The system command is similar to the monk/assassin's "fightstyle" command, in that you can choose a limited number of abilities that will activate automatically in combat later. Each system has an associated power cost; some may cost 5 power, others 10. Every droid has 100 total power points to spend which limits the number of systems that can be running at the same time. Power regenerates at the rate of 0.3 power/second, both in and out of combat.
- Haze: Some systems, when activated together, create a synergistic effect, enhancing each others' abilities or creating an additional effect. Though the official documentation claims you don't get a message when a haze takes place, you actually do: "You detect that this system works efficiently with another." Activating Phantom and Shadow is an example of a haze; phantom allows you to dodge more attacks and shadow ups phantom's success rate.
- Override: Some systems cannot be activated together, such as siphon and eyelasers. Activating one system will automatically deactivate the other if it is on, and vice-versa.
- Overloading: You can go below 0 power, all the way to -10 if necessary. DarkSkies documentation claims that going below 0 "may decrease the effectiveness of systems and will hinder in your ability to regenerate." Delightfully vague, isn't it? If you need to activate one additional system quickly and then turn it off before combat, do it even if it knocks you under 0. For example you can activate shadow to use darkness, activate darkness, then deactivate shadow and darkness will remain. If activating a system would push you below -10, you will get an error message and the system will fail. Using photon blast will not push you below 0 power, and will fail when you reach 4 or less power.
- Configure: You can create various "sets" of systems that you can save and use later against specific classes. Use setup # (system name), exactly as you would using the system command. Once your setup is ready, using configure # will go through your systems one by one, shutting off or turning them on as appropriate. What's nice about changing your system this way is you don't suffer any lag while your system configures, and you can move around, attack, and otherwise act normally. You're still very likely to lose, though, if you come into a combat with the wrong setup because of the time it takes for configure to complete.
Systems[]
Much of this information was contributed by the player Blasphemy, sent to brbrainerd via e-mail. Thank him if you see him!
Accelerator[]
You begin pumping more adrenalin from your accelerator system.
- Cost: 15
- Location: Arms
- Haze: None
- Override: Siphon
Similiar to haste, this system adds 2 attacks vs mobs, 1 vs players. This is a normal melee attack and can be dodged/parried, however on average you will perform exactly 1 more attack per round on average.
Antilight[]
You deploy an antilight satellite.
- Cost: 5
- Location:
- Haze: Lightcloak
- Override:
This ability causes night to fall on your room and does not drain your movement points by itself. See the haze section for info on droid class invisibility. Adds combat bonuses?
Autosuction[]
Vaccuum suction forms beneath each foot.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Legs
- Haze:
- Override: Distortion
Adds a 50% failure rate to your opponent's chance to flee. I'm told. It seems like what it really should do is prevent your opponent from making *you* flee, but I'll need to conduct more testing to know.
Barrier[]
You begin powering a barrier around yourself.
- Cost: 15
- Location:
- Haze:
- Override: Hydrovex
Provides a 7.5% damage reduction, similar to sleeves arti.
Bioweapons[]
Your stun tubes fill with nerve poison.
- Cost: 10
- Location:
- Haze: Nervegas adds 1 attack
- Override:
Allows use of venomspit and web. On other codebases, venomspit is the core Droid midround ability, but my experience so far has been that if you just spam venomspit you'll lose every time. Venomspit deals 4 undodgeable attacks (5 with nervegas), lags for 3.5 seconds, poisons your opponent, and does not appear to lag, knock down, or push the opponent despite the flavor text. Only does about 5k damage the first time, but the real damage comes from the poison over time. This damage is significant, and ticks for a small percentage of your opponent's total hp each round. Some builds might consider using venomspit once early in combat and then reconfiguring to blast.
Cleanser[]
Your cleanser creates a mist from your neck.
- Cost: 15
- Location: Head
- Haze: Siphon
- Override:
This ability removes 30% of all dispellable effects from you each round, and triggers when new effects are added, removing beneficial and deleterious effects alike. This does not remove web, kekk debuffs, or shinobi fire, but it does remove uk aura debuffs, and werewolf debuffs. I do not recommend this system to anyone; in repeated tests vs an AI uk both opponents finished with the same final HP each time, with or without cleanser. You may find a situational use for it in PvE.
