Combat Guide for Avalon

1. How Combat Works

Avalon uses a turn-based combat system. Combat begins automatically when you travel through a dangerous area and the game rolls an encounter (each location has its own spawn chance). A combat screen replaces the exploration panel and you choose actions from the available buttons.

Combat ends when the enemy's HP reaches zero (you win and receive XP + gold + possible loot), or when your HP reaches zero (game over — your save is preserved but you return to the main menu). You can also choose to flee.

2. Turn Order & Actions

You always act first in every round. After your action, the enemy takes their turn. There are three actions available each round:

Action	What it does	Cost
Attack	Deal physical damage to the enemy based on your STR stat.	Your full turn
Use Item	Open your inventory to use a consumable (potions, tonics, etc.).	Your full turn
Flee	Attempt to escape combat. Success depends on your AGI stat.	Your full turn (wasted if it fails)

If you are stunned by an enemy ability such as Forgotten Names, your action is skipped and the enemy attacks again.

3. Attack Formula

Your attack damage in Phase 1 is calculated from your STR (Strength) stat:

This means a character with STR 12 will deal between 9 and 18 damage per hit, with an average of 13.5. Classes start with different STR values:

Class	Starting STR	Avg Damage	Max Damage
Seer	6	6.75	9
Rogue	12	13.5	18
Mentalist	6	6.75	9
Tempter	8	9	12

Low-STR classes (Seer, Mentalist) should use crafted weapons and items to compensate. Equipping an Iron Sword adds +6 STR-equivalent bonus to attacks.

4. Flee Chance

When you choose Flee, the game rolls against this formula:

Examples:

• AGI 10 → 60% flee chance
• AGI 14 (Rogue) → 68% flee chance
• AGI 16 (Rogue after level-up) → 72% flee chance
• AGI 6 (Seer) → 60% flee chance (floor applies — AGI below 10 does not penalise you)

If the flee attempt fails, the enemy still attacks and you lose your turn. Save fleeing for when you have under 30% HP — do not waste turn attempts on strong enemies with high initiative.

5. Using Items in Combat

Press the Item button during combat to open a filtered view of your consumables. Only items with usable effects (heal, restore_mp) appear in the combat item list.

Item	Effect	Restores
Health Potion	Heal HP	+30 HP
Greater Health Potion	Heal HP (crafted)	+60 HP
Spirit Tonic	Restore MP	+40 MP
Memory Salve	Restore MP (crafted)	+70 MP
Mana Draught	Restore MP (crafted)	+50 MP

Using an item counts as your turn action. The enemy will attack after you use an item. Plan accordingly — do not use a potion if your HP will survive one more enemy hit.

6. Enemy Types & Abilities

Phase 1 contains six enemy types spread across Avalon's first realm, the Mystical Sanctum. Each has a defined level, HP, and a set of active abilities.

Enemy	Level	HP	Type	Notable Abilities	XP / Gold
Glade Wisp	1	25	Common	Confusion Pulse (reduces your hit accuracy for 1 turn)	20 XP / 4 g
Shadow Beast	2	45	Common	Shadow Lunge (bypasses partial armour)	35 XP / 8 g
Phantom Soldier	3	55	Common	Spectral Strike (magic-type damage)	45 XP / 12 g
Marsh Wraith	4	70	Common	Marsh Grasp (reduces your AGI by 2 for 2 turns), Echo Lure	55 XP / 16 g
Memoria Wraith	5	120	Elite	Memory Drain (lowers INT −2), Spectral Wail (area)	120 XP / 30 g
Gate Guardian	6	150	Elite	Shield Bash (stun 1 turn), Iron Stance (blocks 50% damage for 1 turn)	140 XP / 40 g

Ability Breakdown

• Confusion Pulse — your next attack has a 40% chance to miss entirely. Counter: use a Memory Salve to clear debuffs, or simply accept the risk and attack.
• Shadow Lunge — deals damage ignoring 30% of your defence stat. No counter besides avoiding the Shadow Beast (use Rogue's stealth bonus).
• Memory Drain — INT reduction matters more in Phase 2+. In Phase 1 it only affects certain dialogue checks and codex unlocks. Largely ignorable in combat.
• Iron Stance — when the Gate Guardian activates this, save your item/attack for the next round. Use Item to heal instead.
• Marsh Grasp — lowers your AGI stat temporarily. This directly reduces your flee chance. If you are fleeing, do so before Marsh Grasp activates.

7. Boss Guide: The Whispering Shade

The Whispering Shade is the Phase 1 boss, found in Memoria Chamber — the final location unlocked after recovering the Fortress Key from the Gate Guardian. It is a mandatory encounter to complete the main quest.

Stat	Value
HP	350
MP	200
Level	8
STR	14
INT	22
WILL	25
XP Reward	500

Boss Abilities

• Forgotten Names — Stuns you for 1 full turn. Happens approximately every 3rd round.
• Cascade of Loss — Heavy magic damage hit (roughly 3× normal attack). Costs the boss a full MP charge.
• Memory Drain — Reduces INT by 2 (persistent during combat).
• Spectral Wail — Single-target in Phase 1 (mass in Phase 2+).

Recommended Strategy

1. Enter at level 6+. This means farming Marsh Wraiths and Gate Guardians before the final room. The boss with 350 HP at level 4 is essentially impossible for Seers and Mentalists.
2. Bring 4+ Health Potions and 2+ Spirit Tonics. Visit Merchant Thorn before the boss room to restock.
3. Keep HP above 60%. Cascade of Loss deals approximately 50–70 damage per hit. If your max HP is 80 (Seer), that one hit can be near-fatal. Heal at 60% or above.
4. Attack every turn you are not stunned. When Forgotten Names fires and you are stunned, you cannot act — there is no counter. Just wait.
5. Rogues: Your high HP (100+) and AGI make this fight much more forgiving. Standard attacks every round, heal only when under 50 HP.
6. Seers / Mentalists: Use crafted items — Greater Health Potion (+60 HP) and Memory Salve (+70 MP) — before entering. Attack during normal rounds and use items on stun rounds (you still act before the enemy in most engine implementations).

8. Combat Tips

• Level up before harder areas. Each level grants +5 HP, +3 MP, and +1 to your primary stats. The gates to Forgotten Fortress (Gate Guardian) and Memoria Chamber (boss) are gated behind items, giving you time to grind.
• Craft before you fight. Greater Health Potions restore 60 HP vs. 30 HP from a basic potion. Craft them from Shadow Essence + Health Potions (discovered automatically in Phase 1).
• Marsh enemies drop Marsh Herb and Memory Vial — the two ingredients you need for Memory Salve. Farm Marsh of Echoes before the boss.
• Rogue is the easiest class for combat. High HP, high AGI (better flee), and decent STR mean every fight is manageable. Choose Rogue if you find the combat frustrating.
• You cannot die permanently. Your save file survives a game over. You restart at the main menu with your last save intact — you do not lose items or XP.
• Save frequently. Use the HUD Save button (or press nothing — the game auto-saves after each combat).

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