Player Help, Combat

6.0 COMBAT

6.1 Engagement System

The engagement system simulates the ability of a character to attack from a distance with a ranged weapon, attack at close range with a melee weapon or attack from a medium range with a pole weapon (spear, lance, etc.).  There is also the possibility of being engaged by multiple opponents, with the potential for being overwhelmed by too many of them.  To move in and out of engagement, you use the commands, ADVANCE and RETREAT.

Engagement States:

Engaged:
The engaged state indicates that a combatant is in combat with another.  Each combatant may directly engage only one opponent at a time.  However, several different combatants may engage the same foe.  To engage a creature, you either advance on it, aim your ranged weapon at it or target it with your magic.

An engaged combatant may use the following types of attacks:

   Melee Weapons
   Pole Arms
   Ranged Weapons - may suffer a penalty
   Spells - spell may be aborted if a blow is struck against the caster
      during the preparation of the spell.  Some spells are area spells
      and do not target a specific friend/foe/object.

Disengaged:
The disengaged state indicates that a combatant has either yet to engage in close combat or is actively avoiding it.  When a character is engaged in combat, he/she can disengage by using the DISENGAGE or RETREAT commands.  If you try to leave the area by going north, south, through a portal, etc. the system will automatically try to disengage you first.  You can actively attempt to stay disengaged even though foes are trying to engage.  You do this by using the HANGBACK command.

There are three different states of being engaged.  They are: melee, pole and missile range.

The following types of weapons can be used at melee range:

   Ranged Weapons (bows, crossbows, slings, thrown weapons)
   Pole Arms
   Appropriate Spells
   Melee Weapons (broadsword, rapier, axe)

The following types of weapons can be used at pole range:

   Ranged Weapons (bows, crossbows, slings, thrown weapons)
   Pole Arms
   Appropriate Spells

The following types of weapons can be used at missile weapon range:

   Ranged Weapons (bows, crossbows, slings, thrown weapons)
   Appropriate Spells

There is no missile weapon range inside buildings or cramped areas such
as caves.

Thrown weapons may be used at pole, missile and melee.  At range, thrown weapons use a different skill than when at melee.  At melee, the thrown weapon uses the appropriate skill for that type of weapon.  Ranged weapons (such as bows) may never be used as melee weapons.

Guarding:
A disengaged character may choose to GUARD another character who is not at melee range with their opponent.  The one doing the guarding draws off an attacker and if successful will prevent the attacker from engaging the one you are guarding. Any attempt by an opponent to engage the protected combatant will first cause an engage attempt with the protecting combatant.

Retreating:
At times in combat it's prudent to retreat.  You can do so by the RETREAT command.  The retreat may fail if your opponent/s are able to block it.  Generally you move back one range at a time.  Melee retreats back to Pole Range and Pole Range retreats back to Ranged.  You cannot leave a room/area until you have disengaged successfully from your opponent.

Since several creatures may be engaged with you at various ranges, retreating from one, may not disengage you from every creature.  So, you may need to RETREAT many times in order to get out of all the creatures' range.

Knowing when to retreat from combat is important to your survival.  If you are getting exhausted, your balance is very poor or you are being overwhelmed by too many opponents, it's probably time to retreat.

6.2 Offensive Factors

A character's offensive ability is a combination of :

   Skill with the weapon in use
   Attacker's strength (adds to damage done)
   Attacker's agility (adds to all weapon skills)
   Properties of the specific weapon
   Current position in combat
   Any reductions/additions due to:
      Fatigue loss/gain
      Health point loss/gain
      Spirit health loss/gain
      Magical factors
   Current Range (Missile, Thrown weapons)

6.1.1 Multiple Opponents

While you may only engage one foe at a time if there is more than one creature in the room, they all may engage you.  Your attention is mainly directed to the creature you are directly engaged to, but a much smaller portion of your attention is also focused on the other creature's engaging you.  Your attention can be split this way between two creatures.  Beyond that, very little of your attention and defenses are used to stop their attacks.

