Rune Star has a great deal of combat mechanics that all impact the flow
of combat. These can be a bit confusing to the casual player, but
knowing how every little detail works is not necessary
to have an enjoyable experience in Rune Star. Read on only if you
are curious, or if you really want to get the most out of your
abilities.
Infantry:
Infantry
are the backbone of Rune Star combat. You will fight these units
in all Arcade missions and they are the only unit which players
ever get as allies.
They are the most basic of units and fight by attempting to
overwhelm with numbers rather than vex with skill. Get used to
them, because they are the fighters that you can always count on being
there. These are collectively known as Soldier-types, to
distinguish them from the more powerful humanoid Warrior-types.
Soldier
Soldiers are the most basic of enemies in Rune Star. They come as
either males or females. Males have longer reach and more HP,
while females can move and attack slightly faster and deal more damage.
Soldiers have only one standard melee attack.
BREAK condition: Strike a soldier while it is attacking or has
just attacked to knock off its weapon. They will flinch for a
second and then run away in fear. Soldiers that have escaped
still count as KOs in Survival mode.
Allied Soldier units will also appear occasionally. These units
have better reaction times and more HP than standard enemy soldiers.
Kill Credit: 100 Break Bonus: 100
Captain
Captains are one step better than the normal soldiers. They have
twice as much HP and higher power and dexterity, as well as a charge
attack variation of their normal attack.
BREAK condition: Same as normal soldiers, except that rather than
running away, they will remain on the battlefield and fight
bare-handed, for less reach and damage. Captains will not BREAK
if they are attacked while using their charge attacks.
Kill Credit: 400 Break Bonus: 100
Super Trooper
Super Troopers are the ultimate evolution of the soldier type
(not counting Warlords). They have over 3 times as much HP as a
normal soldier, much higher power, dex and res scores, and a special
attack with higher stun force and an elemental status change.
BREAK condition: Same as captains, if attacked while using a
normal melee attack, they will lose their weapons and continue fighting
with their bare fists. Super Troopers can use their special
attacks as normal even after BREAKing.
Kill Credit: 1000 Break Bonus: 500
Zombie
Zombies are Soldier types that have been infected with the Zombie
Parasite. They have 3 times as much HP as a normal soldier and
will not flinch from any attack (they will still take 100% damage from
the attack and be knocked back, unlike Resisting). Like soldiers,
they are restricted to only a basic melee attack.
BREAK condition: If struck from behind, a zombie will be
decapitated and start losing HP over time. Occasionally, zombies
will become incapacitated upon BREAKing, but this is not always the
case. Attacks that reach past a zombie (such as a ranged or long-reach attack)
count as attacking from behind.
Kill Credit: 600 Break Bonus: 400
Gunman
Gunmen are basic ranged attack units. They can either fire in
fast bursts, or charge up to launch a more powerful shot that will be
directed towards their target.
BREAK condition: If attacked while charging up their special
attack, the gunmen's power matrix will overload, causing the shot to
backfire and damage them, as well as any other enemies who are nearby.
Kill Credit: 150 Break Bonus: 250
Dwarf
Dwarves are powerful and sturdy warriors. They have standard
melee and charged melee attacks that are similar to the Soldier Types'
as well as their own spinning attack, which can trap targets and hit
multiple times.
BREAK condition: If attacked while using their spinning attack,
dwarves will be knocked off balance and spin into other enemies instead,
ricocheting off walls if any are nearby and taking damage while this is
going on. Dwarves can be BREAKed multiple times if the
oppurtunity arrises.
Kill Credit: 800 Break Bonus: 300
Elf
Elves are advanced ranged attack units. They fire psychic arrows which
take a long time to charge but will hoam in on their targets.
Elves can be extremely dangerous if left alone.
BREAK condition: If an elf's psychic shot is attacked, it will
change course and fly into the nearest enemy instead. Elves can
fire any number of BREAKable shots, and can thus be BREAKed multiple
times. Any attack, not necessarily a BREAK attack can be used to deflect shots.
Kill Credit: 800 Break Bonus: 200
Bio Weapons:
Bio Weapons aren't just
creatures that are bred for war, even soldier-types can say that much.
Bio Weapons are creatures that are totally designed to destroy,
every inch of them, every bone, muscle and membrane is perfectly
orchestrated to create an 'ultimate' weapon. Although not yet as
effective as Warrior-types, Bio Weapons are light years ahead of the
average Soldier-type. Bio Weapons tend to be versatile and often
remain dangerous even after being BREAKed.
Dragonoid
Dragonoids are powerful and versatile units. Their punches
have great knock back, and they can trap foes with their breath
attack. Dragoids can cover short distances very quickly by
lunging. They will heal HP over time if left alone.
BREAK condition: If attacked precisely in their centers, (the
center of the attack hit box is aligned to the center of the
dragonoid's hit box), Dragonoids will suffer a greivous wound which
will drop their movement speed and attack speed by half, and will
disable their HP regeneration. Dragonoids can only be BREAKed
once they have 80% or lower HP.
Kill Credit: 1100 Break Bonus: 900
Gunworm
Gunworms are expendable biological weapons that explode when exposed to
extreme force. They can attack by ejecting a small amount of
explosive chemicals without harming themselves.
