Batons[G5]

[Dahak]

What type of status effect is Submission? Stun?

 

Also, what about reapers?

[*i]

If it is the same as other games, submission is stun and reapers are mega-damage.

[ex post slarto]

Yup -- exactly the same. Reapers have no status effect, they just have the highest damage multiplier in the game (1-12 per level).

[Gandalf the Purple]

So, wth pumped missle and dexterity, reapers are potentially the most damaging attack in the game?

[Dahak]

Damage is weapon * thorn correct?

 

Thus a submission baton (6 - 42), thorns (1 - 7) does 6 - 294 against 0 armor?

[Alorael at Large]

I'm fairly sure that formula is wrong. Assuming Jeff hasn't changed things from previous installments, you get a certain number of "dice" of damage for any weapon, and that number is Dexterity + Missile Weapons + Weapon's inherent bonus. I'm baffled by the different numbers of batons and thorns, and I'm inclined to ignore the latter. Batons are the weapon and can only be used with the correct ammunition.

 

—Alorael, who might as well just link to the G4 attack Slartanalysis and be done. It's up to Slarty now.

[Dahak]

Well from the look of things I figured it was RNG value 1 * RNG value 2.

[ex post slarto]

The G4 analysis is mostly accurate for G5, I think. The only change off the top of my head is the War Trall missile multiplier.

 

The thorn base damage displayed in the item info window is meaningless and has been since G1. Who knows what it was intended for originally.

[Dahak]

Well for Acid, Poison, and Venom I figure it might also be the status effect strength. Doesn't make sense for thorns and reapers though.

[Alorael at Large]

If nothing else, you should be able to tell that multiplying the numbers gives you a value massively inflated over the damage you're likely to do. It also leaves out the effects of skills, so unless low skills reduce damage there's really no way it could be accurate.

 

—Alorael, who approves of the Geneforge damage system despite its idiosyncrasies. It works and it's mostly balanced. What more do you need from a game? Transparency? Pah!

[ex post slarto]

No -- the status effect strength is given by the baton ability.

 

My favourite damage system is actually the one used by Final Fantasy IIIj. It features increasing numbers of attacks per round as well as non-random additive reduction from armor, with the result that *both* offense and defense give increasing returns! It's so satisfying, compared with everything giving diminishing returns in these games.

[Lilith]

Originally Posted By: Slarty

My favourite damage system is actually the one used by Final Fantasy IIIj. It features increasing numbers of attacks per round as well as non-random additive reduction from armor, with the result that *both* offense and defense give increasing returns! It's so satisfying, compared with everything giving diminishing returns in these games.

Such systems seem as if they'd tend toward being object lessons in the dangers of designing positive feedback into a system.

[ex post slarto]

Doesn't happen, though. Give it a whirl -- you'd like the game, I think.

[Lilith]

I've already got a backlog of games I ought to find the time to play, but I'll add it to the queue.