How an Attack Resolves
Combat in HeroQuest has no initiative rolls and no counterattacks. Whoever's turn it is attacks; the target only defends.
- Pick a target. With a normal weapon you attack a monster in a square next to you: ahead, behind, left or right, never diagonally. Weapons that say so (the staff and the longsword) also reach diagonally. Ranged weapons such as the crossbow, and thrown daggers, need line of sight instead; the crossbow can't shoot an adjacent monster.
- Roll Attack dice. Each skull is a hit.
- The target rolls Defend dice. Heroes block a hit with each white shield; monsters block with each black shield.
- Unblocked hits each cost 1 Body Point. A monster at 0 is removed. A monster that survives doesn't strike back until Zargon's turn.
Monsters attack the same way on Zargon's turn, and they can never attack (or move) diagonally. That single rule is behind most of the tactics on this page.
Every turn is move then act, or act then move. You can't step in, attack and step back out, and neither can monsters.
The Numbers
A combat die shows a skull on 3 faces of 6, so each attack die hits half the time. Blocks are where heroes and monsters differ: a hero's die blocks on 2 faces (white shields), a monster's only on 1 (the black shield).
Chance That One Attack Wounds (at least 1 Body Point)
Rows are attack dice, columns are the defender's dice.
Against a Monster (blocks on black shields)
| Attack | 1 Defend | 2 Defend | 3 Defend | 4 Defend | 5 Defend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 die | 41.7% | 34.7% | 28.9% | 24.1% | 20.1% |
| 2 dice | 66.7% | 59.0% | 52.1% | 45.8% | 40.2% |
| 3 dice | 81.3% | 75.0% | 68.9% | 62.9% | 57.3% |
| 4 dice | 89.6% | 85.1% | 80.3% | 75.4% | 70.5% |
| 5 dice | 94.3% | 91.2% | 87.8% | 84.1% | 80.2% |
Against a Hero (blocks on white shields)
| Attack | 1 Defend | 2 Defend | 3 Defend | 4 Defend | 5 Defend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 die | 33.3% | 22.2% | 14.8% | 9.9% | 6.6% |
| 2 dice | 58.3% | 44.4% | 33.3% | 24.7% | 18.1% |
| 3 dice | 75.0% | 62.5% | 50.9% | 40.7% | 32.1% |
| 4 dice | 85.4% | 75.7% | 65.5% | 55.6% | 46.3% |
| 5 dice | 91.7% | 84.7% | 76.6% | 67.9% | 59.2% |
Read across any row and you'll see the same thing: a monster's defense dice are worth about half a hero's. For any attack and defense not shown here, the Dice Roller prints the full table.
Matchups Against Each Monster
Classic edition (1989–1990): the monster numbers below are the classic North American chart, which the 2021 game is based on. Fimir and Chaos Warrior are listed by their 2021 names. Use the chart on your own Zargon's screen as the final word, and note that quest notes often change a named monster's stats.
| Monster | Move | Attack | Defend | Body | Mind | Barbarian kills it in 1 attack | …within 3 attacks | It wounds a 2-dice hero |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goblin | 10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 81.3% | 99.3% | 44.4% |
| Orc | 8 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 75.0% | 98.4% | 62.5% |
| Skeleton | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 75.0% | 98.4% | 44.4% |
| Zombie | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 68.9% | 97.0% | 44.4% |
| Abomination | 6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 33.3% | 86.6% | 62.5% |
| Mummy | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 28.9% | 80.9% | 62.5% |
| Dread Warrior | 7 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6.0% | 58.6% | 75.7% |
| Gargoyle | 6 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5.0% | 50.3% | 75.7% |
What the table tells you:
- One-Body-Point monsters are fragile. Any unblocked skull kills them. Even the Wizard's single dagger die kills a Goblin 41.7% of the time.
- Big monsters take teamwork. The Barbarian alone needs about three attacks to have even odds against a Dread Warrior (58.6%). A Dread Warrior also wounds a 2-dice hero 75.7% of the time, averaging 1.40 Body Points per attack.
- Kill order is about attacks removed. Every monster you kill is one fewer attack on Zargon's turn. When the Barbarian has an 81.3% shot at removing a Goblin or a 6.0% shot at finishing a fresh Dread Warrior, killing the Goblin often saves more Body Points, unless the Dread Warrior is already hurt or standing next to the Wizard.
