Melee combat in Ryzom very complex, with many variables affecting the outcome of a particular melee hit. The amount damage as well as the speed at which the damage is dealt are all a function of the weapon. The damage can be multiplied by two using the increase damage stanza, and similar to an area of effect, the circular attack stanza allows multiple targets within weapons reach to be hit simultaneously. This hit can then be parried or dodged by the opponent. If an actual hit occurs, the damage dealt is then reduced by whatever armor protection the body part hit is wearing. A critical hit may be landed at any time during melee combat. This critical hit induces debilitating effects on the opponent, making the job of a melee fighter that much easier. What follows is a list of the combat stanzas and special combat effects with the description of what they do.

Accurate attack

The accurate attack stanza available to fighters is a skill that increases the chance their attack will not be parried or dodged by the opponent. This stanza increases the level of the attacking player by up to 20 points.

Bleeding

Bleeding is an stanza option that can be included in any attack that uses a slashing type weapon. Its effect is a small increase in damage that lasts for 10 seconds. This increase in damage stacks on itself and is calculated on a per hit basis. The maximum factor is 1.2 for all skill levels. This means that the maximum damage sustained by the bleeding effect is 1.2 times the base damage of a particular weapon.

Critical Hits

Critical hits are a normal part of melee combat. The base critical hit rate for combat is 5% , certain weapon boosts can increase these but are very rare. The effect of a critical hit depends on the body part that was hit. The critical hit effects are listed below:

Body Part	Effect
Head	Stun
Arms	Slow Attack
Chest	Loose Stamina equal to 50% of Damage
Hands	Decrease combat skill by 20
Legs	Slow movement
Feet	Decrease Dodge by 20

Aim Stanza

The aim stanza can be used to increase the chance a particular body part is hit. This allows the fighter to direct attacks at unprotected body parts, and also gives the player some control over the critical hit effect. By aiming at the head, for example a skilled fighter is able to increase the chances of stunning his opponent with a critical hit.

Circular Attack

The circular attack stanza allows multiple targets within weapons reach to be hit simultaneously, however circular attack will only work on mobs or players that have you targeted. The maximum number of simultaneous targets, as well as the maximum total damage is determined by the circular attack stanza level. Higher levels of this stanza will hit more targets, and do more damage per target.

Ignore Armor

Ignore armor is a stanza that can be used with any piercing type weapon. It allows a fighter to inlflict maximum damage on the target regardless of the amount of armor protection. For mobs with lots of protection, this stanza can be more effective than the increase damage stanza in increasing the damage dealt.

Dodge and Parry

Dodge and Parry skills are a means for a player to defend against melee attacks. The both have the same effect on combat, and each is meant to be used in different situations.

Dodge skills are mainly used by players who's highest skill level is magic. The base dodge skill number is equal to that players highest magic branch. The equipment used by a player in a magic casting role usually give boosts to their effective dodge skill. Modifiers are also present in the attacking players weapons, that make it easier or harder for a defending player to dodge the hit. The parry skill on the other hand is aimed at melee players. It works exactly the same way as dodge, except that the highest combat skill is used in calculating the base parry level. The chance of Parrying or dodging an attack is calculated using the following formula:

%Chance= (Defending Level - Attacking Level)x.5 +35

In this formula, the defending level is equal to the players parry or dodge level. The Attacking level is equal to the attacking players combat level. The overall percent chance to dodge or parry is capped at a minimum of 10%, and a maximum of 60%. Please note that the accurate attack stanza available to a fighter will increase their effective attack level by 20.

Spell Interrupts

During the course of battle, a melee hit on a spell caster can interrupt the spell that was being cast. This is what typically gives spell casters a handicap when engaging a fighter. For an interrupt to occur the melee hit must land on the caster during the Invocation portion of the spell. The equation used to calculate the chance a melee hit will interrupt a spell caster is shown below:

Interrupt Chance = (Defending Level - Attacking level)x.75 + 33

The concentrate stanza can be used to increase the Defending Skill level by 25 points. Without spell interrupts, fighters would be at a severe disadvantage when engaging a caster since the amount of DPS a caster can produce is much larger than that of a meleer.