Combat

Under construction. Bad grammar, typos, and misleading information abound.

Turn Order and Actions

Turn order is determined by initiative, which is rolled at the beginning of every round of combat by all active participants. Your character's bonus to this initiative roll is determined by stats, equipped gear, and spell effects. In the event of a tied roll, the character with the highest Speed acts first. If the Speed of both characters is also tied, the characters may roll to determine the turn order.

Once your character begins their turn, they can act through the use of Action Slots. Most characters will have 3 action slots that they may spend on actions. The number of Action Slots consumed by a action is determined by the action itself. Usually this will be mentioned in the ability description.

All characters have access to certain innate actions. For a list of these and their Action Slot cost, please see Freelancer.

Movement

In most cases, a character is allotted a free move action independent of their action slots. This can be used to allow the character to move a number of spaces equal to their movement score in any cardinal direction. Movement does not need to be taken all at once, and may be split up between actions, unless the character uses a Action with the Finisher modifier. A character may elect to spend all of their Action Slots to double their movement for that turn, as long as they have not already spent any action slots.

An example of all moves available to the Knight, who has a movement score of 5.

A character may use their movement to pass through a square a ally is currently occupying, but can not end their movement in that square. Additionally, a character can not pass through or occupy a square already occupied by a enemy. Movement may also be affected by Rampart abilities. For more information, see Rampart Actions below.

Move Action - These actions do not normally have a Action Slot cost, but instead require the Character to spend their move action for that turn.

Simple Action - The first simple action a character takes per turn is considered a free action. Additional simple actions may be used at the cost of a single action slot.

Static Actions - Unlike most actions, only a single static action of any type can be used in a turn. They do not, however, immediately end a characters turn, and may be combined with other action types when spending action slots.

Chain Actions - Chain actions can be used as many times per turn as the character's action slot allotment will allow.

Finisher - Much like chain actions, the Action Slot cost of Finisher actions is generally listed in the description of the ability. However, unlike other types of actions, using a finisher will instantly end a Character's turn.

Rampart Actions - Unlike most actions, most Rampart Actions and related abilities do not have a associated Action Slot cost. When a character activates their Rampart, it is treated as a passive ability that only effects enemies in the range of their Rampart, and generally lasts until deactivated by the character. Rampart 1, for example, will effect any enemy who is in Range 1 of the character while active. Any Character wearing heavy armor has access to these abilities, and many Job Classes receive access to the ability regardless of their armor type.

When in a enemies rampart, a Character can not move freely without triggering a free attack from the enemy. To avoid this effect, a character must use the Disengage ability, or other similar abilities, or risk damage. If a character passes through a square under a enemies Rampart ability and does not stop, they will similarly provoke a free attack.

When a Character makes a Rampart Attack, they may use any Chain 1 ability against the enemy, before they complete their move.

Some abilities and Job classes effect the way Rampart works for that character.

MP - NOTE!! The MP system is currently undergoing changes, and the information here may be outdated or not completely accurate.

MP, or Mist Points, represents the characters reserve of magical energy. These points must be expended to take actions with a MP cost. For example, casting a spell with a MP cost of 2 would require and consume 2 MP.

Under normal circumstances, a character will begin combat with 0 MP. A character gains MP equal to 5 every Initiative.

Some gear may offer the character the ability to gain additional MP per turn. This is usually represented by the MP Gain attribute, which will grant an additional MP per rank. Example: MP Gain II will provide +2 MP every Initiative.

Attack Rolls and Damage

Many abilities that deal damage require a accuracy check against their target to determine whether or not the attack was successful. This is determined by the attackers Accuracy statistic and a roll of 1d100. If the attackers accuracy check meets or exceeds the targets Evasion score, the attack has landed successfully.

When a character suffers damage from a successful attack, they reduce the damage they would suffer from the attack by their relevant defensive statistics. In the case of damage from a magical source, the character would reduce the damage by their current MDF, along with any other relevant resistances (Such as a specific resistance to Ice Damage if the spell is dealing that type of damage).

If a source of the damage is physical, the calculation is much the same, with MDF replaced by DEF.

This damage reduction occurs on a 1-to-1 ratio. For Example, a Warrior with 20 DEF is hit by a physical attack that would deal 100 damage. The warrior reduces the incoming damage by 20, and his hit points are lowered by 80.

There are exceptions to this rule. Some types of damage can not be reduced by any means, and a character may have a weakness to certain elements which can result in a higher damage total.

If a character is reduced to 0 HP or less, they are inflicted with the KO Status, and will begin to lose LP. In most cases, they will be rendered unconscious as well. Additional damage a character suffers while afflicted with the KO status does not resolve normally. It instead reduces LP directly by 1 whenever the character takes damage from any source. Some traits and abilities may allow a character to remain conscious after being reduced to 0 HP, but LP damage is still calculated normally. If a character's LP reaches 0, they are Dead.

Range and Area effects

Some abilities and actions can be performed from a distance. This is usually indicated in the abilities description. Range is determined by the number of squares a target is from the Character's current position. When calculating range, always start from the origin of the effect, and move in cardinal directions to reach the target. For example, the squares to the North, South, East, and West of a character are considered 'Range 1'. Range 2 would cover 2 spaces in any cardinal direction and each diagonal from the original space.

Additionally, some abilities can effect a Area instead of a single target. In these cases, the ability will note how wide the AOE is. Area is determined exactly the same as range, with the notable exception that every space is effected.

An Example of range and area. Top left is range/area 1, bottom left is 2, right is 3.

Status Effects

Some abilities and certain circumstances can inflict a Status Effect on a character. In many cases, but not all, a character is allowed a Saving throw against the source of the status effect.

Saving throws generally consist of a roll of 1d100, added to the characters Resistance or Spirit stat. This is usually checked against the source of the status effects DEX or MND statistic. If the sum of the 1d100 roll and the characters relevant statistic meets or exceeds the attackers DEX or MND, they have won the roll and will probably be exempt from the negative status effect they would have other wise suffered.

For example, a character is targeted by a Blind spell cast by a enemy spell-caster. The Blind spell forces the defending character to make a RES check vs the Spell casters MND statistic. The enemy spell caster has a MND stat of 100, and the Character being targeted has a RES score of 40. If the character rolls 60 or above, they will have avoided the spells effects. If they roll lower, they will be inflicted with Blind.

For a full list of Status Effects, please see the Status Effect Index.