“I’ll be teachin’ yeh things. First lesson–don’ piss me off.” – Tharan Taldrin, Bandit Guildmaster of Var Bandor
Leaving behind the petty trickery of the thief, the bandit relies on brute force as well as deception. Bandits are especially proficient in unarmed combat, excelling at both striking harder and blocking more easily than others. In conjunction with their brutish tempers, bandits rarely have a place in civilized society except at its fringes.
The creed of the highwayman is among Avendar’s oldest. These brutish robbers often scorn elegance or grace, instead favoring swift brutality and merciless plunder. Although the precise origin of the craft is unknowable, it was certainly humans who made it especially famous. As their race expanded, so too were resources scarce enough to require violent reallocation. The speed of the srryn has left its mark on banditry in general, their swift claws refining the art of robbery to a razor edge. So, too, have the fallen alatharya benefitted greatly from and elaborated upon its methods, making famous its characteristic brawling moves.
Bandits are especially proficient in unarmed combat, excelling at both striking harder and blocking more easily than others. Despite their skill, the bandit disregards the trained acrobatics of the assassin and the quick dagger of the thief. They are well known for their brutal melee attacks and skill with the mace. Of course, the bandit’s deadliest tricks happen when others have been beaten into unconsciousness, be it ambushes, ropes, or gags. Even with only rags to his name, a bandit is rarely at a loss while fighting.
Law is a concept that has little meaning to a creed founded upon sudden robbery. In conjunction with their brutish tempers, bandits rarely have a place in civilized society except at its fringes. Bandits have no one deity they call their own and are given to wandering more than settling. This freedom affords them the luxury of taking as they please, from whoever strikes their fleeting fancy.
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Syntax: Automatic
Bladed weapons with a typically short haft, axes are most often favoured by
barbarians, who enjoy their lack of subtlety and learn specific techniques for
them. Axes may be found in many sizes, for both one and two-handed use. They
typically deal slashing damage, and they are characteristically poor at
fending off blows, due to their balance and lack of finesse. The weighty
swings often required by axes make it suited against both shield blocking and
deflection, but much easier for opponents to fend off or stone phalanx.
Primary Attribute: Strength
See also: PARRY
Syntax: Automatic
Small, bladed weapons, daggers are one of the simplest melee weapons, often
favoured by scholars for this reason, most other professions in Avendar also
receiving training in them. Rogues are more intimately trained in their usage,
learning techniques both flashy and subtle. Typically thrusting or slashing
weapons, due to their length, they are poor at warding off blows though it is
likewise difficult to parry against a dagger. Someone wielding a dagger will
have a harder time getting around a shield, a stone phalanx, or a fighter's
fending.
Primary Attribute: Dexterity
See also: PARRY
Syntax: Automatic While some may feature ornamentation or spikes, maces are at their heart a very simple weapon: a short length of metal or wood, typically used as a means of blunt force. For this reason, they are often favoured by scholars and templars of the earth, as well as barbarians, though several guilds train in the usage of this weapon. Due to the length and balance of these weapons, maces do not parry blows very well, and if offhanded will hurt one's main-hand parrying. Maces will get around both shields and watchers' deflection relatively easily. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: PARRY
Syntax: Automatic One of the most commonly-produced and commonly-trained weapons in Avendar, swords are simple to learn the basics of, but may take decades to master. The only weapon with an entire profession dedicated solely to their usage, in the hands of most others, swords are a particularly average weapon. Typically slashing or piercing, they range from slender rapiers to massive two-handed claymores. Primary Attribute: Strength, Dexterity See also: PARRY
Syntax: Automatic The art of fisticuffs is taught by several of Avendar's martial guilds. Students will hit harder while unarmed than those who are untrained. If someone who is trained in both fighting unarmed and dual wielding has even a single free hand, he will use that as an off-hand attack. Having claws, both srryn and kankoran will do more damage with this skill than other races. However, this basic training only goes so far, and those who fight without a weapon in hand will find themselves unable to parry. Primary Attribute: Strength, Dexterity See also: PARRY
Syntax: Automatic
Dodge is a melee defense skill focused on the avoidance of blows. It is
particularly difficult to dodge flails and polearms, and easier to dodge
whips. Dodge is the favored defense of rogues, but it is taught in many other
schools as well.
All aelin receive a bonus to this skill.
