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Home » Search » Roster » Whitepages » Records » FAQ » Guidebook

Fighting: Basics

  • Fighting may occur at any time, on any board, between any two characters in the Rift. Newcomers cannot fight.
  • Please use the "Fight" icon if your thread is a fight!
  • You must attack in each post, otherwise it doesn't make any sense.
  • If you lose consciousness, fall down and don't get back up, run away, etc, you automatically lose.
  • The fighting system of the Rift is dependent upon a stats system, and dice rolls. Everyone starts with the same basic stats:
    • Attack: 0
    • Defense: 0
    • Damage: 0
    • Hit Points: 50
  • Stat upgrades are earned via Prowess, which you receive from participating in fights.
  • Stat exceptions:
    • Foals aged 0-1 have 25% of their adult stats
    • Yearlings have 50% of their adult stats
    • Two year olds have 75% of their adult stats
  • After the fight is concluded, a short, written verdict, including some Hit Point gains/losses, is posted.

Fight Types

Fast Fight

  • A rapid fight between characters, intended to solve sudden and not very 'serious' disputes
  • Two rounds
  • Each post has a 400 word maximum
  • 1 week maximum between posts, or it results in a default

Spar

  • Typically a 'mock fight', for practice
  • Three rounds
  • Each post has an 800 word maximum
  • 3 weeks maximum between posts, or it results in a default

Challenge

  • A formal challenge with stakes
    • Whatever is being challenged for should be clearly stated both ICly and OOCly in the post
    • Only one 'thing' may be challenged for at a time
    • Things that may be challenged for: herd ranks, items, pride, etc. (If you are uncertain if what you plan to challenge for is allowed, please PM and admin and ask!)
    • A character/player on 'Away' or Inactive may not be challenged
    • If a character goes on 'Away' during a Challenge, then they have 1 week of "Away" grace time before it defaults
    • A character must wait 1 week after completing a Challenge before entering into another one, or enter the new Challenge with the same HP they finished the previous one with
      • The exception is if a thread takes place between the two Challenges, where someone with Healing magic heals the character. If all injuries sustained were caused by physical attacks, the character is healed for 100%, otherwise, see the Level Relative Strength chart for how much of your original HP you regain.
  • Four rounds
  • Each post has an 800 word maximum
  • 72 maximum between posts, or it results in a default

Glossary

  • Atk: Attack
  • Def: Defense
  • Dmg: Damage
  • HP: Hit Points
  • Modifier: a sum 'modifying' the outcome of a dice roll, in this case, the modifier to e.g. the attack roll is the character's attack stat
  • d#, e.g. d6: d for die, the number is for how many sides the die has; in this case, a six-sided die

Rolls

  • Critical hit roll: d20
  • Attack roll: d6 + atk modifier
  • Defense roll: d4 + def modifier/s
  • Damage roll: d6 + dmg modifier/s

Items & Magic

  • Offensive and defensive items and magic affect the fight, if in IC use.

Defensive Items

  • Defensive items that are constant, such as armor pieces, have a constant bonus applied to your defense roll. Meaning, your items are also a defense modifier.
    • +1 defense if: you are wearing up to two minor armor parts
    • +2 defense if: you are wearing three or more minor armor parts, or full body armor
  • Please note that you must write it into your post, as well as include an OOC note, if your character is wearing armor, and how much armor they are wearing.
  • If your character has a defensive item that requires conscious use to block or deflect attacks, it works a little differently. As for how, see the part about "Bonus Defense Roll", but here's the numbers:
    • +1 defense if: the item is an unenchanted item
    • +2 defense if: the item is an enchanted item

Defensive Magic

  • Please see "Bonus Defense Roll" about how the defensive magic works in practice.
  • The defense modifiers are as following:
    • +1 defense if: your magic level is 1-4
    • +2 defense if: your magic level is 5-9
    • +3 defense if: your magic level is 10

Offensive Items & Magic

  • If you plan on using either an offensive magic, or an offensive item, in your post, you must include that information when requesting your roll.
  • Attacks made while transformed do not count as offensive magic.
  • Modifiers:
    • +1 damage if: your item is unenchanted
    • +2 damage if: your item is enchanted, or your magic level is 1-4
    • +3 damage if: your magic level is 5-9
    • +4 damage if: your magic level is 10

Structure

  • The fights are split into rounds.
  • You request your roll before posting your post. This is to better allow you to incorporate the results of the roll into your post. Tentatively, we suggest outlining your post, saving it as a draft, and then requesting your roll. This gives you an idea of what you want to do, which is important in the case of using offensive magic or items. Once you have your roll, you can edit your draft to include the results - for example, misses, critical misses, critical hits, etc.
  • The amount of damage you choose to take should be dependent on the dice roll. For example, someone with a high damage modifier always hits pretty hard, but the d6 roll is more important. 1-2 are light hits, 5-6 are hard hits.
  • Ready to roll?