Distortion[]
You mask your presence with waves of air distortion.
- Cost: 10
- Location:
- Haze: Mindlink
- Override: Autosuction
Adds a 50% chance of failure for your opponent's flee attempts (that's what the "The distortion field slows (target) and you step in the way!" messages mean).
Etherlink[]
Ethereal waves pulse through each wrist's circuit.
- Cost: 5
- Location: Arms
- Haze: Mindlink
- Override:
Similar to a zombie's sensing abilities, etherlink will provide information to the player when a player sneaks into or out of the room, when someone is invis in the room, when a mob or player is looking, and will show everything's alignment at all times.
Hologram[]
Your legs generate holographic distortions.
- Cost: 10
- Location:
- Haze:
- Override: Pathfinder
Adds +5 to the droid's dodge rating.
Hybernia[]
Your system takes on an eldritch glow.
- Cost: 10
- Location:
- Haze:
- Override: Nanorepair
Similar to Eyeforaneye, this system deals a percentage (5.6% in testing) of damage done to you with every attack back to your opponent. This ability reflects both midround and normal melee damage.
Hydrovex[]
Your nervous system floods with a constant current of water.
- Cost: 15
- Location: Head
- Haze:
- Override: Barrier
Increases your melee damage by 5% +1% each with each successive round up to a maximum of 10%.
Kinetic[]
Your nervous system begins converting motion into energy.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Head
- Haze: Photon
- Override:
This converts the attacks dealt to you into power for your battery (25% chance per hit from your opponent to recharge battery by 1); this effect is useful primarily in conjunction with the Blast ability. When activated, this ability restores your battery to full in addition to its regenerative effects.
Lightcloak[]
Your lightcloak bends the light around you.
- Cost: 5
- Location:
- Haze: Antilight
- Override:
This makes you invisible during the nighttime, and drains your movement points. See the haze section for more.
Mindlink[]
An electromagnetic antenna rises from your skull.
- Cost: 5
- Location: Head
- Haze: Etherlink, Distortion
- Override:
Allows use of the confuse ability, which forces your opponent to flee. Confuse can fail even if there is an exit in every direction (and fails increasingly often the fewer exits are available), however it only lags you for about one second. Hazing with Distortion or Etherlink does not seem to improve success rate of confuse.
Missiles[]
Your missile bays prepare for launch.
- Cost: 15
- Location:
- Haze: Seekerbots
- Override:
Allows use of the launch ability, which deals 10-14k damage with 4 seconds of lag; less dps than Blast. However Launch costs no power from your battery, and its damage is not enhanced by seekerbots.
Nanorepair[]
Your nanobugs come alive and prepare the repair sequence.
- Cost: 10
- Location:
- Haze:
- Override: Hybernia
Heals you for about 5k every 5 seconds, slightly faster than once every two rounds. Also gives 1 extra limb regen. Works out of combat. Awesome ability for PvE.
Nervegas[]
Your legs deploy nerve gas.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Legs
- Haze:
- Override:Orbital
Enhances venomspit damage, and adds a venom spit attack to melee combat. This attack is not a melee attack, and is guaranteed to hit every round but for less damage.
Orbital[]
Your orbital satellites return to your shoulders.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Torso
- Haze:
- Override: Nervegas
Grants a 1-in-9 chance to block a melee attack, similar to the ninja decoy combo or drow darkaura. It is very, very good against melee classes, especially those whose midrounds can be dodged (such as Tanarri).
Pathfinder[]
You active the pathfinder circuits in your arms.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Arms
- Haze:
- Override: Hologram
Pathfinder increases your parry bypass by 5, causing your attacks to hit more often.
Photon[]
Your photon cannon expands out from your torso.
