unnecessary Roughness, which is a foul. If a player uses a hard hit, all
players involved in the hit (e.g., attacker and defender) must break combat and separate a distance of five to ten feet before resuming combat. If a player repeatedly uses hard hits, they are committing Unnecessary Roughness and will be fouled accordingly.

Ramming and Shield Bashing: Tackling, ramming into players, and shield bashing (smacking a person with a shield) are all illegal moves and are Unnecessary Roughness. Players doing those things can seriously injure themselves and others. All players should avoid tackling, ramming, and shield bashing. Shields colliding with each other during combat are acceptable.

Simultaneous Strikes: If two (or more) PCs have legal hits at nearly the same time, then all players who were hit lose 1 HP.

If two (or more) players strike a KO blow simultaneously (or within a second of each other), all players who were hit are KO’d. However, strikes must be nearly simultaneous. Strikes from a KO’d player that come after the KO are illegal.

Unnecessary Roughness: This is a foul and is the intentional use of grapples, illegal hits, very hard hits, or hits to illegal areas. Players committing this foul get one warning. On the second occurrence, they lose all their HP and must leave combat for the rest of the encounter. If a player has a third occurrence, their PC is killed off, and they are removed from the remainder of the LARP.

Very Light Hits: These are hits that do not have sufficient force or speed to be legal hits. These hits also do not make sense in realistic martial arts or combat training systems. For example, sticking your sword inside your opponent’s guard and quickly flailing your wrist around
will not count as a hit. A legal hit requires retracting and extending the weapon (i.e., a realistic lunging, stabbing, or slashing motion).

Types of Combat

There are two main types of combat: No Respawn and Respawn Allowed. The GM determines the terms of the battle before the start of combat.

No Respawn: This type of combat is meant to be fast and visceral. When a player’s HP is reduced to zero, they either fall down and pretend to be dead or exit the battlefield. If players leave the battlefield, they are encouraged to cheer for their team from the sidelines (as if their
ghosts were rooting for the survivors).

Most large battles only last a few minutes. Combat typically ends when one side has had all its PCs KO’d or if they surrender. No Respawn battles usually operate on a “best of X” or a “first to X” system. The GM will tell PCs how many battles (rounds) they must win to “win” the encounter.

The GM might say the first team to win three battles will win the day. Players form on the battlefield and fight until one side wins the round. Then, players return to their “camps,” have some water, strategize, and return for the next round. (The “rounds” represent multiple skirmishes during a larger battle.) This process repeats until one side has won the encounter. Then, the story progresses to the next event.

Respawn Allowed: These battles last much longer and typically simulate “large battles.” Before the start of a battle, both teams are informed where their respawn point is and what criteria must be met for the fight to end. When a player’s HP is reduced to zero, they move to the respawn point and wait 30 seconds before returning to the battlefield. Players may not “camp” a spawn point to kill players as soon as they leave it.

These battles only end when predetermined criteria have been met, such as a flag being captured, a bridge being crossed, or an NPC being assassinated.

Note: Sometimes, instead of a respawn “point” there will be some number of noncombatant players who serve the purpose (Medics or Healers). These players are given some number of bandages to be applied to downed players. They should try to take at least 30 seconds to tie the bandage. (The downed player in encouraged to play their injury.)  Medical noncombatants are not attackable targets. Intentionally attacking a medical noncombatant or their patient will
lead to immediate dismissal from combat. 
  

Misc Combat Terms and Rulings

Battle Commands: These are callouts shouted to teammates during combat to help them maintain tactical awareness. Any fighter can shout out information to their teammates; however, those in leadership positions give battle commands.

Fighters can quickly become overwhelmed during a melee; therefore, more experienced fighters must keep situational awareness to help prevent their allies from becoming confused. A well-managed battlefield should be alive with the sounds of commands and battle.

Some typical battle commands are:

·        Fighter to your X O’clock (fighter to your 3 O’clock):
Denotes the direction which a fighter is approaching.

·        Stay close: Tells the ally to stay close.

·        Spread apart: Tells the ally to spread and make
distance.

·        I’ve got your back: Tells the fighter that you
are guarding their back.

·        Behind you: Tells the fighter someone is behind
them.

·        Keep your shield high: Tells the fighter to keep
their shield up.

·        You take that one, I’ve got this one: Tells the
fighter to split off and take a particular target.

·        Back up: Tells the fighter to back up.

·        Give the enemy some space: Tells the fighter to
back off the enemy.

·        Danger, Danger: Tells the fighter to watch out
for a real-life danger (such as a steep ravine).

Some typical battle commands are:

·        Hold the line: This tells the fighter to hold
the line and not retreat.

·        Forward: this tells the fighter to move forward.

·        Stop or Freeze: tells the fighters to cease
combat and hold position until told to resume.

Fighters may use many other commands, but these are general ones. Ultimately, a battle command is anything you need to say to help your side win the battle.