Useful Damage Tips
A collection of useful basics about attack, defense, level scaling, elements, skills, buffs, and passives when using the Damage Calculator.
← Back to Damage Calculator1. Attack and Defense are not simple subtraction.
Damage is not calculated as Attack - Defense. Attack, the target's Defense, and both sides' levels are calculated together, so the value of the same Attack increase can change depending on the target.
2. Level difference affects actual damage.
Even with the same Attack and Defense, damage decreases against a higher-level target and increases against a lower-level target. When attacker and defender are the same level, the level modifier is exactly 1.0.
3. Weak Attack and Strong Attack use separate stats.
Weak attacks use the Weak Attack value shown in the stat window, while strong attacks use Strong Attack. Strong-attack damage is not simply created by multiplying weak-attack damage by a fixed value.
4. The physical portion of attack skills is based on Strong Attack.
For a skill, base physical damage is calculated from Strong Attack first, then the skill's own physical modifier is applied. Strong Attack can still matter even when the skill also deals elemental damage.
5. Physical and elemental skill damage are calculated separately.
The physical and elemental portions of a skill are calculated independently and then added together. This is why skill damage can rise from INT or Element Attack even when physical Attack barely changes.
6. Elemental damage is also affected by level.
The Element Attack value is not added directly as flat final damage. Elemental damage is calculated using elemental defense and the levels of the attacker and defender as well.
7. A monster's elemental defense applies to attacks of its own element.
For example, when a Fire monster is hit with Fire damage, that monster's elemental defense is applied. Checking both the monster's element and Element Defense can therefore matter when comparing damage.
8. Opposite elements do not automatically give a fixed bonus multiplier.
Fire ↔ Water and Earth ↔ Wind are opposite pairs, but attacking with the opposite element does not simply grant a fixed final-damage multiplier. Element Attack from your stat window can also be partially offset when it opposes the element of the skill being used.
9. INT affects elemental skill damage for Mage and Priest classes.
Mage and Priest elemental skills receive INT scaling on the skill's elemental attack value. This means INT, Element Attack, the skill's own values, and related passives can be just as important as physical Attack.
10. Higher weapon Attack does not always mean the same increase in skill damage.
Strong Attack affects the physical part of a skill, but skills with a large elemental portion may benefit more from INT or elemental options. Comparing weapons against the monster you actually hunt gives a better picture than looking only at displayed Attack.
11. Buffs and passives are not all applied at the same stage.
Physical Attack increases, elemental increases, skill-element bonuses, and enemy Defense reduction can be applied at different points in the calculation. Stacking multiple effects therefore does not always equal simply adding every percentage together.
12. A Summoner spirit's displayed Element Attack is not simply added to its Bolt skill.
When a spirit is summoned, its displayed Element Attack is not directly added to the matching Bolt. Instead, the spirit's skill-based elemental attack bonus is applied to the attack skill.
13. The value of +10 Attack is not always the same.
Because current Attack and enemy Defense are both part of the formula, the same +10 Attack can produce different real damage gains against different monsters. This is why displayed Attack alone cannot fully measure equipment efficiency.
14. Defense is not a fixed amount of damage reduction.
Having 500 Defense does not simply subtract 500 from incoming damage. Enemy Attack and your Defense are calculated together, so the effect of the same Defense value changes depending on the attacker.
15. Incoming damage follows the same basic principle.
The monster becomes the attacker and your character becomes the defender. Monster Contact, Weak, or Strong Attack, your Defense, both levels, Element Attack, and Element Defense are reflected in the result.