- Cost: 15
- Location: Torso
- Haze: Kinetic
- Override:
Allows use of the Blast ability, which does about 25k damage but lags for 6.5 seconds. It also costs 5 power per use, so you're forced to leave at least 5 power free if you want to use this ability as your primary middie.
Seekerbots[]
The seeker system has been fully activated.
- Cost: 15
- Location: ?
- Haze: Missiles
- Override:
Enables the seekertag ability. I've heard it claimed that this turns missiles into AoE, or that it enables you to hit your opponent from outside of the room, but I have not been able to confirm this in testing. For now, the ability appears to be useless.
Siphon[]
Your siphon begins drawing out magic.
- Cost: 15
- Location:
- Haze: Cleanser
- Override: Accelerator
When used in conjunction with cleanser, this will heal you for every effect cleanser removes. I don't believe Siphon has any effect without Cleanser active. In my experience, for whatever amount siphon heals for, it's not worth it. Just use cleanse when necessary.
Synchronizer[]
A small gyroscope activates in each of your secondary arms.
- Cost: 10
- Location: Arms
- Haze: Bioweapons+Nervegas+Synchronizer
- Override:
Allows you to use a third and fourth arm while active.
Translocator[]
Spacial navigation system activated.
- Cost: 5
- Location:
- Haze: Antilight+Distortion+Translocator
- Override:
Allows use of the translocate ability, which functions as a lagged secondary recall. Can be used in combat with antilight and distortion.
Two System Hazes[]
Antilight + Lightcloak[]
Total Cost: 10
This ability used to be an infinitely long invis that lasted through combat and never wore off. Crystalsight does penetrate it, and it now does drain movement. I am unsure if it still lasts once combat begins.
Cleanser + Siphon[]
Total Cost: 30
Heals 0.5% hp every time your cleanser scrubs off an effect. In my experience it's not worth it--not even close.
Distortion + Mindlink[]
Total Cost:15
No idea what it does yet.
Etherlink + Mindlink[]
Total Cost: 10
This adds the (MOB) tag to monsters in look and show's a character's name instead of "someone" when blinded or invis.
Kinetic + Photon[]
Total Cost: 25
Despite the fact that you receive a haze message, this does not appear to be a haze in the usual sense; the independent functions of these two systems just happen to work well together. Kinetic does not reduce photon blast's lag or increase its damage, it simply provides more battery life to be fed into photon blasts, reducing the risk that you'll run out of power. Because power regenerates so slowly without kinetic, if you're going to be using Blast it's recommended you use kinetic as well.
Missile + Seekerbot[]
Total Cost: 30
This will turn your missiles into an area attack.
Three System Hazes[]
Bioweapons + Nervegas + Synchronizer[]
This is a venomspit damage triple enhancement. Even with all of this, though, most droids prefer to use photon blast. At this time, it is unclear what this haze does. Perhaps it increases the amount of damage poison deals per tick.
Antilight + Distortion + Translocator[]
This allows you to translocate in combat, making this one of the most powerful escape abilities in the game.
Overrides, which is better?[]
Accelerator <-> Siphon[]
- Generally accelerator is better because siphon is so situational. Accelerator is expensive, though, and should not be in all of your configs.
Barrier <-> Hydrovex[]
- Depends on the circumstances. Usually I do hydrovex just because most classes have better middies than you do, so you want to push as much of the emphasis onto melee as you can, ending the fight quickly before their middy damage catches up to you.
Hologram <-> Pathfinder[]
- Seems roughly even.
Nervegas <-> Orbital[]
- It's fairly close, and even if you're using a venomspit build it's a tough choice. Orbital works well with nanorepair and venomspit, in damage-over-time fights that you're looking to extend as long as possible. However I generally prefer nervegas in most situations since it will give you ~4k damage per round (1 melee hit). Orbital has a 1 in 9 chance to block and generally you will be receiving less than 9 hits per round unless you are fighting a class whose midround does melee damage (such as a Tanar'ri's enrage ability).
What systems don't haze?[]
- Accelerator
- Autosuction
- Barrier
- Hydrovex
- Nanorepair
- Orbital
- Synchronizer