FrozenNova
08-25-2011, 01:36 AM
[Outdated]: The spell damage formula has changed in update 14. I'll update it when I find some reliable source material.
The second of two threads on basic combat mechanics for new players.
Saves:
Your saves are derrived statistics that determine how well you resist a hostile effect. They have no impact on physical combat, but lots of impact on weapon effects, spells, and traps. There are three of them. Classes have varying base saves independant of other statistics, which increase with levels of that class.
Fortitude represents your capacity to resist effects that alter your physical body, on a large or small scale. Your constitution modifier is the key for Fortitude. Fortitude will help you to resist effects such as poison, disintegration, flesh-to-stone, stuns, and most instant-death spells. This goes two ways - big burly foes are going to have a high fortitude, and be difficult to apply these effects to.
Reflex represents your capacity to get out of the way of danger. A fireball to the well-protected back hurts a lot less than a fireball to the face. Well, supposedly. Dexterity modifier is the key for reflex. Reflex will allow you to take half damage from many area of effect spells and from most traps. Reflex saves are generally fairly low on most enemies, making spells with a reflex save highly potent. Shame that Web is the only practical reflex based form of crowd control.
Will represents your capacity to resist effects that mess with your mind. Your wisdom modifier is the key for will, so divine casters will have it in abundance. Will assists with resisting effects like hypnotize, hold, dance, curse, and similar. Will is generally speaking the least important save in the grand scheme of things, since many of these effects can be countered in other ways. Hold can be stopped by freedom of movement; command can be stopped by protection from evil; curses can be easily remedied by potions.
When you are called upon to make a save, you roll your d20. A 1 is an automatic failure - a 20, automatic success. If neither, the result is added to the relevent save, and compared with the difficulty check of the effect you are saving against. If the total is equal or above the DC, you make the save, and resist the effect. Note that reflex saves usually result in only half damage reduction, with some significant exceptions.
Evasion: a feat only granted to monk level 2, rogue level 2, ranger level 9, having this feat means whenever you would normally take half damage from a successful reflex save, you instead take none. A fireball to the face doesn't mean a thing with evasion and a high reflex backing it up.
Spell difficulty checks
...Which is all very well, but what if you want to put the fireball in the enemy's face instead?
You need a high difficulty check for your spell to make sure he takes full damage.
Resistable spells all apply their DC against a certain save (two, in some cases). For instance, fireball is reflex, while Finger of Death is fortitude.
Increasing your DC in the spells you use is the backbone of progress for most casters:
Spell difficulty check has a base of ten.
The level of the spell is added - 1 for hypnotize, 9 for Wail. If you are using heighten, this instead becomes the level of the highest spell you can cast.
Your casting statistic modifier is added. This is charisma for bards and sorcerors - wisdom for clerics and favored souls - intelligence for wizards and artificers.
Other bonuses include bonuses from prestige enhancements, Spell school focus feats, spell school focus gear, and some passive past life feats and one active past life feat.
Spell penetration and resistance
Do not confuse this with DCs and Saves.
Spell resistance is a form of magical protection that affects all non-physical incoming hostile magic.
Direct damage spells like fireball-to-the-face are not affected by spell resistance. Spell resistance will stop effects like finger of death, charm, and energy drain.
Spell penetration is the statistic that allows you to punch through spell resistance.
Spell resistance is a fixed number for a given enemy or piece of equipment. Drow and monks have inherent spell resistance - the latter gaining it at a specific level - while divines can provide spell resistance equal to caster level + 10 with the spell resistance spells. It does not stack, the highest value applies.
Spell penetration is your caster level (the number of levels you have in the class casting the spell), but is then boosted by enhancements, spell penetration feats, some past life feats, and equipment.
It therefore functions in an opposite sense to DCs and saves. The attacker rolls the d20, adds his spell penetration, and compares it with the target's spell resistance. If the total is equal or higher, the spell gets past. If not, it is negated. Natural 1's and 20's do not affect the outcome.
Most enemies do not have spell resistance. The only notable examples in lower levels are Drow.
In higher content, many extraplanar beings have high spell resistance. It is important in this content to boost your spell penetration - but before then, it is insignificant. Note that splashing a class with your caster will decrease your final spell penetration value by the number of levels you have lost in your caster class.
Spell Damage
Now for the good stuff - that facebound fireball finally paid off. But for how much?
Spells have base damage that usually scales with caster level.
For instance, fireball (using DDO's weighted dice) has a base damage of (1d3+3) per caster level - up to a maximum of caster level ten. At caster level then, that's 10d3+30. The average value of a d3 is 2, so we'll say its base damage is 20+30 for 50.
The spell damage formula is (Base damage)*(1+Enhancements + amplification gear)*(1+Sum of metamagics).
Base damage for a capped fireball is 50.
