The combat system puts the Omni Table to very good use, starting with four basic maneuvers – Attack, Defend, Move, and Stunt – and applying modifiers to simulate more specific subcategories like grapples, aiming, dodges, retreats, and “dirty tricks”.

At its most basic, combat involves all participants rolling Initiative based upon their Speed ratings. Difficulty numbers depend upon the defender’s appropriate weapon skill or Brawling skill, the latter used to defend against both unarmed and ranged attacks. Weapons have flat damage ratings; however, Partial Successes only do half damage, and Critical Successes force the victim to make a CON roll with a penalty equal to the weapon’s damage rating. Anything less than a partial success on the CON roll completely incapacitates the victim (and can result in an instant kill for unimportant NPCs); Partial Successes result in -5 penalties to all actions until the wound is healed, while Full or Critical Successes allow the victim to continue fighting without penalty. Armor reduces damage, and shields reduce the chance to hit based upon their rating.

This nicely streamlined mechanic requires only one roll for both attack and damage, so long as the opponent has not chosen a Defend maneuver, which can only be attempted before the attacker makes his roll (meaning that a combatant who wins initiative must forfeit it to use Defend). In that case, a Full or Critical Success automatically blocks or avoids the attack, and a Partial Success cuts any damage from the attack in half.

It’s worth noting here that those using Defend can elect to either dodge or parry. Dodging uses the Brawl skill (based on the Combat Rating) but can default to Acrobatics (based on Dexterity) at a -5 penalty. That’s rather important as it relates to armor. (See below.)

Also, when parrying, shields offer their bonus to the parrying roll rather than acting as a flat penalty to the attacker. The Shield skill only comes into play directly in this circumstance; when shields are used in passive defense, the Shield skill is a have-it-or-don’t matter, with a -4 penalty to all DEX-based actions if the character lacks the skill and only half of the shield’s value applying.

As for Stunts… I’m afraid they’re left a little vague. For one thing, since a Critical Success on a normal action is described as the character getting the exact result he wants, I’m left uncertain as to what a Full Success should mean. The examples don’t help much, either. A trick shot with a bow to hit an unarmored spot on an opponent is called a Stunt rather than an Attack, and a Partial Success counts as a failure in that circumstance. Fine, but what makes that a Stunt with a change to Omni Table definitions as opposed to an Attack with a penalty to the roll?

Stunts play an important part in combat, too, given the game’s base mechanic and the lack of open-ending die rolls. Again, if Opponent A has a higher score than Opponent B in a given conflict by even a single point, Opponent B can never get a Critical Success and Opponent A can never get a Fumble. Stunts are just the thing to change that equation – some sand in the eyes, a sudden change of position courtesy of a swing or a flip, etc. The system’s fairly forgiving to PCs when it comes to survival. Being reduced to 0 HP requires a CON roll with a penalty equal to the amount of damage below 0, with a Full or Critical Success allowing the character to survive unscathed and Partial Success allowing for survival with some sort of permanent injury. Failure requires a series of CON rolls with a cumulative -1 death spiral (presumably until stabilized). Only a Mishap will result in instant death… for PCs and important NPCs, at least. Unimportant NPCs may be considered dead at 0 HP – a nice enough mook rule, as it keeps damage ratings important while still moving things along.