combat-mechanics

# Combat Mechanics

Anytime a sword is swung, an arrow is shot or a spell is cast a series of rolls are made to determine whether the action is successful and whether damage is caused. Most rolls involve the Dominions Random Number or DRN. To fully understand Combat Mechanics start by reading up on how the DRN is calculated.

All offensive abilities in the game basically functions in the same way:

1. First a roll is made to see whether the attack hits.
2. If the attack hits a damage roll is made

## Rolling to Hit

### Attack rolls

For melee attacks the attacker makes an attack roll at the same time as the defender makes a defence roll. These are compared. If the attack roll (with modifiers) is greater than the defence roll, it hits. If not, it misses.

### Attack Roll

Attack roll: Weapon's Attack value
+ Attack modifiers, if any
+ DRN

Defense roll: Defender's Defense value
+ defense modifiers, if any
+ DRN

Defender wins ties!

• Various effects can increase or decrease the attack and defense modifiers skills of units.
• Defenders with long weapons can repel attackers, preventing the attack from happening.
• Defensive abilities (such as etherealness), spells (such as Astral Shield or Fire Shield) and items (such as Vine Shield) can prevent an attacker from attacking or punish the attacker.

### Ranged Combat & Spellcasting

Ranged combat and spellcasting are different from melee combat in that they do not use defence values. Instead, a precision roll is used to determine which square a missile or spell hits.

### Precision Roll

$\text{If Attacker Precision value} \gt 10$

$\text{Precision score} = \text{Attacker Precision value} -7$

$\text{If Attacker Precision value} \le 10$

$\text{Precision score} = \frac{\text{Attacker Precision value}}{2} -2$

Precision roll: Precision score
$\pm$ Precision modifiers
+ DRN

Range: Number of squares from attacker to target square.
Diagonals count as 1.5 square

If Precision roll $\ge$ Range ⇒ The missile hits target square
If Precision roll is $\lt$ Range ⇒ The missile deviates from target square
The amount of deviation is equal to the range x 1.25 / Precision

• Shields can prevent ranged weapons from striking true.
• Every point of precision above 10 counts for double.
• Spells with 100 precision (Soul Slay) always hit the target square.
• Spells (e.g. Eagle Eyes), blesses and items (e.g. Eye of Aiming) can buff precision.
• Various effects can debuff (Darkness) or halve precision (Storm).
• Some effects can protect units against ranged weapons (Arrow Fend). Others will destroy missiles during flight (Storm)
• Some spells and effects require a magic resistance check before having any effect.

### Special attacks

• Units with trample can crush other units beneath their feet.

## Rolling to Damage

Once a hit is scored, another roll is made to determine how much damage is done.

### Special Damage

Some types of damage have special attributes.