WAY

OF

STEEL
Hero The Basics
Rules I of Combat

Everything a new player needs

to know to sit at the table

A tabletop RPG by Thomas Radtke

Section 0

PREFACE
A Note From the Author
I like to compare learning Way of Steel (WoS) to learning chess. Playing chess
correctly- taking your turns without violating the rules- is very easy: “On your
turn you move a piece; here’s the different ways they can move. Try and capture
the opposing king.”

But learning to play chess well is a lifelong pursuit. There are whole libraries de-
voted to learning to play chess well... But no one would recommend you sit down
and read several of these books before actually playing the game a fair bit.

That’s what learning WoS should be like- learn the handful of rules required
to play correctly, and don’t worry about playing well. That means just reading
through this short booklet, “Hero Rules I: The Basics of Combat”, aka “HR1”.
Then find an experienced group or Game Master to guide you through your first
battle or two. If you don’t know one, email me at thomas.radtke@gmail.com and
I’ll find you a game, or run one for you and/or your crew.

Once you’ve got a handle on what’s going on, if the game pulls you in, read fur-
ther- “Hero Rules II: Advanced Combat Rules”, aka “HR2”. Play through another
battle or two to get the hang of the complete rules of WoS. Then worry about
playing well. Or, ya know... don’t. WoS is an RPG- a cooperative social game. If
you’re enjoying yourself, you’re winning.

One of my goals with WoS has always been to make a game that can be enjoyed
at different levels of experience and engagement, and I think I’ve achieved that.
Not every Hero needs to be a tactical genius- if you can swing a sword or heft a
shield, you’re an asset in battle and any adventuring party will be chuffed to have
you along.

Finally, thank you for your interest in Way of Steel. I’ve spent a decade striving to
make tabletop RPG combat both deep and accessible. Hundreds of playtests and
thousands of hours of work later, I’m satisfied with the results and eager to share
them with the world. In the end, games exist to bring people together, and so my
humble wish is that WoS gives you and your crew reason to gather (in person or
virtually), throw dice, tell stories, and enjoy what is best in life.

-Tom

2
Section I

BATTLE
Actions, Turns, & Rounds
Ȗ Battles consist of alternating Hero Rounds and GM Rounds.
Ȗ Which team goes first- Heroes or Bad Guys/Monsters (controlled by GM)?
ӹ Depends on the story. Use common sense based on the situation.
ӹ If it is a tossup, decide on a relevant attribute and have a Hero roll off
against an enemy. If the Hero wins, the battle starts with a Hero round,
and vice versa.

Hero Round
Ȗ Turn Order
ӹ Default turn order is clockwise from GM’s left.
+ To alter the default turn order, change seats.
+ This method makes the game flow quickly as players intuitively know
when their turn is approaching.
ӹ Modifying turn order
+ At the beginning of the Hero Round, before anyone has acted, Heroes
can agree to modify turn order for the round.
Ȗ You can’t split up your turn. When you end your turn, remaining actions are
gone.
Ȗ After all Heroes take a turn, the Hero Round ends and a GM Round begins.

GM Round
Ȗ GM has each enemy take a turn, in whatever order they decide.
Ȗ Then the GM Round ends, and a new Hero Round starts.

Actions On Your Turn

Ȗ Major Action, Minor Action, Facing Action (aka a “Face”)
Ȗ Take actions in any order
Ȗ You can always opt to forfeit an action.
ӹ It is fairly common to not need your Face.
ӹ Forgoing actions in WoS is not unusual. It may be wiser to wait for the
enemy to come to you than to rush straight at them.

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 Ȗ You can “trade down” an action. For example, you could use your Major Ac-
tion to take a second Minor Action, or use a Minor Action to make an extra
Face.
Ȗ “Free Actions” are done on your turn like any other action, but don’t count
towards your usual allotment of actions.
ӹ You can’t do a Free Action in the middle of a different action.

You need to pay attention even when it isn’t your turn.

