Stun Lock

Stun Lock, also known as "stun" or being "stunned," is a combat rule that accounts for combatant's being put off balance and unable to return a strong attack made against them. A "strong attack" is defined as any single hit causes at least 25% of the combatant's current hit points (h.p.) in damage. This applies both to player characters and their allies, and nearly all humanoids and monsters the players might face.

While "stunned," the combatant must wait out their attack round, allowing the enemy to attack again. If that attack fails to hit, or does not cause enough to stun the defender, then the defender may then attack normally. It's wholly possible for a combatant to be stunned repeatedly until killed, without having the opportunity to strike back in defense.

Example of Stunning

Carly, with 14 h.p., is defending against Patrick, who has 16 h.p. and has won initiative. On Patrick's attack, he hits Carly and causes 3 damage. This would be sufficient to stun her if she had 12 points or less, but in this case, Carly isn't stunned and is free to attack back. She hits and causes 4 damage to Patrick. This is 25% or more of 16 points, so Patrick is stunned. Carly attacks again and misses.

As Patrick attacks, he now has 12 h.p., and Carly has 11 h.p. Patrick hits and again causes 3 damage. However, Carly's current hit points have been reduced, and this time 3 h.p. is sufficient to stun her. Patrick swings again and causes 2 damage. Carly's current h.p. have been reduced to 8, so this is again enough to stun her, freeing Patrick to attack for the third straight time in a row. If he misses, then Carly would be able to strike back, possibly stunning Patrick and winning the chance to repeatedly hit him until he's defeated. And so it goes.

In each case, when a combatant is stunned, they're presumed be responding to the enemy's strong attack, staggering back, off balance, perhaps falling to one knee while parrying, attempting to regain their chance to counter-attack. At no time is the "stunned" character insensible or not a serious immediate danger if the next attack fails to drive them back again.

Multiple Hits

If a character is hit multiple times in a given round, it's important that the order of hits is accounted for, and to recognise that each individual hit is weighed against the defender's current h.p. separately. The total damage caused IS NOT added together and weighed against the character! It must be noted that the order is important.

For example, Lisbeth has 29 h.p. and is hit three times in succession. The first hit causes 7 damage, which stuns up to 28 h.p. This isn't sufficient to stun Lisbeth, so she's fine. The second hit causes 5 damage; Lisbeth currently has 22 h.p., so this doesn't stun her either. The third hit also causes 4 h.p.; Lisbeth currently has 17 h.p. Again she escapes being stunned, even though she's suffered three hits and taken a total of 16 damage against her original 29 h.p.

This is because none of the blows were sufficient to put her back on her heels at the moment they landed. If she'd been hit for 5 damage first, and 7 damage with the second blow, she would have been stunned — for this reason the order truly matters.

Falling Back

When a combatant is stunned, they're "forced back" one combat hex, giving evidence to the combatant staggering from the strong attack against them. If the attacker is greater than 3 times the physical weight of the defender, this falling back is increased to two hexes. For example, if a 560 lb. lion stuns a 120 lb. defender with it's paw, or with a bite, then the defender gives two hexes of ground before the animal.

Conversely, if the attacker is less than one third the weight of the defender, as a proposed reverse of the above example, the 120 lb. attacker wouldn't force back the 560 lb. lion, even if a stun were achieved.

Once stunning and driving back an opponent, the attacker is no longer engaged in "melee," unless another defender continues to engage the attacker. If not engaged in melee, the attacker can advance after the stunned defender, re-engaging them in melee. If the attack then still has enough movement, and another available attack, then the defender can be attacked again.

For example, a lion is able to attack three times. It might conceivably hit a defender with its claw, stunning the defender, who falls back. The lion advances and attacks with its other claw, perhaps stunning again. Again the defender falls back. Then the lion advances a third time, this time attacking with its fangs, either missing, hitting, stunning or perhaps killing the defender this time. From this, we can see that creatures with multiple attacks can be very dangerous to fight alone.

Note that if the attacker is freed from melee, they may also choose to take flight, with the advantage that they can finish the rest of this turn, then take their whole next turn, while the defender is stunned. This makes stunning an opponent a good time to break off a fight, when the attacker has advantage.

Further Considerations

Combatants cannot be forced back into an enemy-occupied hex, or past an obstruction like a wall. In such cases, the defender is either moved back and to the right or left (defender's choice), or not at all if no space is available. Any barrier that is 4 ft. or higher is counted as a wall and sufficient to keep the combatant from being forced back.

A defender could be forced into a river, or down a flight of stairs, or off a cliff. In the last case, and other life-threatening situations, the defender is allowed a dexterity check. A railing, fence or merlon along the edge adds a +2 benefit to the check. If the check succeeds, the defender succeeds in holding his or her ground and is not forced back — though they may yet be the next round.

Defender's can be driven into an ally's hex. If an attack is then made again before the allies can sort themselves out, the attack to hit is made with a bonus of +2, due to the "fouled" nature of the defenders. Attacks made against the hex randomly strike whomever is caught within the space.

Should there be a case of multiple defenders in one hex, in which more two people are trained to fight in close quarters, there's no +2 bonus to hit. If either defender is stunned, then only that defender is forced back out of the hex. If either defender is allowed a dexterity check to hold his or her ground, then BOTH characters in the hex are entitled to make the check. This reflects their physical support for each other, as either provides the necessary resolve needed to remain in possession of the hex. The weight of both defenders are NOT added together with respect to weight rules related to a stun forcing back opponents.

Stunning Creatures with Multiple Attacks

# Attacks	H.p. to Stun All Attacks
1	25% (quarter)
2	33% (third)
3	50% (half)
4	67% (two thirds)
5	75% (three quarters)
6	80% (four fifths)
7	84% (five sixths)
8	86% (six sevenths)

In combat, there are characters and monsters who possess more than one attack. This provides some resistance to stun lock, as it increases the required percentage of the combatant's hit points needed to stun. The table shown indicates the percentage of hit points that are necessary to stun lock all possible attacks.

For example, a lion with 36 hit points attacks the party and has three attacks: two claws and a bite. If Lisbeth is fighting the lion, she will need to cause 18 damage in a single hit to keep the lion from having any attacks the following round. If, however, she causes 12 damage with one hit, she will take away two of the lion's attacks, reducing it to one. If she causes 9 damage, she will take away one of the lion's attacks.

Attacks lost are always those in order of causing the greatest damage. In the above example, Lisbeth's causing 12 damage took away the lion's bite and one claw. In causing 9 damage, she would take away the lion's bite, leaving it with two claw attacks.

Thus, combatants with multiple attacks are more difficult to render harmless. This also applies to higher leveled characters who possess multiple attacks, such as fighters, paladins, rangers and monks. In the case of fighting with two weapons, the primary weapon is the first to be stunned; it requires 33% of the combatant's hit points to stop the use of both weapons.

Damage from Wounds

Wounds can cause continuous damage, which may themselves cause a combatant to lose 25% of their hit points. Wound damage will stun lock a combatant, who will be considered weakened and unable to act. Once wounds are enough to stun a combatant, that will continue every round thereafter until the combatant receives outside help, binding or otherwise closing the wounds.

Because 1 h.p. damage is sufficient to stun anyone with 4 h.p. or less, any damage to persons with less than 4 h.p. (including those with less than zero hit points) is considered sufficient to stun.

See also,
Attacking in Combat
Attack of Opportunity
Overbearing