Legend of Mana/Mechanics

General Combat

Most of your timeloss will be from normal encounters and how they are handled. Boss fights, especially a few select ones, can be fairly trolly, but there are far, far more normal encounters than bosses and their times add up. Your choice of Abilities and Special Techniques will be based around either shutting down bosses and reacting to boss ST's to deal damage or focused on clearing encounters in order to reach the bosses faster.

Movement

"Wiggling" the stick rapidly at a diagonal in the general direction you need to go saves a minor amount of frames. You're doing it correctly if your character's feet don't touch the ground and you aren't hearing footsteps.

Combat Movement

Movement speed in combat is generally determined by the weapon you have equipped. Gloves and knives make your character move at a significantly faster pace than the heavier 2-handed weapons. This difference can be mitigated somewhat by moving in a serpentine pattern (diagonals) with the two steps the character takes. The character takes a long step and then a short step in their movement cycle. If you are moving horizontally on the long step, you can cover long distances even with a heavier weapon, then use the short step to position yourself diagonally.

Weapons and Damage

Each weapon has four "types" of damage. The basic weapon type (glove, axe, sword, etc.) has its four ratings multiplied by the four ratings of the material it is made out of. Those four numbers are then divided by 128 and added together to show the "offense rating" on your equipment screen. The bigger this number, generally, the better.

((weapon x material)\128), repeated for each of the four categories, then added together.

(Ex: 2h Swords all have a modifier of 40,40,40,40. IshePlatinum material has modifiers of 40,40,40,40.) 40x40 is 1600. 1600 divided by 128 is 12.5. 12.5x4 (or 12.5+12.5....) is 50, which is the damage of an unforged IshePlatinum 2hSword.

Plug those numbers into this to get estimated damage:

( OFF * 0.625 ) + ( OFF * POW * 1.25 ) / 100 ) - ( ARM * 0.3125 ) - ( ARM * DEF * 0.625 / 100 )

Replace SKL in that formula for knife and bow.

Swords are balanced across the board, as shown, and other weapons have much different weights on the four categories.

Weapon Modifiers

There are multiple defense types versus physical damage, as well as eight elemental damage brands that can be applied through forging and resisted/cause increased damage or extra 'magic' damage to be applied. Some plunge attacks cause damage boosts to specific species, or cause damage indirectly through special effects (setting them on fire, poison). Casually, this hasn't been researched as far as I have found, as most interest has gone to simply creating overwhelming force (200-999 damage weapons) through forging. Those weapons no longer care about defense as they simply crush anything that looks at them the wrong way. Unfortunately, the materials used are either out of the range of NG or require excess money/grinding. Simple forging to about 80-140 dmg is possible given the right conditions in a speedrun, and costs about 3-5 minutes (saving roughly 30 sec to 1 min 30 sec per combat-focused mission). Forging is most likely only to be found in either an All-Story or 100% run. The most notable and useful effects that can be seen easily are the Land modifiers, which will be talked about below.

Player Modifiers

The player character has at least two statistics that apply extra damage to basic, power, ability attacks, and special techniques through an unknown process. The other player statistics have various effects that increase the chance of status effects landing on enemies or being resisted by the character, increase passive magic defense for the character, increase health and health regen, etc. The Magic stat may or may not have anything at all to do with the magic damage dealt by a character using Instruments (Instruments, so far as I know, are not used in speedrunning).

Character stat growth is determined by the weapon equipped during each levelup. Every weapon has different stat-up cycles, but generally, 2h swords make you better at swording (equal power and skill, general balance of other stats), 2h hammers make you better at hammering (Massive power growth, low skill growth, low balance of other stats), etc. Since a runner in the three single-story runs will likely only swap weapons once or twice, this growth has only minor influence. The 100% category usually ends with the player in the high forties or low fifties in level, meaning that your weapon choice could have a significant impact on your damage dealt.