The Critical Roll

  • At the start of every roll, a simple d20 is rolled.
  • If the d20 rolls a 1: it is a critical miss. You roll for damage, and take it yourself. IC, this could be things like stumbling and scraping your knees, pulling a muscle, environmental damage, such as falling off a ledge, etc.
  • If the d20 rolls a 20: it is a critical hit. This is a guaranteed, harder-than-usual hit. You roll for damage, and deal it times 1,5 (rounded down) to your opponent. IC, you should write this as a more amped up attack.
  • A critical hit cannot be blocked by defensive magic/items.

The Attack Roll

  • Once the critical roll is over, you roll for your attack. This is a simple roll, as the attack stat is not influenced by either magic or items.
  • The attack roll is: d6 + your attack modifier

The Defense Roll

  • Now comes your opponent's defense roll.
  • The defense roll is: d4 + their defense modifier + defense modifier from armor
  • If your attack roll is higher than their defense roll, your attack lands.
  • If your attack roll is equal to their defense roll, you deal a glancing/blocked blow. You roll for damage, but deal only half of it (rounded down).
  • If your attack roll is lower than their defense roll, your attack misses/is blocked.

The Damage Roll

  • If you are successfully dealing some damage, whether to yourself or your opponent, you roll for damage. The damage roll is influenced by your offensive magic and items, if you choose to use them.
  • The damage roll is: d6 + your damage modifier + damage modifier from items/magic

Posting

  • At this point, you have all your rolls. You know how to write, or polish, your post, according to what is happening in the fight.
  • Please note that even if your attack lands, by the rolls, you cannot write that it actually does, where it does, or how much damage it does. That is still up to the other player!
  • Give it a proof-reading one time or two, making sure that your defense/attack makes sense, and that you have no unnecessary spelling/grammar errors. Try to find the balance between having a nice flow while stile offering detailed descriptions of what is going on!

Bonus Defense Roll

  • In the roll-flow, this would, actually, be rolled before any of the others, as the defensive magic or item is a direct counter to the previous post. However, in this guide, we've chosen to explain it last.
  • An example:
    • Round one: Paddy attacks Sally, and gets his rolls. It's a hit. Paddy writes his post, and posts it.
    • Round one: Sally wants to use her defensive magic. She requests her rolls. The first roll she receives is her Bonus Defense Roll, which might turn Paddy's attack into a miss/block. After the Bonus Defense Roll, Sally receives her usual rolls, and writes her post, including the result of her attempt to deflect Paddy's attack.
  • The bonus defense roll is: d4 + their defense modifier + defense modifier from armor + defense modifier from items/magic
  • Please note that you cannot use defensive magic (= receive a bonus defense roll) against critical hits.

Written Verdict

  • At the conclusion of a fight, a staff member will read through it in its entirety. A short written verdict will be posted, containing the following categories:
    • Realism: Realism basically comes down to, did that thing make sense? Did that attack/positioning make sense? Did the damage you took correlate with the force behind the attack? Did an injury you took in round one disappear in round four? Did your injuries affect you to a degree that seems reasonable?
    • Language: Were there many grammatical errors? Tense changes? Typos? Wordings and descriptions that did not make sense? Did the posts have a clear, easy-to-follow flow, or was it choppy and difficult to follow?
  • Each category is graded on a scale from -2 to +2:
    • -2: There were repeated mistakes/inconsistencies
    • -1: There were repeated mistakes/inconsistencies, but to a lesser degree
    • 0: There were a few mistakes/inconsistencies
    • +1: There were barely any mistakes/inconsistencies
    • +2: There were no mistakes/inconsistencies, except one or two really minor ones
  • The scores are then totaled, doubled, and added to - or subtracted from - your HP.
  • Proof-read your posts several times before posting to avoid unnecessary subtractions! Sometimes it helps to let a post sit a few hours, and then re-read it with fresh eyes.

Handicap

  • As some of you may have figured out, it would be possible to end up with two badly matched characters, where one wouldn't even be able to hit the other. For example:
    • Paddy has a defense stat of 6. His minimum defense roll 7.
    • Sally's attack stat is still 0. Her maximum attack roll is 6.
  • To avoid this, the attack stat of, in this case Sally, will be temporarily raised to where she is capable of hitting her opponent. In the previous example, Sally would be given an attack modifier of +2, meaning her maximum attack roll is now 8. Her chances of actually scoring a hit are still low, but it is possible, at least.