Ȗ When attacked, you will have to choose a defense.
Ȗ When enemies move aggressively, you can “Wheel” to change facing.
Ȗ If enemies aggressively move away from/past you, you may be able to make a
bonus reaction attack called a “Snap”.
Ȗ More on Wheel, Snap, and Defense in later sections.

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Section II

POSITIONING
Facing & Movement
Facing Basics
Ȗ Keeping track of Facing is the core difference of WoS from other RPGs
ӹ Much of the game strategy derives from Facing
Ȗ Facing determines who you can attack, who can attack you, and most impor-
tantly, how you can defend yourself from an attack. (More on this in just a
moment.)
ӹ To succeed at WoS, outmaneuver and get to the enemy’s flanks or rear
where their defense will be weak.
ӹ Don’t let the enemy do the same to you!
ӹ Balancing attack and defense is an integral part of the game.
Ȗ In WoS, you always face in a cardinal direction- never diagonally.

The Facing Action (aka “Face”)

Ȗ When you use a Face action, you can Face in any cardinal direction.
ӹ You NEVER face diagonally in WoS
Ȗ When you Walk or Run, you automatically Face in the direction of travel
(without expending a Face action).
ӹ Your final square of movement determines Facing.
+ Clever pathing may let you conserve a Facing Action.
ӹ Note: The special movement called “Shift” does not change your Facing.
You will often Shift when you are next to the enemy because they cannot
react to a Shift.

Facing and Attack/Defense

Ȗ You can attack enemies in any of the 3 squares in front of you.
ӹ The arrow represents your Hero, facing to the right.
ӹ The red squares are called “Threatened” squares. If an enemy is in one
of these squares, you could use an action to attack them on your turn.
Ȗ When you are attacked, your facing determines what defenses you can
use.
ӹ For example, an attack from directly in front of you could be Parried,
Dodged, or Blocked. If you are attacked from behind, you couldn’t use
any of these defenses.
+ A lot of WoS strategy is wargaming 101- protect your flanks and your
rear!
ӹ This info will be covered in detail in Section III: Attacking and Defending.

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Movement Actions
Ȗ Walk, Run, Shift
ӹ Walk (Minor Action)- Move any number of squares up to
your Walk value (usually 3 squares).
+ You may Walk diagonally
+ Automatically Face in the direction of travel
+ I.E., if your last square of movement was north/up, you
end the movement facing to the north/up.
+ Remember, you always Face in a cardinal direction. If
the last square you moved was diagonal, you choose one
of the two cardinal directions.
+ In this example, the Hero’s last square of movement was
diagonal, so he can end the move facing either up or
right.

ӹ Run (Major Action)

+ Same as a Walk, but you can go further and it requires a Major Ac-
tion.
ӹ Shift (Minor Action)
+ Move 1 square in a cardinal direction
+ You cannot Shift diagonally
+ Repeat after me: You cannot Shift diagonally
+ You can move 1 square diagonally, but that would be a Walk, not a
Shift.
+ Facing does not change when you Shift
+ Your Facing Action may be crucial when you utilize Shift.
+ Shift does not trigger reactions (Snap and Wheel, which will be ex-
plained very shortly.)
+ When a battle gets crowded, expect lots of Shifts.
+ Movement Notes
+ You can move through allies, but not through enemies. You can’t end
movement in an occupied square.
+ You can make multiple movements on one turn. Walk and Run, Shift
and Run, Shift and Shift, etc.

6
HOLD UP
You said that the whole point of the game is to flank the bad guys. So I can just
Walk or Run around behind them on my turn and smack them on the ass?

Well, if it were that easy, this wouldn’t be a very good game. But you are asking
the right question! This is where the two reactions- “Snap Attack” and “Wheel”-
come into play. These are the trickiest parts of the WoS rule. (Arguably the only
tricky part.)

The rules for Snap and Wheel are actually very simple, but they often lead to lots
of “what if?” questions from new players. With that in mind, we will present a
very basic explanation of Snap and Wheel here. Then you should go and play the
game, see how they work in practice, and ask questions. The GM and other play-
ers will assist you by prompting you at the appropriate times.

