Bear with me, I get into some thorough details for all this, but I think its worth “humoring” and speculating.
The current system is really nice and getting better. I remember before the combat was overhauled how much more streamlined everything was.
But I would suggest it is still not complete, yet going in the right direction.
Here are some suggestions for combat, going over status effects (bleeding, cripple, etc), stutter/staggering, multiple weapon status effects, and a parry system and how it could all work.
I have tried to find suggestions and ways to make these work with current system (as in, using stats animations and variables the game is already based on, ofc it will need some work, but its not like adding a completely new mechanic to the game like a super meter so we can do fatalities, lol. Even the parry mechanic works based on the current system)
- Bleeding
- Cripple Complete Rework
2.2) Low Health Cripple - Stutter/Stagger/Stun Rework
- Parry and Blocking
- Status Effects based on Attack/
Weapon Multiple Status Effects and Weapon Rework - Weapon Switch Delay (almost forgot this one)
01 Bleeding
Make it shorter. Half the time. 10 seconds is too much during any combat, with a reset back to 10 seconds every time its added again, and a stack of up to 20.
5 seconds should be enough. Making the combat more dynamic at this point with giving an actual incentive to keep a distance to “shrug” it off, etc.
02.1 Cripple Complete Rework
I think cripple should work as a stamina and staggering multiplier.
As in, crippled players will use up twice as much stamina for everything they do, and the stagger threshold will be smaller (will make more sense when I go into stagger/stutter later on)
edit: essentially, it does the same thing, as your stamina running out sooner will have you cripple about anyway. just that it delays this effect a little, yet makes it more potent when it happens (when stamina is out). I like the instant cripple effect, but sometimes it feels like it is worked around a lot. Even for chasing, the new cripple will have them out of breath faster for one to chase them down)
02.2 Low Health Cripple
Additionally, the current cripple effect (but not as dominant, make us go slower than normal, but slightly faster than we do with current cripple) should be added to low health. It will not have a duration. Always on until we heal passed the given HP threshold (10% hp sound good? Less? 8%?)
Would make for an interesting option/slider too for private servers to fiddle with, on/off, less/more threshold.
Would also help as a visual aid that we are almost done for. The animation for this is already there. Now our speed will simply reflect this animation as well. Will surely help vs escaping players too. If you lost the battle, it should be easier for the enemy to off you.
You can still fight as per normal (like now) with this effect, so making a comeback is possible and simply reduces the “I’m almost dead so I will run away forever now” mentality and make for more committing to the end of a combat. Adds for realism generally. You lost, so take it like a champ, and if possible, come back from it and destroy your enemies and see them driven before you.
At the same time, it will reduce the overused “grit” chasing allowing for more creative builds.
03 Stutter/Stagger/Stun Rework
Please, for the love of god this needs to change. Its gotten better, but it is really still not working well atm.
Add a stagger threshold to players. Not every scratch the enemy does to us should have us stagger like a hammer smacked us on the side of the face. And it will also not make combat vs multiple opponents simply unrealistic and silly as we sit there in a stun-lock with just one option to get out of it, dodge. This does not result in dynamic combat.
Some weapons will exceed this stun/stagger/knockback threshold on their first hit, such attacks especially that apply sunder.
The threshold can also be increased with the Survival Attribute (lets continue down the path of making this attribute have some actual reasoning behind using it).
Furthermore, allow for a threshold “recharge” during this state so we are not in a stunlock (kinda works like a second stamina bar we dont see). Upon the recharge we can get out of stagger with more than just a dodge, but with an attack (reversal could be the idea here) or simply raising your shield back up during combat to break the combo and be able to start pushing back again.
The recharge time needed I was thinking could be also decreased with the Agility attribute. Whilst being able to “combo-break” with an attack could be unlocked with the Strength feat. All this adding again more viability to creative builds that have attributes that effect combat even more in some manner.
The stutter threshold is also affected by cripple (I pointed to this already before) making us more susceptible to being stunned etc.
Dodging/rolling, out of stagger/stun lock can still work, however it will not recharge the stun-threshold, instead it will slightly increase it.
Again, more options to dynamically chose your actions during combat. Do I dodge more often, use up stamina, increase my stun-recharge making me susceptible to stagger again however quickly get out of harms way? Or can I tank out some of that damage and then push out of it fresher and new?
