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High-level combat is becoming less and less strategic
Arcelia "Silex"
2026-07-03 14:53
High-level combat is becoming less and less strategic
As I've continued to level up, I've become increasingly frustrated with the combat system.
In my opinion, AP and move power end up dominating the entire game.
Every level increases the move budget, allowing players to gradually replace their original moves with increasingly powerful custom ones. At the same time, AP remains the single most important stat in the game because it directly determines how many attacks a player can make in a turn.
Due to the way the stat system and custom move PS calculations work, damage output scales much faster than survivability. At this stage of the game, many players are capable of dealing far more damage in a single turn than the average total HP pool of another player at the same level.
For example, I currently have a basic attack that costs 1 AP, has +5 Hit, and deals 10d7 + DMG. I can use this move up to 18 times in a single turn, yet it only costs 55 PS out of my total 135 PS budget.
Against an opponent with 17 AC, I can expect to deal roughly 324 damage in a single turn with this move alone. That's already several times higher than the total HP pool of most players around the same level.
Meanwhile, each level only grants 3 stat points, which translates to a maximum of 15 HP per level if a player chooses not to invest in AP instead.
As a result, the player who gets initiative can often win the fight immediately.
As I've continued to level up, I've become increasingly frustrated with the combat system.
In my opinion, AP and move power end up dominating the entire game.
Every level increases the move budget, allowing players to gradually replace their original moves with increasingly powerful custom ones. At the same time, AP remains the single most important stat in the game because it directly determines how many attacks a player can make in a turn.
Due to the way the stat system and custom move PS calculations work, damage output scales much faster than survivability. At this stage of the game, many players are capable of dealing far more damage in a single turn than the average total HP pool of another player at the same level.
For example, I currently have a basic attack that costs 1 AP, has +5 Hit, and deals 10d7 + DMG. I can use this move up to 18 times in a single turn, yet it only costs 55 PS out of my total 135 PS budget.
Against an opponent with 17 AC, I can expect to deal roughly 324 damage in a single turn with this move alone. That's already several times higher than the total HP pool of most players around the same level.
Meanwhile, each level only grants 3 stat points, which translates to a maximum of 15 HP per level if a player chooses not to invest in AP instead.
As a result, the player who gets initiative can often win the fight immediately.
Comments (6)
Wrecksler
2026-07-03 20:08
I completely agree and I'm open to ideas about how it could be balanced better. Playtesting and discussing and finding balance that works is one of the main goals of the alpha stage of the project.
The quickest options I can think of include:
- Increasing amount of HP you can get, but that will only increase the distance between low and high levels which I dont think is a good idea
- Reducing the amount of PS you get per level, maybe taking multiple levels to get even +1 PS
- Increasing move costs or damage cost using some other more steep curve, effectively increasing the cost of high damage moves
- Increasing AP upgrade cost
The quickest options I can think of include:
- Increasing amount of HP you can get, but that will only increase the distance between low and high levels which I dont think is a good idea
- Reducing the amount of PS you get per level, maybe taking multiple levels to get even +1 PS
- Increasing move costs or damage cost using some other more steep curve, effectively increasing the cost of high damage moves
- Increasing AP upgrade cost
Arcelia "Silex"
2026-07-04 09:32
I think the biggest issue isn't necessarily HP or even PS gain, but action economy. AP scales far better than any other stat because every additional point effectively multiplies the value of all offensive stats and custom moves. As long as AP keeps increasing, damage output will likely continue to outpace survivability regardless of other balance changes. Therefore, setting the player's maximum AP to around 5 might be more effective. At the moment, the PS system still has a number of exploits and unintended interactions. For example, it's possible to significantly reduce a move's PS cost by attaching extremely high-value positive effects that only benefit the opponent on a later turn, making it relatively easy to create moves that deal massive amounts of damage for a surprisingly low PS cost. As things currently stand, fixing all of these issues will likely be a very time-consuming process. In the short term, I think the only practical solution is for players to cooperate and agree on reasonable restrictions in order to create a healthier match environment.
Wrecksler
2026-07-05 17:29
I think these are valid concerns and something that can be at least partially addressed from my end. I'll see what I can do. I agree, I've noticed that issue too.
Akkla
2026-07-06 04:10
I don't believe increasing the amount of HP you can get would evenly balance things out. I agree with Silex on the fact that AP seems to be one of the biggest issues. While it is fun to have the freedom to create a wide variety of unique moves, putting a limit of how many you can do in a single turn is not the worst idea in the world. Because even if the dice are 50/50 with Miss/Hits, from a RP stance I don't see someone dishing out 17 different maneuvers in just one turn and my character standing there dumbfounded to take it all without any reactions.
I believe reducing AP to 5 is a bit low, as that would give you a max of 8 with used items. However keeping it around 10 might be reasonable. Allows you to do three 3AP attacks and a 1AP attack in a turn (or some combination of all that)
Another thought to maybe help keep things balanced is a cap on damage. A fatality move (when someone is either low health or unconscious) that is crushing seems reasonable, but a 1AP attack doing 10d7 + DMG is crazy. That would one shot most players in just a single turn.
A lot of this was discussed on the Discord, but figured I would chime in on this feedback here as well. Ultimately I think a lot of issues come down to the players themselves who should be more considerate when creating their moves and engaging in PvP. I imagine/Hope most players would want to try and keep fights "fair", but when given tools of freedom there will always be those looking to test the limits and meta-game for ultimate glory.
I believe reducing AP to 5 is a bit low, as that would give you a max of 8 with used items. However keeping it around 10 might be reasonable. Allows you to do three 3AP attacks and a 1AP attack in a turn (or some combination of all that)
Another thought to maybe help keep things balanced is a cap on damage. A fatality move (when someone is either low health or unconscious) that is crushing seems reasonable, but a 1AP attack doing 10d7 + DMG is crazy. That would one shot most players in just a single turn.
A lot of this was discussed on the Discord, but figured I would chime in on this feedback here as well. Ultimately I think a lot of issues come down to the players themselves who should be more considerate when creating their moves and engaging in PvP. I imagine/Hope most players would want to try and keep fights "fair", but when given tools of freedom there will always be those looking to test the limits and meta-game for ultimate glory.
Valnyr Avnia
2026-07-07 20:23
Two ideas that might help;
First, set an upper limit of PS cost moves permitted, forcing drawbacks to get them under the threshold and getting people to use a variety of moves instead of spamming one that cost their entire budget. Perhaps this cap goes up by level, or perhaps its a new stat to put points into.
Second, make the increase in AP cost for moves give a bigger discount, this'll help reduce spamming the big stuff, especially when combined with the first option.
First, set an upper limit of PS cost moves permitted, forcing drawbacks to get them under the threshold and getting people to use a variety of moves instead of spamming one that cost their entire budget. Perhaps this cap goes up by level, or perhaps its a new stat to put points into.
Second, make the increase in AP cost for moves give a bigger discount, this'll help reduce spamming the big stuff, especially when combined with the first option.
Wrecksler
2026-07-07 20:26
There were some changes made into balancing, introducing AP soft caps (progressive cost increase) and other adjustements, most impactful are mentioned in the changelog. Let me know if it feels better now.
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