Arneson's Combat System

I am trying to get to the roots of the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Combat System as well as being a big fan of
Dave Arneson's Blackmoor campaign. I have always been curious as to how it was originally done, here is what I
figured out using Judges Guild FIRST FANTASY CAMPAIGN, ADVENTURES IN FANTASY, and BLACKMOOR
Supplement II (I believe that both systems were originally of the same origin).

From the 5th paragraph of the Introduction to Judges Guild FIRST FANTASY CAMPAIGN:

Combat was quite simple at first and then got progressively complicated with the addition of Hit
Location, etc as the player's first rolled for characteristics, the number of Hits body could take ran
from 0 - 100. As the player progressed, he did not receive additional Hit Points, but rather he became
harder to Hit. All normal attacks were carried out in the usual fashion but the player received a ''Saving
Throw" against any Hit that he received. Thus, although he might be "Hit" several times during a
melee round, in actuality he might not take any damage at all. Only Fighters gained advantages in
these melee Saving Throws. Clerics and Magicians progressed in their own areas, which might or
might not modify their Saving Throws. And so it went, Hit Location so that even the might Smaug could
fall to single arrow in the right place (very unlikely), height differentiation,so the little guys could run
around more and the big ones could kill more, etc. Still these were guidelines, Hit Location was
generally used only for the bigger critters, and only on a man to man level were all options thrown in.
This allow play to progress quickly even if the poor monsters suffered more from it.

HIT POINTS: Looking at ADVENTURES IN FANTASY here is the system he came up with to determine Hit Points

Use the following formula for determination of Hit Points. Note that Hit Points do not increase as a character
levels, their ability to reduce damage in the form of Melee Saving Throws does.
Using this formula will give a maximum of 100 Hit Points (as reported by Dave Arneson in the FIRST FANTASY
CAMPAIGN), be sure to round all fractions from each characteristic up before multiplying by 5

Strength Constitution Dexterity

+ + x 5 = Hit Points
2 3 4

. The point value for each monster described in CHAINMAIL would be the creatures Hit Points, this also is why I
believe the maximum Hit Points for a player would be 100 (as this is the top value as described in CHAINMAIL).

MELEE SAVING THROWS: Looking at ADVENTURERS IN FANTASY here is the system he laid out

ARMOR SAVING THROW

By wearing armor a player will minimize or even avoid damage from hits that would
normally wound or even kill. In the basic game there are three types of armor and two types of shields
with an optional helmet.
For each piece of armor being worn there is a chance that a blow that struck the player
actually struck the armor and perhaps deflected or reduced the damage that would normally be
received.
 Each time that an armored area is hit the damage normally taken is reduced as noted above.
When a shield is hit, however, then NO DAMAGE is suffered, but they will only ward off frontal attacks
(see tactical battles). Note also in the missile section that at certain ranges archery will penetrate the
above armor. Crossbows and Longbows will penetrate PLATE at medium and short ranges and inflict
full damage treating helmets as PLATE for this purpose. LEATHER armor is not proof against archery
at any range when the target is hit. CHAINMAIL is proof against short bows at long range and will
reduce damage (as noted above) against all archery except at short ranges!
Note: Never proof against magical damage except magical armor.

The paragraphs above, in a way, contradict themselves, for example:

Chainmail has a 60% chance of no damage, with a failed their save giving the player damage
or
Chainmail has a 60% chance of reducing damage taken by , with a failed save giving full damage

Given what Dave Arneson wrote in the FIRST FANTASY CAMPAIGN I believe he used the 1 st example Armor
would reduce all damage to zero if a Melee Saving Throw as made, and if this Melee Saving Throw failed the player
would take the reduction in damage.

HIT LOCATION: Dave Arneson described 2 completely different hit location tables, one described in BLACKMOOR
Supplement II and the other in ADVENTURERS IN FANTASY. The one in ADVENTURERS IN FANTASY is much easier
and faster to use, so this system would be used when combat was quick and not the main fight. The one described in
BLACKMOOR would be used when man to man combat was given or bigger critters.

ADVENTURERS IN FANTASY Quick Hit Locations:

HIT LOCATION

If this section is not used the extent of any and all damage inflicted by a hit on an opponent is
determined using one six sided die.
If this section is used, two 20 sided dice are to be rolled on the chart below to determine the
TYPE of dice that are to be rolled to determine the amount of damage scored.
 At the top of each column is listed the type of dice that are to be rolled if the throw falls within
the range listed below it, depending on the body type that has been hit. EXAMPLE: A hit has been
scored on a SNAKE body type. The roll on the chart above was taken with a result of 35. Checking
the chart we see that this means that a 6 sided die is to be rolled to determine the actual hit points of
damage that the snake will suffer. If a four were rolled this would be FOUR hit points.

