DISCLAIMER NOTE: Nothing here is official, this is just one of my ideas that could help develop UII. Also, this post is long as ever, so please bear with it & have a cup of tea with you.
This topic will primarily focus on UII melee weapons. The idea here is that it would be an improvement over U3’s melee mechanics & it would also be more skill-based than what we currently have so that there may be thought of how it could be better.
Reminder: I recommend reading from top to bottom, skipping parts would cause you to encounter some unlearned mechanics.
MELEE CLASSES
This new feature adds a skill gap that provides different results to foes. They are separated into 3 categories: pointed, edged & trauma melee weapons.
- Pointed melee weapons - focuses on damaging through protection. Examples are most pole weapons like spears & pikes.
- Edged or bladed melee weapons - focuses on damaging opponents with less protection. Knives, axes & swords are examples.
- Trauma or blunt melee weapons - focus in taking on opponents with protection that would normally repel pointed or edged weapons. Hammers & baseball bats fit in this class.
All classes are special in what they do but some can do both & others can be in between which add versatility. This can also mean that some weapons can be listed in 2 or all melee classes. Some perfect examples would be the Halberd which can excel in what all the classes & hooked weapons which can be a mix of pointed & either of the other 2 classes depending on the type of hook.
BETTER ATTACK MECHANICS
Originally what I had in mind is a complex system that adds a sense of direction to the attacks for fluid melee experience & possibilities, which is related to how VR movement works like Blade and Sorcery’s combat system where you can make unlimited kinds of attacks.
But the idea I have in mind for melee right now is just a generic kind of melee. Like 3.0, the fighting is simple with a click or a press of a button. Speed of the weapon is also a consideration & is more important here. Speed will determine the time-to-kill (TTK) so combos are a must in melee combat. While performing light attacks, this causes them to be easily cancelled out when attacked by another light or heavy attack. Unlike 3.0, not only there would be more animations for mostly aesthetic purposes but also more features that derive from the melee classes & an introduction to blocking, parries, shoves, skills & more. Some aspects covered are also affected by player skills, making them more effective overall.
Some of these mechanics that I’m going to explain later will apply to existing UII features. These will also slightly tackle more mechanics on my previous UII zombie overhaul & expectations post. Here is the link to the post. I recommend that you read what’s in here before tackling onto the zombie section in this post.
They highly differ in situations too. It is downright very simplistic in PVE, where it would just take a few mechanics to use such as blocking & parrying zombie swings. On the other case for PVP, they should be taken into consideration because they are more important in combating players with actual skill. Keep in mind that these melee mechanics aren’t overboard & they don’t have advantages against ranged weaponry.
HIT AREAS & IMPROVED ATTACKS
Hit areas are the location where melee attacks will take place. This is an improvement upon the cursor hitscan of U3, which in UII where the melee’s hitscan would hit the area around the cursor instead of center mass. This makes melee attacks hit more often. Hit areas target the opponent closest to the center.
A demonstration in U3 on the improvement of hit areas for UII.
This pairs up well with my newer concept of improved attacks. As for U3, attacks are simply click-and-kill. My thought is to improve it by making light attacks capable of repeating without delays, making a combo, as mentioned earlier. Because lights are exceptional in getting a kill quickly, well-timed damage from a counter-attack can easily cancel them. It can come from another light attack or a heavy attack. Another mechanic I wanted to add is a sweeping attack when light or heavy attacks are charged. This is a variant of the 2 attacks for wave clearing zombies or fending off 2 melee opponents at the right moment. The attacks retain their damage but their hit area gets bigger horizontally. A melee weapon can have a certain maximum sweeping range when charging a sweep. Normal attacks do not hit multiple opponents.
An example of a hit area size when a sweep is fully charged. Applies to both light & heavy sweeps.
There are several differences between a light & heavy sweep. A light sweep’s advantage over the heavy sweep is the speed, faster hit area expansion & no attack delay for retaliating against several opponents like 2 players or against an agile opponent. While a heavy sweep’s advantage over the light sweep is the better damage & steady pacing for cursor displacement, making precise sweeps & offering wave clearing capabilities. Overall, these are mechanics I thought of that is simple while being extremely useful.
