LAST EDITED ON Jul-03-11 AT 09:07 AM (Pacific)Depeding on your characters' skills and weapons, you may be able to choose from one of several methods of fighting. The method ou choose is called a fighting mode. Each mode has its own strengths and weaknesses, and relies heavily on the Weaponry skill of its user.
Modifiers:Mode To Hit To Penetrate Damage
Swing 0 0 0
Thrust -2 +2 +1
Bash 0 0 0
Melee -4 -4 x2
Throw -1 +1 0
Punch +1 -1 0
Kick -2 0 +2(STR affects this)
Lash +2 -2 0
Shoot 0 +2 0
Parry means if an enemy tries to hit your character they will attempt to defend and may attempt to strike back.
Dodge means they will just attempt to dodge the blow and they are immune to double damage.
Block tells a character to attempt to block all blows using their shield.
Guard waits for monster to attack and if they do they will strike back - useful if your character can't normally reach the monster but the monster can reach them.
Rest does just that - your character rests, but they are vulnerable to attack.
Hide - if you have ninjitsu you can become invisible to the monsters until you decide to strike.
This is all from the manual.