Enhancements use their decimal value. Our level ten wizard has Fire manipulation V, a 40% bonus, or 0.4.
Amplification gear uses its decimal value. Our wizard knows what he's doing, so he's using a Superior Inferno clickie, boosting his fire damage by 75% or 0.75 without taking up a hand.
A violent sort, our wizard is using both maximize and empower. Empower's bonus is 0.5, while maximize's bonus is 1.
So, that fireball comes out to..
50*(1 base + 0.4 enhancements + 0.75 inferno)*(1 base + 0.5 empower + 1 maximize)
50*2.15*2.5 = 268.75 - and subsequently burns through a swathe of correctly kited trolls.
Spell crits
It's not only melees that know the joy of critical hits.
Spell criticals are simple enough - they have a % chance to occur, and a % of amplification.
The base chance is zero, while the base amplification is 150%, or 1.5.
Again, our wizard knows his stuff. He has Combustive Spellcasting III, granting a 0.06 bonus to critical chance, and Deadly Flame III, granting a 0.45 bonus to critical amplification.
Having freed his hand with the inferno clickie, he's holding a major fire lore scepter. This boosts his chance by 0.09, and amplifier by 0.50.
This comes out to a chance of 0.15, at an amplification of 2.45.
As we know our average damage is 268.75, we can find how much extra damage this is worth.
Since a cast of the spell will deal the average non-crit damage already, to find extra damage from crits, don't include the base 1 in the amplification.
268.75*1.45*0.15 extra damage, to be exact, which is 58.45 to 2dp.
So, his average fireball will deal its average damage per non crit, 268.75, added to its extra damage per cast from crit, 58.45, to make 327.2 effective average damage. Of course, this is not strictly true - damage will often be lost from overkill during crits, or resisted by saves - but in an imaginary fight against an invincible opponent that doesn't get a reflex save, 327.2 damage a cast would indeed be the case.
I hope I helped, please ask any questions or provide any comments in this thread.
If you haven't done so already, check out melee damage mechanics at http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=337342.
Practical notes: Evasion is useless without a good reflex.
A good reflex without evasion is still useful.
Will is not that important.
Kobolds do not have spell resistance.
Maximizing your casting stat is very important.
Use superior amplification clickies to boost your spells, rather than gear slots. The boost is bigger and does not take up a slot.
This also applies to divines - use ardor clickies to boost your healing for the most successful bang-to-buck ratio.
Use lore items for the elements you use.
Healing lore affects healing. Arcane lore affects everything.
The second of two threads on basic combat mechanics for new players.
Saves:
Your saves are derrived statistics that determine how well you resist a hostile effect. They have no impact on physical combat, but lots of impact on weapon effects, spells, and traps. There are three of them. Classes have varying base saves independant of other statistics, which increase with levels of that class.
Fortitude represents your capacity to resist effects that alter your physical body, on a large or small scale. Your constitution modifier is the key for Fortitude. Fortitude will help you to resist effects such as poison, disintegration, flesh-to-stone, stuns, and most instant-death spells. This goes two ways - big burly foes are going to have a high fortitude, and be difficult to apply these effects to.
Reflex represents your capacity to get out of the way of danger. A fireball to the well-protected back hurts a lot less than a fireball to the face. Well, supposedly. Dexterity modifier is the key for reflex. Reflex will allow you to take half damage from many area of effect spells and from most traps. Reflex saves are generally fairly low on most enemies, making spells with a reflex save highly potent. Shame that Web is the only practical reflex based form of crowd control.
Will represents your capacity to resist effects that mess with your mind. Your wisdom modifier is the key for will, so divine casters will have it in abundance. Will assists with resisting effects like hypnotize, hold, dance, curse, and similar. Will is generally speaking the least important save in the grand scheme of things, since many of these effects can be countered in other ways. Hold can be stopped by freedom of movement; command can be stopped by protection from evil; curses can be easily remedied by potions.
When you are called upon to make a save, you roll your d20. A 1 is an automatic failure - a 20, automatic success. If neither, the result is added to the relevent save, and compared with the difficulty check of the effect you are saving against. If the total is equal or above the DC, you make the save, and resist the effect. Note that reflex saves usually result in only half damage reduction, with some significant exceptions.
Evasion: a feat only granted to monk level 2, rogue level 2, ranger level 9, having this feat means whenever you would normally take half damage from a successful reflex save, you instead take none. A fireball to the face doesn't mean a thing with evasion and a high reflex backing it up.
Spell difficulty checks
...Which is all very well, but what if you want to put the fireball in the enemy's face instead?
You need a high difficulty check for your spell to make sure he takes full damage.
Resistable spells all apply their DC against a certain save (two, in some cases). For instance, fireball is reflex, while Finger of Death is fortitude.
Increasing your DC in the spells you use is the backbone of progress for most casters:
Spell difficulty check has a base of ten.