Primary Attribute: Dexterity
Duration : Instantaneous Cost: 3 Mana
Range : Current Enemy
Syntax: Kick
Many guilds teach this basic martial manuver, allowing them to slightly
augment their damage in combat. Bandits receive further training in making
well-placed kicks.
Primary Attribute: Strength, Dexterity
See also: KNEE SHATTER
Duration : 0.5 Hours Cost: 5 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Dirt <target> This skill attempts to temporarily blind a person by kicking dirt in their eyes. This skill cannot be used on or underwater, or in the air. Primary Attribute: Dexterity
Duration : Level/2 hours Minimum Cost: 20 mana
Range : User Only
Syntax: Cunningeye
This skill allows the user to see detect all manner of hidden or
camoflauged person or thing, and to see in the dark.
Primary Attribute: Wisdom
See also: DETECT HIDDEN, SHARP VISION, INFRAVISION
Syntax: Automatic Most of the non-scholarly guilds offer their students training in heightening the force of their blows. A higher skill will see better results at these techniques, as will a better weapon. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: BRUTAL DAMAGE, PROWESS
Syntax: Automatic Fast healing is a skill taught by most guilds, that their students might apply their knowledge to quicker recovery of bodily injuries, increasing the rate at which they gain hit points. Primary Attribute: Constitution See also: HIT POINTS
Range : Single PC or Mob Cost: 6 Mana Syntax: Steal <object> <target> This skill attempts to remove either a small amount of coins or one item from the inventory of its target. If successful, the item or money moves to the stealing character's inventory and the target receives no echo. Should the attempt fail, the target will be aware of the attempt. In order to steal coins from the target, simply specify 'coins' instead of a specific object in the target's inventory. Items that cannot be dropped or that are flagged as inventory cannot be stolen. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: PEEK, PLANT
Syntax: Automatic Characters with proficiency in this skill will attempt a second attack each round with both their main and any offhanded weapons. Mastery of this skill does not guarantee the attack will be attempted every round, but it does make it very likely. Primary Attribute: Dexterity, Strength See also: DUAL WIELD
Syntax: Automatic One of the few skills taught by almost all guilds of Avendar, parrying is the art of fending off an opponent's blows with one's own weapon. It is easiest to do so with a staff, though polearms and spears are well-suited to it as well. Swords and exotic weapons are neither good nor poor to one attempting to parry, though gladiators will parry better with an exotic and swords parry more effectively when wielded with both hands. Maces, axes, flails, daggers and whips are in turn less and less suited to parrying with. Fighters, by virtue of their training in a variety of techniques, will be more skilled at parrying no matter what the weapon. Wielding a weapon other than a sword or a spear in one's offhand will inhibit parrying with the main hand, though gladiators learn techniques to parry better while offhanding a whip. It is typically easier to parry when skilled with one's own weapon. It is particularly difficult to parry against daggers and whips, and easier to parry polearms. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: DUAL WIELD, individual weapon helpfiles
Syntax: Trip <Target> The trip command attempts to bring an opponent down by knocking their feet from under them. Tripping is most successfully practiced by the quick and nimble, and fails on opponents who are flying or otherwise not tied to the ground. Trip can either be used to start a fight, or in combat, where the argument is optional. Primary Attribute: Dexterity
Syntax: Automatic
Peek is an enhancement to the look command. Whenever someone with the skill
looks at a person, an attempt will be made to reveal their inventory and
money.
If one so chooses, one may cease peeking by toggling the autopeek command.
Primary Attribute: Intelligence
Syntax: Automatic This skill increases the amount of damage a bandit deals with unarmed attacks, including attacks made with glove weapons such as brass knuckles. They will also have an increased chance of making such unarmed attacks. Primary Attribute: Strength
Syntax: Automatic A bandit who kills another adventurer may attempt to immediately and efficiently loot the body of some or all of its possessions once the kill has been made. He must be already attempting to loot the corpses of those whom he kills automatically. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: AUTOLOOT
Syntax: Obscure Rogues may attempt to hide evidence of their kills, such that word does not get to any interested factions. However, if a member of the same faction is present to witness the death, there will be no way to conceal the act from the faction. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: FACTIONS
Syntax: Automatic
A basic mercantile skill used to get a better price on items from merchants,
haggling is a skill that is widely taught but a talent applied with the most
success by the charismatic.