SPECIAL DAMAGE: This indicates that a hit of the creature that will reduce its DEXTERITY
and/or mobility. Roll one ten sided dice for the number of Dexterity points lost. Roll one 6-sided dice
for the number of damage points lost. Roll two twenty (20) sided dice again. If the roll would again
inflict a Special damage hit then the creature will lose of its basic movement. Any other results
are ignored.

STRENGTH BONUS (OPTIONAL): An extremely strong person, or creature, that is able to hit
another creature will be more likely to inflict greater damage than a creature with normal Strength. A
simple modification of the normal damage inflicted based on that extra Strength (or weakness) would
be as follows:

BLACKMOOR Supplement II used only for the bigger critters, and only on a man to man level. He would roll
on the able above to determine die type for damage then he would use the location table below:

HIT LOCATION DURING MELEE:

As in other systems of damage, the creature attacked has an assigned point value, but attacks
upon it can hit only specified areas, and each area has an assigned percentage of the total hit point
value of the creature, such as 15%, 80% or whatever. This means that the sum of the parts is greater
than the sum of the whole, but as destruction of most of these various parts brings some form of
penalty to the creature not to mention the possibility of immediate death is is an equitable system.
Thus, if a humanoid with a total of 100 possible hit points, is attacked, the head can withstand up to
15 points of damage, the chest 80, the abdomen 60, each arm 20, and so on; however, if the head
receives 15 points of damage (100% of the possible total) death occurs immediately.

Some creatures will not conform to a single body type presented hereafter, but by combining
two or more of the pictured body types, in whole or in part, they can be pictured. A centipede, for
instance, is a combination of the insectoid and snake forms.

HOW TO USE THIS SYSTEM: When a hit is scored upon the being you are fighting consult
the above below and adjust any wounds due to height and weapons. Any hits upon the death dealing
areas (head, body) are recorded off its percent chance of living.

Dexterity rating. No more than twice the value of the limb may be deducted from the Dexterity rating.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS:
Any attack from the front may attack all areas but
the tail and wings
MORTAL WOUNDS: Destruction of the head or chest
areas will cause instant death.
NON-CUMULATIVE DAMAGE: When the total number of
points damage in cumulative areas reaches 100% the
creature will expire. Decapitation of limb will cause one
damage point per limb lost per turn left untreated.
CRIPPLING: Areas (limbs) damaged more than 100% will
lose one Dexterity point per point of damage taken over
normal total. i.e. if it normally takes three points of
damage and acquires five points damage (two over its
maximum), deduct these two points from the creature's
Loss of one leg will reduce all movement to a crawl
Loss of one arm will reduce crawl by 50% each
Loss of one wing will prevent all aerial movement
Loss of tail will reduce Dexterity by 1d6 points

An attack from the side

can hit wings, or (if not spread)
also head and body
MORTAL WOUNDS: 100%
destruction of head or body will
cause instant death.
NON-CUMULATIVE DAMAGE:
When the total number of points
of damage in the bird's tail
reaches 100% the creature will
expire. Decapitation of limb will
cause one damage point per limb
lost per turn left untreated.
CRIPPLING: Over 100% damage to either wings will ground the bird permanently. If over 100% damage is suffered by
both wings the bird will die, as will loss of both legs (over 100% total).
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS: Loss of one wing will prevent flying
Loss of one leg will prevent walking
An attack from
the side can hit any part of the
body on the appropriate
abdomen, wings, hind legs, or
tail side of the body
If the reptile travels erect,
all areas but the wings can tail
can be hit
MORTAL WOUNDS: When
the total damage points
exceed 100% of the creature's
point value it dies within 0 2
turns. The creature may not
move or attack during these turns but will defend itself
NON-CUMULATIVE DAMAGE: When the total number of points of damage in the tail and wings areas reaches 100%
the creature will expire. Decapitation of limb will cause one damage point per limb lost per turn left untreated.
CRIPPLING: Loss of one limb (including wings) will result in a 50% reduction of the creature's Dexterity. Loss of two
limbs (except if both are wings) will cause death.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS: Loss of one wing will prevent all air movement
For quadrupeds the loss of one leg will reduce movement 25%
 two legs 50% (if both are on the same side no movement is possible
three legs 100%
For bipeds loss of one leg will eliminate all ground movement