In other words, your main attention is focused on the opponent you specifically engaged.  Your secondary attention is given to another creature as chosen by the combat system (usually the next creature to engage you.  Any other creatures beyond that, you pretty much can't defend against.

Even though the combat system picks your secondary foe automatically, you can use the BLOCK command to specify the second creature you will focus your attention on.  This is useful when a reaver and a wind hound is engaged you but another reaver then walks into the room and you want to concentrate your secondary attention on the second reaver.

Multiple opponents skill improves your ability to fight with more than one foe.  This not only helps with your ability to fend off the attacks of the second creature attacking you, but also helps with any other creatures attacking you (though your improvement will be very slow here).  A high reflex and a high multiple opponents skill is your best defense against fighting three or more enemies.

There is a maximum number of opponents who can engage another opponent.  The factors in determining this are the size of the attackers and the size of the one being attacked.  A Dragon might have a dozen or more human size opponents engaged to it, but a rat may only be able to have up to four human size opponents engaged to it.

6.2.1 Offensive Maneuvers

Combat in DragonRealms is an intricate choreography of offensive and defensive maneuvers.  Switching from one maneuver to another places the combatant in advantageous or disadvantageous positions, depending on their last move as well as their opponent's last move.

6.2.2  Maneuver Mods

Your position in combat in referred to as your maneuver mod.  This represents your current combat balance.  IE, a bad maneuver mod (being out of balance) will mean that your attacks and defensive actions are much less effective.  Each attack type affects your maneuver mod by making it better or worse.  You will need to experiment to see which attacks and in which combination are the best to use in various combat situations.

As time passes, you automatically regain your balance or maneuver mod and if you do nothing, you will eventually return to being fully balanced.  Your maneuver mod may also be affected by your opponent's attack.  Therefore, even if you make no attacks, your maneuver mod may drop as your opponent pounds you with attack after attack, forcing you back and into worse and worse positions in order to fend off the attacks.

When you attack or are attacked, at the end of the combat message is an additional message in parenthesis () which indicates your relative position compared to your opponent.  If you are in a better position than your opponent it indicates this with a line of text.  Your balance may not be very good, but if your opponent's is worse, the message will indicate you are in a better position.  Additional information will be added in the future to indicate your actual balance and your opponent's actual balance.

6.2.1.1 Listing of Attack Maneuvers:

Unskilled, Unarmed, Brawling attack:
   Attacks using non-weapons as weapons (waiting full implementation
       of brawling)
   SHIELD BASH - (not yet implemented) Strikes opponent with shield

Maneuver attempts
   FEINT - Appears to opponent as normal attack, but is in fact a weak attack
      with no maneuver modification
   DODGE/EVADE - Puts you into a position to use all your skill to evade an
      attack
   DISARM - Attempt to disarm or throw an opponent off balance with heavy
      maneuver penalty possible for either attacker or defender (note: as
      of this writing, this skill was waiting for unarmed combat to be
      implemented.)

Weapon attacks:
   JAB - Weak but more successful attack offset by good defensive posture
   THRUST - Strong stabbing attack, mainly offensive
   LUNGE - Powerful offensive attack with very little defensive properties
      and a strong maneuver modification penalty
   SLICE - Sideways swing of a weapon meant to slash
   CHOP - Powerful downward slashing attack
   SWEEP - Low cross slash attack (going for legs)
   BASH - Basically a CHOP for blunt weapons

Ranged weapons:
   THROW - Throws the weapon (if it's throwable) at opponent
   LOAD
   AIM
   SHOOT - Launches arrow/bolt/rock

Additional attack types will be added as time goes on.

6.3 Defensive Factors

There are several different factors used to determine if the vicious cougar attacking you manages to rip your leg to shreds or if you nimbly dodge out of its way.

