9.4.5 Weaponry

Weaponry is a skill that everyone acquires. Although anyone may use any weapon in Aetolia, those untrained in weaponry, and without proficiency in that weapon, will find it difficult to be effective with it.

Initially, you will have only the ability to learn proficiencies. A proficiency means that you have mastered a particular type of weapon, e.g. longsword, broadsword, halberd, whip, mace, etc.

Each weapon has three statistics that are relevent to how well it works; Damage, Penetration, and Speed. The higher a weapon's damage, the more damage it is capable of doing. The higher the Penetration bonus, the easier it is to bypass armour. Lastly, the greater the Speed, the more quickly you will recover your balance and/or equilibrium after using it.

When actually hitting someone with a weapon though, there are a few factors besides the weapon's statistics that matter. First, as was mentioned earlier, whether or not you are proficient in that weapon. A lack of proficiency will half your effectiveness with a weapon. Second, your skill level in Weaponry. The higher your Weaponry skill, the more damage you will deal against adventurers. Third, your accuracy. Everyone has a default of accuracy of 100%, however certain afflictions and skills can alter this. Fourth, your opponent's ability to dodge and avoid your attacks. This is based upon their skill within Avoidance. See HELP AVOIDANCE for more information.

Though there are many ways to use a weapon, ranging from slash, to whip, to bash, each weapon has only particular methods in which it will be effective. In order to see the proper commands to use a particular weapon, simply PROBE it.

See also: WEAPONS, THROWING