BLOCKING
Blocking is a simple but important mechanic that repels attacks. It always prevents the blocker from taking damage depending on what weapon is used. Attacks can be blocked as long as the blocker’s view matches the location of the attack, the attacker’s hit area won’t matter much. The weapon’s durability has a chance to go down when it successfully blocks an attack. Light attacks don’t damage the weapon much but heavy attacks are more likely to do so. Because of it, it also depends on what weapon is used against the weapon that is blocking. For example, two-handed axes have a better chance of damaging a sword.
Blocking can be held with no time limit however movement will slow down & there’s a limit to how much attacks you can block. It depends on the weapon used & it will not necessarily be unique to the class of the weapon. A blocking indicator will display under the cursor & it will measure how many attacks can be blocked. Once depleted, the user staggers & would need to fill up the indicator before the weapon can block again. Light attacks will take it down a bit but heavy attacks can deplete them faster. It would also depend on the weapon’s class. For example, an axe has a better chance of breaking a block.
Minecraft’s attack cooldown indicator as a little inspiration of how the blocking indicator would look like.
Because weapons aren’t shields, they have limitations & weaknesses to what they can block. Blocking a shove or a kick would lead to a full depletion of the blocking indicator & can lead to openings. Blocking arrows would take half of the indicator & would apply staggering. Blocking bullets is possible but not recommended. It varies with the caliber shot. Like arrows, bullets add a staggering effect after blocked but would take varied amounts from blocking depending on the caliber shot. For example, a 9mm can be blocked several times but a .50 BMG would take the entire indicator.
Warframe’s knockdown resist as a reference to how the staggering would work.
Like I said, blocking bullets is not recommended. Because they would ricochet in a random direction & most of the time it would be still hit the blocker. This should take note of especially when blocking a 1-shot potential caliber. There would be no skill to improve on this because blocking is only well utilized against other melee users.
PARRYING
Parrying is a mechanic that helps deflect attacks & turn to the offensive. How this would work is that the parrier parries the attacker’s attempt to attack, rewarding the parrier the upper hand to get on the offensive while the attacker staggers as shown when depleting a blocking indicator.
Again, here’s Warframe’s knockdown resist as a reference to how the staggering would work.
To parry, a heavy attack must be matched with another heavy attack at the last second before damage is inflicted. Because heavy attacks can’t be cancelled but are slow, this makes them predictable & prone to parries to gain the upper hand.
Parrying is not to be mistaken with blocking. Blocking only repels attacks & is for defense while parrying deflects an attack for an opening & is a transitional mechanic.
SHOVES
Shoving is a mechanic that allows one to make distance in defense or corner in offense. It is also a direct counter to blocking, making this the only efficient form of breaking a block instantly in melee combat. On the other hand, it has low damage which makes it more of a tool than a form of attacking.
Shoving as mentioned makes distance, meaning that the one affected is pushed back. This is a benefit when in both offensive & defensive positions. This is important if one needs to get more defensive, especially in cases when their block indicator is empty, or when one could get the upper hand in positioning or getting their blocking foes to break.
CUSTOMIZATION
Let’s not forget the advancement that UII has done to gun customization. So why not add smaller scale customization to melee weapons too. Because melee weapons work differently to ranged weapons, there will be substantial differences.
Melee customization is simpler than gun customization, having fewer parts to customize than guns depending on the class & design of the certain melee weapon. Like interchangeable knife handles or sword guards. Each part affects a stat of the weapon as a whole, such as stronger guards for better blocking & sharper blades for better damage & bleeding.
Another inspiration, this time from For Honor on how simple & effective melee customization would be like.
Unlike gun customization, melee weapons have restrictions when being edited on the move. For most parts, you can only change specific parts that are easy to remove. Like the pommel of the weapon. Replacing parts would require being stationary due to their usual design of not being interchangeable.
DURABILITY & REPAIRING
In this conceptualized mechanic, UII melee weapons would need care for individual parts. Each time their durability goes down, the stats they provide would become less effective. This is because of how many times they are used in combat. A few examples can be a damaged blade dealing less damage or a katana guard providing less blocking defense. However, some parts don’t have durability at all since they aren’t involved in combat. Pommels or a few grips wouldn’t get affected.
