Combat and elements
Fighting and gearHow hits land, what elements do, and how to read a creature's attack.
Calming, not hurting
When you "fight" in TATAZO you are cleansing the Gloom. A cleansed Gloom creature bursts into clean water and leaves. A gloom-touched animal shakes off the murk and trots home. You get XP, orange coins and whatever it leaves behind.
How hard you hit
Every hit you land is somewhere between 40% and 100% of your biggest possible hit. The biggest hit grows with:
- your weapon's attack,
- your skill with that kind of weapon (melee, distance or magic), which rises every time you use it,
- your level,
- and your class: each class is a little better with its own style.
Sometimes a hit is critical and lands ×1.6 as hard. Everyone starts with a 5% chance; Ninjas get more, and some gear adds more (see Item powers).
Everyone also has the Tail Spin (Q): a spin that hits everything around you. It grows with your level and melee skill.
Nothing in your hand? If you wear a weapon in the Hand slot, Tatazo draws it and fights with it. Click a creature and he takes out his best weapon himself: the one he wears, else the best on his belt, else the best in his satchel. With no weapon at all he bites: he rears back and snaps his jaws shut. At first a bite is almost as strong as a first crafted sword, and it grows as you level up, a little more slowly than a weapon would.
The elements
Hits carry an element. Most are plain physical; magic staves, some weapons and some abilities carry another:
| Element | Where it comes from |
|---|---|
| Fire | Sunstone staves, fire gear, the Ember Wastes' creatures |
| Ice | River-water staves, frost creatures |
| Energy | Storm staves and wands, storm eels, sparks |
| Earth | Mushroom and leaf creatures, and some dragons |
| Holy | Clean-water bolts, the Sunblade and the old guardians' blades |
| Decay | A few creatures of the night |
Every creature takes more damage from its weaknesses and less from what it resists. A creature page shows it like this: "Fire +45%" means fire hits it 45% harder; "Ice −60%" means ice barely tickles it. As a rule:
- Gloom creatures hate holy clean water, and many hate fire.
- Frost creatures hate fire; fire creatures hate ice.
- Water creatures hate earth; the ones that throw sparks shrug off energy.
- Golems shrug off earth; armoured beasts are easier with magic and lightning than with blades.
Reading an attack
Every creature winds up before it strikes, and you can see it coming. Each kind of attack has a way to dodge it:
| Attack | What you see | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Bite | It crouches | Back away, then strike while it recovers |
| Rolling ram | It starts to spin | Sidestep, then hit it while it is dizzy |
| Charge | It lowers its head | Sidestep, then hit back while it catches its breath |
| Swoop | It rises into the air | Keep moving: it dives at empty ground |
| Leap | A ring on the ground | Step out of the ring |
| Ground pound | It raises its arms | Step back out of the ring |
| Sparks | It glows | Step sideways; the sparks fly past |
| Claw sweep | A wide swing (or hissing steam) | Stay behind it; back away when the steam starts |
Every creature page has a tip written the same way the game shows it when you are knocked out.
Stronger creatures
- Where: at home, creatures get stronger the further you are from the village; every other land has its own band of levels. See Continents and danger.
- Night: everything is a bit stronger after dark.
- Elites: from level 6, about 5% of creatures are elites: bigger, golden-eyed, with ×2.2 health and ×1.4 attack. They give ×3 XP and better loot.
- Mini-bosses and bosses: see Bosses.
If a creature is more than 10 levels below you, it gives less XP (a little less for each level, down to a tenth). Head further out: the XP there is much better.
Armour and shields
Armour soaks up part of every physical hit. A shield in your off hand blocks part of any hit that comes from the front. Some gear also resists an element (for example "resists fire 20%").
Tips
- Fight with friends. A party shares XP and everyone gets their own loot (see Level sync and parties).
- Carry food and a few potions. Health only grows back while you are fed.
- Need a break from creatures? Use the Calm Aura.