Part 6: Game Mechanics - Damage Types

Game Mechanics: Damage Types

In the Etrian Odyssey games, you can attack enemies with physical attacks and elements like most other JRPGs. There's three elements you can attack the enemies with.

Fire

Ice

Volt

I don't really have much to say about the elements, other than that the Landsknecht, Alchemist, Ronin, and Gunner have access to skills that let them use these elements against enemies. Troubadours and elemental oils can imbue a party member's regular physical attack with an element as well.

There's three physical damage types as well, and I'll list the weapons that are associated with each damage type. Unless the weapon itself states otherwise, most weapons fall under these categories.

Cut

Swords, Whips, Katanas.

Stab

Bows, Guns.

Bash

Axes, Staves, Claws, no weapon.

Now the physical damage types, I have more to say about. The weaknesses for these don't really have an even distribution. In fact, more enemies resist physical attacks instead of being weak to them. While there's a handful of enemies weak to stab, there's only 3 enemies weak to cut, and 0 enemies weak to bash! This makes axes an even more questionable weapon for Landsknechts to wield, since they can't exploit any weaknesses with that weapon.

There's two other damage types, poison and untyped. Poison ignores defenses and resistances and deals a fixed amount of damage depending on the skill and skill level. Untyped doesn't ignore defenses, but it ignores weaknesses and resistances, making them useful in that regard.