BREAK condition: If gunworms are attacked with any attack (not
necessarily a BREAK attack) that deals more than a set amount of
damage, they will explode and damage all nearby units, ally and enemy.
This will set off any other nearby Gunworms in a chain reaction that
can kill off unwary players very quickly, but it can also be used
to expertly damage enemies and to increase the kill combo in Survival
mode.
Kill Credit: 120 Break Bonus: 30
Slime
Slimes are large enemies that attack by
stealth. They can use their large eyes and psychic abilities to
map out the surrounding environment and change the pigments in their
amourphous bodies to match it exactly, becoming effectively invisible.
If their concentration is broken, such as while they are
attacking or being attacked, they will become visible.
BREAK condition: If attacked from the front while completely
visible, slimes' eyes will become damaged and they will be unable to go
invisible. Slimes can still detect their targets through
uncoventional means and will continue attacking normally. Slimes can
only be BREAKed once they have 60% or less of their max HP.
Kill Credit: 1600 Break Bonus: 400
Roper
Ropers are quasi-ranged attack bio weapons. They can extend their
mouth-arms to attack at medium distances, but unlike elves and gunmen,
they can also attack short range with their venomous tail-barbs.
BREAK condition: If a roper's arms are attacked while extended,
they will be snapped and detatch from the roper itself. The
mouth-arms have rudimentary neural centers and will begin flailing and
biting once detatched. The roper will be unable to use its arm
attack, but still able to use its tail-barb.
Kill Credit: 1200 Break Bonus: 200 ............ (Roper Arms have Kill Credit: 150)
Robots:
Battle Robots are a dying breed
left over from an age when Soldier-types were too expensive and
Warrior-types were not as strong as they are now. In the modern
age, it is much easier to 'grow' new soldiers than it is to construct
robots, and living weapons are also easier to repair by augmenting
their natural healing abilities. Although Batttle Robots are
slowly being phased out, there are several types that still prove to be
extremely useful on the battlefield. These models are difficult
to deal with, and fight very differently from soldier-types and bio
weapons.
Harpy
Harpies are light and fast enemies and are the only remaining robots that
function as light infantry. They generally work as expendable
units and only distract enemies while more effective units move in for
the kill. Harpies attack by charging and strafing with their
energy lances. They will swoop in quickly when far away or fire
while flying backwards if close by. These attacks tend to be
inaccurate, so it's often better to leave Harpies alone and take care
of the bigger threats.
BREAK condition: If a Harpy is attacked while it is attacking,
(while it is glowing green), it will explode, destroying it completely.
No other units will be harmed by the explosion.
Kill Credit: 400 Break Bonus: 500
Cyclops
Although Cyclopses are relatively ineffective at dealing damage, they
are incredibly difficult to destroy. Most of their size is taken
up by a powerful energy shield that will deflect any attack made from
the front. Even with the Cyclops' huge size, it is not enough to
mount a barrier system that could protect it indefinitely.
Cyclopses can attack with either their medium range laser or by
creating a destructive energy field around themselves.
BREAK condition: Attacking a Cyclops' shield repeatedly will
cause it to overload and BREAK. The shield will absorb any amount
of damage, but requires a set amount of energy to activate so it is
better to attempt this with less damaging, faster attacks. The
shield will regenerate while not under attack. If it is not
allowed to regenerate, the shield will dissipate after 12 hits and will
not regenerate after being BREAKed. Any attack, not necessarilly
a BREAK attack, will deplete the shields.
Kill Credit: 3000 Break Bonus: 2000
Titan
Titans are powerful enemies that are difficult to approach because of
their wide range and high Resistance. Titans usually attack with
their swords, but they can unleash a heavily destructive ranged attack
if their opponents do not close in. These attacks are slow, but
they can still be hard to dodge because of their large effect radius.
BREAK condition: At certain times, Titans will have to stop and
cool their external power unit. If attacked from the front during
this time, the unit will be dislodged and the Titan will lose all
functionality and its resistance will be halved. After a set
amount of time, self repair functions will restore the unit and the
Titan will return to normality, though it retains the lost of
resistance.
Kill Credit: 2000 Break Bonus: 1000
Cyvern
Considered to be the 'ultimate' in modern robotics, Cyverns are deadly
adversaries that can easily surpass any Soldier-type or Bio Weapon in
combat. The Cyverns' primary advantage is their ability to
teleport medium distances at will, they will use this to appear
immediately behind any enemies once they get within range and then
attack instantly. Cyverns can attack with their 'backflip' melee
attack to put distance between themselves and any opponents that are
too close, or with their powerful energy weapon to damage an extremely
wide area.
BREAK condition: If a Cyvern is attacked just after teleporting,
it will badly damage its warp engine, disabling it and creating a wide
energy burst which will damage nearby enemies. This is easiest to
accomplish by attacking the Cyvern as it teleports behind another
allied unit.
Kill Credit: 1600 Break Bonus: 2400
Sub Warrior:
In addition to full-fledged Warrior types, there are also 'sub'
Warrior-types, which will have the appearance and stats of a
Warrior-type, but only their most basic attack patterns. For
example a Sub-Valkyrion does not have access to the Sword Summoning
abilites of a full Valkyrion. Like Warrior-types, sub-Warriors
cannot be BREAKed. The helper unit available from the Character
Select screen is also a sub-Warrior.
Kill Credit: 2200 (same for all sub-Warriors)