Critical Kill Loops
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This is a guide, tutorial, or gameplay strategy written by one or more players to better assist others with their gameplay enjoyment. The information presented here may be subject to the personal opinion of the contributor(s), and may additionally require periodic updates to keep current as the game environment changes.
Title: Critical Combat Loop Options
Author: Darcimer
Date Published: 2026-11-5
A kill loop is a setup that disables the target, followed by an aimed finisher whose critical is fatal at that location. This page lists the strongest setup and finisher pairs by weapon category, with the chance each finisher kills against leather, chain and plate, from an open aim and from a hidden ambush.
It is the third page in a set:
- Status Effects and CMAN Quick Reference covers what prone, Vulnerable, Staggered and the other conditions do.
- Critical Effects Quick Reference lists the critical rank at which each damage type stuns, knocks down or kills at each hit location.
- This page combines them into setup and finisher pairs.
What sets a finisher's critical rank
From the Critical page:
Base rank = truncate( ((endroll − 100) × damage factor − padding + weighting) ÷ armor critical divisor ), capped at 9.
The game then rolls the actual rank evenly between half the base rank (rounded up) and the full base rank.
| Input | What raises it | How it scales |
|---|---|---|
| Endroll | AS, enchant, Sanctify, Ensorcel, and anything that lowers the target's DS: prone, stance pushdown, Vulnerable | Multiplied by the weapon's damage factor (DF), so high-DF weapons gain the most from the same AS |
| Weighting | Weapon weighting (1–50), natural weighting from DEX (about 1 per 4 bonus), Sigil of Major Bane, and Ambush skill when attacking from hiding | Added flat after DF, so it helps low-DF weapons the most |
| Padding | Armor padding and natural creature padding | Subtracted flat; lowers every hit |
| Critical divisor | Leather 6, scale 7, chain 9, plate 11 (robes 5) | Divides everything; heavy armor needs much more raw damage per rank |
Flares are separate criticals and do not raise the weapon's base rank.
From the Ambush page:
- Hidden ambush (AMBUSH from hiding) adds critical weighting from the Ambush skill, halves the target's evade, block and parry, and pushes down the target's stance, which lowers its DS. The exact weighting formula is unknown; a level 100 rogue fully trained in stealth gets roughly 40–50 points with a dagger (Critical weighting).
- Open aim gets none of those bonuses. Its only job is putting the hit on the chosen location, which depends on Ambush and Combat Maneuvers for melee and hurled weapons.
- Ranged ambush (FIRE or HURL from hiding) gets the stance pushdown only, not the extra weighting. Ambush skill does add AS to every bow and crossbow attack, hidden or not. Open ranged aiming uses Perception alone.
- Aimed attacks use the weapon's natural damage mix. Precision does not work with aimed or ranged attacks, so a dagger aimed at the eye still rolls slash one-third of the time.
How to read the tables
- Kill chances are for an aimed hit that lands on the chosen location, at endroll 200 (a margin of 100), shown as leather / chain / plate.
- Open assumes no weighting at all. Weapon and natural DEX weighting raise these numbers, so treat them as a floor.
- Hidden adds 45 points of ambush weighting, the middle of the 40–50 estimate for a fully trained ambusher. Bows get no ambush weighting, so their hidden numbers equal their open ones; the stance pushdown they do get raises the endroll, which these tables hold fixed.
- Margin for base 7 is the endroll margin (endroll − 100) needed to reach base 7 with no weighting. At base 7 the lowest possible roll is rank 4.
- Padding is not included. Damage factors and damage-type mixes come from Edged Weapons, Blunt Weapons, Two-Handed Weapons, Polearm Weapons and the Archery guide.
Top 5 finishers
Ranked by average kill chance across all six columns.
| # | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
RT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Awl-pike | Eye | 95% / 58% / 0% | 95% / 95% / 90% | 9 |
| 2 | Spear (two-handed) | Eye | 71% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 97% / 71% | 6 |
| 3 | Maul | Head | 75% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 100% / 50% | 7 |
| 4 | Spear (one-handed) | Eye | 61% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 96% / 61% | 5 |
| 5 | Estoc | Eye | 56% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 92% / 56% | 4 |
High damage factor and a high share of puncture (eye fatal from rank 4) or crush (head fatal from rank 5) make the best finishers. Hidden-ambush weighting closes most of the gap for light weapons against leather, but not against plate.
Finisher reference
Every finisher on this page, with the numbers behind the rankings.
