---
key: mechanic/melee-combat--t017
type: mechanic
id: melee-combat--t017
lang: en
title: 'Grapples, throws and wrestling'
summary: >-
  The player establishes controlled contact with a target and selects a
  follow-up, restricting both participants' movement during the interaction.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/melee-combat--t017/'
jsonUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t017.json'
markdownUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t017.md'
aliases:
  - 'Grabs, throws and wrestling'
tags:
  - Melee and combat systems
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-3817d420df0baa92
  - source-e7703f0b61e1f579
  - source-096b56395ac20d09
sources:
  - id: source-3817d420df0baa92
    title: 'Robert Nystrom: State'
    url: >-
      https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-e7703f0b61e1f579
    title: 'Godot: AnimationTree'
    url: >-
      https://docs.godotengine.org/en/stable/tutorials/animation/animation_tree.html
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-096b56395ac20d09
    title: 'RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)'
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies'
    verifiedAt: null
relations:
  - type: uses
    direction: outgoing
    label: Sources in the selection
    key: resource/state-pattern
    title: 'State: Game Programming Patterns'
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern'
    jsonUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json'
    markdownUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md'
placements:
  - catalogId: melee-combat
    id: t017
    title: Melee and combat systems
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/melee-combat/#t017'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: 'Grabs, throws and wrestling'
    description: >-
      The player establishes controlled contact with a target and selects a
      follow-up, restricting both participants' movement during the interaction.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/combat-throwing-enemies.webp
      width: 600
      height: 334
      game: 'RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)'
      sourceUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies'
      originalUrl: 'https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/robocop_throw_guy.webm'
      sourceFrameSeconds: 4.95
      credit: Teyon / Nacon; frame from clip via GameMechanics.org
      rights: >-
        Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host:
        GameMechanics.org. All rights reserved; excluded from the portal’s MIT
        and CC BY 4.0 licenses.
      caption: Throwing an enemy down a corridor
      alt: Throwing an enemy down a corridor
      markers:
        - x: 51
          'y': 60
          label: Enemy during the throw animation
    tips:
      - Coordinate both poses and define how to escape the grab.
    examples:
      - title: 'RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)'
        url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies'
endsAt: null
provenance: >-
  Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on
  2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design
  examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests.
  Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not
  every proposed variant.
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
catalogKey: catalog/melee-combat
---
# Grapples, throws and wrestling

id: melee-combat--t017
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/melee-combat--t017
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/melee-combat--t017/

The player establishes controlled contact with a target and selects a follow-up, restricting both participants' movement during the interaction.

## At a glance

![Throwing an enemy down a corridor](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/combat-throwing-enemies.webp)

[RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. All rights reserved; excluded from the portal’s MIT and CC BY 4.0 licenses.

[Source recording](https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/robocop_throw_guy.webm), 4.95 s

1. Enemy during the throw animation

- Coordinate both poses and define how to escape the grab.

- [RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies)

## How it works

The player establishes controlled contact with a target and selects a follow-up, restricting both participants' movement during the interaction.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t017-variants"></a>

- Range-gated grabs: entry requires suitable proximity, facing and target state. <a id="t017-v1"></a>
- Chosen throws: release direction changes collisions with walls or other enemies. <a id="t017-v2"></a>
- Resistance: the grabbed target receives an explicit escape window or resource. <a id="t017-v3"></a>
- Geometry compatibility: obstacles cause a clear adjustment or refusal of the interaction. <a id="t017-v4"></a>

## Design example

On a narrow bridge, the player can throw an enemy behind them to clear a path or pin it against a support for a short stun.

Prototype check: Test grabs near walls, edges and a participant's defeat: both characters should return to valid independent states.

## Context and limits

Melee combat revolves around distance and the moment of commitment. Starting an action can temporarily remove the ability to defend, so opponents need readable preparation, reach and contact results. These overviews separate decisions about targets, continuing a sequence, choosing a defense and escaping a bad position. Start by testing one attack and one response without decorative effects. The dedicated boss reference remains available in the direction map; this catalog covers the other contact-combat topics. Sources illustrate state and animation-transition models rather than prescribing a universal combat formula.

## Connected materials

- Sources in the selection: [State: Game Programming Patterns](https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern) (key: resource/state-pattern)

## Sources and provenance

Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.

- [Robert Nystrom: State](https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown) (id: source-3817d420df0baa92)
- [Godot: AnimationTree](https://docs.godotengine.org/en/stable/tutorials/animation/animation_tree.html) (id: source-e7703f0b61e1f579)
- [RoboCop: Rogue City (2023)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/throwing-enemies) (id: source-096b56395ac20d09)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors