Hello! Clicking this thread means you either got curious and once you figure out this isn't what you might have wanted to read you've likely clicked off. However, for those of you looking for an ever-evolving guide to combat in a Roleplay setting from one of the best, here we go.

 

I will be breaking this up into different sections/posts, as for organization's sake. Between each post, you're free to post any and all questions you want to, make your own suggestions or tips, and that sort of thing. Remember, even the best in the world have something more to learn and improve, and I'm certainly not the best in the world. Contribute if you so want or need!

 

Just make sure to only contribute if the contribution directly relates to the most recent post's topic, chances are that if I missed something I might plan to cover it in a separate post if it relates to but isn't directly in-line with that post and align's more with another. I'm also just human, and I can make mistakes.

 

On top of that, use this thread to practice, or even challenge other's to a match to improve your skills or test out some ideas! I certainly will be partaking, as I have to tune up my skill with scythe combat at this time. Think of this as a sort-of mock-dump RP, teaching, and all that thread. It's here to help guide people who are unsure as to how to improve in combat, are new, ect.

 

With that out of the way... Let's get started.

 

 

 

 

Chapter I: Basic Training.

 

The sweat on our hero's brow was no more than almost a thick film resting on his skin. Like a frog's slimy exterior, his skin found trouble in trying to grip onto his blade anymore. The massive weight, the tremendous force accompanied in the blow, it was a wonder his block withstood such a blast from his foe for so long, yet he just couldn't keep up with his rival any longer. His block broke, and so did his skin. 

 

The life force drained in a mere instant, once thought to be an unbeatable hero, he was now a corpse. Finally able to rest, the Guardian of Kailos Gate and our hero's foe took a last glance at his rival of the last hours, before kneeling once again at it's doors, and falling to rest once again.

 

 

Introduction:

 

So, the first thing to note about combat in it's essence is it's not just a mess of blows and cuts. It's an art. No matter what situation it is. Yes, art can be messy, and that is where we must start: the difference between a slosh of paint on a canvas and just throwing your dog into a pool of paint and calling it art.

 

 

Minor self-made terminology.

 

 

First thing to know: The difference between what I will call an attack and a move.

 

An attack is a well executed attack or series of attacks, movements, strikes, and actions taken during one's turn in combat during an RP. Attacks are generally what you want to use, as they encompass a lot of detail, help you set up the battlefield you're in, what the world around you looks like, your terrain advantages, disadvantages, and so on. Attacks are detailed, and you must execute them well.

 

Now, in example, say you are about to start a fight. You attack the opponent, how should you?

 

GOOD:

Sharon took the edge of her blade, aligning it with her forearm so that when his slash happened, it was quick and it hurt. The field was dusty and littered with grass, carried aloft by the winds of this battlefield. She looked to the opponent in front of her: A simple man, only a knife and a little magic. Nothing she couldn't handle. The winds stopped, and the dust settled, only a single blade of grass remained between the two. With grace, however speed-lacking, the plant drifted across the air like a bird in the sky. The skies were a vivid blue, the sun ablaze. As the blade of grass landed, Sharon's blade took flight. A horizontal back-handed slash, followed up with a upward strike from her reversed blade, and finally, with a twist of her waist, sending her blade behind her, Sharon switched her grip on her sword and preformed a reverse upward slash from her opponent's left. The morning dew hadn't quite yet dried, however, making this last attack a hard one to keep up with.

 

Why it's good:

The attack is descriptive and creative. The player takes a look at their surroundings and terrain to add detail and tension to the post, as well as a stylistic standpoint. Note how she never directly states if she hit her opponent. You can throw every hit in the book, but it's possible for you to miss every one. Now, should it happen? No, however, the situation could be that the opponent can evade due to their using a lighter weapon and being of a much faster fighting style. The situation of the warriors in the fight will always determine how it's run. Also note that she didn't keep to one angle of attack with her combat, though she used two upward slashes, the method of how they were executed were different as well as the speed of and positioning that came with the attack. Could it be better? Yes, descriptions on body movement, footing, and position to the enemy would help drive up how good this post is, but that is to be covered a little later.

 

BAD:

Sharon smirked, a chump dared try and assassinate her! The nerve! She drew her blade and began slashing at her assailant, first from the front, then behind.