Repairing, on the other hand, is different from U3’s. Certain parts need different needs to get them in good condition. And some parts need certain processes to get a specific stat in a reliable condition. An example is a blade needing to be hammered to get durability & defense up & needing to be sharpened to help it retain the damage potency it once had. These can be done by either needing a whetstone, that can be used on the move or using a workplace that can get the job done faster by using the simplistic grindstone or the advanced sharpening machine.
Sharpening a blade on a sharpening machine.
Not all parts can be repaired. Some of them would need replacements in order to get the weapon to its best effectiveness. Certain grips wouldn’t last long & eventually, they would need to be replaced once it has broken down. Axe handles & kitchen knife grips are an example in this category.
As durability reaches zero for melee parts, they would break down & provide negative stats. This renders the weapon to be fairly useless or redundant for those specific stats. A broken blade would deal the least damage it can inflict with almost non-existent blocking potential & very minimal range.
APPLICATION TO DUAL-WIELDING
Dual-wielding in UII is a mechanic that makes the use of 2 one-handed weapons at the same time. It would also be a welcoming feature for melee weapons. And obviously, it would come with ups & downs.
Dual-wielding melee weapons would apply various benefits. It would grant faster attack speed & the hit area will be as wide as a sweep on default. An attack is individual from each, this can create follow-ups & synchronized attacks. Attacks from each weapon also create individual hit areas from each side for passive engagements against 2 opponents. Sweeps can be done independently from each weapon & heavy attacks are done by syncing a light attack from both weapons. Blocks also require both weapons to block, meaning that you can’t block individually.
A demonstration of hit areas when dual-wielding melee weapons.
Any type of melee weapon can be used in dual-wielding. But it comes down to the weight or length of the weapon. Because of this, an individual can dual-wield from knives to katanas. If the melee weapon is heavier than the maximum weight needed, it cannot be dual-wielded. Most stats will apply & would also be individual to each weapon used, including the hit area of the weapon & its sweeping range. It can also be a mixup, & one can be different from the other while using them at the same time. Some melee mixup examples are a sword & a dagger, or even a gun & blade on hand.
A gun & melee mechanic differs from dual wielding. The gun can still be shot & aimed as normal, but the melee weapon used alongside the gun replaces the shove & works as normal. Although if the weapon exceeds the required weight, it cannot be used alongside the melee weapon. This makes small firearms like handguns & some SMGs usable alongside melee weapons.
An demonstration of how it the gun & melee would work, this is from Call of Duty Modern Warfare. Surely works with handheld flashlights too don’t you think?
The downside of dual-wielding weapons is that any attack would drain stamina if both weapons in hand are melee weapons, leaving the dual wielder to tire if not aware of it. Although the amount of stamina drained is not as much as heavy attacks, it can be quickly drained depending on how often attacks are performed without rest. Dual wielded weapons will also deal less damage than when they are normally held, at default could take away 35% damage. And blocking in dual-wielding breaks faster than wielding them normally. These disadvantages are to compensate them from being too overpowered & is a mechanic that would be more fun to play with & to encourage people to use their melee weapons as normal as possible.
UNARMED COMBAT
Unarmed combat would also have more additions & features to it. Some changes are that punches are now considered as light attacks & are the earliest forms of creating repeated attacks or combos. The right punch from U3 is now for heavy attacks or kicks. Unlike melee’s heavy attacks, kicks don’t use stamina & have a passive ability to shove back foes although not as much. The downside of kicking though is that there will be a movement penalty while performing it, making the kicker immobile & prone to getting hit. Parrying is similar in unarmed combat, albeit the staggers don’t last long.
Sweeps are replaced with chargeable attacks. These come from either punches or kicks. Charged punches or kicks not only hit harder but also extend the reach by a bit. Charged attacks that hit the head staggers the opponent additionally.
Blocking is also included in unarmed combat. It works similarly but with some additions. Blocks works against other unarmed attacks, but are dependent on where the arms block. Kicks that hit the lower part of the body will still damage, so crouch blocking can be done. The blocking indicator is fragile in unarmed combat. A few punches & kicks can still break blocking with ease. If an attack isn’t unarmed, it will ignore the block entirely. An example can be from any form of weapon or from certain turned. Shoving a block also breaks the block, leaving the blocker open to attacks.
