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Combat and fighting are an essential element of playing MazeWorld. After all, what good are all those weapons if you can't use them? Learning all of the aspects of combat is important for your survival.
= Turn order =
'''Turn order''' is a term which refers to the order in which every creature in the room will perform their actions. Certain actions are faster than others and will therefore be attempted first. Generally speaking, free actions take a backseat; very few free actions are allowed while in Combat mode, and although talking is considered to be a free action, it should be kept to a minimum; a sentence or two at most. Most of the time, you will be performing ''Combat actions'' and ''Non-combat actions''.
== Initiative Speed ==
In order to accurately determine the turn order of any combat turn, the '''Initiative Speed''' or '''IS''' of every action must be checked. This value is what determines the turn order. '''The lower the Initiative Speed value, the faster the corresponding action.''' You can think of it as a ticket number; the lowest numbers go first.
The Initiative Speed of combat actions is either assigned to a [[Abilities|technique]] or a [[Abilities#Natural attacks|natural attack]], or tied to the corresponding [[weapons|weapon]]'s weightWeight. Although there are certain ways to modify a weapon's Weight directly (usually through the use of a [[Weapon#Weapon stocks|folding stock]]), the more common way of improving Initiative Speed is to use IS tier modifiers.
Initiative Speed has both a minimum cap (0) and a maximum cap (C); IS can never go lower than 0 or higher than C. See below for the table of IS speeds and tiers.
If two or more creatures have the same Initiative Speed before resolving a combat turn, this is called a '''speed conflict''' (or '''IS conflict'''), which must be resolved in order to determine the turn order. There cannot be any creatures that act at the same time. To resolve a speed conflict, the GM may choose to roll to randomly determine who goes first, or simply designate an order without rolling for it. If there is a speed conflict between two player characters and they aren't on opposed sides, it is customary to ask both players if they have a preference on who should act first.
=== Table of IS speeds Weight and tiers IS values ==={| class="wikitable" style="font-size:9pt; text-align:center" width="400450"
|-
| ''Weight / Initiative Speed value'' || '''0''' || '''1''' || '''2''' || '''3''' || '''5''' || '''9''' || '''14''' || '''18''' || '''22''' || '''26''' || '''30''' || '''U''' || '''C'''
|-
| ''IS tier level'' || 0 || 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 8 || 9 || 10 || 11 || 12
|}
The final two highest IS levels, '''U''' and '''C''', use letters rather than numbers before they correspond to a name rather than a Weight value.
* U corresponds to '''Unsparable''' Weight, and is the IS of weapons of that Weight.
* C corresponds to '''Concentrating''' speed; see [[Concentrating]] for more details.
The Weight of any given weapon is between 1 and Unsparable. There are only a few exceptions to this rule; three flamethrowers (the [[No.2]], the [[M2-2]] and the [[XL18]] have a listed weight of 40, but a separate listed Initiative Speed (IS 22 for the No.2 and M2-2, IS 18 for the XL18).
=== Non-combat actions ===
The steps of a typical combat turn are as follows:
* '''1)''' Game Master (GM) declares that a new combat turn is about to begin. (''"Turn X, what are your next moves?"'')* '''2)''' GM requests the players to describe their next action, while secretly preparing the next actions of every NPC.
** If, for one reason or another, player characters are on opposed sides of a fight and must not reveal their plans to one another, players may instead provide their next actions to the GM secretly.
* '''3)''' GM resolves any outstanding IS conflicts.* '''4)''' Once the turn order is determined, GM announces the turn is beginning.* '''5)''' Every creature resolves their actions in the determined order.
** Any combat actions must go through accuracy resolution, then damage resolution, if any hits were scored.
* '''6)''' Once every action is resolved, GM announces the turn is ending. This is the point where counters, effects or anything relying on turn counting can be ticked up or down, and the point where the GM must check whether or not Combat mode may continue or end.
** If at least two opposed creatures are still standing and willing to fight, then combat goes on to the next turn - Return to the top of this list, rinse and repeat the above steps as many turns as needed.
** Otherwise, combat ends and the game returns to Normal mode.
Once the amount of hits and inaccurate hits has been determined, the Game Master may determine the amount of damage dealt to the target, using this checking order:
* First, determine '''1)''' Determine the amount of [[Pain]] dealt.* Next, determine '''2)''' Determine the amount of [[Limb damage]] dealt.* Afterwards, determine '''3)''' Determine the amount and type of any [[Injuries]] inflicted.* Lastly, resolve '''4)''' Resolve any special effects, if applicable.
The checking order as it is provided exists to encourage prompt resolution of combat. Don't do the full order if you can already tell the creature is dead before the checking order is finished. For instance, if you can tell that the creature is dead just from Pain, there is no need for the GM to check for limb damage or injuries, and so on.
When Combat mode begins, the Game Master must announce the location of every player character, every other creature, every object, and every piece of furniture in the room. The presence and location of [[Cover]] must be requested before it can be used - see the relevant page for details on how Cover and stealth works.
Battlespace location is also used to determine weapon range. All attacks may either be '''Ranged''' or '''Melee'''. Ranged attacks may be used against creatures in any Side of the battlespace, with the caveat that cover can be used to guard against ranged attacks. Melee attacks render Cover useless, but requires the attacker and the target to be on the same Side. If an attacker intending to use a Melee attack isn't starting the turn on the same Side as their target, they will move into their target's Side as part of their action.
Planted explosives (all of which are [[Class 4 weapons]]) are a special case; they cannot be used directly to perform attacks normally like with other weapons, instead requiring to be placed in the Battlespace and meet certain conditions in order to detonate. For further details on how they function, see [[Explosives]], or the relevant individual weapon pages.
[[Category: Game mechanics]]