 

Why it's bad:

 

First and foremost, it's short. In combat, a short post is ninety-percent of the time bad. It shows lack of creativity or ideas on how to handle the opponent in a method that can be considered constructive. When you fight, you must describe what your action is, how it works, and where it comes from. If you don't, and be very indescriptive in your writing, your attacks are not only predictable to even someone new to the idea of RP combat, or can even be abused. In example, the post above could be countered with a simple round block(a block that follows the opponent as their pattern of attack is not described and as such can only be assumed as going in s circle or "round" shape and thus is easily blocked) parrie-knock of the weapon (which will denture counterattacking mid-attack, leaving them only with a move away or block option) to back-step for spacing and lunging-stab to the chest, if you describe your actions right, making the fight a quick loss for the initiator.

 

 

However, when being attacked, the way you must respond is slightly different. In example, say the enemy attacks you with a side-step to get some distance, then a charge with a stab at the body with their lance, followed with a downward strike to the ground to allow them to use their spear like a pole; as a result they jump and use the lance as a support and throw a followup kick.

 

GOOD:

The lances' tip came right for Hanz, however, with a downward-strike to the tip of the spear, trying to force the spear into the dense, thick earth that they fought over. He was able to deflect the stab, however he wasn't prepared for the follow up kick... The blow to his head knocked him back quite a bit and shook him a bit up, however he was far from done. In response, Hanz shot a icicle at Kiro as she went to land and followed behind it, lining up a punch right at her stomach. He took advantage of the hardened dirt and also landed a shot of ice on Kiro's spear which stuck to the ground. As he arrived, Hanz drove his knuckles into his opponent's stomach as revenge for the kick, throwing her off of the spear she used as a weapon.

 

Why is this good?

 

The writer chose to use his opponent's move against them. Any good fighter can size up a situation and adapt on the fly with a new strategy for combating the enemy. Hanz was not invincible, as, as far as we know he has no armor that protects him from being stabbed like that or kicked like that however we can assume that the fighter is competent enough to block a simple stab like that, and did take damage. You can afford to not take damage, however you have to pick and choose where you do, we will go over this soon, but as for now, anyone new: Always assume, unless the attack was very telegraphed, your set up to counter such a move, or it's a very poor move, the attack likely did something to you. Don't dismiss your opponent's attacks like they're nothing. We'll get into how to tell what is what in the next major section.

 

BAD:

 

Hanz grabbed the tip of the spear, it was a simple matter, in fact the enemy was far too slow to even touch him in the first place, especially in this location of all places. He snapped the tip of the weapon, and dragged it's owner to his fist, which Hanz used to repeatedly punch his poor opponent in the face multiple times until she died.

 

Why it's bad:

 

For one, we don't know what Hanz is capable of. He won the fight, sure, however... If he is really that fast, fast enough to safely grab a spear head and break it, and afterwards repeatedly attack beyond the golden number of 10(to be discussed) the opponent in a non-descript way with no allotment for countering, then they're overpowered unless multiple others of the game are of that caliber or the enemy you're facing is very, very weak. Even weak opponents, unless incredibly under your character's strength as written, are always going to provide a challenge, on top of this you dismiss your opponent and their character, insult them with not only a humiliating death but by underpowering them, and breaking multiple rules whilst your at it.

 

On top of this, your attack was boring, your approach has no dynamic points of interest, It's uncounterable, you didn't do anything with the scene that the fight takes place in, you didn't think of another angle to take this from, ect. Overall, this kind of attack is unacceptable. Now, there are moments when certain characters ARE untouchable, but those are very special and will be covered later as well, but as for now, understand that your character isn't an unstoppable killing machine that can evade, block, destroy, ect. everything in their way like it's their given birthright. Combat is strategic, if you plan ahead with your moves and guess your opponent well enough, you can be just as successful as the one above but just as fair, well written, well executed, and fun as the good post.

 

 

Move with the flow.

 

Now, onto a move.

 

A move is a set of actions that lead to either a short but powerful series of attacks, or one powerful one. Generally, the emphasis around these is about the attack itself, and are often VERY flashy, with particle effects, lights, sounds, or otherwise stated. Often enough, a move like this cannot be avoided, but that does not mean it cannot be withstood, though blocking, countering with your own move of choice, or just taking the hit, if you're strong enough to survive such a thing. However, no singular move is perfect. A move has to be set up, lead up to, or planned in advanced somehow for it to make sense or work.