Below 0 HP

  • Against some opponents, you might risk going below 0 HP. While we'll never demand anyone kill off their character, we want such a thing to have consequences.
  • If you drop below 0 HP, you can only be healed by a character with Healing magic. When isn't as important, but until you're healed, you'll be weak and injured.
  • If you hit, or drop below, -10 HP, you must be healed instantly after the fight. The thread (or post, if within the same thread) where the healing takes place needs to be posted within 72 hours of the official verdict being posted.
  • If you do not find a healer for your character within 72 hours, you have a couple of choices, depending on what assets your character has on hand:
    • You can let your character actually die.
    • If your character has Immortality magic, you can choose to let it become comatose for two weeks. Upon waking up, they'll suffer lingering injuries and weakness for an additional 4 weeks, and will be unable to partake in fights.
    • You can give one magic, enchanted item, or companion up to the Rift, in exchange for your life.
  • If you have neither Immortality magic nor anything else to give up to the Rift to save your character, contact the Staff team and we'll be happy to work a suitable consequence out with you.
  • Be smart about your HP! It'll be a lot less traumatic to bow out of a fight rather than risk going down to -10 HP. Keep in mind that, at the most, an additional 8 HP can be subtracted when the verdict is posted.

Example Fight

  • Fighter one: Paddy
    • Attack: 2
    • Defense: 1
    • Damage: 1
    • HP: 52
    • Armor: +1
    • Magic level: 3
  • Fighter two: Sally
    • Attack: 0
    • Defense: 2
    • Damage: 2
    • HP: 55
    • Armor: 0
    • Magic level: 5

Round One

  • Paddy goes first. Paddy requests his roll, and gets:
    • Crit: 20 - critical hit
    • Paddy foregoes the attack/defense rolls
    • Damage: 1 + 1 = (2 * 1,5) = 3
  • Paddy writes his post.
  • Sally goes next, and requests her roll:
    • Crit: 20 - critical hit
    • Sally foregoes the attack/defense roll
    • Damage: 3 + 2 = (5 * 1.5) = 7
  • Sally writes her post.
  • Paddy's HP: 52 - 7 = 45
  • Sally's HP: 55 - 3 = 52

Round Two

  • Paddy requests his roll.
    • Crit: 4
    • Attack: 1 + 2 = 3
    • Sally's defense: 3 + 2 = 5
    • Paddy misses.
  • Paddy writes his post.
  • Sally requests her roll. She's going to use offensive magic.
    • Crit: 14
    • Attack: 6 + 0 = 6
    • Paddy's defense: 3 + 2 = 5
    • Sally hits, and rolls for damage: 1 + 2 + 3 = 6
  • Sally writes her post.
  • Paddy's HP: 45 - 6 = 39
  • Sally's HP: 52

Round Three

  • Paddy doesn't like this, and invokes his defensive magic! He rolls:
    • 3 + 2 + 1 = 6
    • Seeing as this is equal to Sally's attack roll when she scored the hit, it is turned into a glancing blow/block. Paddy takes half damage (3) instead of full damage (6), raising his HP up to 42.
  • Paddy gets the rest of his rolls:
    • Crit: 1 - critical miss
    • Paddy rolls for damage: 4 + 1 = (5 / 2) = 2, and takes this damage himself
  • Paddy writes his post.
  • Sally requests her roll:
    • Crit: 18
    • Attack: 5 + 0 = 5
    • Paddy's defense: 4 + 2 = 6
    • Sally misses
  • Paddy's HP: 39 + 3 - 2 = 40
  • Sally's HP: 52

Round Four

  • Paddy requests his roll. He's going to use an enchanted offensive item:
    • Crit: 2
    • Attack: 4 + 2 = 6
    • Sally's defense: 2 + 2 = 4
    • Paddy hits, and rolls for damage: 5 + 1 + 2 = 7
  • Paddy writes his post.
  • Sally requests her roll:
    • Crit: 10
    • Attack: 4 + 0 = 4
    • Paddy's defense: 2 + 2 = 4
    • Sally strikes a glancing blow/block, and rolls for damage: 5 + 2 = (7 / 2 ) = 3
  • Sally writes her post.
  • Paddy's HP: 40 - 3 = 37
  • Sally's HP: 52 - 7 = 45

Verdict & Ending Posts

  • Rift Presence posts with the verdict, totaling the verdict scores and adjusting the final HP as needed.
  • Once the verdict has been posted and the official winner declared, the thread can go on as usual, until it is properly concluded with a fade-to-black or 'hard exit' from the characters.