Stats are used to help determine the outcome of certain encounters. They are primarily in use in battles and sparring, but also appear at higher levels of skillwork, training and journeying.
Stats can be raised through completing training, using items, and completing levels. The quickest way to raise your stats is to craft tools or armor.
The stats in use here are defense, speed, attack, intelligence and shadowbinding.
intelligence and shadowbinding are the mental traits.
Intelligence refers to, but is not limited to, your dragon's common sense, ability to see tricks coming, and ability to wiggle out of them. Very useful when you're making half-informed deals with powers you don't really understand.
Shadowbinding refers, specifically, to the ability to bend shades to your will. Shades have a shadowbinding trait as well, and if you intend to work with one, you had better hope your shadowbinding is stronger than theirs is, or they can break your control and then attack you back. Either that, or you just cross your fingers and pray they're friendly.
If you get the hang of shadebinding, though, they can send messages for you instantaneously, tell you the future, and work incredible pieces of magic on your behalf. The stronger the shade, the more effective the shadowbinding.
Speed and attack are the physical traits.
Speed refers to how fast your dragon can get out of the way. A higher speed stat means that you can avoid being hit by attacks, or run circles around the enemy. Also helpful for running away without taking too much damage.
Attack refers to how hard your dragon can hit the enemy, be it with claws, teeth, or something else.
Health is the neutral stat.
Health is used to diffuse attacks by enemies. If your enemy's attack is stronger than your health stat, and you lose, you may be dealt an injury.
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Fights are rolled randomly. All of your stats, with the exception of shadowbinding, are added together to create a maximum value for your dragon's possible attack. The value of your dragon's experience and one-half of your dragon's intelligence and speed bonuses will also be added to create a minimum value for your roll. The same will be done for the opponent. Whoever has the highest value wins. Both values will be posted.
Health is used outside this framework only in battles, and it determines whether or not your dragon will be injured. If your enemy's roll divided by two is a higher value than your dragon's health stat, and your dragon loses, you may be dealt an injury. This will be rolled with a coin-flip.
Shadowbinding can be used to grant advantage, ie: your roll will be rolled multiple times, and whichever is highest will be used. At every five points to shadowbinding, the advantage will be bumped up again, for a maximum of four advantage rolls.
The major difference between Sparring and Battles are the stakes involved. Dragons do not get hurt from losing during Sparring, but the mechanics are the same.
Skillwork where electricity or shadowbinding is involved will require a shadowbinding stat to be higher than a randomly-rolled enemy stat. The stat range will be posted.
Training may involve randomly-rolled stats that will require speed, intelligence or defense stats to be higher than a random enemy stat. The stat ranges will also be posted.
Journeying to Dangerous regions will involve a random chance of a dangerous encounter. Depending on the region, you may encounter dangerous environmental effects, wherein the defense stat will be rolled against, or dangerous enemies, wherein the attack stat will be rolled against. Dangerous regions will be marked, and the potential stat ranges will also be marked.
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