Land Modifiers

This is the important bit. There are a handful of "tanky" monsters in the game that get severe health and defense boosts from having certain mana levels in the lands that they are found. This information can be found on their Monster Encyclopedia entry. Generally, the creature gets a large boost from the two elements that make them 'stronger', and a small nerf from the two elements that make them 'weaker' on that page. Woodings, Mad Mallards, ArchDemons, Land, Air, and Kid Dragons, Yaks, Chobin Hoods, and Ape Mummies can all be granted enough of an HP and defense pool to become more than minor speedbumps that cost time if this is ignored. *(check these names, dummy)*

The monster's basic level is determined by the order that the land was placed down and the distance the land is from Home, much like store/weapon shop levels. Some areas get enhanced monster levels as they are meant to be 'tougher' (The Flames, The Mana Sanctuary). If you get, say, a Wooding, in an advanced area that was placed very late and has high Dryad levels, you will be slamming your weapon into its face for quite a while.

The US version is significantly different than the JP version. The actual land level formula is something like this:

Land Level 0-4:.... Base Level = 1 Land Level 5-33:.. Base Level = 2 + (LLvl - 5) Land Level 34-48: Base Level = 32 + 2(LLvl - 34) Land Level 49:...... Base Level = 63 Land Level 50-59: Base Level = 69 + 3(LLvl - 50) Land Level 60-63: Base Level = 99

Secondary lands (The Flames, Cage of Dreams) and bosses/minibosses (Punkmaster in the Jungle, Skeletal Soldier, Sierra, Deathbringer) are calculated something like this:

ROUNDDOWN((# of lands - 2) * 1.5)

Techs/Abilities

Learning Techniques and Abilities

The character starts off knowing several basic Abilites and one Special Technique. More advanced maneuvers are learned by accruing hidden weapon and ability experience on a battle-to-battle basis. You generally get one 'point' per combat, with several bossfights instead granting you four points of both weapon and ability experience.

Abilities

Abilites are combat skills that are equipped to two button slots (default is Triangle and Circle). As you gain experience in an equipped ability, you will learn new abilities. Backroll, for instance, requires that you have (x) experience in both the Jump and Retreat abilities. Acquired experience is kept for all abilities you have previously had equipped in combat. This means that if you had Jump equipped (it's one of the default ability equips) for several fights, and then swapped out Jump for Crouch and Retreat, you would most likely learn High Jump (requires Jump and Crouch experience) and Backroll (requires Jump and Retreat experience).

If you have one ability equipped in both slots, it receives both slots worth of experience (you double your learning rate). This means that if you have (Defend+Defend) equipped, you will learn Counterattack twice as quickly.

Useful Abilities in a speedrun are:

• Spin [Default ability] (spin + power attack creates a damage circle around the player dealing slightly less than a basic attack to all opponents caught in its range. Spamming this causes the player to get 'dizzy' [stun animation], but can be used twice successively (Usually). Teaches players their first AoE ST. **The usefulness of this ability is DIRECTLY linked to the damage you are capable of dealing. If you can't kill or wound the enemies severely enough that they can be finished off by a basic or power attack, don't use this.
• Counterstrike [Learned by accruing Counterattack experience] (makes the player pause for a moment. If the player is struck by a combat ability or an attack, they will strike in the direction they are facing for between 2x(Bow.) 8x (most other weapons) and a quick attack's damage.

Special Techniques

Special Techniques (ST's) are learned by a combination of weapon experience and ability experience. Some special techniques are shared between weapons, and some are unique to each weapon. Your character gains weapon experience in the same way as Ability experience (by completing combat with that weapon equipped). Depending on your chosen starting weapon, you will also start with a single pre-learned Special Technique that may or may not be worth utilizing right off the bat.

Some ST's require experience in multiple abilities (the level 3-4 "Major Damage" techs), and some only require experience from your weapon and a single ability. Most two handed weapons will learn "Rising Crush" from having the Crouch ability and that weapon equipped for (x) combats. The Spin ability will teach the player a weak-to-middling AoE technique that will strike either all opponents on a battlefield or a medium-to-large size circle around the player, depending on the players equipped weapon.