Skills & clothing also affects unarmed combat. It entirely depends on what is worn. Some examples are military hard knuckle gloves that could deal more damage, knee pads & shoes to deal more kicking damage or even boxing gloves for unarmed combat practice. Other than offense, most clothing would also defend against unarmed combat. Like armor to negate almost any unarmed damage.
PLAYER SKILLS TO MELEE
As for melee to be improved by skills. I had 2 concepts for this matter. This would be for the sake of the number of skills to implement if the variety were to be as similar to what we have now in U3.
FIRST CONCEPT
This is the first iteration of what would it be with newer skills related to melee. These skills are in a subcategory in offense & defense skill categories. This concept adds in:
- Counterstriker - A defensive skill. Grants more efficient parrying timing.
- Guardian - A defensive skill. Makes blocking more efficient & recover faster from staggers.
- Resilience - A defensive skill. Less distance pushed from a shove & less movement penalty from blocking.
- Provoker - An offensive skill. Shoving pushes further & can be done faster.
- Riot - An offensive skill. Melee attacks are faster & sweeps cover an area faster.
- Berserk - An offensive skill. Melee attacks have a better chance to hit & sweeps cover up more area. Dual-wielded weapons also gain more damage.
- Brawler - An offensive skill. Unarmed attacks deal more damage & staggers inflicted last longer.
- Martial Artist - An offensive skill. Unarmed attacks are done faster, unarmed parrying is more efficient & kicking is more effective overall.
- Melee Manager - A support skill. Melee weapon management is improved such as sharpening & repairing.
- Grinder - A support skill. Melee weapon parts held take less damage while also taking less time from sharpening, hammering & repairing a melee weapon.
SECOND CONCEPT
This is the second iteration of what would it be if the skills are improved. Unlike the first, this updates the skills to do melee feats rather than make new ones. The changes are:
- Overkill - Shoving deals more damage, shove with greater force & break blocks faster.
- Sharpshooter - Melee attacks are more precise by little & sweeping area is bigger.
- Dexterity - Faster sweep charge up time & less blocking delay.
- Cardio - Faster blocking recovery & parry stagger recovery.
- Exercise - Faster swing speed & less shoving delay.
- Toughness - More blocking power.
- Strength - Less distance pushed from a shove & less movement penalty from blocking.
REPEATING WEAPONS IN UII
Repeating weapons would work as usual, or maybe with a bit more additions to make it versatile. They would work as normal as usual, but the hotkey for heavy attacks is now usable for swings. Sweeps can be done too in case wave clearing is needed.
Shoves can be done with a repeating weapon. It would work similarly & is intended for defensive maneuvers. Blocking is also the same, & some weapons like the chainsaw would have a perk of damaging attacking weapons while blocking or parrying. Other weapons cannot block repeating weapon attacks, although the swings & sweeps can be blocked.
Parrying with melee weapons is possible. With the chainsaw being the most effective since it can damage weapons that attack the chainsaw user while parrying as well. Making it very effective.
The attack that U3 Chainsaws do as of now would lower the look sensitivity in this UII concept. This makes it cumbersome when moving the cursor. It penalizes the look speed, although not the movement. This is to give a downside for the repeated attacks not being able to get blocked.
SHIELDS
Shields are personal armor used to defend from attacks. They come in many shapes & forms, with various roles. Some can defend from melee, others from projectiles or both. They also differ in stats so not all shields would work the same. All shields will have movement penalty, except small shields. More on that later.
There are shields that will block attacks from combat only. They are most effective when defending from all forms of melee combat & certain projectiles. They will not defend from gunfire. There are also modern shields that block some forms of melee attacks, projectiles or shields. Like plexiglass shields that protect from some melee attacks & projectiles. The most effective shield is a ballistic shield, which can block most bullet calibers & melee attacks. They still have restrictions on what caliber they can block & not all ballistic shields would have the best stats or hitbox. Shields also come in various sizes, which in turn affect movement.
Some shield sizes to take note of are:
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Long Shields - are shields take cover from head to bottom. They are the most effective in blocking attacks but aren’t effective in counter-attacking when used alone. They are cumbersome, especially when transitioning to blocking or from it. They provide movement penalty when held. Some examples of long shields are the Scutum & the riot shields.
