Action Resolution & Combat

Action resolution- determining when a character succeeds or fails and what happens next- is an important part of any role playing game. ER-RPG uses a twenty-sided dice to provide a randomly generated number (RGN) which facilitates this process. Generally speaking, the higher the roll, the more likely a character is to succeed.

Base Attributes
Every character and creature, be they PC or NPC, has a set of attributes. There are six base attributes, which serve as a foundation for establishing how strong, fast, enduring, intelligent, etc., your character is. A first level ER-RPG character has an average of 17 in their base attributes.


 * Strength - A measure of how physically strong a character is. Strength increases Attack Power in a 2:1 ratio during physical combat.


 * Dexterity - A measure of how swift and agile a character is. Dexterity increases Accuracy, Dodge and Block/Parry in a 2:1 ratio during physical combat.


 * Vitality - A measure of how resilient and healthy a character is. Each dot of vitality provides a character with 6 points in their health pool.


 * Intelligence - A measure of a character's problem-solving ability as well as aptitude for skills, knowledges and magic. Intelligence increases Attack Magic Potency in a 2:1 ratio during spellcasting.


 * Mind - A measure of the character's mental resistance against pain, fear, torture, insanity. Mind increases Defensive/Healing Magic Potency in a 2:1 ratio during spellcasting.
 * Piety - A measure of a character's connection to the Aetherflow and/or the gods.  Each dot of vitality provides a character with 6 points in their magic pool.

Physical Attack Actions
Combat is something that adventurers are constantly involved in, whether clearing vermin from a farmer's fields or attempting to reach the heart of a dungeon to end an ancient evil. Every class of adventurer has its own style of weapon and weaponskills that only those trained by the appropriate DoW or DoM guild know. Regardless of the class, the system mechanics for attacking and countering attacks is generally the same.

Melee & Ranged Physical Attacks: current Accuracy Score + 1d20 (Attack Roll) vs. target's Dodge, Block, Parry +1d20 (Evasion Roll), -if- target is attempting evasion.


 * 1) If the Accuracy Score > target's Dodge, Block, or Parry then:
 * 2) The Attack Score must > the target's Defense Score (DS) to cause them harm.
 * 3) Subtract the target's Defense Score (DS) from the current Attacker's Attack Power (ATK)
 * 4) ATK - DS = total number of hit points the defender loses -and- the total number of durability points the defender's gear lose.

Weaponskills
Weaponskills are learned from class trainers as adventurers progress in level. Weaponskills often increase the character's attack power for a single combat round, but might include additional effects such as a debuff. Players need to announce what weaponskill they are using when they begin their attack. Some weaponskills create combo attacks, meaning they might provide a benefit to the adventurer's next attack in the following combat round.

Characters cannot use two weaponskills in the same combat round unless a weaponskill specifically states otherwise. If a weaponskill increases a character's Accuracy, that increase should be taken into account when the attack roll is made.

Evasion
When a character is aware that an attack is coming and they are in harm's way, they can attempt to evade as an instant counter action.


 * Shield-weilding can opt to block (generally more effective because their shield provides a bonus to blocking), parry, or dodge.


 * Melee combatants can parry or dodge.


 * Ranged combatants (archers and the three DoM classes) can only dodge.

Attempting evasion (whether it is a success or failure) provides a -1 accuracy modifier on the defender's next action.