Useful ST's for speedrunning:

• Rising Crush/Claw (2h sword, 2h axe, hammer)- Learned by equipping Crouch, automatically gained if you select 2h sword as your first weapon. Minor damage to a frontal target, causes a short Stun.

• Flying Sawblades (2h Axe)- Learned by equipping Spin. Default ST if 2h Axe is selected starting equipment. More damage than Windslasher with a similar range, less damage than Blammo but a longer range.

• Salmon Upstream (1h Axe)- Learned by equipping Backflip. Hits a large radius around the player, similar to Blammo. Increases power significantly.

• Tornado (1h Axe) - Learned by equipping Spin. Bog-standard middle-range AoE. These 1h Axe techs would most likely be utilized by a runner who attempted to fetch an Earthsplitter axe from the goblins in Mekiv Cavern and got BlackElk as a first-drop instead. This is a viable choice over Earthsplitter if you intend to grind for Braveblade later.

• Windslasher (2h sword)- Learned by equipping Spin. Hits all enemies.

• Blammo (Hammer)- Learned by equipping Spin, automatically gained if Hammer is selected as first weapon. Smaller range than Windslasher, more damage.

• Jawbreaker (Glove)- Learned by equipping Crouch, automatically gained if Glove is selected as first weapon. "Hits twice", meaning the ST damage is applied twice if both strikes in the ST animation hit the same enemy. Can hit multiple foes in an area similar to Flipkick in front of the player.

• Shishkebab (2h sword)- Learned by equipping Backroll. Hits twice like Jawbreaker. You perform a flipkick, hitting all enemies in the area of a flipkick, and then a thrust with a long-duration hitbox. If you fail to land the first strike, the lunge will still be performed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZFliv3qdVs

• Lunging Arc (2h sword)- Learned by equipping Lunge. Hits twice like Jawbreaker and Shishkebab. Performs the same level of damage as Shishkebab. Significantly less likely to land than Shishkebab. You perform a short-duration hitbox lunge forwards. If this hit lands, you perform a second strike.If it doesn't, you lose the ST.

• Whirlwind Kick (Glove)- Learned by equipping Spin. Glove-flavored Blammo/Windslasher.

Plunges, Sweeps and Stuns

Combo System

Each weapon type has a base attack string that ranges from 3 to 7 strikes. If you properly time your inputs, you will start to glow blue and have an afterimage. This glow and afterimage indicates you've started a Sweep. If you input once too many (a fourth basic attack on a weapon with only 3 in its string), your Sweep will end and you'll awkwardly pause for a moment. You can continue a Sweep or basic attack string uninterrupted by chaining Power Attacks and Plunge attacks, or using your equipped Abilities. Continuing a Sweep is sometimes undesirable for speedrunning purposes.

Plunge Attacks

There are three plunge attacks on every weapon. The basic three are Jump, Thrust, and Uppercut. You can check which are on your current weapon by checking its Status menu in your inventory. Special Plunge Attacks come on certain drops from enemies, and they can be forged into the Plunge slots under certain conditions. These special Plunges still require the same movement inputs, but have either different animations, special effects (sets enemies on fire or does large damage vs. Plants etc.), or both. Some weapons naturally have different animations (I.E. you don't perform the same movements with a Bow as with a Spear), but these changes are generally minimal.

The Thrust Plunge (and Plunges that replace the Thrust slot) is performed by pressing (Left Left+ Power Attack) or (Right Right+ Power Attack). This move will generally move your character very quickly forwards with their weapon extended, and is useful for closing distance and getting a first strike on an opponent who is only barely in range. This will knock the enemy backwards slightly, and is best used to close a final distance and pin them against the wall for further combo-ing.

