making turn-based battle systems more dynamic

[Oddball]

All skills would raise/lower different stats of the charecter till the next turn or something like that

Like, if a charecter takes a wide slash/swipe to hit all enemies, wouldnt they be vulnerable for a moment droping there deffense till the end of the turn?

Now you might also give the actor a skill that drops AGI or something. Or an equipment that lowers AGI but raises DEF. So non-strategicly minded players would stumble on the strategy wanting to mitigate the deffense drop. Or strategicly minded players see thats a way to avoid taking lots of damage

Theres a lot more you can do with this. What does everyone think

 

[Milennin]

In my opinion: what is important is that there is synergy between characters in the party. Sure, you can have your tank, heal, damage roles. But it's more interesting if the characters have skills that can benefit the others in some ways, or work great when used in combination with each other. Make it so the player will want to plan out its turns and make sure their characters have the resources to utilise the combos at the right time. Players who'll just use their skills whenever might still get through your game, but players who use skills strategically will have a much easier time and get through encounters faster.

Just to take an example from your first skill that would inflict defence down on enemies struck by a slash attack, make it so a second character has a skill that gains an extra effect if it strikes a target that is inflicted by defence down.

The second thing what is important to make turn-based dynamic is that the player has meaningful choices to make. Combat gets boring when there's always one right answer to everything. Players have different kind of playstyles, so it's cool if there's an option to play combat slow but safe, or fast but taking more risks, with neither of the two options being vastly inferior to the other.

For example, you have a character that can deal a good amount of damage using his skill this turn, but he also has a support skill that could greatly benefit the party and help set up a powerful combo play on the next turn. There is not one correct choice in this scenario, it's just a matter of preference. Going for the damage right away is the easier way out, and might be less effective in the long run. Going for the combo play might seem slower at first glance, but might still secure the win just as fast if the combo gets pulled off correctly.

The third thing to make combat more dynamic is to minimise the amount of times the player is forced into using auto-attack, or having auto-attack as the most efficient play that turn. That's not to say auto-attack should be useless, it's just that using skills should generally always be more effective (though, they come at the cost of mana consumption).

 

[Oddball]

No. Not deffense down on enemies. Deffense down on the user. The idea is all skills affect there users stats

 

[Wavelength]

I'm mostly with Milennin here... I feel the most important thing is that you offer interesting and meaningful decisions within battle, rather than let it come down to a single "optimal" strategy.  I've done most of those things that you've mentioned, Oddball, and they're good ideas as long as they're done with the bigger picture in mind.  As far as having temporary stat gains/losses on all skills, it could work as part of a "combo" system.

 

[NPC]

If you only have one solution, make a movie. :I

 

[Wavelength]

If you only have one solution, make a movie. :I

Huh?  Who is this addressed to?  Who advocated a system where there's only one solution?

 

[NPC]

I'm just hyperbole-ying off the statement you made about an "optimal" solution. It's not in seriousness

 

[Oddball]

The wide slash problem doesnt have just one solution. It can be used with a provoke-like skill from an ally. A skill that lowers target rate for the user. Maybe it can be used with a skill that stores damage taken into a variable and adds that variable onto damage. Or maybe with a lower hp = higher damage output skill

Against a group of magic magic users. The deffense drop becomes meaningless