[LL Supplemental] Critical Hits and Fumbles

As written the rules for combat in Labyrinth Lord are very simple and straight forward, which is a big reason I enjoy the game so much. Normally, when making an attack roll, if a 1 is rolled it is considered an automatic miss, and a natural 20 is considered an automatic hit. There is a lot of potential here to spice things up during combat without making these rules noticeably more complicated than they were to begin with. In my own Labyrinth Lord games these rolls have a bit more significance, and can dramatically affect what happens during a round of combat, for better or for worse.

If a natural 20 is rolled it is considered an automatic hit and also deals out maximum damage to the opponent. In addition to this, another d20 roll is made to see if there are any additional effects that might occur. If the second roll is not good enough to be considered a hit then the natural 20 is handled as explained before. If the second roll is a successful hit then a Critical Hit has been landed and an additional roll is required to see how it has affected the opponent. Also, if the second roll is successful and the roll is an 18 or 19, add an additional +25% when rolling on the Critical Hit chart. If another natural 20 is rolled add +50% to the roll.

Critical Hit Chart

Roll % Effect:

01-10 Knocked back, Attack last next round

11-20 Disarmed, 1d4 Rounds to retrieve weapon

21-30 Stunned, 1d4 Rounds

31-40 Confused, Take -4 on next Initiative roll

41-50 Winded, Move at half speed and -4 Initiative for 1d4 rounds

51-60 Knocked down, Prone for 1d4 rounds

61-70 Weapon damaged, Half damage until repaired

71-80 Armor damaged, 1d4 points lost from armor rating

81-90 Weapon damaged, Unusable

91-99 Grievous wound, Double max damage

00 Roll again, Keep results of both rolls

If a natural 1 is rolled then a Fumble has occurred. Roll on the chart below to see how the attacker has been affected due to the bad roll.

Fumble Chart

Roll % Effect:

01-10 Lose footing, No movement next round

11-20 Lose footing, No attack next round

21-30 Weapon goes flying, 1d4 rounds to retrieve

31-40 Bad tactics, Opponent gets free Attack

41-50 Knocked in the head, Dazed for 1d4 rounds

51-60 Weapon becomes lodged, 1d4 Rounds to free

61-70 Weapon damaged, Deals out half damage until repaired

71-80 Weapon damaged, Unusable

81-90 Friendly fire, Closest ally hit

91-99 Friendly fire, Closest ally hit for max damage

00 Roll again, Keep results of both rolls