Combat

Get ready! (Alpha)

The combat system of Camelot Unchained is planned to be tactically complex, with a vast number of options through the Ability Building System - players will be building their own abilities out of Components. Physics and the A.I.R. system will make fights feel even more real and complex.

Player`s skill progression / leveling up will also be direct consequence of fighting enemies from other Realms - you will progress through PvP, not through quests or killing monsters. Characters who die in battle won't get easily right back in the fight.^, but there will be no player loot upon death.

Overview

Skirmish (early alpha)

1. Players create all their own abilities: nothing except the core components of an ability are premade.
2. Considered the epitome of “choices matter,” part of the Foundational Principles.
3. Four different categories of components, many with their own customization, yields a huge number of possible combinations.
4. Players can create abilities to match their preferred playstyle, not just play the classes that are created for them.
5. System supports hard interrupts, positionals, reactionaries, and other staples of combat systems.

Combat

1. Combat will be based on 'Rock, Paper, Scissors' mechanics and class inter-dependence through the "Holy Trinity" of combat characters and strong archetypes.
2. Quote: "Combat, including magical combat, should be innovative and fun. The world has enough MMORPGs with combat systems that are the same or strikingly similar to other MMORPGs."
3. The combat system is specifically designed with experienced players (or players who want a greater challenge) in mind.

Component Combat System

Ability builder in action

1. Uses a variant on the component magic system used in previous games, particularly the MUD Dragon's Gate, also by Mark Jacobs.
2. All abilities are created by each player for themselves through the Ability Building System.
3. Combat is partially balanced by the power of each ability, which is limited by a value rating limit, which represents how strong an ability can be after modification by the player.
4. With each new component added to an ability, the value rating goes up. It cannot surpass the value rating limit of the ability.
5. Many components also have a range of adjustments that can be made, once again raising the value rating.
6. Players have precise control over the value rating and all the adjustments made to it.

Combat-body parts/armor

Animating Stormrider`s sword combat

1. Each part of a character’s body is protected only by its own piece of armor
2. Unlike the way of most games, armor only protects the part of the body that it covers. Your helm doesn’t help you when you are struck on the leg!
3. Body parts take damage individually, and each part has its own pool of health and injury effects
4. A shoulder wound could reduce how fast a player can swing a sword, but it won’t stop that player from running away
5. Player-created abilities can add a modular component to target a specific region of the body
6. Paying careful attention can give the attacker an advantage, but if the attacker targets an area that the defender is guarding or quickly moves to protect, the advantage could shift
7. Certain components will also allow a defender, after a successful defense, to perform a special counter-attack on the attacker
8. Abilities always trigger cooldowns once started, and cost resources whether they complete successfully or not.
9. Abilities also have a “Disruption Value” which is damaged by “Disruption Damage” from hostile abilities. If an ability takes too much disruption damage, it is interrupted. Too much disruption damage can result in a very negative effect on the player whose ability was disrupted.
10. The more powerful the ability disrupted, the more likely the backlash from the ability will hurt the user of the ability.

Developer Quotes

3...2...1... (Alpha tests)

Question: It was previously mentioned that solo play should and will be a viable option in CU. How are you going to make it happen?

Renée Machyousky: Mark is a fan of solo play. So, while we can’t describe actual mechanics/details at present, I feel confident saying solo play will be a viable option for those who prefer that playstyle.

Renée Machyousky (answering the question about TTK - time to kill): "This is a rather loaded question and a lot factors into this. For instance, clearly some characters will be far more vulnerable (lower HP and resists) than others. I can at least say this, we are not over fond of insta-gibbing. We want battles to be hard fought, with plenty of give and take."

Renée Machyousky: Some players may prefer to have two sets in PvP. These players should be prepared to experience a penalty (time/vulnerability) for swapping out weapon or gear sets while on the field of battle.

Mark Jacobs: "I want a combat system that is reactive, flows smoothly, fluid/etc. and one where the player(s) have to think a little for themselves without the game doing so much for them. I also don't want to see CU be a game where combat boils down to "1-2-3" "1-2-3" "1-2-3-4" rinse, wash repeat."

Question: "...How are you going to break up the zergs that make RvR so much fun!"

Mark Jacobs (part of the answer, concerning combat): "...While having lots of extended CC abilities is a tad bit controversial, we will certainly have some CC (as well as resists and ways to clear the CC) so that smaller groups can have a better chance at dealing with larger groups." (...) "When you die, and you will die; don’t expect to simply pop back up and get right back in the fight. It is going to be a lot more complicated than that. IMO, that gameplay style embodies some of the problems with many modern MMOs, death without consequence, “easy in” and “easy out” RvR, 6-year old kids’ soccer match, etc. RvR combat must be fun, challenging, exciting and losing must hurt a bit or it means nothing."

Ben Pielstick: "Our criticals are not a simple damage boost with a relatively high percentage chance, which probably happens several times in each fight. Our criticals are extremely rare, and a critical result isn’t always a good thing, since the table of possible results ranges from awesome successes to spectacular failures. As Mark pointed out in Foundational Principle #8, we want these occurrences to be “water cooler conversation” moments, and that just doesn’t happen for something you see several times a fight, or even several times a day."

A brawl (pre-Alpha tests)

Mark Jacobs: "I also understand the concern of players who really don’t want too much randomness in their game because that can lead to far too many truly unexpected losses and frustration with the game’s mechanics, including the much maligned random number generator. What I propose is that this game’s combat systems have enough randomness built into them that players will not know that every time they swing their sword, they will always hit for X damage. 

I don’t want the player to know that every time they go into a 1:1 battle with someone of equal knowledge/skill but with a slight lower character that the outcome is easily and thoroughly predetermined. However, the system’s damage combat mechanics will be laid out so that the majority of damage will be set but where only a portion of it is random but with a strong critical hit/miss system component as well. We should have a bit more fun with very rare rolls on both sides of the success spectrum. I want to add some special critical hits and critical failures to the game, as I believe that they will add a lot of spice as well as some much needed humor and occasional pathos to the game.

Critical hits & failures will be rare but every so often, something should happen of such monumental glory that the players end up discussing these as “water cooler conversations” the next day. Yes, it will not be fun to be on the receiving end of course but on the other hand, if you are on the other side or simply enjoy a good chuckle, your seeing that powerful Tuatha Dé Danann mage cast a mighty spell and being turned into a horned rabbit might make your day. Again, I don’t want to turn this game into an evening’s worth of blooper reel entertainment but a little randomness could add some truly awesome moments into the game or as my son would say making it “fresh.” "  

Vines

Arthurian Knight, an early animation

Videos

Combat animation basics:

Early ability builder in action (skip to 0:45):

BSC Days combat: