Warning: Long post ahead. Keep reading, I promise I'll get to the point as quickly as I can.
MxO CR 1.0 In Brief:
Zero-sum combat system where Combat Tactics decide the winner of each round. Inside of Interlock, Tactics encompass both offense and defense and are divided by type, Ranged Combat Tactics for guns and knife attacks, Melee Combat Tactics for martial arts and self-defense. Outside of Interlock, Ranged Combat Tactics are resisted by Dodge Ranged, and Melee Tactics cannot be used. Viral attacks are governed by a sub-system consisting of Viral Transmission for launching of attacks and Viral Deflection for resisting them. Inside Interlock, Viral Transmission is contested directly by the opponents' appropriate Tactic score (RCT, MCT, or VT).
The majority of Combat Tactics are granted by the Awakened ability, growing in power as it is leveled up to a maximum of +200 CT at level 50. Level differences are very difficult to overcome because of the base difference in Tactics, but can be mitigated by buffs and items used to increase Tactic scores. At the heart of the system is a random number generator with a relatively small spread of numbers, making Tactic bonuses VERY important. A difference of +/-10 CT bonus can mean you are all but incapable of hitting your opponent. Player distributed Attributes play a very weak and secondary role, but can add a few points to your chosen Tactic score.
Flawed, but very transparent. It was easy to see how and why a given character succeeded or failed.
Enter MxO CR 2.0:
The zero-sum system is scrapped in favor of a system of contested offense and defense. The damage types are broken down into four components - Ballistic for guns, Melee for martial arts and self-defense (as well as non-viral Coder style attacks, non-viral Hacker style attacks, and unarmed, non-special attacks of Spy style), Thrown for special moves derived from the Spy branch of the Operative tree, and Viral for attacks from the Hacker tree. Each damage type carries its own offensive strength (governed by Accuracy) which is directly resisted by the target's appropriate defensive strength (governed by Defense). This system of contested offensive and defensive scores functions consistently both in and out of Interlock. Level differences play a vastly reduced role in your ability to hit a given opponent because of a much larger spread of numbers from the random number generator.
The focus is shifted to Resistance, your ability to mitigate the damage that results form an enemy's successful attack on you. Resistance comes from three possible sources. Clothing grants the majority of Resistance, giving higher leveled players the advantage of being able to wear clothes that grant more Resistance. Certain Abilities also grant Resistances, but mainly only the Title Buffs of the various classes (e.g. Soldier or Utility Technician), and mainly only Melee and Ballistic Resistance. Lastly, there is a hidden system of "level-based damage mitigation", whereby a character of lower level automatically does less damage to a character of higher level. How this system functions and how much damage is mitigated is currently unknown. Player distributed Attributes take a much more central role in providing the largest bonuses to the various Influences that ultimately determine a character's Accuracy and Defense scores, as well as Resistances and other factors.
Almost universally agreed to be a better system, but where did the tranparency go? Looking at the above, you could say that it seems fairly simple, and very transparent, but the above is only half the story. You see, Combat Tactics still weigh in to success and failure in CR 2.0, BUT WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW!
Let's take a look at the Combat panel of the Status screen.
MxO CR 1.0 In Brief:
Zero-sum combat system where Combat Tactics decide the winner of each round. Inside of Interlock, Tactics encompass both offense and defense and are divided by type, Ranged Combat Tactics for guns and knife attacks, Melee Combat Tactics for martial arts and self-defense. Outside of Interlock, Ranged Combat Tactics are resisted by Dodge Ranged, and Melee Tactics cannot be used. Viral attacks are governed by a sub-system consisting of Viral Transmission for launching of attacks and Viral Deflection for resisting them. Inside Interlock, Viral Transmission is contested directly by the opponents' appropriate Tactic score (RCT, MCT, or VT).
The majority of Combat Tactics are granted by the Awakened ability, growing in power as it is leveled up to a maximum of +200 CT at level 50. Level differences are very difficult to overcome because of the base difference in Tactics, but can be mitigated by buffs and items used to increase Tactic scores. At the heart of the system is a random number generator with a relatively small spread of numbers, making Tactic bonuses VERY important. A difference of +/-10 CT bonus can mean you are all but incapable of hitting your opponent. Player distributed Attributes play a very weak and secondary role, but can add a few points to your chosen Tactic score.
Flawed, but very transparent. It was easy to see how and why a given character succeeded or failed.
Enter MxO CR 2.0:
The zero-sum system is scrapped in favor of a system of contested offense and defense. The damage types are broken down into four components - Ballistic for guns, Melee for martial arts and self-defense (as well as non-viral Coder style attacks, non-viral Hacker style attacks, and unarmed, non-special attacks of Spy style), Thrown for special moves derived from the Spy branch of the Operative tree, and Viral for attacks from the Hacker tree. Each damage type carries its own offensive strength (governed by Accuracy) which is directly resisted by the target's appropriate defensive strength (governed by Defense). This system of contested offensive and defensive scores functions consistently both in and out of Interlock. Level differences play a vastly reduced role in your ability to hit a given opponent because of a much larger spread of numbers from the random number generator.
The focus is shifted to Resistance, your ability to mitigate the damage that results form an enemy's successful attack on you. Resistance comes from three possible sources. Clothing grants the majority of Resistance, giving higher leveled players the advantage of being able to wear clothes that grant more Resistance. Certain Abilities also grant Resistances, but mainly only the Title Buffs of the various classes (e.g. Soldier or Utility Technician), and mainly only Melee and Ballistic Resistance. Lastly, there is a hidden system of "level-based damage mitigation", whereby a character of lower level automatically does less damage to a character of higher level. How this system functions and how much damage is mitigated is currently unknown. Player distributed Attributes take a much more central role in providing the largest bonuses to the various Influences that ultimately determine a character's Accuracy and Defense scores, as well as Resistances and other factors.
Almost universally agreed to be a better system, but where did the tranparency go? Looking at the above, you could say that it seems fairly simple, and very transparent, but the above is only half the story. You see, Combat Tactics still weigh in to success and failure in CR 2.0, BUT WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW!
Let's take a look at the Combat panel of the Status screen.
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