In the brutal hack and slash of close combat, it is rare for warriors to fight to the last man. Often combat is decided when the courage of one side fails.

Once all the models engaged in the combat have fought, you must determine which side has won. Of course, if one side has been completely wiped out in the fight, the other side is automatically the winner, regardless of the rules given below. Each side scores a number of combat result points equal to the wounds caused in the combat. It does not matter which particular units inflicted the wounds, just add up all wounds caused by that side in the fight. Do not forget to add the wounds suffered by big creatures or characters that have not been removed as casualties. Do NOT count the wounds that were saved by an armour save or a ward save (in other words, only count unsaved wounds).

As well as points for wounds caused, a side can claim bonus points under certain circumstances - for example, if it has a standard bearer, if it is attacking the enemy in the flank, or if it is fighting from higher ground.

The combat result bonus chart summarises all combat result bonus points.

Each bonus point is added to the number of points for unsaved wounds inflicted to obtain a final combat result score for each side. So, for example, if both sides cause 3 wounds, the result is a draw, but if one side has a standard it adds +1 to its score, beating the enemy by 4 points to 3. These bonus points can make all the difference between winning and losing the combat (see Diagram 37.1).

The side with the highest total combat result score wins the combat. The other side has lost and must take a Break test, as described later. If both sides have the same total, the result is a Draw and the combat will continue in the next turn.

The higher the difference between the winner's combat result score and the loser's, the bigger and more decisive the victory. An 8 points against a 7 points victory, for example, is only a slight win because the difference in scores is only 1 point. An 8 points against a 2 points victory, however, is extremely decisive, as the difference in scores is a whopping 6 points. This difference in scores is important because it is used when working out whether a defeated enemy stands its ground or turns and flees.