Lastly, Grit can effect how much damage we take during stagger/stun. Perhaps at 0 Grit we take even increased damage. And adding more grit goes to slightly reduce the damage to normal and further after that (30+ points) to start decreasing the damage we take from it.
Still debating with myself on the Grit idea, but it could again add even more dynamic build options.
(Ive been using that word a lot… dynamic… That really is the whole basis of all of this)
04 Parry and Blocking
Give a small 1 second (1 second to warrant as a buffer due to online lag, otherwise Id suggest less) “invulnerable” status when we first enter block to our stagger. Additionally, an attacker is pushed back instead of us. (unlike current system with a pointless “we are both being pushed back” mechanic).
At the same time, the stun-threshold I spoke of in length is still effected whilst blocking, slower, but still depletes. Upon depletion, we are pushed out of a block. Ofc, weapons or attacks (kick) that have the purpose of doing this anyway, still do sooner than our stun-threshold is exceded.
When in the parry state, our stun-threshold does not get effected. Perhaps to counter some balance into this mechanic, some stamina can be used to perform said parry.
05 Status Effects based on Attack/
Weapon Multiple Status Effects and Weapon Rework
Bleeding, Sunder and Cripple should be executable with more than just the weapon choice. A specific weapon can excel in a certain status effect type of course, and some weapons can completely not have a said status effect period due to their nature still (hammers with regards to bleeding for example)
Each weapon can become more viable this way, however not all weapons will work the same. Increasing the options again for (you guessed it) a more dynamic fighting world both for PvP and PvE.
Some rare and legendary weapons from there on can have only one trait and be stronger in it, or all the other non-normal traits they are starting to add to weapons atm already (like corruption, etc).
Simply put, a sword slash should cripple, a sword stab should bleed, the sword being better for stabbing should lean towards having better bleeds, an axe being better at slashing should lean towards better cripples.
- One example is the Axe-
The Overhead “jump-in” attack can have now sunder.
Weaker than mace having sunder.
No bleed, cripple instead.
Shield smashing as offhand should also have sunder. Much less than a weapon sunder, but there regardless.
(Forgot to mention, sunder should also effect the new stun-threshold more than any other attack and at times completely bypass it)
I mean, why does Axe have bleed? And good AoE? And usually more damage? But only slightly slower? Rework there too i think.
Imo all “slash” like attacks should go towards a cripple effect more (the new cripple) as in cutting a tendon or muscle, whilst poking attacks pierce your and should lean over to bleeding effects (sure a slash can be also for bleeding realistically, however if we chose one of each per status effect the combat starts to make sense, and as per having to chose each attack to each status effect, it is more likely for a slash to cut a tendon to cripple than a pierce, and a pierce to dig in and have a gushing wound for bleeding.)
Weapons that are prone to doing certain status effects more goes without say will do a better job at it, whilst some weapons might not have said attack effects at all. This adds small buffs all around to all weapons, yet keeps their primary characteristics in check (except for those that I think need changing, like I stated Swords should cause bleed, axes cripple, etc), and adds an understandable element to the combat system as well.
Some attacks goes without say can also add 2 status effects, one slightly less potent than the other ofc. Daggers for example could be a combo of cripple and bleed to still make up for their short range and added status effects to all other weapons, etc.
Should help greatly with getting rid of specific weapon-based-meta gameplay (as in, this style is the best, so deal with it) and allow for more options. Should also make for some very interesting legendary combos possible with weapons.
06 Weapon Switch Delay
I almost forgot this one. This is simply broken, and this is coming from someone that does it a lot btw.
There should be a limit to how many times we can switch weapons around per given interval. This will need testing ofc, I can’t think of a number off the top of my head. 1 second? 5 seconds?
Just add a cooldown timer that locks weapons till its over. Same thing as being in an attack state more or less.
Thoughts?
Based on such a system, what further changes will one make to say weapons for example and how would they balance attacks and damages etc with said system, or what would you change/add etc to the current combat and/or weapons?
While we are on this, a system like this could make it easier to add more weapon types. Without having to stick to one element per weapon like it is now (sword for cripple, axe for aoe and bleed, spear for bleed and range, cc, etc) and with having each weapon have access to different status effects, it wont be redundant adding something like a greater axe, etc. For that example, a greater axe could be the same thing simply better at sunder and/or more stun-threshold damage. Generally speaking, more weapon variations could easily be dropped into the formula provided the animations are done for it. All they need to decide is what attack types they use (say like the spear, how many are stabbing, how many slashing, which is which from heavy and light attack, etc)