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7 DUELLING

Duelling is a socially acceptable, if not strictly legal, way of settling disputes between gentlemen. The winner receives satisfaction for his honour and the status accorded a victor. The loser receives humiliation, grievous wounds, and ofttimes death.

7.1 Cause for duels

When two characters are in the same place (that is, performing the same activity), a duel may take place. There must, however, be cause. Unless permitted to by the rules, any character who has cause and an opportunity to fight and does not will lose Status Points equal in number to half his current Social Level.

Judgement of whether or not there was cause is up to all the players who do not belong to the same Regiments as the two estranged parties. At any time a vote may be called for, a unanimous vote of all players not involved being required to decide that there is no cause.

Examples of sufficient cause for a duel are:

• Two characters of two unfriendly Regiments meeting (Regimental friends and enemies are listed in Regimental Table D).
  
• Committing an indiscretion with another player’s mistress.
  
• Insulting a regimental friend of a character.
  
• Two characters courting the same mistress.
  
• If a noble meets a non-noble who is four or more Social Levels above him.

7.2 Challenges and Timetable

The sequencing of the events leading up to a duel are:

Month	Events and Actions
0	Offence is taken.
1	If there is a valid reason for the offence the offended party must either issue a challenge or lose status points equal to half his status level. Imagined insults can still allow a Challenge to be issued, but the Challenger will lose two status points. The Challenger specifies the place and time for the duel. Normally this will be a specific week in Month 2, but can be a week in Month 1 if both the Challenger and the Challenged agree to the earlier date.
2	The Challenged may refuse the challenge. If the Challenger has a valid reason for the Challenge the Challenged loses status points equal to half of his own status level when refusing the challenge. If the excuse is merely an imagined insult the Challenged may refuse the Challenge without penalty.
2 Week x	If the Challenger chooses to fight the duel, it is fought at the beginning of a week - it does not, of itself, prevent either the Challenger or the Challenged from performing other actions in the same week.

If you have to fight multiple duels in the same week, you get to choose the order in which you wish to fight. Otherwise, the higher status opponent will be fought first and, if the SLs are the same, then the highest ranking or more senior if of equal rank will be fought first.

Challenges can be made and received even while you are out of Paris for any reason. If you're out of Paris when a duel is scheduled it will be held over until your return. Note that duels scheduled for Week 1 occur before you leave Paris if you choose to do so. Duels scheduled for later weeks can be dodged by leaving the city, but will need to be fought on your return.

Your order will need to include instructions on how you wish to fight the duel. An injured duellist may refuse to duel without penalty and his refusal satisfies the challenge.

7.3 The Duel

A duellist needs to specify how he is planning to divide his expertise between attack and defence during the duel, with which weapon he is planning to fight and under what circumstances he will offer and/or accept surrender. If you surrender without being hit it will be treated as if you refused the challenge.

Your orders for duelling can be conditional, and you can change the proportion of expertise spent on attack and defence during the duel. Please be aware that the more complex your orders are the higher the risk the GM will misunderstand something.

Although the rapier is the common weapon used for duelling, players may choose to arm themselves otherwise. Opponents in a duel do not have to use the same type of weapon.

The duel proceeds in a sequence of rounds. In each round one of the duellists will be the attacker, the other the defender. The odds of a duellist being the attacker is determined by comparing the attack ratings of each duellist.

In each round the attacker rolls a die of the size of his attack rating, while the defender rolls a die of the size of his defence rating. The defender's score is subtracted from the attacker and one of the following tables is consulted:

Rapier Duel Result Table
Attack roll - Defence roll	Combat Result	Comments
14 or more	Defender takes three times the attacker's strength score as damage and in every subsequent round the defender loses the attacker's strength in additional bleeding damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a crippling wound on the defender.
9-13	Defender takes three times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a serious wound on the defender.
6-8	Defender takes three times the attacker's strength score as damage.	The attacker has made deep, but non-crippling, would in the defender.
4-5	Defender takes two times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	A definite hit by the attacker that left the defender off balance.
3	Defender takes two times the attacker's strength score as damage.	A definite hit by the attacker
2	Defender takes the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	A hit by the attacker which left the defender off balance.
1	Defender takes the attacker's strength score as damage.	A hit by the attacker.
0	None	Stand-off; Both duellists manoeuvre for position but neither gains an advantage.
-1	Attacker takes defender's strength as damage.	Defender riposted the attacker lunge.
-2	Defender's attack rating boosted by one in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack.
-3	Defender's attack rating boosted by 2 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.
-4 or less	Defender's attack rating boosted by 3 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.

