Editing Techniques

''This page describes the game mechanics of techniques. [[:Category:Technique]] is the list of techniques that have been designed and [[Creating Techniques]] is the guide to making your own techniques.''

Techniques are discrete attacks, blocks, tricks and other manoeuvres that tuxemon perform in combat.

= How they work =

=== Acquisition ===
There are two main options for how techniques are acquired:

# A tuxemon species knows a certain number of techniques automatically, and they might be able to learn or acquire others from another list.
# A tuxemon species learns certain techniques at certain levels, and they might be able to learn or acquire others from another list.

=== Availability ===
To keep things managable, tuxemon should probably only have access to a finite set of techniques in combat. There are two options:

# When a tuxemon learns a new technique but they are already at their limit, they have to forget an old technique
# Out of battle, a tuxemon trainer can choose their tuxemon's techniques, from the list of all techniques that they know

The latter is how [[EvoCreo]] does it. However, there is some concern that this takes an interesting decision away from the player. 

=== Additional ===

Tuxemon could learn additional techniques from a number of sources:

* [[Technical Manual]]s
* [[Move Module]]s
* Other tuxemon

Both options are attractive, and having both lets comparisons be made between them: pay a corporation for a Technical Manual, or share knowledge between tuxemon for no charge.

=== Uses ===

There are also a number of ways of pacing how many times a technique can be used:

* Each technique could have a fixed number of Power Points, determining how many times it can be used before a rest is required.
* Techniques could each have a cost in mana - once mana is too low, they are not available for use. Tuxemon might recover mana over time
* Techniques could have a recharge time: once used, it takes them a while to be available for use again. 
* Techniques could be used any number of times, perhaps because there is a scissors-paper-rock dynamic where over-using a particular technique is dangerous.
* Techniques could be rationed in another way, like [[Dynamons World]]'s technique card deck. 

I think recharging is the best way of doing it. 

=== Varieties ===

There are a number of types of technique you can have:

* Distinguishing between attacks based on how they use Stats - Melee (the attacking tuxemon bodily strikes the target in close quarters) and Ranged (the attacking tuxemon using a projectile, energy beam, pseudopod or other remote attack)
* Having a mega technique and a healing technique in dedicated slots, like [[EvoCreo]] does
* Additional generic techniques, like Defend

=== Elements ===

The most obvious is for techniques to have [[Types]] that match the types that monsters can have, including having two types if such a thing is possible for monsters. 

However, there are a few other options: 

* Only being able to have one type.
* An additional type, "Aether", that takes on the user tuxemon's type(s). This allows for generic attacks like tackles and bites to not belong to a particular type. 
* Special techniques - which don't involve attacks - don't need a type at all. 
* Techniques could have completely different types to the types that monsters have. See [[Type]]s for more discussion.

=== Options ===

There could be any number of options for techniques. Some are below under Other options.

= Current and proposed implementation =

''[https://forum.tuxemon.org/thread.php?pid=2258 Original thread]''

Technique effects are defined in the [http://www.tuxemon.org/docs/core.components.monster.html#core.components.monster.Technique core.components.monster.Technique] class. 

Each tuxemon species has three techniques all individuals of that species automatically know. The final fourth slot can be filled with a technique from a [[Technical Manual]] or one taught by a fellow tuxemon, or left empty. 

Each technique has a recharge time between one Round (i.e. available from the next round) and four Rounds. 

Each technique has the following options:

* Element (one or two; only for attacks - all special techniques get the Aether element): Element(s) determine whether the target is weak or resistant to the attack. 
* Accuracy (0 to 100): Accuracy is the chance of the technique succeeding. 
* Potency (0 to 100; only for technqiues with a User or Target Condition, or both): Potency is the chance of the conditions being applied.
* User Condition: The condition that the user receives (if Potency is successful)
* Target Condition: The condition that the target receives (if Potency is successful)
* Power (0 to 3; 0 for non-attacks): The damage multiplier
* Healing Power (0 to 16): The healing multiplier
* Fast: Whether the user's Speed is increased for determining who goes first
* Area (only for attacks): Whether the attack does damage even if the technique fails
* Recharge: How many Rounds you have to wait before it can be used again
* Range (Melee, Ranged, Touch, Reach, Reliable; only for attacks): Which Stats are compared for calculating damage

== Attack Properties ==

'''Fast''' attacks multiply the user's Speed by 1.5 for this Round.

'''Area''' attacks do half Damage on a Miss. No Conditions on a Miss, however. 

== Attack Categories ==

[[Techniques]] have one of six '''attack categories''':

* '''Special:''' Any technique that does not involve an attack
* '''Melee:''' Multiply damage by User Melee/Target Armour
* '''Ranged:''' Multiply damage by User Ranged/Target Dodge
* '''Touch:''' Multiply damage by User Melee/Target Dodge
* '''Reach:''' Multiply damage by User Ranged/Target Armour
* '''Reliable:''' Multiply by 1

== Damage formula ==

    (User Melee or Ranged/Target Armour or Dodge OR 1 if Reliable) * (7 + User Level) * Technique Power * Weakness or Resistance Multiplier

= Other options =

* [[Other technique ideas]]
* [[Technique design space]]