Damage

Overview
There are a number of ways to damage your enemies, and be damaged, in For The King. Nasty Creatures and Dungeons full of Traps, not to mention all the deadly Weapons, Spells, Curses, Poisons, and Ailments that await your adventurers. Fortunately, there are many Inns along the road, as well as a variety of Buffs, Herbs, and other Cures that can help you on your travels through Fahrul!

Damage Types
Damage comes in two basic forms in For The King:



Physical
Physical damage is the kind that comes from weapons such as Clubs, Blades, Spears, Bows, and even Guns. It can be mitigated by investing points into the Armor stat. Remember, bad guys can wear Armor too! If you have a Character who specializes in dealing Physical damage, you'll want to watch for the small blue shield icon underneath your enemy's health bar.

You can tell if a character in your party deals Physical damage if the number is displayed in white on their status bar.



Magical
Magical damage most often comes from Spells, Lutes, Tomes, and Staves, although other weapon types can be magical as well. Magical damage is blocked by having a high Resistance. Resistance is indicated by a small purple shield. Pixies, the Undead, and elemental enemies such as Crags usually have a high Resistance to magical attacks.

If a party member is dealing Magical damage, the number is displayed in purple on their status bar.

Critical Hits
Additionally, all attacks have a chance at a Critical Hit, provided a 'Perfect Roll' is achieved (all stat slot checks are successful). The damage from a successful critical hit varies depending on your current campaign's difficulty level. Higher difficulties have a lower critical damage output.

Critical damage can be amplified through the Frozen debuff.

Hunters can also guarantee a critical hit using their innate Skill: Call Shot.

Range
Although it doesn't make a whole lot of difference whether your hero lobs arrows and spells from a safe distance, or gets up close and personal with your enemies, there are a few special occasions where you may want to consider your approach to an attack:





Melee
Melee damage is damage to or from an opponent directly, whether it's through a Sword or their Fists. Strong or agile characters like the Blacksmith, the Woodcutter, and the Trapper are top contenders in this category. Melee damage is most often Physical, although it's been said that the right song can make you light on your feet.

You can also find gear that reflects incoming melee damage.



Ranged
Staying out of reach of your enemy is a sound tactic, and characters such as the Scholar, Minstrel, and Hunter make good use of it. Ranged attacks are useful at times for staying healthy, as there are enemies who can also strike back when attacked at close range. This is indicated by a small white Damage Reflection icon under an enemy's health bar.

Many Magical area of effect abilities are ranged as well.

Dealing With Damage
Not all damage is dealt all at once. Certain abilities and status effects can slowly deal damage over time, like Bleeding, or make any future incoming attacks hurt more, like Frozen. There are also several spells and items in For The King that can help you remove this kind of damage, depending on its source:





Buffs
While there are many buffs and helpful status effects that can aid you in your quests, when it comes to dealing with damage over time, Cure is definitely one of the most helpful. You'll probably find yourself poisoned a few times over the course of your campaign, and while Panax is handy in a pinch, having a healer on board can certainly save some strain on the old coin purse (the Healers in town can get pricey!). You'll find this ability attached most often to weapons with an affinity to Water.

In terms of buffing your damage output, you may want to look at Attack Up. It gives you a temporary but powerful boost to your attacks (Note: Attack Up does not stack). Also worth mentioning are Protect and Reflect. While they only last a short time, both are excellent ways to shield your party from incoming damage during combat. Reflect will bounce some of the damage back onto your opponent, while Protect will negate it entirely!



Debuffs
Debuffs are status effects that negatively impact a character's abilities. Some debuffs can lower your health pool or your speed in combat, like Curses. There are also slowing effects, such as Dazed and Stunned. However, in terms of damage, there are some specific ailments to watch out for:


 * StatusSlowed.png Speed Down - Attack less frequently in combat.
 * StatusAttackDown.png Attack Down - Attack damage reduced temporarily.
 * StatusFrozen.png Frozen - Take 25% more damage.
 * StatusBurning.png Burning - Take 2 damage frequently to a max of 12 damage.
 * StatusBleeding.png Bleeding - Take 6 damage infrequently to a max of 18 damage.
 * StatusPoisoned.png Poisoned - Stats are reduced by 5, and take 2 damage per turn.
 * StatusDeathMarked.png Death Mark - Instant death after many turns.

Of course, with proper equipment and the right strategy, you can apply these effects to your enemies as well!

Plan Accordingly
Once you understand where and how damage is being dealt, it becomes much easier to predict, prevent, and control. It is literally the difference between a successful adventure and one that ends in disaster. By ensuring your party is equipped to their maximum damage potential with a combination of Magical and Physical attacks, knowing when to pull back or attack hard, and having a decent understanding of status effects, you can run a winning campaign.