Cutlass Duel Result Table
Attack roll - Defence roll	Combat Result	Comments
14 or more	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage and in every subsequent round the defender loses the attacker's strength in additional bleeding damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a crippling wound on the defender.
9-13	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a serious wound on the defender.
6-8	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage.	The attacker has made deep, but non-crippling, would in the defender.
4-5	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	A definite hit by the attacker that left the defender off balance.
3	No damage	The attacker came close but the defender was able to avoid the cutlass.
2	No damage but the attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker came close but the defender was able to avoid the cutlass.
1	None.	The attacker came close but the defender was able to avoid the cutlass.
0	None.	Stand-off; Both duellists manoeuvre for position but neither gains an advantage.
-1	Attacker takes defender's strength as damage.	Defender riposted the attacker lunge.
-2	Defender's attack rating boosted by one in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack.
-3	Defender's attack rating boosted by 2 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.
-4 or less	Defender's attack rating boosted by 3 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.

Sabre Duel Result Table
Attack roll - Defence roll	Combat Result	Comments
14 or more	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage and in every subsequent round the defender loses the attacker's strength in additional bleeding damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a crippling wound on the defender.
9-13	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	The attacker has made a serious wound on the defender.
6-8	Defender takes four times the attacker's strength score as damage.	The attacker has made deep, but non-crippling, would in the defender.
4-5	Defender takes three times the attacker's strength score as damage. Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	A definite hit by the attacker that left the defender off balance.
3	Defender takes two times the attacker's strength score as damage.	A definite hit by the attacker.
2	Defender takes half of the attacker's strength score as damage (rounded up). Attacker will automatically be the attacker in the next round.	A hit by the attacker which left the defender off balance.
1	Defender takes half of the attacker's strength score as damage (rounded up).	A hit by the attacker.
0	None.	Stand-off; Both duellists manoeuvre for position but neither gains an advantage.
-1	Attacker takes defender's strength as damage.	Defender riposted the attacker lunge.
-2	Defender's attack rating boosted by one in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack.
-3	Defender's attack rating boosted by 2 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.
-4 or less	Defender's attack rating boosted by 3 in the next round.	Defender blocked the attack and placed the attacker in a disadvantageous position.

7.3.1 Seconds

You can nominate a second (or two) in your orders and equally you must state that you are acting as second if you wish to do so. A second may stop you dying if you surrender and your opponent keeps attacking. Your opponent's second may also do so, but only if they state so in their orders.

Seconds should prefarably be ordered prior to a duel. The seconds should be announced in Announcements section of the forum so they can make the arrangements for the duel etc. Optionally Seconds can be selected after the duel is announced.

It is recommended that players state who they will second, and who they will call upon to serve as their seconds, as standing orders.

A duel can only have 2 seconds per side, if more are ordered the higher SL seconds get priority.

7.3.2 Surrender

If you do not include a surrender condition, you will fight until you win or die.

Accepting Surrender is the default - if you wish to refuse a surrender you must specifically order it. Similarly, Seconds will step in to stop duels when a surrender is refused unless not doing so is specifically ordered.

Killing an opponent who surrenders drops the murderer one SL immediately.

7.4 Recovery

In the event of a non mutually fatal duel, one or both players may be wounded. Players recover from wounds at the following rate:

• One half of the Endurance points lost in a duel may be recovered the first week after the duel.
  
• Each week thereafter, Endurance points equal to the character’s Constitution may be recovered.

A player with less than 50% of his Endurance may decline a duel, regardless of cause, without loss of status (see below). If, however, a character in such a condition accepts a duel, he will gain 3 Status Points immediately, regardless of the outcome of the duel.

7.5 Status

Characters may gain or lose Status Points as the result of a duel. The Duelling Status Table lists Status Point changes after a duel.

Duelling Table D: Status Point Gains and Losses from Duels
If a Character	SP Change
Wins against a member of a friendly Regiment	-1
Wins against a member of a neutral Regiment	+2
Wins against a member of an enemy Regiment	+5
Loses against a member of an enemy Regiment	-2
Refuses a challenge that has cause	-1/2 SL
Challenges with insufficient cause	-2
Meets an opponent who refuses a challenge (with cause)	+2
Kills his opponent	+2

The winner of a duel increases his Expertise by one.

7.6 Practice

Characters may practice to improve their fencing ability. For every four weeks of practice (not necessarily consecutive) a player raises his Expertise characteristic by one. At any time, a character may subtract five from his Expertise to add one to his Strength characteristic. No other trades may be made, and all the above are irreversible. Expertise cannot be reduced below a character’s base (initial) value. So a character has to gain 5 points of Expertise before being able to use this to increase their Strength.

Characters may practice with any weapon, but must note on their calendars which weapon is used for each practice session. If a character becomes proficient with one weapon, then switches to another, he returns to his original Expertise for that weapon. He retains, however, whatever Expertise he may have gained with his former weapon.

Characters who do not belong to a Regiment must pay crowns equal to their Expertise for each week of practice. Characters in a Regiment may practice free with that Regiment’s weapon, but must pay for practice with any other weapon, as outlined above.

The Regimental Tables list the weapons of each Regiment.