SNAPS & WHEELS

The Short Version
Snap Attack (aka "Snap")
Ȗ When an enemy Walks or Runs out of a square you threaten, you can react by
making a Snap Attack.
Wheel
Ȗ Once per round, after an enemy finishes a Walk or Run, you may react by
Facing any direction.
Quick Notes
Ȗ Shifts (or Faces) don't trigger Snaps or Wheels. Only Walk/Run does.
ӹ Expect lots of Shifts once the battle gets close.
ӹ If an enemy is just a Shift away from your flank/rear, be careful- if they
Shift, you won’t be able to Wheel.
Ȗ The enemy can Snap/Wheel too, the same way you do.
Ȗ There are absolutely times when taking a Snap is worth the risk. Fortune
favors the bold.
Ȗ Once an enemy has used their Wheel, they are vulnerable. Take advantage.
Ȗ When deciding if you should Wheel, think about which enemies have not yet
taken their turn this round.

7
Recap

SECTIONS I & II
As stated in the preface, the more complex rules governing positioning take a bit
of practice to get down. Don't worry about knowing the nitty gritty by heart right
now; your allies and the GM will help you.

All you really need to know so far is the following:

1. When it is your turn, you've got up to three actions: Major, Minor, Facing.
Take them in any order. Minor Actions are shorter movements or weaker
attacks, and Major Actions are longer movements or stronger attacks.

2. When you Walk or Run, you automatically face in the direction of travel (of
your last square of movement). Sometimes you can conserve your Facing
Action by moving along a specific path. And remember, the Facing Action
you have on your turn is separate from the Wheel reaction you get outside of
your turn.

3. When an enemy threatens you (the 3 squares in front of him that he can
attack), a Walk/Run will trigger a Snap Attack. Consider Shifting, or perhaps
attacking with both of your actions rather than moving.

4. If you Walk/Run behind an enemy, expect them to Wheel towards you. This
might ruin your attack plans, but since they can't Wheel again (until their
next turn begins), they will be unable to Wheel if your ally rushes them.
Teamwork is crucial to success in WoS.

5. Be judicious with your Wheel. Once you use it, you are in a vulnerable spot
until the next Hero Round comes around. Think about what the next enemy
will do!

8
Section III

ATTACKING &
DEFENDING
Now that you know how to move and face, you can maneuver yourself to Attack
the enemy. When an Attack occurs, the focus of the game shifts from your posi-
tion on the grid to the dice tray. When it’s your turn, the Attack options are:
Strike: Major Action, rolls 5 dice.
Probe: Minor Action, rolls 3 dice.

During enemy turns, their movement can trigger a Snap attack. Since it isn’t your
turn, there’s no action cost involved.
Snap: Reaction to walk/run out of threatened square, rolls 4 dice.

When an Attack occurs, follow the steps below:

Attack Resolution Procedure (Short Version)
1. Declare attack type, target, and dice combination
2. Defender chooses a defense
3. Attacker rolls dice
4. Special abilities like Stunt Cards or Equipment Cards can be used. (More in
the next section.)
5. Count Swords. If Swords >= defense, attack hits. Go to next step. If swords <
defense, attack misses (and is over).
6. If swords >= defense (“meets it beats it”), count up blood drops. This is the
damage dealt. Reduce target’s Resolve by this amount.
7. If damage >= 5, defender draws a card from the Wound deck.
Attack Resolution Procedure (Long Version)
1. Declare your attack
a. Name the target and say what dice combination you are using.
b. Any attack can use any combination of blue and/or red dice.
i. For example, “I Strike the Bandit using 4 blue and 1 red dice.”
c. Both dice types have varying amounts of Swords and Blood Drops. Blue
dice have more Swords, which determine if you hit or miss. Red dice have
more Blood, which determines damage (IF the attack hits).

9
 d. Ergo, more blue dice makes for a more conservative attack, and more red
dice makes a more aggressive attack (lower chance to hit, more damage).
e. Remember, Swords come first. If your attack doesn’t have enough swords,
it doesn’t matter how many Blood Drops you roll, because it’s a miss.
Choose your dice combination carefully.
2. Defender declares a defense.
a. Passive Defense
i. Default defense when you cannot or do not wish to use a better de-
fense.
ii. Only defense you can usually use against a Snap.
iii. Defense value of 1, meaning the attacker’s dice roll must show 1 or
more swords to hit- “Meets it, beats it!”
iv. Try to avoid having to use Passive Defense!
b. Parry, Dodge, or Block
i. Each of these “active” defenses can be used once per round, in addi-
tion to other requirements (e.g. facing the attacker).
ii. Your defenses “refresh” at the start of the Hero Round.

Defense

Passive

Parry Dodge Block

10
 c. Parry: Use your weapon to try and stop the attack
i. One use per round.
ii. Can be used if the attacker is in one of your front 3 squares. (Same as
the threatened squares that you can attack.)
iii. “Bread and butter” defense that most Heroes and Enemies can do
well. The default Parry value is 3. (Attacker needs to show 3 or more
swords to hit.) It’s pretty hard to get through a Parry defense.
d. Dodge: Move your body out of the way of an attack.
i. One use per round.
ii. Can be used against frontal or flank attacks.
iii. Must immediately Shift. This does not require spending an action (it
won’t be your turn, so you won’t have actions to use).
1. Even if you Shift to a square that isn’t threatened, the attack still
resolves normally.
2. If you don’t have an open square to Shift to, you cannot Dodge.
iv. Default value of 2- not as good as Parry, but you can use it against
flank attacks, and the free Shift can be extremely useful to avoid a
second attack or set up your next turn.
e. Block
i. You can only Block if you choose to equip a shield!
ii. One use per round (though some shields can grant additional Blocks).
iii. Can be used against attacks from your front-center, front-left, and left
flank. (Or reversed, if your Hero is an obnoxious lefty!)
iv. The Block value of a Shield varies. Smaller shields are usually Block 2
while larger are Block 3.
3. After Defender declares their defense, the attacker rolls their chosen dice.
a. Remember: The attacker chooses their dice FIRST, then the defender
chooses their defense.
i. This can result in strategic mind games. For example, you expect
me to Parry (defense value 3), so you choose 5 blue dice. I decide to
Dodge (2), because I want that free Shift and I figure that 5 blue dice
are unlikely to deal much damage.
ii. Sometimes your dice combination may be more about pressuring the
defender to defend a certain way than to maximize your offense. For
example, a Probe with 1Blue/2Red Probe may get a different response
than 3 blue dice.

Defense

Passive

Parry Dodge Block

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4. Use Special Abilities (More on this in later sections, but some very brief
points now).
a. Offensive and defensive abilities are usually played after the dice are
rolled.
b. These abilities will usually either change the face of a die, or let you roll
more dice. For example, an offensive ability might let the attacker change
a blank die to a Single Sword icon.
c. Stunt Cards- See Section IV: Stunts
d. Equipment abilities- See Section V: Equipment

5. Count Swords, compare to defense value

a. If the # of swords showing on the dice is equal to or greater than the de-
fense value, the attack hits. “Meets it, beats it!”
i. Go to step 6
b. If the # of swords showing is less than the defense value, the attack misses.
i. That’s it, this attack is over.

6. If the attack hits, count Blood Drops.

a. This is the damage dealt to the defender, who reduces their Resolve ac-
cordingly.
b. Resolve is like Hit Points, Stamina, Sanity, Mana, etc., all in one resource.
i. Think of it simply as your “will to fight”.

7. If a single attack deals 5 or more damage, it can Wound

a. 5-7 damage is a Minor Wound; 8+ damage is a Major Wound
b. Armor can reduce or negate Wounds before they are revealed. (See Ar-
mor, HR2, Section VI, for more details).
c. Draw the top Wound card and do what it says. The most common effects
of a Wound are:
i. Extra Resolve loss (think of it as a bleedy injury)
ii. Debuffs to stats (e.g. -1 Parry)
iii. “Staggered” status that leaves you defenseless
d. Armor and Accessories reduce or negate Wounds.
i. See Section V: Equipment
ii. Armor and Accessories keep Bad Things from becoming Really Bad
Things

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What Happens If I
Reach 0 Resolve?
Am I Dead?
As legendary sea captain John Paul Jones once said, “I have not yet begun to
fight!”