Primary Attribute: Charisma
Duration : Permanent Range : Single Inventory Item/Current room Syntax: Stash <Item> This skill may be used to stash loot. Stashed items are usually buried, placed under loose cobblestones, or otherwise covered. The only way to detect a stashed item is by searching the room. See also: SEARCH Primary Attribute: Wisdom
Dual wielding is the ability to use an additional weapon in the character's offhand. Weapons being dual wielded will suffer a slight penalty in the amount of damage and have a lesser chance of iterative attacks. Weapon weight must be considered with this skill, as only weapons lighter then the one being wielded in the main hand are capable of being dual wielded. Swordmasters are exempt from this restriction, and can dual wield nearly any two swords they can hold. Certain unwieldy combinations of weapons will be more awkward to defend oneself with. Large-sized races, such as the chaja or alatharya, are able to hold certain kinds of two-handed weapons with one hand, and dual wield them. The balance of spears, staves, and polearms are such that this is not possible for these weapons. The ambidextrous trait, available upon creation and given to gladiators and swordmasters automatically, reduces but does not remove the weight restrictions (though swordmasters have none in either case). Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: PARRY, AMBIDEXTROUS
Duration : Instantaneous Cost: 6 Mana Range : Target PC or Mob Syntax: Bash <target> A commonly taught method of preventing an enemy's action, a bash is an inelegant attempt to simply ram into another person. If successful, the target will fall to the ground and be lagged briefly. Because it is so commonly taught, there are many methods of preventing or discouraging this skill, though perfect protection is few and far between. It is not ordinarily possible to bash someone underwater. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: LAG
Syntax: Automatic A bandit wearing a shield may use this skill to ward off attacks, much as any other shield-using profession. When used in this manner, this skill is primarily effective against daggers, and least effective against whips, flails, maces, and axes. A bandit who is not wearing a shield and has one free hand may also use this skill to ward off unarmed blows with his own body, though this is obviously not effective against actual weapons. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: SHIELD BLOCK, SHIELD SLAM
Syntax: Automatic A bandit who foregoes the use of another weapon by wearing a shield is able to compensate for the loss of attacks somewhat by slamming his shield into his enemy. If he hits, the impact of the shield will deal a marginal amount of damage. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: BRAWLING BLOCK
Duration : Instantaneous Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Ambush <target> Striking from camoflauge or while hiding, bandits and rangers may attempt to ambush his prey. This ambush does more damage than normal, as well as having a chance to stun their target. Primary Attributes: Wisdom, Dexterity
Duration : Level/30 Hours Range : Current Opponent Syntax: Kick Bandits and gladiators, both comfortable with using dirty tricks in combat, are able to shatter their opponent's knee when they kick at them. It is more difficult to shatter the knee of someone whose skin is protected by the stone skin or stone shell spells. Characters who have a shattered knee will have markedly reduced dexterity, will be slowed if they walk, and consume extra movement points when they do walk. Flying will naturally obviate the latter two penalties, but the first will still apply. Someone with a shattered knee will have a much harder time kicking people themselves. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: KICK
Duration : 2 ticks Cost: 3 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Jab <target> A bandit may make a swift jab at his opponent, dealing a small amount of damage and penalizing their armour class. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: ARMOUR CLASS, UPPERCUT
Syntax: Automatic Characters with proficiency in this skill will attempt a second attack each round with both their main and any offhanded weapons. Mastery of this skill does not guarantee the attack will be attempted every round, but it does make it very likely. Primary Attribute: Dexterity, Strength See also: DUAL WIELD
Duration : 1.5 Hours Cost: 8 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Waylay <target> This skill lands a sharp blow to the target's head, attempting to knock them out. A waylaid character will be awoken if they incur any sort of damage. It is far more difficult to waylay a person who is able to see the user. Primary Attribute: Strength
Syntax: Automatic A bandit who is bashed may make a punishing shot at his opponent's kidneys, stunning them in return and dealing some damage. This does not protect the bandit from the brunt of the bash, but his opponent will find it takes longer to recover than normal. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: BASH, SHIELD BASH, LAG
