Base weapon speed
All weapons have a base weapon speed, which is the standard roundtime before accounting any factors that may increase or decrease that number. When wielding two weapons, the combined base speed is a calculated based on each weapon's base, the weight of the weapon, and the character's Strength stat.
Minimum Weapon Speed
A weapon's minimum speed is the lowest roundtime at which a weapon can be swung under normal circumstances. The minimum speed is derived from the weapon's base speed, and always falls between 2 and 4 seconds.
Base Speed | Minimum Speed |
---|---|
1 sec | 2 sec |
2 or 3 sec | 3 sec |
4 sec or more | 4 sec |
Aimed strikes
- Main article: AMBUSH (verb)
Aiming an attack with the AMBUSH verb increases the minimum roundtime of the attack by 1 in addition to the 3 second increase in roundtime.
How can the minimum be greater than the base?
The interplay between minimum speed and base speed can at first seem contradictory for very fast weapons, such as the dagger with its base speed of 1. Despite a base speed of 1, a character would swing their dagger in 3 seconds. However, because the base speed is 2 seconds faster than the minimum speed, factors that increase roundtime are diminished.
For example, if a character with no armor training were to wear a leather breastplate, their roundtime would increase by 3 seconds. This is added to the dagger's base of 1, for a 4 second swing. If the dagger's base speed and minimum speed were both 3, the attack would have taken 6 seconds, not 4.
Going below the minimum
While a character's training and statistics cannot decrease an attack below its normal minimum, there are a few ways to attack faster. The Quickstrike ability and combat maneuver provide a flat decrease to roundtime at a cost to the user's stamina. A warrior's bonded weapon can decrease roundtime as an occasional "flare". Two spells also help: a bard's Song of Tonis (1035) provides a roundtime reduction to the entire group, and the Celerity (506) spell reduces roundtime for a single target (via free and automatic use of a Quickstrike).
List of Base Weapon Speeds
Below is a list of the base speed for each weapon. Weapons in the game may have different names, but the INSPECT verb will show the weapon's base name, and the page for each weapon base should list the alternate names of that weapon.
Type | Name | Base Speed |
---|---|---|
Brawling | Closed fist | 1 |
Brawling | Blackjack | 1 |
Brawling | Cestus | 1 |
Brawling | Fist-scythe | 3 |
Brawling | Hook-knife | 1 |
Brawling | Jackblade | 2 |
Brawling | Katar | 3 |
Brawling | Knuckle-blade | 1 |
Brawling | Knuckle-duster | 1 |
Brawling | Razorpaw | 1 |
Brawling | Paingrip | 1 |
Brawling | Sai | 2 |
Brawling | Tiger-claw | 1 |
Brawling | Troll-claw | 2 |
Brawling | Yierka-spur | 1 |
OHB | Ball and chain | 6 |
OHB | Crowbill | 3 |
OHB | Cudgel | 4 |
OHB | Leather whip | 2 |
OHB | Mace | 4 |
OHB | Morning star | 5 |
OHB | War hammer | 4 |
OHE | Backsword | 5 |
OHE | Bastard sword | 6 |
OHE | Broadsword | 5 |
OHE | Dagger | 1 |
OHE | Estoc | 4 |
OHE | Falchion | 5 |
OHE | Handaxe | 5 |
OHE | Katana | 5 |
OHE | Katar | 3 |
OHE | Longsword | 4 |
OHE | Main gauche | 2 |
OHE | Rapier | 2 |
OHE | Scimitar | 4 |
OHE | Short sword | 3 |
OHE | Whip-blade | 2 |
Polearm | Awl-pike | 9 |
Polearm | Halberd | 6 |
Polearm | Hammer of Kai | 7 |
Polearm | Jeddart-axe | 7 |
Polearm | Javelin | 4 |
Polearm | Lance | 9 |
Polearm | Pilum | 3 |
Polearm | Spear | 5 |
Polearm | Trident (1-Handed) | 5 |
Polearm | Trident (2-Handed) | 6 |
THW | Bastard sword | 6 |
THW | Battle axe | 8 |
THW | Claidhmore | 8 |
THW | Flail | 7 |
THW | Flamberge | 7 |
THW | Katana | 6 |
THW | Maul | 7 |
THW | Military pick | 7 |
THW | Quarterstaff | 3 |
THW | Two-handed sword | 8 |
THW | War mattock | 7 |
Ranged | Composite bow | 5 |
Ranged | Heavy crossbow | 2 |
Ranged | Light crossbow | 1 |
Ranged | Long bow | 4 |
Ranged | Short bow | 3 |
Thrown | Bola | 5 |
Thrown | Dart | 2 |
Thrown | Discus | 5 |
Thrown | Throwing net | 7 |
Thrown | Quoit | 5 |
Original source: GM Ixix