The level of the spell is added - 1 for hypnotize, 9 for Wail. If you are using heighten, this instead becomes the level of the highest spell you can cast.
Your casting statistic modifier is added. This is charisma for bards and sorcerors - wisdom for clerics and favored souls - intelligence for wizards and artificers.
Other bonuses include bonuses from prestige enhancements, Spell school focus feats, spell school focus gear, and some passive past life feats and one active past life feat.
Spell penetration and resistance
Do not confuse this with DCs and Saves.
Spell resistance is a form of magical protection that affects all non-physical incoming hostile magic.
Direct damage spells like fireball-to-the-face are not affected by spell resistance. Spell resistance will stop effects like finger of death, charm, and energy drain.
Spell penetration is the statistic that allows you to punch through spell resistance.
Spell resistance is a fixed number for a given enemy or piece of equipment. Drow and monks have inherent spell resistance - the latter gaining it at a specific level - while divines can provide spell resistance equal to caster level + 10 with the spell resistance spells. It does not stack, the highest value applies.
Spell penetration is your caster level (the number of levels you have in the class casting the spell), but is then boosted by enhancements, spell penetration feats, some past life feats, and equipment.
It therefore functions in an opposite sense to DCs and saves. The attacker rolls the d20, adds his spell penetration, and compares it with the target's spell resistance. If the total is equal or higher, the spell gets past. If not, it is negated. Natural 1's and 20's do not affect the outcome.
Most enemies do not have spell resistance. The only notable examples in lower levels are Drow.
In higher content, many extraplanar beings have high spell resistance. It is important in this content to boost your spell penetration - but before then, it is insignificant. Note that splashing a class with your caster will decrease your final spell penetration value by the number of levels you have lost in your caster class.
Spell Damage
Now for the good stuff - that facebound fireball finally paid off. But for how much?
Spells have base damage that usually scales with caster level.
For instance, fireball (using DDO's weighted dice) has a base damage of (1d3+3) per caster level - up to a maximum of caster level ten. At caster level then, that's 10d3+30. The average value of a d3 is 2, so we'll say its base damage is 20+30 for 50.
The spell damage formula is (Base damage)*(1+Enhancements + amplification gear)*(1+Sum of metamagics).
Base damage for a capped fireball is 50.
Enhancements use their decimal value. Our level ten wizard has Fire manipulation V, a 40% bonus, or 0.4.
Amplification gear uses its decimal value. Our wizard knows what he's doing, so he's using a Superior Inferno clickie, boosting his fire damage by 75% or 0.75 without taking up a hand.
A violent sort, our wizard is using both maximize and empower. Empower's bonus is 0.5, while maximize's bonus is 1.
So, that fireball comes out to..
50*(1 base + 0.4 enhancements + 0.75 inferno)*(1 base + 0.5 empower + 1 maximize)
50*2.15*2.5 = 268.75 - and subsequently burns through a swathe of correctly kited trolls.
Spell crits
It's not only melees that know the joy of critical hits.
Spell criticals are simple enough - they have a % chance to occur, and a % of amplification.
The base chance is zero, while the base amplification is 150%, or 1.5.
Again, our wizard knows his stuff. He has Combustive Spellcasting III, granting a 0.06 bonus to critical chance, and Deadly Flame III, granting a 0.45 bonus to critical amplification.
Having freed his hand with the inferno clickie, he's holding a major fire lore scepter. This boosts his chance by 0.09, and amplifier by 0.50.
This comes out to a chance of 0.15, at an amplification of 2.45.
As we know our average damage is 268.75, we can find how much extra damage this is worth.
Since a cast of the spell will deal the average non-crit damage already, to find extra damage from crits, don't include the base 1 in the amplification.
268.75*1.45*0.15 extra damage, to be exact, which is 58.45 to 2dp.
So, his average fireball will deal its average damage per non crit, 268.75, added to its extra damage per cast from crit, 58.45, to make 327.2 effective average damage. Of course, this is not strictly true - damage will often be lost from overkill during crits, or resisted by saves - but in an imaginary fight against an invincible opponent that doesn't get a reflex save, 327.2 damage a cast would indeed be the case.
I hope I helped, please ask any questions or provide any comments in this thread.
If you haven't done so already, check out melee damage mechanics at http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=337342.
Practical notes: Evasion is useless without a good reflex.
A good reflex without evasion is still useful.
Will is not that important.
Kobolds do not have spell resistance.
Maximizing your casting stat is very important.
Use superior amplification clickies to boost your spells, rather than gear slots. The boost is bigger and does not take up a slot.
This also applies to divines - use ardor clickies to boost your healing for the most successful bang-to-buck ratio.
Use lore items for the elements you use.
Healing lore affects healing. Arcane lore affects everything.