| Finisher | Aim | Damage mix (fatal rank) | DF leather / chain / plate |
Margin for base 7 leather / chain / plate |
Kill, open aim | Kill, hidden ambush | RT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awl-pike | Eye | crush 13% (7+), puncture 87% (4+) | .550 / .450 / .350 | 77 / 140 / 220 | 95% / 58% / 0% | 95% / 95% / 90% | 9 |
| Spear (two-handed) | Eye | slash 17% (5+), puncture 83% (4+) | .385 / .325 / .230 | 110 / 194 / 335 | 71% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 97% / 71% | 6 |
| Maul | Head | crush 100% (5+) | .425 / .375 / .300 | 99 / 168 / 257 | 75% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 100% / 50% | 7 |
| Spear (one-handed) | Eye | slash 17% (5+), puncture 83% (4+) | .325 / .250 / .160 | 130 / 252 / 482 | 61% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 96% / 61% | 5 |
| Estoc | Eye | slash 33% (5+), puncture 67% (4+) | .300 / .200 / .150 | 140 / 315 / 514 | 56% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 92% / 56% | 4 |
| Military pick | Eye | crush 33% (7+), puncture 67% (4+) | .375 / .375 / .260 | 112 / 168 / 297 | 50% / 22% / 0% | 87% / 87% / 50% | 7 |
| Claidhmore | Head | slash 50% (6+), crush 50% (5+) | .475 / .350 / .225 | 89 / 180 / 343 | 62% / 0% / 0% | 90% / 70% / 38% | 8 |
| Katana (one-handed) | Eye | slash 100% (5+) | .325 / .225 / .175 | 130 / 280 / 440 | 33% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 75% / 33% | 5 |
| Mace | Head | crush 100% (5+) | .300 / .250 / .175 | 140 / 252 / 440 | 33% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 75% / 33% | 4 |
| Morning star | Head | crush 67% (5+), puncture 33% (6+) | .325 / .300 / .225 | 130 / 210 / 343 | 22% / 0% / 0% | 93% / 73% / 42% | 5 |
| Dagger | Eye | slash 33% (5+), puncture 67% (4+) | .200 / .125 / .075 | 210 / 504 / 1027 | 0% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 67% / 0% | 1 |
| Long bow | Eye | slash 33% (5+), puncture 67% (4+) | .325 / .300 / .175 | 130 / 210 / 440 | 56% / 0% / 0% | 56% / 0% / 0% | varies |
Best loops by weapon category
Edged weapons
| Setup | Leaves target | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamstring | Prone (may knock down), major bleed | Estoc | Eye | 56% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 92% / 56% | Hamstring needs a one-handed slashing weapon. The estoc has the best DF of the puncture-heavy blades. |
| Sweep, then hide | Prone, Vulnerable, Staggered | Dagger | Eye | 0% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 67% / 0% | Useless as an open finisher, but ambush weighting carries it against leather. |
Blunt weapons
| Setup | Leaves target | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweep | Prone, Vulnerable, Staggered | Mace | Head | 33% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 75% / 33% | All crush, so every hit uses the head threshold of 5. |
| Aimed leg crit (crush leg knocks down 4+) | Prone, stun 3+ rounds | Morning star | Head | 22% / 0% / 0% | 93% / 73% / 42% | Best blunt DF. One-third of hits roll puncture, which needs head 6+. |
Two-handed weapons
| Setup | Leaves target | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tackle or Sweep | Prone, Vulnerable, Staggered | Maul | Head | 75% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 100% / 50% | All crush with high DF; the strongest head finisher. |
| Aimed leg crit (crush leg knocks down 4+) | Prone, stun 3+ rounds | Military pick | Eye | 50% / 22% / 0% | 87% / 87% / 50% | Two-thirds puncture with high DF against chain. |
Polearm weapons
| Setup | Leaves target | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trip | Unbalance damage to the legs, Vulnerable, Staggered | Awl-pike | Eye | 95% / 58% / 0% | 95% / 95% / 90% | Highest DF of any finisher here and 87% puncture. Trip needs a two-handed polearm. |
| Trip | Unbalance damage to the legs, Vulnerable, Staggered | Spear (two-handed) | Eye | 71% / 0% / 0% | 100% / 97% / 71% | Faster than the awl-pike (6 seconds vs 9) with a lower DF. |
Ranged weapons
| Setup | Leaves target | Finisher | Aim | Kill, open aim leather / chain / plate |
Kill, hidden ambush leather / chain / plate |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aimed leg shot (puncture leg knocks down at 2 and 4+) | Prone, stun 3+ rounds | Long bow | Eye | 56% / 0% / 0% | 56% / 0% / 0% | No ambush weighting for FIRE, but Ambush skill adds AS to every bow shot. |
| Grapple-flaring bow, aimed eye | Grapple eye crit: knockdown at 2–5 and 7–9, stun 3–20 rounds | Long bow | Eye | 56% / 0% / 0% | 56% / 0% / 0% | The grapple flare never kills on the eye; the kill comes from the arrow's own crit. |
Setup knockdown odds
Crit-based setups knock down only when the rolled rank carries a knockdown. This table shows the chance per hit at each base rank. CMAN setups such as Sweep, Hamstring, Tackle and Bull Rush use their own success rolls instead.
| Crit type | Location | KD at base 3 | KD at base 4 | KD at base 5 | KD at base 6 | KD at base 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puncture | Leg | 50% | 67% | 67% | 75% | 100% |
| Slash | Leg | 0% | 33% | 67% | 75% | 100% |
| Crush | Leg | 0% | 33% | 67% | 75% | 100% |
| Unbalance (Trip, bolts) | Leg | 50% | 67% | 67% | 75% | 100% |
| Unbalance (bolts) | Chest / abdomen / back | 100% | 67% | 67% | 75% | 75% |
| Grapple (flares, spells) | Leg | 50% | 67% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Grapple (flares, spells) | Eye | 100% | 100% | 100% | 75% | 75% |
Notes:
- Puncture and unbalance legs knock down at rank 2 but not rank 3, so they stay below 100% until base 7, when rank 3 drops out of the roll range.
- Unbalance torso hits knock down at ranks 2, 3 and 5–9 but not 4, so the odds dip once rank 4 enters the roll range at base 4.
- Grapple eye hits skip the knockdown at rank 6, which is why the odds fall above base 5.
Limits
- Universal combat (UCS) punches, jabs, kicks and GRAPPLE use their own critical tables and are not covered here.
- Bolt spells are treated here as random-location attacks. Unbalance bolts such as Hand of Tonis (505) work as a random-location knockdown setup; see the table above.
- Noncorporeal creatures use the Noncorporeal critical table, and creatures with heavy critical padding lower the base rank of every hit.
- Weapon damage-type ratios are player research and may be imprecise for some weapons. The ambush weighting figure is an estimate.