An attack from the side can hit

any part of the body on the
appropriate side
MORTAL WOUNDS: 100%
destruction of the head or thorax
will cause death in one turn.
Creature functions normally (within
limits of damage) until death.
NON-CUMULATIVE DAMAGE:
When the total number of points of
damage in legs, wings, and
abdomen reaches 100% the
creature will expire. Decapitation
of limb will cause one damage
point per limb lost per turn left
untreated.
CRIPPLING: When the thorax is destroyed the creature can no longer fly or move but will still fight. When the head is
100% destroyed the creature can no longer defend itself although it will move at random on foot, a six sided die
determining the direction taken. All cripples are replaced by undamaged creatures when and where possible.
Otherwise cripples are killed by their nest mates after battle.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS: Loss of all wings on one side will prevent insects from flying
Loss of one wing reduces flying speed 50%
Loss of a leg will not affect speed
Loss of a leg on each side reduce speed 50%
A frontal attack can hit
the head or two pectoral fins
A side attack can hit all
areas and appropriate fins on that
side of the body
MORTAL WOUNDS: Destruction
of the head or body will result in
death from 1d4 turns with
movement randomly determined.
NON-CUMULATIVE DAMAGE:
When the total number of points of
damage in tail or fins reaches 100% the creature will expire. Decapitation of limb will cause one damage point per
limb lost per turn left untreated.
CRIPPLING: The steering is done by the tail and body and the fish cannot survive the loss of the fin or tail and will die
after taking such damage within 1d4 turns.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS: Loss of the tail will cause only one 22.5% turn (i.e. a half turn) per turn of movement
Loss of dorsal fins will cause loss of turning ability
Loss of fins along one side will prevent opposite turns

MORTAL WOUNDS: Destruction

of the head will result in death
but the body will writhe for 2d8
turns. Upper body destruction
will cause death in 2d4 turns but
the snake can defend if frontally
attacked. Lower body hits are
healable but all others will result
in eventual death.
CRIPPLING: The steering is done by the tail and body and the fish cannot survive the loss of the fin or tail and will die
after taking such damage within 1d4 turns.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS: 100% loss of any area will cause a 50% movement reduction
additional damage that exceeds 75% of the total will cause immobilization

Damage Allocation by Type

Type Head Chest (body) Abdomen Arms (each) Legs (each) Tail Wings (each)
Humanoid 15% 80% 60% 20% 25% 20% 10%
Avian 20% 80% 20% 20% 30%
Reptile 25% 80% 60% 30% 30%
Insectoid 20% 60% 15% 10%
Fish 40% 80% 10% (fins) 15%
Snake 30% 50% (upper) 40% (lower)

So Dave Arneson's Monster Reference Table (Taking only CHAINMAIL monsters and not the further description
of Richard Snider's Dragon types in the FIRST FANTASY CAMPAIGN) would look something like this:

CHAINMAIL Monsters
Suggested
Monster Point Values Body Type Head Chest Abdomen Arms Legs Tail Wings
Sprites and Pixies 4 Points Humanoid 1 3 2 1 1 1
Dwarves and Gnomes 2 Points Humanoid 1 2 1 1 1
Goblins and Kobolds 1 Points Humanoid 1 1 1 1 1
Elves 4 Points Humanoid 1 3 2 1 1
Orcs 2 Points Humanoid 1 2 1 1 1
Heroes & Anti-Heroes 20 Points Humanoid 3 16 12 4 5
Super Heroes & Anti-Superheroes 50 Points Humanoid 8 40 30 10 13
Wizard 100 Points Humanoid 15 80 60 20 25
Sorcerer 90 Points Humanoid 14 72 54 18 23
Warlock 80 Points Humanoid 12 64 48 12 20
Magician 70 Points Humanoid 11 56 42 14 18
Seer 50 Points Humanoid 8 40 30 10 13
Wariths and Nazgul 10 Points Humanoid 2 8 6 2 3
Lycanthropes 20 Points Humanoid 3 16 12 4 5
Trolls and Ogres 15 Points Humanoid 2 12 9 3 4
True Trolls 75 Points Humanoid 11 60 45 15 19
Balrogs 75 Points Humanoid 11 60 45 15 19 8
Giants 50 Points Humanoid 8 40 30 10 13
Ents 15 Points Humanoid 2 12 9 3 4
Dragons 100 Points Avian/Snake 30 80 40 20 20 30
Rocs 20 Points Avian 4 16 4 4 6
Wights and Ghouls 10 Points Humanoid 2 8 6 2 3
HEIGHT DIFFERENTIATION: The size of opponents determines what area or areas can be struck in combat. From
BLACKMOOR:
The length of a weapon can matter greatly when you are engaging someone in combat who
is larger or smaller than you are. These persons smaller in stature but using a weapon that equals the
height of the creature or person he is combatting have nothing subtracted from his die roll due to his
lack of size. Example: A man of 5 feet with a 4 four long spear approaches a giant of nine feet in
height. On the table, after cross indexing the attacker's height (5 feet) against the defender's (9 feet)
we find that the man has a 60% less chance on the Hit chart of scoring a Mortal wound. Since the
man has an additional four feet of length due to his spear, add this additional four feet by progressing
downwards until reaching the 9 foot mark (5 + 4), re-cross index the new heights. The result is now
"N" or normal, meaning that the man may hit the giant in any area while rolling on the hit location
tables.
When smaller creatures engage larger persons with a weapon that is longer or taller in height
than the creature they are using it on gain no special advantage from it, but strike normally having the
distance to reach all vital areas of his adversary. Unlike the above, those persons which are higher
than the one they are attacking gain their regular % plus and also gain +5% for every extra foot of
weapon they have over and additional to their opponent's.
COMBAT MATRIX: In ADVENTUERS IN FANTASY Dave has a system where body types are compared to determine if a
hit is made, with the base chance changing based upon the Dexterity, size, and character level.

DEXTERITY MODFIER TO HIT: From ADVENTURERS IN FANTASY:

Subtract the Dexterity of the combatant with the lower Dexterity from that of the combatant
with the higher Dexterity. The difference, DIVIDED by FOUR, rounded down, is added to the player
with the higher Dexterities chance to hit AND subtracted from the player with the lower Dexterities
chance to hit the combatant with the higher Dexterity. Irregardless of the Dexterity difference the
highest modifier what will apply for this factor is 10%. EXAMPLE: A player with a Dexterity of 89
engages in combat with a bandit whose Dexterity is 23. The difference between 89 and 23 is 66, this
divided by 4 is 16.5. The .5 is immediately dropped. Because the maximum is exceeded in the
combat the player whose Dexterity is 89 will only add 10 to his chance to hit the bandit. In addition
the bandit will only subtract 10 from his basic chance to hit the player. This maximum Dexterity bonus
will apply to all physical combat in the basic game.
Any creature type that does not have a Dexterity explicitly described for it in its description is
assumed to have a Dexterity rating of 50.

SIZE MODIFIER TO HIT: From ADVENTURES IN FANTASY:

In addition to Dexterity the sizes of the opponents are compared. The size for this comparison
is the actual Hit Points the opponent takes, in case of players and creatures whose individual hits are
determined, or the AVERAGE HIT POINTS for the type of creature encountered, i.e. for humans ten Hit
Points, for Cyclops 60 Hit Points, etc.
To determine the effect of the size difference subtract the Hit Point size of the smaller creature
from the Hit Point size of the larger creature. The difference yielded is then divided by 2. The result,
up to a maximum bonus of 15%, is added to the SMALLER creature's chance to hit the larger creature.
In addition, the result, up to a maximum minus of 10%, is subtracted from the LARGER creature's
chance to hit the smaller creature. EXAMPLE: An Elf with an average Hit Point of 9 is fighting an
Ogre whose average hit class is 30. The difference is 21, this divided by 2 yields a result of 11. Thus
the elf's chance to hit the Ogre is increased 11% while the Ogre's chance to hit the Elf is reduced the
MAXIMUM 10%.

EXPERIENCE MODIFER TO HIT: From ADVENTURES IN FANTASY:

Here the experience of the player is referenced against the experience of the creature, if it is of
the types that have an experience rating in the basic game. If the creature does NOT have an
experience rating then the creature's HIT DICE are used here disregarding any minus or plus factors
associated with that creature. Thus a faerry would use 1 here, disregarding the minus factor in
parentheses. If the creature has more than 15 Hit Dice OR takes more than 150 hits, 15 is the
maximum value that can be applied here. In figuring this value dragon's will use their AGE GRADE
until they exceed 150 hits at which time they will use the maximum of 15.
In using this factor the experience or Hit Dice value, that is lower is subtracted from the higher
value. The result is added to the creature with the higher values chance to hit the higher. EXAMPLE:
A warrior of experience level 12 is fighting a Chimeara which has 5 Hit Dice. The 12 minus 5 yields a
difference of 7. This 7% is added to the warrior's chance to hit the Chimeara and subtracted from the
Chimeara's chance to hit the warrior.