Damage types and melee weapon damage calculations for multiple genres. Feedback welcome.

Justin S · 2013-05-05T22:19:07

This thread is intended to cover damage types in the same system as my previous thread and their advantages, as well as the way melee damage and penetration is calculated. This should cover everything from how a sword is inherently deadlier than a club to how much damage you can expect from melee weapons in general. (Damage is, of course, their primary advantage.) Basic overview: There are four basic categories of damage that should give a basic idea of how each of them works. These are "kinetic," "energy," "chemical" and "miscellaneous." While my previous thread explains how they interact with DR, it didn't provide much insight into any of the damage types contained within. There are four types of kinetic damage, which are "incisive," puncture," "bludgeon" and "concussive." Of these, incisive and concussive each have a damage subtype, which would be "piercing" and "blast," respectively. There are three kinds of energy damage as of the time of writing, which are "exothermic," "endothermic" and "electric." At this moment, there is only one chemical damage type, which is "corrosive." There is also only one miscellaneous damage type, which is "ionizing." Both of these are overdue for expansion. "Bleed" represents rate at which a living target bleeds in the form of yx/minute, where x is the amount of damage dealt. This damage is dealt directly to the target's health, and is the primary cause of death in this system. This value comes before multipliers for shot placement, and almost every part of the body has a multiplier. How long this lasts varies, and without medical attention it is strictly dependent on fortitude. Usually, 5-20 minutes. As a character is usually out cold long before their health reaches 0, and may actually be clinically dead by then, the 0 mark is more a point of no return than anything else as it is rather difficult to save somebody when every drop of their blood is outside of their vein "Initial health damage" is the portion of the initial damage dealt to the target's health. "Pain" is the multiplier for the "pain" biological effect for this damage type. This effect is a form of fake damage that serves only to trigger damage thresholds for body parts and reduce the target's will score. (Essentially mental stamina, more important to the AI than the player.) "Fatigue" is the multiplier for the "fatigue" biological effect for this damage type. This is also fake damage, but it does not trigger damage thresholds and instead reduces their attributes. "Primary effect" is the special effect of that damage type that always functions but is impacted by DR. (Separately from the damage itself, making it possible for this to function when DR completely blocks out damage.) "Consistent effect" is the special effect of that damage type that always functions and is not impacted by DR. "Chanced effect" is the special effect of that damage type that has a chance to function, and both its chance and magnitude are impacted by DR. Incisive: Incisive damage is damage dealt by sharp objects such as swords and arrows, and is a form of penetrative trauma. Basic incisive damage is a form of shearing, and is impacted neither by the strength of the target nor its elasticity. Only the hardness of a target protects it from being cut. In game, basic incisive damage is the deadliest damage type to living creatures as a factor of the wound's shape. The wide, jagged, open wound is more difficult to clog and bleeds faster. Whether you're gutting an enemy combatant or lopping the head off a malcontent, no damage type kills faster than incisive damage. Piercing subtype damage has an additional effect (conveniently called "piercing") but causes less bleeding. Bleed: 1x/minute, 0.5x if piercing Initial health damage: 0.5x Pain: 10x, 2x if piercing Fatigue: 1x, regardless Primary effect: If piercing and the weapon does not overpenetrate, it becomes lodged in the target and deals regular incisive damage every time the targeted body part fatigues itself for 0.01x*f. This continues until the object is removed (automatic if melee) when it deals an additional 0.1x incisive damage to the target. Chanced effect: If normal, 0.1x % chance of causing brief additional bleed equal to 1x/6s for 10% of basic bleed time. Special: This damage type has a "sharpness" effect, which divides DD but does not impact DR. If piercing, it also has a "piercing" effect that divides DR but does not impact DD. Puncture: Puncture damage is the damage type dealt by blunt penetrators, such as bullets. Puncture damage is a concentrated form of laceration, and is different from piercing in that the penetrating object has no edge to help it pass through a target. This damage type is all-around lacklustre, and is my least favourite kinetic damage type. However, it is also extremely common because it is easy to deliver at a long distance and range is more important in combat than lethality. Bleed: 0.5x/minute Initial health damage: 0.5x Pain: 2x Fatigue: 1x Primary effect: If the weapon does not overpenetrate it becomes lodged in the target and deals bludgeon damage every time the targeted body part fatigues itself for 0.01*f. This continues until the object is removed (automatic if melee) when it deals an additional 0.1x bludgeon damage to the target. Bludgeon: Bludgeon damage is the damage type dealt by solid blunt objects such as clubs and fists, based on their momentum. It takes the form of laceration, fractures, ruptures, crushing and deformation. This damage type is much less lethal than other damage types, but is the most reliable of all damage types and is effective against armour in a way no other damage type is. Anything, and I mean anything, can be destroyed if you just hit it hard enough. Bleed: 0.2x/minute Initial health damage: 0.5x Pain: 5x Fatigue: 2x Primary effect: Target absorbs momentum upon being struck, equal to x(z/y+z), where x is the momentum of the striking object, y is the striking object's mass and z is the struck object's mass. If a weapon hits multiple targets at once (such as a person and their armour) then they are treated as one object for the purposes of transferring momentum. Chanced effect: 0.01x% chance of dealing double damage. (EDIT: Double limb damage, not double damage. Does not impact bleed or placement mods at all.) Concussive: Concussive damage is the damage dealt by transfer of kinetic energy through any medium, be it a solid object or a pressure wave. It takes the form of ruptures, laceration and deformation. It also covers the "blast" subtype, which is specific to pressure waves. This is overall the worst damage type as it is less lethal than any other kinetic damage type and it has no special effects. Bleed: 0.2x/minute Initial health damage: 0.5x Pain: 2x Fatigue: 5x No special effects. Exothermic: Exothermic damage is caused by exothermic reactions and heat. It is the most reliable energy damage type, the deadliest and the best against armour, as it has no upper limit (not even a soft limit) on the rate at which it can deal damage or how much penetration it can have. "When in doubt, set something on fire." It's also a personal favourite of mine, as I'm more than a bit of a pyro. Bleed: 0.1x/minute Initial health damage: 1x Pain: 10x Fatigue: 5x Primary effect: Damages the hydration meter by 10x, which impairs the target if done in sufficient quantity. Consistent effect: Increases the temperature of the target (this is used for ambient damage) by 10x/y, where y is the target's mass in kilograms. Chanced effect: 0.01x% chance to set the target on fire (0.1x% chance if an open flame, 1x% if an incendiary material) for 0.1x/0.6s, which decreases by the target's DR every 6s until it reaches 0. The temperature of this fire decreases in proportion to this. Special: If dealt by matter, it has a "temperature" value that divides DR but does not impact DD. Endothermic: The polar opposite of exothermic damage, caused by endothermic reactions and cold. It is a common environmental damage type, but rare as an offensive weapon because it is terrible at actually killing a target and most of the time only slows them down. It's only used as a weapon in the fantasy, and even there it is primarily defensive. Bleed: 0.01x/minute Initial health damage: 0.1x Pain: 0.1x Fatigue: 1x Primary effect: Inflicts additional fatigue damage equal to 0.01x/0.6s and additional stamina damage equal to 0.1x/0.6s for 60s. Consistent effect: Decreases the temperature of the target by 10x/y, where y is the target's mass in kilograms. Chanced effect: 0.1x% chance to freeze the target (1x% if caused by a freezing liquid) for bludgeon and cold equal to 0.01x/0.6s each, which decreases by the target's temperature (+300) every 6s until it is 0. Special: Has a "temperature" value that divides DR but does not impact DD. Electric: Damage caused by the flow of electrons through a target. Generally a fairly weak form of damage that operates out of a pool and has a great deal of penetration, but it has good special effects and causes thermal and concussive damage automatically. Its lack of magnitude is more than made up for by the extra damage types and special effects, making it a good damage type overall. Bleed: 0.1x/minute Initial health damage: 1x Pain: 1x Fatigue: 10x Primary effect: Inflicts additional stamina and will damage, and increases the breath meter (increases stamina usage) by its value. Consistent effect: Causes impairment to the target equal to its value. (Effectively just fake damage to a body part that only impacts attributes. Only distinct from fatigue in that it heals much faster.) Special: Has a "current" value that divides DR but does not impact DD. Deals additional thermal damage to the target equal to the amount of electric energy deposited into the target, and concussive damage of one tenth this value. Ionization/curse: Damage caused by ionizing radiation in most settings and curses in the fantasy setting. (Same difference.) This damage is dangerous mostly to living creatures as it causes very little physical damage and is mostly just sickening. It can kill a target very easily over time, and effects of exposure are not always immediately obvious. Death from the resultant sickness (ARS) might take days or weeks, and as a result this damage type is more subtle and spiteful than any other. Usually accompanied with exothermic and concussive damage, which are much more obvious and usually draw a medic's attention away from the more subtle sickness and makes the illness even deadlier. However, its raw damage is too low for it to be of any use against non-living targets. Bleed: 0.1x/minute Initial health damage: 0.1x Pain: 5x Fatigue: 5x Consistent effect: Increases the Gray meter by x*10-7/0.6s for 60000s. Chanced effect: 0.01x% chance to cause nausea (reduced dexterity, sense and resolve) for 0.01x for 6x seconds. Corrosive: Corrosive damage is caused by caustic chemicals such as acid, and is (in proportion to its generally limited physical damage) the most agonizing damage type in existence and often the best at stopping living creatures. It also happens to be consistently toxic, another thing that makes it oddly effective when its damage is usually too low to matter. That said, the lack of raw damage makes it ineffective against targets that are immune to some or all of its special effects. Bleed: 0.1x/minute Initial health damage: 0.1x Pain: 10x Fatigue: 10x Primary effect: Also inflicts 10x its value to the target's stamina, willpower and all needs. Chanced effect: 0.1x% chance if a gas and 1x% chance if a liquid of adhering to the target and dealing 0.01x/0.6s for 0.6x seconds. Special: All corrosive chemicals are toxic as well, and corrosive damage bleeds ten times as long as is standard.