 

And most of the time, it cannot come from out of no-where. No, that doesn't mean you can't make up new attacks on the fly, however, they must be able to relate to a characters' written-in abilities, skills, and powers, and the attack must operate on the laws of the world your character is in. If you have a signature attack that you can't live without, find some way to work it into the game without disobeying the rules of said world. Remember, you are the character in a world more often than not made by someone else, not your own.

 

The good and bad version of this is very easily explained, and doesn't require more than one example:

 

Suzu fired a gigantic freakin' laser through the earth, making sure to take Mako with the planet.

 

Now, why is this bad, and how do we make it good? It's bad as there is no prelude, context, start-up time, or insight as to how the character can do this. Not to mention, it is a tad overpowered and borderlines godmodding (which will be covered). In order to make a move work, you have to obey by a few laws:

 

One, anything that is very powerful requires at least a one-post startup time. The more powerful, the longer the start up should be unless the character's have access to powerful techniques that they do not need a long period of time to charge them for, however this is very conditional. An attack like this should take at least four posts of startup, in which time you're either vulnerable or have to stop the move to counterattack. You cannot (most of the time) continue a powerful attack that has a startup  as well as counterattack, as you have to focus on the move. This gives the enemy an opportunity to stop you, as well as your allies to aid you. If a move is something small, like a signature fireball, this can be ignored as long as the fireball isn't bigger than Sifer's ego in KH2.

 

Two: It should NEVER destroy the world, unless you're given expressed permission and are allowed to do so. No attack, in general, should be that powerful. As with anything, there are exceptions to the rule. It can do major damage, I.E., destroy buildings, make craters, so on so forth, but never something as large as a whole city the size of a Metropolis in one go.

 

Three, the attack isn't a completely guaranteed hit. Though attacks like this are normally allowed to hit, you cannot make an attack that cannot be evaded. In fact, even just giving the attack a chance to fail in some way must be done to make it fair. Moves, no matter how big or strong, or weak and little, are still attacks. They're however generally more powerful than your basic attacks, though.

 

If you understand those rules, and the basic ideas behind the idea of attacks, a move should not be hard for you to piece together in a fair and neat way. They're the flare, don't forget them, but don't overuse them, or it's like you're blowing up fireworks 24/7. Eventually, it doesn't seem as special or pretty.

 

Next time, I'll be covering more of the basics, like defining how some weapons work, more in-depth explanations on what to do in a fight, and some simple tips and tricks. That post will go more in-depth and actually be presented in a way that explains what I mean a bit better.

 

Questions probably going through your mind/FAQ when I have actual frequent questions to put here:

Q: Does he really think he is that good at Roleplay? Because that's not the case.

A: I do honestly think I'm decent at least. I have a good understanding of what combat flow is like, and love combat from it's core up. 

 

Q: Man, this guy... I guess he has a huge ego... Don't you?

A: No, in fact. Honestly, I'm my own worst critic, and hate just about every post I make unless I'm having fun with it. However, I love combat and happen to think I do well with it. But it's no fun when you're at the top, no one fun to play with. The best thing in the world is to find someone with a different style of combat to you but is your level of fighter, and what fun is it to see the same boring "X Character punched L Character in N Bodypart." I love good writing, and I think that everyone has a chance to put out my level or better in combat, and there are already a bunch with the potential. I'm good, but it's boring to be good without anyone else. A lot of people know I'm one of the better fighters, and I don't think it's fair to not share what I've learned and know. RPing is something you get the most out of when everyone is just as good as you and everyone else is as well, it's a social way of writing a story. Do I feel like I'm good enough to write a post like this? Hell no. I'm no where near as good as I want to be. But I want more people to face who challenge me, so I figured I should do something like this and-

 

I'm coming off as pretentious and cocky, right? It's hard to explain what I mean, but I know of a metaphor that might work. A Goku from Dragon Ball wants to be the strongest but never wants to have a boring fight either, and wants his friends to work and train with him so they can all get stronger together. I know I'm decent, if I denied what I am then I would lie to anyone who asked, and I refuse to lie.

 

TL;DR: I love fighting and want more people to fight me that are challenging so shut up and punch me bro.

