Geneforge 1 – Mutagen – Combat Guide

Combat

When you meet someone you want to attack or when something attacks you, you enter combat mode. If you are attacked, this mode starts automatically. You can also enter combat by pressing the Start Combat button (or the ‘f’ key).

Combat is split up into rounds. Each character gets one turn per round. Faster characters act first. High Agility helps a character to act sooner in combat.

Ending Combat

When you are through with combat, press the End Combat button or type ‘f’. If there are no enemies visible, combat ends immediately. Otherwise, it will end after the current round.

Note that if there still is a foe nearby, combat will immediately begin again.

Action Points

Each turn, a character has a base of 8 action points (fewer if encumbered by heavy armor). Increasing Strength enables you to wear heavier armor without being encumbered. Moving one space costs one action point. If you have any action points left, you can attack, cast a spell, or use an item (so you can still attack even if you have only one action point left).

Attacking or casting most spells deducts 9 action points. A few faster spells only cost 6 action points. Using an item or drinking a potion takes 5. Getting or equipping an item costs 4.

The number of action points you have left is indicated on the party roster. When all of your action points are gone, the next character gets to act.

To end a character’s turn early (if you don’t want it to do anything else), select the space it is standing in or press the space bar.

Attacking and Abilities

To attack a foe, select the space it is standing in. You will attack with your current default attack. Your default attack can be with your base weapon or an equipped missile weapon. You can toggle between the two default attacks by using the two buttons on the far left on the button bar (or typing ‘w’).

After you attack or use an ability, you can no longer move during your turn. You can still use abilities or items.

Abilities and Items

While your default attacks can be very effective, you will frequently want to use your characters’ abilities. These can do damage, bless your characters, curse your foes, or heal damage.

To have your active character use an ability or item, press the Use Ability button (or type ‘a’). Select the ability you want to use.

When a creation uses an ability, it won’t be able to use it again for a cooldown period of three turns.

Some abilities will need to be targeted. To target a foe, select the space it is standing in. If the spell targets an area (circular or cone shaped), move the cursor onto the terrain to see the area that will be affected. To target one of your characters (for healing or blessing), select that
character’s portrait (or type ‘1’-‘8’ to select the character in your roster).

Note that on Veteran or Torment difficulties, your attacks that cover an area will affect both friends and foes.

Damage and Armor

When a character is hit, its health will go down. When it reaches zero, the character will die.

Damaged characters can be healed during combat with healing abilities, healing pods, and healing spores.

Wearing Armor

Some equipment (like armor), when worn, reduces the damage you take from enemy attacks. The protection is expressed as two percentages, one for physical attacks and one for magical attacks.

These resistances are applied one at a time. So if you have two pieces of armor that give 50% protection from physical attacks, you don’t get 100% protection. Instead, one-piece reduces damage by 50%, and then the other piece reduces the remaining damage by 50% again (for total
protection of 75%).

Status Effects

Your characters can be exposed to a variety of status effects, some beneficial, some harmful, most of them related to combat. Some effects (like blessings) are gained by casting spells or using magic items. Others, like poison, are inflicted by hostile spells.

When a character has an effect, an icon will appear on the side of that character’s portrait.

Move the mouse cursor over the icon to see a full description of the effect and how long it will last.

On desktop computers, you can see all of a foe’s resistances and status effects by right-clicking it.

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