User:Raine Valen/Design/Project Peach/Combat

Combat

The [Ideal] Combat Cycle

Combat flows in stages, starting at Decide and moving to Prepare, Act, Recover, Wait, and finally Cool before returning to Decide.

Stage 1: Decide.

The Decide state is the basic, neutral state. Characters may move about freely and initiate any Actions available to them while in this state.
Because a character in the Decide state may Counter or initiate an Action, characters are considered to be least vulnerable while in this state.
The Decide period may last indefinitely: it does not end until a character chooses an Action, which sends the character into Prepare time.

Stage 2: Prepare.

Preparation is the period between when a character Decides to Act and begins to execute that Act.
During Prepare time, characters may or may not be able to move or Counter, depending on the type of Action that they are preparing for. For example, a character Preparing for a melee attack will almost always be able to move, while a caster Preparing for a spell is generally not able to move.
Countering Actions while in a Prepare state will usually cancel the Action that a character was Preparing for, effectively negating any time that they had spent Preparing. Because of this, a character in a Prepare state is considered more vulnerable than a character in a Wait or Decide state. In addition, the Prepare state is the first point at which a character may be interrupted, which also effectively negates their Action.
There are a few main types of Prepare periods:

• Closing for an Attack.
  • A melee character has to be in very close range to attack, so if an attack Action is chosen, that character must first close the distance between themself and their target; this constitutes Preparation time for that Action.
• Gathering Energy for a Spell.
  • Many spells require casters to "charge up" beforehand; this time is generally longer for more powerful spells. This "charging time" constitutes Preparation time for that type of Action.

However, anything that a character must do before performing an Action is considered Prepare time. Because of its variable nature, Prepare time can vary greatly between Actions or even with the same Action (a melee character further from their target will have a longer Prepare period than the same character immediately adjacent to their target) - in fact, many Actions do not have a Prepare period at all. For the most part, physical actions like attacking have shorter Prepare periods than magical actions like casting.
At the end of a Prepare period, a character executes their Action.

Stage 3: Act.

At this point, a character does whatever they Decided and Prepared to do, whether it be casting a spell, swinging a sword, or picking up an item.
Characters in Act state are generally less vulnerable than characters in Prepare state, with a few exceptions, because they are doing something – a character shooting fireballs from their fingertips is significantly more dangerous than the same character Preparing to shoot fireballs from their fingers.
At the same time, though, a character typically cannot Counter an Action while performing an Action.
Essentially, a character may obtain proactive defense during the Act state at the cost of their ability for reactive defense.
At the end of an Action, a character enters Recovery time.

Stage 4: Recover.

Recover time is, in a way, the opposite of Prepare time, as it occurs after an Action. Recovery occurs any time where a character must regain something in order to move to Decide time – a warrior that swings a weapon may need a split second to regain their balance, a caster that uses a powerful magic may need a few moments to regain their composure.
Recovery can also be forced by foes' actions: an attack that knocks your character to the floor, for example, will force you to Recover.
Recover time shares a few similarities with Prepare time: a character in Recover time may or may not be able to move or Counter other characters' Actions. However, unlike Prepare time, while in the Recover state, a character may only use Counter skills specific to this state, which are generally weaker than their Wait-, Decide-, or Prepare-time counterparts. On top of that, Recover skills generally force the user back into the Recover state for a period. Hence, Recovery is generally considered a character's most vulnerable period.
Recovery is a set amount of time that continually dwindles unless interrupted, and is generally very short – a fraction of a second to a few seconds, typically. When Recovery time has expired, a character enters Wait time.

Stage 5: Wait.

The Wait state is less-severe brother to the Recover state. The Wait state occurs whenever a character has chosen to Act, but has not finished that Act. For example, a character that has attacked another character must Wait for that attack to complete before initiating another attack.
The Wait state is almost identical to the Prepare state in that what the character may do while in while in this state depends largely on what put them into this state; a character swinging a weapon may be able to Counter an attack, but a character who has just raised their shield to ward off a blow will most likely not be able to Counter another attack.
Like Recovery, Wait time is always a set amount of time that dwindles at a constant rate. When this time limit has dwindled to nothing, a character enters Cool time.

Stage 6: Cool.

This is light "down time". In the Cool state, a character cannot use an Action, but may move and Counter Actions made against them. This time is typically used to position onesself, ideally so that a character is in range for an Action at the end of their Wait time. For example, a melee character might use their Wait time moving into to close range of the target that they intend to attack.
During the Cool period, a character is unable to Act, but is able to Counter other characters' Actions. The length of the Wait period is generally dependent on the Action that a character used before entering the Wait period, with more serious Actions incurring longer Cool times.
Like like Recovery and Wait, Cool time is always a set amount of time that dwindles at a constant rate. When Cool time ends, a character enters Decide time.

Breaking the Cycle

The cycle above would be perfect except for the fact that it fails to account for certain things including, but not limited to, the fact that there are other characters and that they are also fighting.
There are a few things that other players can do to alter your perfect cycle, generally sending you to a less favorable position.

General Offense

By far the most common way to rain on someone's parade, offense has the potential to force an opposing character into Wait or Recover states.
For example, if a character Counters your attack by blocking it with their shield, they'll have to Wait until your attack has failed before Acting in order to avoid the damage from your attack.
If, for example, you knock down a foe with an attack, they'll be forced to Recover before they can do anything.

Interrupts

Some Actions specifically interrupt other players' Actions, with varying effectiveness. Interrupting a character Preparing to hurl a boulder, for example, may cause them to drop it, potentially damaging themself and others nearby.

Cancelling

Cancelling differs from the other factors in that it is something that a player chooses to do, rather than something that is forced upon them. A player may cancel most Actions during Prepare or Act time and incur less or no Recover or Wait time.