If you reach 0 Resolve (or less), your will to continue fighting has reached a
breaking point. If you are in the middle of an action, finish it. Then the GM will
ask you a simple question:

Fall Or Fight?
Ȗ Fall
ӹ Choosing to Fall means you have had enough, and your Hero cannot or
will not fight anymore. You can choose to roleplay this as becoming un-
conscious, clutching at a grievous injury and writhing in agony, or blub-
bering like a coward. In any event, you are out of this battle. Enemies will
ignore you and focus on those Heroes who are still a threat. If all Heroes
have Fallen (and/or died), the battle is lost and the GM will decide what
becomes of the Heroes. Perhaps they are taken captive, or robbed of their
belongings and left by the roadside. Just because you’ve been defeated
doesn’t necessarily mean you are dead and the story is over.

Ȗ Fight On
ӹ Fighting On means exactly that- you keep going, risking death and
disability to protect your allies (and your pride). Tell the GM you are
going to Fight On, and draw the top card of the Fight On deck. DO NOT
LOOK AT THE BACK OF THE CARD AT THIS TIME.
ӹ Read the cool flavor text, perform any immediate effects, and put the card
near your equipment cards where you can be reminded of any ongoing
effects. Continue to track Resolve even as it dips into the negative. If at
any point you reach -10 Resolve (or less), you die immediately.
ӹ If you survive the battle, flip the Fight On card over to the back and find
out what the consequences of your brave stand are.

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Recap

SECTIONS I, II, & III

At this point, you know all of the core rules of Way of Steel. This includes:
Ȗ How Rounds, Turns, and Actions are organized.
Ȗ How Facing and Movement work.
Ȗ How to execute an Attack, or Defend against one.
Ȗ What happens on reaching 0 Resolve.

Don’t worry if you’re still fuzzy on the nitty gritty rules about facing, Wheel,
Snap, etc. Most of it is pretty common sense and will quickly become old hat
after a battle or three. Other players will help you out! You’re ready to step up to
the table. The rest of the game can be figured out by simply following instruc-
tions on the various cards and the very basic character sheet.
Stunt Cards (Section V)
Ȗ Your starting hand and maximum hand size are listed on your character
sheet. Otherwise, draw one card of your choice at the end of the turn.
The four Stunt decks are Offensive, Defensive, Mobility, Tactics. To use
a Stunt, pay the Resolve cost in the top corner, and follow the instruc-
tions/icons on the card. (Or use one of the optional default abilities in
the bottom section of the card). It should be obvious from reading the
card when you can play it. (An Offensive stunt is played during an attack,
duhhh). If it isn’t clear, just ask.
Equipment (Section VI)
Ȗ Equipment cards do the same sort of things that Stunts do. The difference
is that while Stunts are semi-random, you know exactly what equipment
you’ll have and what it does. They are also re-usable, usually. There might
be certain Strength or Agility requirements to use a certain weapon or
shield. All equipment has a Weight, and your total equipped Weight must
not exceed the Max Weight listed on your character sheet.
Character Creation & Progression (Section VII)
Ȗ Character Creation
ӹ In WoS, Heroes start out at Level 0 with a standard set of attributes.
There are no mechanical choices to make starting out. You need
to learn the game to understand the choices. You will level up each
session and soon have plenty of options to play with. The progression
system is designed to slowly add more wrinkles to the basic rules of
WoS.

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 ӹ Progression in WoS has two major prongs (in addition to acquiring
loot and increasing your skill as a player, which truthfully trumps all
the others).
+ Raising (and possibly lowering) attributes.
+ This will modify basic stats like starting Stunts, Stunt hand
size, Run, Resolve, what equipment you can equip, what Paths
you can access, and so forth.
+ Paths
+ Paths work like equipment cards- persistent reusable special
abilities that enhance your unique fighting style.

Hero...
You’re Ready To Step Up To
The Table.

15
 WAY
OF

STEEL