The Jump Plunge (and Plunges that replace the Jump slot) is performed by pressing (Left Right + Power Attack) or (Right Left + Power Attack). This causes the player to do a partial somersault in the final direction pressed, and land a Power Attack that slides the enemy backwards slightly. Same general use as the Thrust Plunge, but covers less distance.

The Uppercut Plunge (and Plunges that replace the Uppercut slot) is performed by pressing (Down-slide to Left +Power Attack) or (Down-slide to Right + Power Attack). This causes the player to, you guessed it, perform an uppercut-type move with whatever equipped weapon they have. Causes knockback, lands a Power Attack worth of damage, like the other plunges.

Sweep Attacks

Complete Sweep Attacks cause Candy (25% life heal item) to pop magically out of the air above the player character, and forces the character into a sickeningly long "awesome pose" that costs precious, precious time. Sweeps complete after a varying number of consecutive strikes (12-18) with good button presses, or sometimes quite rapidly if you are sprinkling Abilites into your combos. You can complete a Sweep with 2 strikes, a Spin + Power Attack that connects to 3 enemies, and 2 more strikes that land.

Simply stringing your basic attack combo back to back will end a sweep, as will repeated abilities. Like a very simplified Devil May Cry system, if you keep doing the same thing over and over your combo becomes 'stale' and the sweep never completes.

Casually playing, completing a Sweep Attack shows how awesome you are, but in a speedrun setting you want to go out of your way to avoid them unless Tropicallo has nearly oneshotted you and you don't want to Crouch in a corner for 2 minutes getting back your health, or a similar situation.

Stuns

Landing *NORMAL* attacks (it doesn't matter if they are consecutive or not) on a single opponent will eventually stun them. This holds them in place, prevents them from using any special techniques, and opens them up for either a beatdown or a guaranteed special technique by the player. This stun is significantly longer than the one provided by ST's such as Rising Crush and Rising Claw.

Single Strikes

To avoid sweeps and get the most strikes possible for faster weapons, you can interrupt your basic attack string with slight pauses, which causes the character to repeat the first attack in the string ad infinitum. This prevents sweeping, and is utilized in the single-storyline missions for some particularly irritating bossfights to attempt a 'stunlock' before they get any teleporting or damage immunity frames in.

Power Canceling

Generally, if you throw out a Power Attack without immediately swinging into a Plunge or combining it with an ability, you have a pause similar to what happens if you mash the basic attack button. This pause is punishes you far more significantly, though, as it takes much longer to wear off. If you have an empty Special Technique slot (shoulder buttons and triggers), you can press the empty ST slot after the Power Attack has landed. If you time it correctly you will be rewarded with an annoying beeping sound and your Power Attack animation will be reset, allowing you to immediately throw out another Power Attack and repeat the process.

"Jump" cancels and QuickPowercancels

Performing a power attack and using the Jump ability as soon as the hit lands transitions into an Uppercut. This motion skips several animation frames but has the downside of moving the struck target. The animations and damage dealt are faster than simply powercanceling, but the enemy movement and the requirement of a Jump variant as an equipped ability limit its applicability.

A "quick" cancel is a powercancel followed by a normal attack and another powercancel. You can chain this and stunlock even with heavier 2h weapons. This can also cause "stun" from accumulated normal attacks, but isn't likely to do so. This method deals damage at a slightly slower rate than simply powercanceling, but can lock down enemies you don't want performing attacks most of the time.

Regional Differences

Weapon Damage

Weapon "Offense" ratings for a number of weapons are slightly lower in the US version versus the JP version, with some exceptions.Some of the rarer drops you're unlikely to see in a run have drastically altered statistics. This is most notable in allstory/100% forge routes, as JP runner weapons will show an offense rating of ~220 for a weapon that displays an offense rating of ~88 in the US versions.

Enemy HP

Enemy health from the JP to the US version was unevenly rebalanced all across the board. Some enemies just have more health/defense (which makes the mana level/artifact order placement more significant) and some just have less.