Damage calculator

[Holy_Diver]

People should be able to customize their damage formula with your plugin, but I like "damage=atk-def" for the default setting because it's simple for new developers to understand and use. As long as they have the option to change it, starting with the simplest formula makes sense to me.

When it comes to defaults I don't deviate from SOM if there is not a technical reason to do so. I don't want to usurp its identity. Besides _1-_2 is easy enough to write into a text file.

Still I think that formula could present problems. I wonder if there is a website that documents popular damage formulas. If not we should make one. I reckon once the people have a tool to experiment with a standard formula will emerge. I for one wish game play was more standardized. Every game working differently, detracts from the story telling potential in games I think. It's hard to consume games like books and movies when every one is different. That's not to say that experimentation should not occur. It should just occur behind the scenes IMO. After 30yrs of gaming some standards should have emerged by now.

EDITED: IMO the game mechanics should not detract or add to the experience. They should only exist to make the experience more visceral. Since that is the strength of the medium.

EDITED: I think one formula that might work as a default could be ATK-max(0,DEF-ATK*ATK/(DEF*2))

This says that the exponential formula negates the DEF and then what remains goes through the defenses. It's as if the armor regenerates after each hit. I think armor could be an interesting concept. It would certainly take the all powerfulness away from healing magic in video games, since the healing would heal the body but not the armor. So you might be full HP but standing naked. A game could have living armor that could be healed, lessening the effect of the heal on HP in the process, but I doubt that would fit into many games. Though it might become a popular trope. Like in King's Field probably only the Dark Armor would have that property.

Anyway, the damage formula is pretty buggy. So changing it to some degree is a necessity. Using that formula would at least look similar to the original formula. I want to keep the exponential curve regardless. And I'd like for the results to be similar. I think that formula would basically reduce down to the linear component. But the exponential curve means that it is more forgiving than atk-def would be.