- Undead are slow. Zombies (5) and Mummies (4) move far less than an average hero roll of 7, so you can often choose when to fight them.
What Armor Is Worth
Here is an Orc's 3 Attack dice against a hero with more and more Defend dice. Helmets, shields and armor each add dice (see Treasure & Equipment).
| Hero's Defend dice | Takes no damage | Loses 1 | Loses 2 | Loses 3 | Average loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 (no armor) | 37.5% | 34.7% | 22.2% | 5.6% | 0.96 |
| 3 | 49.1% | 30.6% | 16.7% | 3.7% | 0.75 |
| 4 | 59.3% | 25.9% | 12.3% | 2.5% | 0.58 |
| 5 | 67.9% | 21.4% | 9.1% | 1.6% | 0.44 |
| 6 | 75.0% | 17.3% | 6.6% | 1.1% | 0.34 |
The first extra die is the biggest single gain, and the gains keep coming. For the Wizard, who has only 4 Body Points and can't wear normal armor, the answer is simpler: stay out of reach. Two Orcs attacking him every round kill him within two rounds 55.4% of the time, and within three rounds 84.4%.
Diagonals: The Safe Squares
Because monsters can never attack diagonally, a hero standing diagonally next to a monster can't be hit by it. Heroes with a staff or longsword can still attack from there.
The First Light rulebook, which uses the same rules as the 2021 game, shows exactly this: a Wizard with a staff tucked diagonally behind the Barbarian, both attacking the same monster in a doorway, while the monster can reach only the Barbarian.
Positioning Rules That Matter
- Hold the doorway. A hero standing in a doorway or a one-square corridor can be reached by at most one or two monsters, because monsters can't attack diagonally or pass over heroes. The Barbarian (8 Body Points) is the natural choice.
- Mind your line of sight. Heroes block line of sight just like monsters do. A Barbarian filling the corridor also blocks the Wizard's spells and the crossbow. Leave a lane, or cast before your fighter steps forward.
- Don't stand in a pit. A hero in a pit rolls one fewer die to attack and to defend (never fewer than one). The Barbarian's chance to wound an Orc drops from 75.0% to 59.0%, and an Orc's chance to wound him rises from 62.5% to 75.0%.
- Monsters don't spring traps. Only heroes set off hidden traps, so a trapped corridor is no barrier to the monsters chasing you.
- Doors never close. Once opened, a door stays open for the quest, so you can't shut a door in a pursuer's face. Think before you open a second door while still fighting behind the first.
- Plan the reach. Monster movement is fixed, so count squares: a Goblin moves 10 and an Orc 8, more than most hero rolls, while a Mummy covers only 4.
Formation Trainer
Pick a piece, then click squares to place it. The trainer checks who can attack whom using the real rule: only squares directly beside a monster (not diagonal) are in reach, unless a hero has a diagonal weapon.
Squares outlined in red are in reach of an enemy. The doorway is at the top of the room. Hero letters: B Barbarian, D Dwarf, E Elf, W Wizard; M is a monster.
Formation check: place some heroes and monsters.
Spells in a Fight
Each spell can be cast only once per quest, but every spell comes back for the next quest. So the question is never "should I save it for the final quest?", only "is this the fight in this quest that needs it?". A few combat points:
- Casting a spell is your action for the turn and needs line of sight to the target.
- Damage spells that ignore Defend dice are best spent on high-defense targets like a Dread Warrior or Gargoyle, where a normal attack wounds only about 6 times in 10 attacks.
- A hero reduced to 0 Body Points survives only by drinking a healing potion or casting a healing spell at once. Keep a healing spell or potion for whoever is in front.
See Magic & Spells for every spell.
Try It at the Table
- The narrow corridor. Your party meets three Orcs in a one-square corridor. Put the Barbarian in front. Only one Orc can reach him per turn, and only he can reach that Orc. Where can the Wizard stand to see past him? (Nowhere in a straight corridor: heroes block line of sight.)
- The doorway with a staff. Set up the trainer with a monster in the doorway square, the Barbarian beside it inside the room and the Wizard diagonal to it. Which heroes can attack, and which can it hit back?
- Count the attacks. Before ending a round, count how many monsters can reach each hero on Zargon's turn. Two Orcs on one 2-dice hero average almost 2 Body Points lost.
Where Next
- Magic & Spells: the four schools and how to use them.
- Treasure & Equipment: the armory and what each item adds.
- Dice Roller: exact odds for any attack.