The four offensive tactics, when used, cause the warrior to focus their fighting on one particular offensive strategy, as seen below.

Bash (B): This tactic focuses on making the warrior's blows land with sudden, powerful force. The Bash tactic and the Bashing Attack style are unique in their attempt to attack through a parry, rather than around a parry. Attempting the Bash tactic can over-balance a warrior, especially when they miss. Therefore, a poor bash is easy to riposte.

Slash (S): A master of the Slash tactic, with a seemingly casual swipe of a hand, can cut a man in two or split chainmail as easily as cloth. This requires one of two types of stroke, the draw or the push. The more common draw stroke uses a sweeping motion, and as the weapon nears its target, the warrior draws the weapon back toward himself, sliding the entire length of the blade across the foe. The push stroke usually begins with a sweeping motion (but can begin as a thrust) and concludes with the warrior pushing the entire length of the blade over the foe's body. These curious strokes limit the full range of attacks, parries, and ripostes that most fighting styles offer. The Slash is much more easily parried than dodged.

Lunge (L): This tactic enhances the lunging potential of a weapon and the force with which it hits. Central to the concept are distance, footwork, and the strike/slide. The warrior always attempts to keep near the maximum striking distance, with knees bent, lead foot forward, and shuffles (or leaps!) forward or backwards. In the strike-slide, the warrior lunges forward, sweeping their foe's parrying weapon with their own and continuing the lunge, allowing their weapon to slide along their foe's weapon until the lunge strikes home. This is tiring because it requires constant foot movement, and an incorrect strike-slide can result in getting skewered on a foe's weapon. The Lunge tactic is more easily dodged than parried.

Decisiveness (D): By focusing on mental preparation and proper body positioning, a warrior using the Decisiveness tactic is keyed up to strike instantaneously when a foe shows weakness, indecision, mistake, or lack of speed. The proper body stance varies for weapon and style. A fast, intelligent warrior may actually strike repeatedly before their foe can protect himself. However, warriors using this tactic can be more easily feinted, and may make immediate, flashy, but very bad dueling decisions. The adjusted body stance adversely affects the warrior's overall skill. This tactic is best defeated by natural speed or responsiveness. (Initiative and Decisiveness are related concepts. Initiative describes the ability to maintain a combat advantage, whereas Decisiveness describes the ability to get the jump on the opponent.)