 

Edited September 15, 201510 yr by Guest

*ground shifts slightly* *sees it coming from a mile away*

*sends second strongest physical attack* *blocks it with his palm*

 

I swear, I didn't enter this fray to get thrashed by you Riki, seriously, I wanted to try and practice some more with Artifact and Soul energy Neena.

*ground shifts slightly* *sees it coming from a mile away*

*sends second strongest physical attack* *blocks it with his palm*

 

I swear, I didn't enter this fray to get thrashed by you Riki, seriously, I wanted to try and practice some more with Artifact and Soul energy Neena.

Well, Neena was being a bit quick to the attacking like that. Battle is for the gentle soul that can become vicious, not for a punk who can swing. From here on in, I won't be pulling that BS anyway, it just seemed a little quick for you to go like that on Derik when he hadn't even drawn his weapon.

She's an assassin, not some glory seeking warrior. If you're on the list, don't expect a pleasant duel with clean and fair rules. And considering we're fighting, you both must be on the list. Get used to it. I'll post in a bit.

Commenting for future referencing

 

At school atm so I can't even read any of this. Will get back soon, possibly update own guide as required in light of new info

She's an assassin, not some glory seeking warrior. If you're on the list, don't expect a pleasant duel with clean and fair rules. And considering we're fighting, you both must be on the list. Get used to it. I'll post in a bit.

 

To be fair Henry would have managed to block that too, but with the earth style strenght enhancement with some nasty collateral damage all around them.

She's an assassin, not some glory seeking warrior. If you're on the list, don't expect a pleasant duel with clean and fair rules. And considering we're fighting, you both must be on the list. Get used to it. I'll post in a bit.

Killjoy.

 

Commenting for future referencingAt school atm so I can't even read any of this. Will get back soon, possibly update own guide as required in light of new info

Glad to be of some service to another guide maker!

Henry simply looked amused as the man quickly threw the magical ninja girl into the lake, "Ah yes, names, mine's Henry, yours?" he asked the misterious man, as salamander facepalmed within his mind, "Are you serious?" she asked, "Just go with it" Sylph said, all inside Henry's mind, he simply ignored them as he spoke with the man, who had come out of nowhere, and knocked that woman into the water.

Killjoy. Glad to be of some service to another guide maker!

*Waves a fish at you**Then stops, because idea*

To be fair Henry would have managed to block that too, but with the earth style strenght enhancement with some nasty collateral damage all around them.

My problem was less with the block, but more the way he blocked it.

 

Killjoy.

 

Glad to be of some service to another guide maker!

Yeah, that's the point. It's not all fun and games here.

 

~

 

As she spun through the air, her dagger and axe were switched out for Aredbhair and Caduceus. Some of the water of the lake rose to her feet, granting her a platform of sorts. Standing on the water was a little bit difficult, and she wasn't a fan of it, but she wasn't planning on sticking with it long. She leaped up again, her jump powered by the spear of the sky. Once at her peak, she dove down towards Derik once more, lance outstretched. As she flew, Caduceus vanished to be replaced by Crescent Rose, and once within proper distance, did a spinning attack with a large radius with both weapons before landing. "Rude. As if I'd care for the opinions of strangers." She commented.

My own two cents on combat in RPs.

 

My main experience with fighting in an art form comes from wrestling, where the whole point is to put on the best fight scene you can. Now, the thing with wrestling is that nine times out of ten, you can guess who's going to win based around what the story is or other factors that you can anticipate. So the outcome isn't what gets people to watch so much as the match itself. People want to watch a good fight between two strong competitors that even if they know it's predetermined, it will still get them jumping out of their seats, cheering, and becoming emotionally invested, which is ultimately what the point of any art is.

 

I guess the main thing to take away from this is that winning doesn't matter, or, at least, don't become too preoccupied with winning. Another handy wrestling term is called putting someone over, where you intentionally make the other guy look good at your own expense. You take a shot, sure, but it makes it look like your opponent can hold their own, and it raises the stakes more. If you're both no-selling shots, than there's no development in the match, and the action quickly stagnates. As popular as Hulk Hogan was in the eighties, his matches by now are regarded as atrocious and boring because he never put over his opponents during his matches, usually tanking for most of the fight, then getting in a handful of shots at the end and claiming victory. On the flip side, my personal favorite wrestler, Mick Foley, made it a point to make his opponent look as good as they could be (without looking bad himself, of course), because he wanted to make sure the audience felt that he was always fighting the best opponent possible, because that made it more engaging for everyone involved. So don't be overly concerned with being top dog 100% of the time. The point of an RP is to tell a good story, and you might have to take a bump in order to make the best story possible.

Once again, Dave offers srs words of wisdom. if you don't mind Dave, I would like to incorporate this into my Guide, Combat Section. Again, I'll be sure to credit you if you allow me!

 

On topic: I had assumed that everyone would know the discreet advantages and disadvantages of terrain and weapons, but after seeing the sections here, I can seriously add on to it. On that note, I was hoping to see more of combat class concepts along with typical counter and synergistic classes/skills.

Once again, Dave offers srs words of wisdom. if you don't mind Dave, I would like to incorporate this into my Guide, Combat Section. Again, I'll be sure to credit you if you allow me!

 

On topic: I had assumed that everyone would know the discreet advantages and disadvantages of terrain and weapons, but after seeing the sections here, I can seriously add on to it. On that note, I was hoping to see more of combat class concepts along with typical counter and synergistic classes/skills.

Gotta do the basics, Jav. I plan on going over the more basic stuff before doing total breakdowns of things like combat class concept because if you don't know terrain advantage or how your weapon works, none of that matters. Just like in any other kind of fighting style, a good foundation makes for a good future.

My own two cents on combat in RPs.

 

My main experience with fighting in an art form comes from wrestling, where the whole point is to put on the best fight scene you can. Now, the thing with wrestling is that nine times out of ten, you can guess who's going to win based around what the story is or other factors that you can anticipate. So the outcome isn't what gets people to watch so much as the match itself. People want to watch a good fight between two strong competitors that even if they know it's predetermined, it will still get them jumping out of their seats, cheering, and becoming emotionally invested, which is ultimately what the point of any art is.

 

I guess the main thing to take away from this is that winning doesn't matter, or, at least, don't become too preoccupied with winning. Another handy wrestling term is called putting someone over, where you intentionally make the other guy look good at your own expense. You take a shot, sure, but it makes it look like your opponent can hold their own, and it raises the stakes more. If you're both no-selling shots, than there's no development in the match, and the action quickly stagnates. As popular as Hulk Hogan was in the eighties, his matches by now are regarded as atrocious and boring because he never put over his opponents during his matches, usually tanking for most of the fight, then getting in a handful of shots at the end and claiming victory. On the flip side, my personal favorite wrestler, Mick Foley, made it a point to make his opponent look as good as they could be (without looking bad himself, of course), because he wanted to make sure the audience felt that he was always fighting the best opponent possible, because that made it more engaging for everyone involved. So don't be overly concerned with being top dog 100% of the time. The point of an RP is to tell a good story, and you might have to take a bump in order to make the best story possible.

I haven't yet addressed this, which is sort of a shame, but now I kind of can since I'm working on a new section.

 

So, what Dave says here is damn true. Fighting, along with it being an art, is a form of entertainment as well. This falls in line with not devaluing the opponent, like I said. Completely no-selling isn't something you should do, at least not on a regular basis. Now, if you do it for more comedy's sake, like what I did with Neena in a post here with throwing her into the lake after calling her rude, is built to fit in with Derik's more mischievous and joking nature, as well as his feelings of honor on the battle field, more or less used to exaggerate that Derik doesn't like it when people try to backstab him. I very well could have no-selled it, Derik's coat is made of a hard enough material that the attack would have bounced off more or less, but rather than be a jackass about it, I felt that throwing a bit of comedy into it was needed, just as an example.

 

Fighting is one part art, two parts passion, and one part entertainment, in the Roleplay sense, never forget that.

 

Anyhow, time to work on today's section.

Well crap, my original response post didn't get posted. Oh, well.

 

My problem was less with the block, but more the way he blocked it.

 

Yeah, that's the point. It's not all fun and games here.

