Encounter Rules
Encounter rules cover special abilities that are generally exclusive to creatures that players encounter (unique magic items are capable of sometimes duplicating some of these abilities).
Damage Requirements
A creature with a damage requirement (almost always a non-player character) is immune to all damage from attacks that do not use a specific combat call (which will be listed with the damage requirement). If the correct call is used with a damaging attack the creature takes damage normally. A "No Effect" call must be made whenever an attack successfully hits you but does not inflict damage (or does not take effect in the case of spells) so that the attacker knows-that-you-know the attack successfully hit and so that they know they may need to attack with something different.
A damage requirement does not prevent effects that don't deal damage.
Creature Genders
All creatures have a gender listed in their creature entry. This will read "Male Only", "Female Only", or "Any". This means that the creature might be restricted to the corresponding gender for story reasons. It does not necessarily mean the player role-playing the creature must be that gender as long as they can role-play accordingly.
Creature Intelligence
Each creature has been assigned an intelligence. This is the measure of a creature’s reasoning capacity. NPC's should use this information to guide how they role-play a creature.
Controlled actions: The creature has no actual thoughts of its own. It is a mindless puppet that follows preset commands. This does not mean it moves slowly though, on the contrary – many constructs are fast and dangerous.
Animal: This categorizes creatures which lack any higher reasoning, but are self-controlled. They operate on instinct and will to survive only. They are not able to be reasoned with.
Slow: A creature possessing some reasoning capability, but is limited in what it is able to grasp. It may take a long time for a concept to sink in, or it may not happen at all. These creatures are capable of simple strategies.
Primitive: Creatures in this category aren’t unintelligent - they just lack knowledge. They may be able to adapt and learn, but their experience is limited.
Normal: Creatures in this category are capable of normal thoughts and reasoning. They are only limited by the reasoning and strategy of the person playing them.
Languages
Creatures also have a list of standard languages assigned to them. These are the languages that it is normal for that creature to speak/ understand. Creatures are capable of understanding additional languages (or speaking fewer languages) as plots require, but a GM will instruct the NPC if this is the case.
Kill Condition
After a creature (generally an npc) with a kill condition receives a torso wound, that creature will not die unless a killing blow is delivered that uses the specific type of combat call required by the kill condition. If an appropriate killing blow is not delivered the creature will arise again fully healed after a minute.
When a creature with a kill condition is injured but not killed (lost body or wounded) they heal fully if completely out of combat for one minute. Out of combat is defined as being both free from being threatened and not threatening anything else.
In the event that a creature is immune to killing blows, such as from the resilience spell an attack that would have met their kill condition will prevent the creature from healing.
A kill condition that requires a type of damage is a "kill condition (damage type)". When a kill condition require some other effect it is a "kill condition (special)".
Lycanthropy Condition
A character can become a lycanthrope after becoming infected by the lycanthropy condition and not being cured in time.
All lycanthropes have two forms, their natural form, and their bestial form.
Whenever a character takes a wound or body damage from any melee attack delivered by a lycanthrope in their bestial form they become infected by the lycanthropy condition. The lycanthropy condition is not a disease. Characters must be treated with items such as wolfsbane or theriac that specifically cure the lycanthropy condition before the end of the next event after being afflicted (representing being treated before the current phase of the moon comes again). If this does not happen, an infected PC effectively dies, becoming an NPC were-creature from then on.
Monstrous Creatures
A monstrous creature is one that is so large and hulking that it gains several special rules that apply to it.
- Monstrous creatures only take, at most, one point of damage from any attack without the "slay" call.
- Monstrous creatures are immune to "Pin" attacks and Pit Traps.
- Monstrous creatures are immune to mundane (non-magical) restraints.
- Monstrous creatures can bypass the caps for dual wielding and for wielding a weapon and shield, allowing them to hit for up to 4 damage with any melee weapon if they have the correct skills to do so.