6.3.1 Evasion

Evasion represents the combatant's ability to avoid an attack by dodging.  This is determined by a combination of:

   Defender's reflex (moving/responding quickly)
   Defender's evasion skill
   Any armor encumbrance penalty (heavy armor slows you down)
   Defender's fatigue (you can be gradually worn down)
   Defender's health (wounds hinder you)
   Magical enhancements (both positive and negative)

6.3.2 Weapon Blocks (Parry)

If a blow is not evaded, and attempt to block the attack by parrying with a weapon is made.  This will only occur if the defender is wielding a weapon.  The outcome is determined by a combination of:

   Defender's parry skill
   Defender's weapon skill
   Properties of the weapon being used to block attack
   Defender's reflex
   Type of attacking weapon - missile weapon attacks are harder to block
   Defender's fatigue
   Defender's health
   Magical enhancements

You can parry some, none or all of the attack.  A successful parry means you got at least a piece of the weapon attacking you and deflected at least some of the offensive factor.

6.3.3 Shield Blocks

Attacks which are neither evaded nor parried can be blocked by a shield.  This will only occur if the defender is wielding a shield.  The outcome is determined by a combination of:

   Properties of the shield being used to block attack
   Defender's shield skill
   Defender's reflex ability
   Defender's fatigue
   Defender's health
   Magical enhancements

You can block some, none or all of the attack.  A successful block means you got at least a piece of the weapon attacking you and deflected at least some of the offensive factor.

6.3.4 Armor Blocks

If evasion, parry and shield block are not successful, then the blow lands.  However, if the defender is wearing armor, it will absorb a certain amount of the damage.  Any remaining damage will be taken by the defender.  The outcome is determined by the properties of the armor worn.  All armors have advantages and weaknesses.  For example, leather is vulnerable to puncture wounds while plate is very effective in repelling them.  However, plate is more difficult to maneuver in than leather.

Early on, when you get hit by creatures often, you may find heavier armors more effective.  However, as your skills increase, you will probably find that heavier armors are not quite as useful and you may want to gain skill in other armor types.

6.3.5 Defensive Maneuvers

   PARRY - Sacrifices an attack for increased weapon block defense and
      maneuver modifications
   DODGE - Attempting to get out of the way of an incoming blow, relying
      less on the defense of a weapon or shield and more on evasion to
      avoid the blow
   PARRY RETREAT - Attempting to cautiously disengage from combat, blocking
      any incoming blows
   RETREAT - Characters who retreat are more likely to get out of combat
      faster than those who parry retreat, but they are turning and running
      leaving themselves almost defenseless
   DISENGAGE - Same as retreat
   HANGBACK - Will put you in a mode where you attempt to stay disengaged at
      all times.  Particularly useful for ranged combat.

6.3.6  Specifying defensive factors

   BLOCK - Use this command to concentrate any extra defensive skills to defend
      against a second opponent.  This is done automatically by the system but
      you can use this command to change it to a new target of your choice.
   STANCE - Stance is a choice of which type of defense you will favor over
      another when in combat: evasion, shield or parry.  Eventually you will
      be able to specify how much effort you want to put into evasion, shield
      and parrying.  An example of how this may work is STANCE PARRY 50.  This
      would possibly mean that you'd concentrate only half of your parry skill
      in each attack.  One use of this would be to concentrate all your effort
      in one defensive type and leave the other two types at zero effectiveness.
      If you are an Empath, you'd probably want to put all your effort into
      evasion.  If you are a barbarian, you might want to concentrate on
      parrying.  Of course, each situation might dictate a different strategy.

6.3.7 Armor/Weapon Damage
    
Weapons, shields and armor may take damage in combat.  This will cause them to weaken and finally fail if they are not repaired in time.  Damage may be sustained whenever a hit is scored on the armor, shield or a weapon parries another.

6.5 Combat Messages

When you attack or are attacked, the messages about that attack are represented in sentence form.  No numbers are displayed.  The message is broken into three main sentences:  Attack, Defense and Result.  The messages vary greatly with each attack.  All the information is important as it conveys to you information on how the battle is progressing.  

An example of a combat message: