How armor works (chest, head, shield)

[mikeprichard]

If someone who understands the new Queen's Wish armor mechanics could please clearly explain the below three points, or send me to a forum post that already does so, I'd be obliged. Cheers!

1) The manual notes on page 24: "For example, iron chainmail blocks 60% of damage. It can block up to 9 points of physical damage and 4 points of magical damage. If you take 20 points of physical damage, 60% of that is 12 points, so the armor will block 9 of that, you will take 3 points of damage." This is a bit confusing to me, as it seems in this example - where the piece is said to "block" 60% of the 20 points - it should actually reduce the 20 by 12 to 8, of which all 8 (given the 9 max remaining damage absorption capacity) should be nullified. Instead, the manual's example above suggests that in fact only 40% of the 20 incoming total is being blocked, leaving 12 points of the 20 to be further reduced by 9 to 3. I know I'm missing something blindingly obvious here, but I just don't get it.

2) Does the percentage value (60% above) always refer to reducing both physical and magical damage, regardless of whether the equipment is an armor/robe, helm/cowl, or shield/orb? I understand the other values (9 and 4 for iron chainmail) separately refer to physical and magical damage respectively, but the percentage seems to be universal.

3) Finally, how exactly do the corresponding percentage/flat damage reductions related to chest (armor/robe), head (helmet/cowl) and shield (shield/orb) defensive pieces interact with each other to produce the character's overall damage reduction?

[Slawbug]

I don't think we have a good answer.  Educated guess based on past games' mechanics and the manual description:

 

You are wearing:

Armor, blocks 60% of physical damage up to 10 points

Helm, blocks 20% of physical damage up to 4 points

 

You are hit for 20

The armor blocks 10 points (hits 10 pt cap)

10 points remain

The helm blocks 2 points (hits 20% cap)

You take 8

 

Basically, the % and the point max are both caps on what it can block.  It blocks as much as possible but can't go over either limit.

 

Unlike with past armor systems, though, the order could matter here:

 

You are hit for 20

The helm blocks 4 points (hits 20%/4 pt caps)

16 points remain

The armor blocks 9 points (hits 60% cap)

You take 7

 

Presumably there's a fixed order by equipment slot.

 

What isn't specified is how rings and other effects that just say "+1 to Physical Armor" or the like work.  I guess just a flat reduction of 1 point?

 

EDIT: The total on the character sheet, then, is basically the maximum amount you can block, but it is only likely to apply when you take significantly more damage than that.

[Randomizer]

2) The percentages are the same for either damage type. However in each pair there is better blockage against a damage type.

 

Physical is better for armor, helm, and shield. Magical is better for robe, cowl, and orb.

[mikeprichard]

OK, thanks for the input, folks. Seems like some questions remain. At least that paragraph on page 24 of the manual could probably stand to be rewritten, I think? In that example, the chest piece alone is somehow reducing 20 incoming total damage down to only 3 ("you will take 3 points of damage"), with no reference to separate calculations for a helm or shield being factored in. I doubt that's a priority for Jeff, however.

[Slawbug]

I think it just meant you will take 3 points of damage of the 12 points the armor was applied to.  Could have been phrased better, but that's how I read it.

[mikeprichard]

Oh, so in the manual's example, you'd actually take 11 damage total - i.e. 8 damage (which the 60% chest armor reduction - i.e. 12 points out of 20 total - doesn't apply to at all), plus 3 damage (3 out of those 12)? As I often do, I feel I'm making this way more complicated than it needs to be.