The Scutum, a long shield. -
Light Shields - are shields that cover half of the body. They are the middle ground shields & are quite faster than long shields. They are more nimble than long shields, making them a good pair with a weapon. They take less movement penalty & some being effective even when used alone. The only downside is that they expose the lower part of the body. Some examples are the knight’s heater shield & some ballistic shields.
The Bravo Shield. Covers less but it is lighter nonetheless. -
Small Shields - are shields that cover little parts of the body. They are one of the few shields that are suited for combat than for defense. They are the fastest shields available but do little against projectiles. They help make quick blocking, effective shoves & very efficient parries. One example is the buckler.
A buckler used in swordsmanship. It is uncommon & is more effective against other melee attacks.
When working with the blocking mechanic, shields are the most resilient & are hard to get out from their block. Upon taking a hit, shields don’t take almost any affected condition to their blocking indicator. With long shields they are very effective, the drawback would be the speed of the shield in combat. Light shields are the most effective due to the duality of defense & offense. A user can be on the defensive while attacking at the same time. But some small shields don’t have maximum blocking effectiveness as long shields, which means that they’ll eventually have their guard down if they take too many hits. And finally, it would depend on what weapon is used to attack the light shield user. An example is an axe used to break a light shield’s defense. Small shields, on the other hand, are combat-effective & are used to counter-attack after a block. They have little to no effect against projectiles due to their minuscule size.
When paired with firearms, shields work as similar to that with a gun & melee. The gun can be freely aimed, although it will expose the head. Hip firing, on the other hand, retains the defense the shield is providing. This mechanic’s limitation is also shared with the gun & melee. If the firearm exceeds the needed weight, it cannot be used with the shield. These exceptions can be long shotguns or assault rifles.
A demonstration of how a gun & shield synergy would work. Thanks Rainbow Six Siege.
Shields are the best defending tools, but they have exceptions to what they can block. Shields that aren’t modern are prone to gunfire & some modern shields can’t block certain calibers like sniper rounds or cannon shells. They also can’t block area-of-effect attacks (AOE) like large explosions or fire. Some shields will defend from grenade shrapnel, although it would depend on the distance.
APPLICATION TO TURNED IN PVE
Weapons in PVE would vary. With the sweeping feature as the best for clearing waves of turned. And some other weapons could prove effective against tanky turned like two-handed axes or hammers. Turned attacks can be blocked & parried in both melee & unarmed forms. The turned would stagger, which is similar to getting stunned except with some level or knockback. Weapons with certain classes would also take part. Like pointed weapons going through protection that turned are wearing or blunt weapons dealing more stun to zombies. Shoves are important in PVE, in many cases where you would need to make distance from a zombie because you are unarmed or in critical condition.
Unarmed combat in PVE isn’t that effective but it is enough to make the start of early games decent. Against turned, it is fair enough to keep them at bay. Turned biting, on the other hand, would go through blocks but it can be parried. Turned do not only get stunned but also stagger & eventually knocked down when it has taken too many hits that count as stunning or staggering.
Shields in PVE are crowd-controlling tools. They can be used to hold off multiple turned & block almost any attack, even bites. Although there is a certain amount to how much a shield can hold. If a shield is blocking more turned than the maximum number needed, the blocking indicator starts to fall & would require rest to have it back up or the shield user would eventually tire out & stagger. Some turned attacks will be ignored. Like turned crawler attacks if one is not aware of it or when an acid turned shoots at the area. Most attacks from Megas would ignore the shield.
CONCLUSION
These conceptualized melee mechanics are to make melees more interesting while being as simple as possible. They are simple in order to be learned easily for all players, nothing very complex. This also makes it so that the experience in both PVE & PVP would be skill-based & enjoyable. Skill-based in a way that they would understand & use them to their advantage & learning. And in enjoyable as in moments that make the fights very intriguing, especially for roleplaying or cinematic purposes. These are what I think should be in Unturned II & why it should be. Overall it would be nice to see in the game.
Any thoughts about this? Simply comment & I would be open to what is said. And thanks to those that like this topic.