 

~

 

As she spun through the air, her dagger and axe were switched out for Aredbhair and Caduceus. Some of the water of the lake rose to her feet, granting her a platform of sorts. Standing on the water was a little bit difficult, and she wasn't a fan of it, but she wasn't planning on sticking with it long. She leaped up again, her jump powered by the spear of the sky. Once at her peak, she dove down towards Derik once more, lance outstretched. As she flew, Caduceus vanished to be replaced by Crescent Rose, and once within proper distance, did a spinning attack with a large radius with both weapons before landing. "Rude. As if I'd care for the opinions of strangers." She commented.

 

Henry simply looked amused as the man quickly threw the magical ninja girl into the lake, "Ah yes, names, mine's Henry, yours?" he asked the misterious man, as salamander facepalmed within his mind, "Are you serious?" she asked, "Just go with it" Sylph said, all inside Henry's mind, he simply ignored them as he spoke with the man, who had come out of nowhere, and knocked that woman into the water.

"Derik Jameson Absolon, warrior extraordinaire. At your service and ready to enjoy a nice match. However, first and foremost, I'll deal with punk girl."

 

"You would do best to, I wouldn't relish the thought of killing you for my own life, but I won't hesitate either. I've already lost too many people that I love, all so that they could protect me. If I died here, it would be a disgrace to their sacrifice. Too bad we met in this situation, maybe in another a date would have been in order. Oh, well."

 

Derik raised his sword, bringing the width of the blade onto his left arm; it switched into a wall shield, and the core of the weapon slipped out of the body of the shield. Bringing the shield up, he deflected the attack by ramming it into the attack, twisting his body to the opposite of the spin's direction, and bringing him in close with her. With this, he rammed his shoulder into her chest, and his counterattack began.

 

Boom.

 

The ground below him crumbled, forming a crater as he seemed to vanish.

 

Boom.

 

The air behind Neena seemed to explode almost, Derik appearing once again from that point, his first strike was a shield bash to Neena's mid-back, followed up with a reverse horizontal slash.

So now you know how your weapon works to an extent, the advantages of terrain, methodology of an attack at it's core, and a good chunk of basics. Time to go over a little bit about the in-game action/reaction.

 

 

PVP

 

First and foremost, lets set the scene.

 

You're in a fantasy RP, with basic stock rules of fantasy, however extreme levels of combat can be achieved a la Dragon Ball Z, Soul Eater, Inuyasa, ect., which of course from the way I play is obviously my favorite setting. You're gearing up to fight your enemy, they're a lanky, tall, white as a sheet man with supernatural levels of strength. You are a human, with elemental and energy magics, wielding a sword that works well against the supernatural, which is what your opponent is, however, you're much slower than the opponent and don't hit nearly as hard. You also have access to a bow-staff made of sacred oak and enchanted to dispel evil magics when they are struck with it, a long bow with special explosive tipped arrows, and you have a set of throwing knives that won't even pierce it's skin, but could serve useful. you're in a dark room, crowded with large marble pillars, your greatest advantage is your agility, letting you move between the columns easily and avoid for the most part your enemy.

 

How do you go about this fight?

 

Well, to start, this is a player. Player characters are smarter than enemies, this is a given. Where as a group of enemies controlled by the GM is powerful, they're weak enough for you to be able to defeat, normally due to them being handled by the GM in a manor to make them able to be defeated. However, against another player, this is a different story. A player doesn't want to be defeated. A player is often equipped with more abilities than the average enemy as well, and were built stronger. They're generally protagonists, just like you, and are strong as such. However, a player is also a player. You have to be fair to them, just as they have to be fair to you. So, how do you start the fight?

 

Well, attacking is nice, to start off. Never guarantee a hit, no matter what position you're playing from, being the aggressor of the defender. What you'll often want to open with is something that both players can use to set up a position on the field that they would like to be at, I.e., someone charging you, and taking a slash at your ol' cap attachment, you can block the attack, or slide away backwards and closer to, say, a tree, which you climb onto to try and trick your opponent with your next attack. But as always, never guarantee a hit.

 

But say you want to? Are there any ways to make them happen?

 

For one, never do any sort of attack that is guaranteed that they take heavy damage. Never. Straight-up never. That is more or less a big middle finger to the opponent.