Duration : Instantaneous Cost: 16 Mana Syntax: Drag <person or corpse> With this skill, both rangers and bandits may drag a dead weight around from room to room. This may only be attempted on corpses or people who are sleeping, though those who are asleep willfully will be woken up from being dragged in this manner, initiating combat. It is not possible to drag someone who is not flying into the air, or to pull someone underwater who cannot breathe there. Primary Attribute: Strength
Duration : Level/10 Hours Minimum Cost: 3 Mana Range : User Only Syntax: Grip Many combatants learn to grip tightly onto their weapons, providing them a significant defense against being disarmed, being stripped, or affected by the magnetic grasp spell. Due to their intimate awareness of the strip skill, gladiators have a heightened defense against it. Primary Attribute: Strength
Duration : 2 ticks Cost: 8 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Headbutt <target> Bandits slam their head into their opponent, dealing a significant amount of damage. The force of this blow will also daze the target briefly, penalizing their skill percents-- and has a chance of dazing the bandit as well, albeit for an even shorter period of time. This chance decreases as the bandit masters this skill. You must have a head in order to use this skill. Primary Attribute: Strength, Constitution
Duration : Instantaneous Cost: 8 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Batter <target> This skill allows a gladiator to strike at his foes punishingly with a mace or flail, penalizing the target's movement points in addition to dealing damage. Primary Attribute: Strength
Duration : Level/20 Hours Cost: 45 Mana Range : Single Unconscious PC or Mob Syntax: Bind <target> Both bandits and watchers learn to swiftly bind unconscious enemies, greatly penalizing their dexterity and blinding them with a sack tied over their head. If the target's legs are bound successfully, this also penalizes their movement. Attempting to bind a foe who is simply sleeping by their own choice will wake them. Primary Attribute: Dexterity See also: WAYLAY, BOLO, GAG, UPPERCUT
Duration : Instantaneous Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Ambush <target> Striking from camoflauge or while hiding, bandits and rangers may attempt to ambush his prey. This ambush does more damage than normal, as well as having a chance to stun their target. Primary Attributes: Wisdom, Dexterity
Duration : 6 Hours Cost: 20 Mana Range : User's Current Room Reuse Delay: 75/Level Hours Syntax: Trap/Trap Grease When used without the grease argument, this skill will set a tripwire in the room, which will deal damage to the next person who walks in. A grease trap will take effect at the same time. Characters walking over this grease have a chance to slip and fall in it, potentially smearing the grease on themselves for up to three hours. A character who is smeared with grease will have difficulty holding onto weapons, and someone who is afflicted by fire damage while covered in grease will additionally be set on fire for one hour. Characters who are flying will not set off these traps when they walk into a room. Primary Attribute: Intelligence
Syntax: Pummel <target> Cost: 8 Mana A bandit wielding a mace or with an open fist may brutally pummel an enemy about the head and neck, lagging them significantly and potentially disarming an item in either hand. Primary Attributes: Strength, Dexterity See also: LAG, UPPERCUT
Syntax: Automatic A basic technique for focusing one's thoughts, meditation is a skill taught by all guilds that their students may recover mana more quickly. Primary Attribute: Intelligence, Wisdom See also: TRANCE, MANA
Duration : 12 Hours Cost: 24 mana Range : User's Current Room Syntax: Roadblock A bandit may use their copious gifts of highway robbery to cobble together a crude roadblock from nearby debris. Anyone may freely enter a roadblocked room, but they will have difficulty leaving or fleeing such a place. Roadblocks may only be set up outside, on solid grounds, and may not be done within cities; the nature of the debris is less easily to hand there. Primary Attribute: Intelligence, Strength
Duration : Instantaneous Cost: 16 Mana Range : Single PC or Mob Syntax: Surprise <target> <direction> Bandits may launch surprise attacks against targets in adjacent rooms, which deal damage and lag the victim. Most forms of bash protection and scouting allow a measure of protection against this skill. A person may only be the subject of one surprise attack per hour. Primary Attribute: Wisdom, Strength See also: LAG
Duration : 2 Ticks Cost: 16 Mana Range : Current Opponent Syntax: Uppercut With this skill and either a mace or an open fist, a bandit may deliver a punishing uppercut to his enemy. If the blow connects, it will deal damage, and knock him out. When used alone, this skill is not terribly likely to connect, but it becomes successively more likely against targets afflicted by: pummel, headbutt, and jab. Primary Attribute: Strength See also: WAYLAY, PUMMEL, HEADBUTT, JAB