Game Design and Theory Game Design

Started by JLW April 29, 2013 03:58 PM

10 comments, last by JLW 10 years, 11 months ago

MichaelNIII

195

May 05, 2013 09:18 PM

Pleae sptop referencing my spelling - I am on a phone and this site doesn't conform to my android browser well to the extent of - I can not see what I am writing - and type at the same time. This is insanely difficult to try and do. Also judging by what your saying you don't actually have anything yet - sooo... oh well I'm done here I said what I needed and you think you got it all figured out and can't just accept any answer as truth. As I clearly state in the quote you quote - I don't see any division by 0 errors - however that is not the only error like that, that can happen due to the complexity of the code. I guess the one thing that I didn't mention was that if you wanted to make this game an mmo - bet you either you will need a million doller server to double check all the math - or it would be insanely easy to hack.

JLW

303

Author

May 05, 2013 10:19 PM

Pleae sptop referencing my spelling - I am on a phone and this site doesn't conform to my android browser well to the extent of - I can not see what I am writing - and type at the same time. This is insanely difficult to try and do.

I had no way of knowing that. All I know is there are a lot of obvious errors, like "sptop." It makes your post very hard to read. My comment was not intended as a personal attack, calm the fuck down.

Also judging by what your saying you don't actually have anything yet - sooo... oh well I'm done here I said what I needed and you think you got it all figured out and can't just accept any answer as truth.

I think I'll just attribute that direct insult to stress and not hold it against you.

As I clearly state in the quote you quote - I don't see any division by 0 errors - however that is not the only error like that, that can happen due to the complexity of the code.

I am aware of this, and I am building this system to prevent errors like that. If something like that does happen, it's a coding error. Coding errors are not the result of the ruleset itself, and although they may well be my responsibility there's not much I can do now about errors I probably won't be making for at least a year.

I guess the one thing that I didn't mention was that if you wanted to make this game an mmo - bet you either you will need a million doller server to double check all the math - or it would be insanely easy to hack.

MMO? I'm a college student, not a corporate executive; an MMO is more than a bit out of my reach. I'm not certain this game will have multiplayer at all. Actually, at this point I'm pretty certain it won't. Multiplayer would just be another huge pain in the ass for myself and everyone involved and would provide no real reward for us or the players.

There's two of us on this account. Jeremy contributes on design posts, Justin does everything else, including replying on those threads. Jeremy is not a people person, so it's Justin you'll be talking to at any given time.

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Damage types and melee weapon damage calculations for multiple genres. Feedback welcome.

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Damage types and melee weapon damage calculations for multiple genres. Feedback welcome.

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