 

IF you guarantee an attack, make it weak. Very weak. Abysmal for damage, but effective for leading into combos. You can use a force-hit for knocking an opponent away with no damage, to set up other attacks. Make sure that this hit is something weak, i.e., a shoulder check, as with my post above had done, strike with a blunt point on your weapon (Say you're using a club, a jab with it at the chest may sting a bit but wouldn't hurt someone to any real extent and can be used to shove the enemy) ect. These are, as i call them, set-up's. Sometimes the opponent just isn't in a position that you can use to preform a nice combo or one that just works at all, in example they have you pinned at a wall, and there's a low ceiling, you can't really counterattack without moving the opponent and thus a set-up is in order. 

 

How do you determine if you are hit? The answer is if you can't argue the attack without stretching for the move necessary to avoid it. In example, if the opponent throws five attacks, one from the front, two from the left, and one from behind, how are they preformed. If the frontal attack and back attack are a series of slashes, and the left-side blow is a downward slash, one can block the frontal blow, and then use the downward strike as a method of knocking yourself away from the rest of the combo if your character is fast enough to block it by letting the character slide back from the hit but as a result your guard is lowered and you're knocked back and as such have a turn where you can't attack and is considered a stun.

 

However, if it's a left upward slash followed by an upward knock-up slash which puts you into the air on hit and this is followed with an areal upward stab, you would struggle to completely avoid this one, as the upon hit knock-up attack wouldn't be easily blockable unless you had two swords or a shield on the other hand, per instance, and thus should be considered a hit you allow, unless you prepared in advance for such a thing, however, we will go over how you prepare for an enemy's attack later.

 

From here on in, it's pretty straight forward, fight in earnest and you will do very well, Attack as you would, defend as you would, take a hit, give a hit. Not all is fare in war.

 

Improvise as you go. Thats what I do and it works

Neena was stunned momentarily and was sent back a little bit, but recovered quickly through the help of Aredbhair's aerial gifts. She felt his strength pulse through her as Crescent Rose's effects took place. She felt his sudden appearance behind him, but let both attacks hit. She hit the ground hard. She grit her teeth in a hard smile as she stood. This was going well, very well. She dismissed Aredbhair and held Crescent Rose in both hands. He hit hard, that much was certain. But she had a plan, and him hitting hard was fine. Besides, the pain felt good. It had been far too long before she had felt such. "I've said it before, I'll say it again. I care not for your history or your feelings. Unless you swear loyalty to me this very moment, then you must be erased. So if you wanna be friends, well, I always enjoy having new vassals." Neena said. She glanced to the other, Henry. He hadn't come back into the fight quite yet, but she had to be ready for when he did. Neena sprinted forward, and swung her scythe in several wide arcs, hoping to catch Derik in the attack.

