A character in combat can always make a basic attack–either striking with a melee weapon, pummeling an opponent with a fist, or firing a ranged weapon at them. These basic attacks are the building blocks for more complex maneuvers, and many classes offer upgrades to them. Further, most classes offer improved basic attacks, allowing a character to deal more damage in later levels, or even granting some immediate benefits to damage.

Basic attacks—and, indeed, all other attacks—typically use a damage code that expresses the number of dice rolled for damage. This is a number, followed by [W], which stands for, “the normal damage die and type for this weapon”.

Time Required: According to weapon
Skill: According to weapon

You strike a foe with a weapon held in hand. The target of your attack must be within your Reach. Make a skill check with the weapon skill appropriate to your weapon. Many melee weapon skills are based off of Body, but the Blades skill is based off Dexterity. Roll your weapon skill vs. your target's Agility defence.

• Hit: You strike your foe and inflict 2[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute. If the weapon was wielded in both hands, it inflicts +1[W] damage.
• Miss: You fail to strike your foe, but still cause them to dodge. This will inflict 1[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute. This damage is Non-Lethal; it can never cause hit points of damage.

The time required to perform a basic attack depends on the weapon—two seconds for a Light weapon, three seconds for a Medium weapon, or four seconds for a Heavy weapon.

If you are wielding a weapon that has the Hafted or Ricasso property, and you have two hands on the weapon, reduce the time required for the attack by one second. This reduction in attack time reflects the increased control and efficiency gained from using both hands to wield the weapon. Note that the Hafted and Ricasso properties are never found on Light weapons.

Time Required: 2 seconds
Skill: Unarmed Combat

You strike a foe with a fist, foot, head, knee or other appendage. This is riskier than using a weapon; if your opponent is armed, making an unarmed attack against them provokes a Counterattack. Roll Unarmed Combat vs. your target's Agility defence.

• Hit: You inflict 2[W] Blunt damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute. This damage is Non-Lethal; it can never cause hit points of damage.
• Miss: You fail to strike your foe, but still cause them to dodge. This will inflict 1[W] stamina damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute, but again, is Non-Lethal.

For most characters, their unarmed combat damage die is a d4. However, many things can adjust this, from specialized training in unarmed combat, to ancestry-specific traits such as sharp teeth and claws. The type of damage inflicted might also be altered by a specific trait.

Time Required: According to weapon
Skill: According to weapon

You make an attack against a foe with a ranged weapon. You must have at least one point of ammunition available of a type appropriate for your weapon, but you do not need to immediately mark off any ammunition for a basic attack. Roll your weapon skill vs. your target's Agility defence.

• Hit: You strike your foe and inflict 2[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Dexterity attribute. If the weapon was wielded in two hands—as are most bows and crossbows—the attack inflicts +1[W] damage.
• Miss: You fail to strike your foe, but still cause them to dodge. This will inflict 1[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Dexterity attribute. This damage is Non-Lethal; it can never cause hit points of damage.

The time required to perform a basic attack depends on the weapon—two seconds for a Light weapon, three seconds for a Medium weapon, or four seconds for a Heavy weapon.

Ranged weapons are, as the name suggests, intended to be used at range. If you make a ranged attack while a foe is adjacent to you, you provoke a Counterattack. Your attack roll will suffer a penalty if the target is further than fifteen meters away from you, as outlined in the table below.

As previously mentioned, you must have one point of ammunition for your weapon in order to make an attack. However, if you are performing a basic attack, and either of the dice rolled come up showing a one, mark off one point of ammunition from your supply. Do this after resolving the attack; if the roll is a hit, then it is still a hit. Mark off only one point, even if both dice come up showing a one.

If you are performing an attack that already requires that you mark off ammunition, this rule does not apply.

Time Required: According to weapon
Skill: Thrown Weapons

You hurl a weapon held in hand at your foe. Almost any weapon can be thrown, but some are designed for it. Roll Thrown Weapons vs. your target's Agility defence.

• Hit: You strike your foe and inflict 2[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute.
• Miss: You fail to strike your foe, but still cause them to dodge. This will inflict 1[W] damage, plus an amount equal to your Body attribute. This damage is Non-Lethal; it can never cause hit points of damage.

As with other ranged weapons, thrown weapons provoke a Counterattack if hurled while adjacent to a foe. Also, they suffer range penalties, as with other ranged weapons. However, the effective range to a target is doubled for a thrown weapon, and doubled again if the weapon being thrown lacks the Thrown property. You cannot throw a Heavy weapon unless that weapon has the Thrown property, and even then, the effective range to the target is doubled again.

The time required to perform a basic attack depends on the weapon—two seconds for a Light weapon, three seconds for a Medium weapon, or four seconds for a Heavy weapon.

A thrown weapon falls into the square occupied by the target, regardless of hit or miss. A character in that square can pick the weapon up as a one-second action. After combat, a character can, of course, recover any thrown weapons.