 

~~~~

OK, you got some good tips. Excellent as always. But back to arguing with you non stop. 

 

 I very well could have no-selled it, Derik's coat is made of a hard enough material that the attack would have bounced off more or less, but rather than be a jackass about it, I felt that throwing a bit of comedy into it was needed, just as an example.

 

No metal coat will deflect an attack that can split the earth. I don't care what magical metal it is, it is made into a thin enough form to function as a coat so a strike that can create a crevice in the ground is not going to bounce off.

Neena was stunned momentarily and was sent back a little bit, but recovered quickly through the help of Aredbhair's aerial gifts. She felt his strength pulse through her as Crescent Rose's effects took place. She felt his sudden appearance behind him, but let both attacks hit. She hit the ground hard. She grit her teeth in a hard smile as she stood. This was going well, very well. She dismissed Aredbhair and held Crescent Rose in both hands. He hit hard, that much was certain. But she had a plan, and him hitting hard was fine. Besides, the pain felt good. It had been far too long before she had felt such. "I've said it before, I'll say it again. I care not for your history or your feelings. Unless you swear loyalty to me this very moment, then you must be erased. So if you wanna be friends, well, I always enjoy having new vassals." Neena said. She glanced to the other, Henry. He hadn't come back into the fight quite yet, but she had to be ready for when he did. Neena sprinted forward, and swung her scythe in several wide arcs, hoping to catch Derik in the attack.~~~~OK, you got some good tips. Excellent as always. But back to arguing with you non stop. No metal coat will deflect an attack that can split the earth. I don't care what magical metal it is, it is made into a thin enough form to function as a coat so a strike that can create a crevice in the ground is not going to bounce off.

How little you know, madame.If Derik's coat is meant to function as armor, it wouldn't be a: thin, b: easy to break. It'd made of several incredibly strong layers of hardened and heavy metal, the jacket for firetruck's sake has a layer of pure lead, it's dense, and heavy. You can only add so much weight to a thin piece of cloth, even through magical enchamtment.On top of this, at the point I'm using him, the first layer of his armor is made of graphine, the second layer is made of a titanium graphine mesh. Graphine is an incredibly durable and strong metal with conductive properties (Google it, yo). On top of this, each "layer" is double-sided as it is a woven cloth and a single swich of cloth is normally woven on both sides to increase the strength of the fabric, and atop this, the fabric is made to resist shock stronger than that with the way it's woven, allowing it to disperse the energy throughout the rest of the cloth and lower damage to both itself and Derik, much in a fashion of a shock absorber in a car. Now, add in enchantments and you have what it is.Derik can easily break the sound barrier, if his coat wasn't up to the challenge, then this would be quite a bad thing.Also, love arguing with you. No better is one like you to argue the logistics of an attack, which is one of your best strengths."Ah, the "I'm superior" type. Y'see, the issue is that I fell mad kings and corrupt queens, so I'll have no remorse now, thanks."The brought strikes to Derik, wide arcs, normal of someone using a scythe. Easily guarded against, as the blows are quite telegraphed. Normally you have to commit to every swing you do with a scythe...He floated there, not far into the sky, not all that close to the ground."Come on, with all that viggor, I swear you would have cut me in half five times over. So far you are just boring! Give it your "A" game."Every slash landed, but he didn't budge, he didn't move. It was like hitting a mountain."Oi, Henry, wanna join in? I'm about to tag out and take a nap."

Edited September 27, 201510 yr by Guest

Graphine isn't exactly metallic, but just as strong and conductable, in short, Lighting would blow right throuhg it, since it conducts, and while the electricity is weakened through titanium, it still goes through, a high enough current can blow, and cloth can't exactly block electricity, (If you're hit by a taser while still wearing clothes you will still be tazed).

 

So all in all, while Derik's armor is strong, it offer poor electricity resistance per say, just a high enough current would blow right throw his coat, and go directly at him ,as electricity would ignore the shock absorption and go through every piece of the metal and Derik.

 

Neena better start using lightning...

Graphine isn't exactly metallic, but just as strong and conductable, in short, Lighting would blow right throuhg it, since it conducts, and while the electricity is weakened through titanium, it still goes through, a high enough current can blow, and cloth can't exactly block electricity, (If you're hit by a taser while still wearing clothes you will still be tazed).

 

So all in all, while Derik's armor is strong, it offer poor electricity resistance per say, just a high enough current would blow right throw his coat, and go directly at him ,as electricity would ignore the shock absorption and go through every piece of the metal and Derik.

 

Neena better start using lightning...

 

I don't have any bloody lightning.... Oh wait, this is Artifact Neena. I have everything.

I don't have any bloody lightning.... Oh wait, this is Artifact Neena. I have everything.

 

I know Henry doens't have any sort of lightning, (As he's still to learn it in the original RP )

 

 

Well if Neena can do so then..

 

 

Maybe later. For now, I need to narrow down on this plan.

Graphine isn't exactly metallic, but just as strong and conductable, in short, Lighting would blow right throuhg it, since it conducts, and while the electricity is weakened through titanium, it still goes through, a high enough current can blow, and cloth can't exactly block electricity, (If you're hit by a taser while still wearing clothes you will still be tazed). So all in all, while Derik's armor is strong, it offer poor electricity resistance per say, just a high enough current would blow right throw his coat, and go directly at him ,as electricity would ignore the shock absorption and go through every piece of the metal and Derik. Neena better start using lightning...

Exactly why there is a layer of lead, as it doesn't conduct electricity very well as radiation isn't exactly something it likes.Utop this, it's lined with a level of rubber as well.It's also fur-lined, for warmth and snuggles.

Man screw Derik he's invincible

Man screw Derik he's invincible

 

That.

 

No way to counter that other than sheer impact force.

That.

 

No way to counter that other than sheer impact force.

 

Nope tried that. Hit with an axe that could shatter the earth, shrugged it off

Nope tried that. Hit with an axe that could shatter the earth, shrugged it off

It would not penetrate the dreadnaught, but thats Henry's ultimate armor mode, Derik just has that for funsies