Mechanics (My Normal Obsession)

My Normal Obsession is a fairly complex game, as it's bloated with a broad range of mechanics from combat to character and item-specific quirks. Not all of them are self-explanatory, although some are indeed simpler than others. Don't expect all of these mechanics to be 100% original, as mechanics such as Proficiencies are taken from other games, i.e. *Stardew Valley*.

### UI Elements

The first thing the player notices when starting their first save is the three bars on their screen: a green bar at the top left, a blue bar on the middle right, and a light green bar at the bottom. The bar at the top left is the player's Stamina, which is consumed when performing certain activities (such as sprinting or blocking an attack), the segmented bar on the right is the player's Magic Power (which will be further explained in the "combat" section), and the light green bar on the bottom is the current character's health.

## Movement

My Normal Obsession doesn't have many movement options. 95% of the time, the player is traveling on foot, and the game's lack of any sort of "fast travel" is definitely an inconvenience, especially since there are no horses like in *Red Dead Redemption*, *Stardew Valley*, *Elden Ring*, or *The Legend of Zelda*.

### Dodge-rolling

Dodge-rolling is a very self-explanatory feature. Much like in certain popular RPGs and Souls-likes (such as *Cult of the Lamb*, *Dark Souls*, *Elden Ring*, and *Hollow Knight)*, the player can perform a short-ranged roll/dodge that gives them a short window of invincibility frames, essentially allowing them to dodge projectiles and melee attacks. Much like in *Dark Souls*, doing this consumes a bit of Stamina. However, this only applies if the player is being actively pursued by an enemy. The default keybind for dodge-rolling is left CTRL on PC.

### Sprinting

Another very self-explanatory movement option. Hold left SHIFT to move much faster, although this consumes stamina (even outside of combat).

## Elements & Damage Types

The game features a total of 22 damage types, each with varying effects. These include:

* Brimstone
* Thunder
* Sprouting
* Water
* Ice
* Fire
* BlackFire
* Holiness
* Unholiness
* Dream
* Nightmare
* Light
* Dark
* Venom
* Bleeding
* Blood
* Gash
* HellRot
* Necromancy
* Explosive
* Blight
* Eternal

### Brimstone

Brimstone, also called Brimstone Flames, is a scarlet fire that acts like a more intense version of Fire. It can be inflicted by certain weapons or characters (such as Peyero), or by loading Brimstone ammunition into a bow/firearm. It's one of the most powerful elements, as it can easily chip away large portions of health. However, it can be hard to come by, and certain bosses have a high immunity to it.

### BlackFire

BlackFire takes direct inspiration from Shadowflame, a debuff originating from *Terraria*. It's essentially a hybrid between Dark and Fire, although taking too much BlackFire damage will cause the player to become possessed over the course of a few in-game days. It's very destructive, and can be perfect for crowd control. However, most Blood/Blighted Moon enemies (as well as most bosses) are immune to it.

### Dream

A reliable element that can cause enemies to pass out on the battlefield, assuming they take enough Dream damage. Once this happens, they take reduced damage, but they won't be able to fight back. All bosses have a high immunity to Dream.

### Nightmare

A much more potent version of Dream. Enemies that pass out from Nightmare actually take **more** damage, but will wake up after a bit (or once they're low on health) and have a chance of auto-dodging attacks. A majority of the game's bosses have a relatively high immunity to it, but unlike common enemies, they only stay unconscious for a short duration.

### Bleeding, Blood, & Gash

All relatively similar elements, but they have their differences.

Bleeding causes enemies to lose health, Blood is basically blood magic that deals critical damage to the undead, and Gash is a more potent form of Bleeding. Wearing armor usually raises the player's immunity to these damage types, but it's all dependent on how heavy or reinforced the armor in question is.

### HellRot

An immensely powerful element usually sourced from Hell (duh), as EternaRot Crystals are often found in Styx River.

HellRot is the only element capable of damaging Infinimites and "immortal" enemies, although it's very limited and extremely hard to come by. HellRot ammunition can also chew through light armor, such as chainmail.

### Blight

A pretty strong alternative to Blood. Blight takes on the form of bony, cancerous masses that attach to living enemies, basically infecting them. Taking too much Blight damage causes the skin to wither away, ultimately replacing it with malignant tissue.

### Eternal

Ever wanted to manipulate time like Link? Ever wanted to strike fear into the hearts of your enemies as you rapidly age them into nothingness? If you said "yes" to either of those questions, you're either some form of sadist, or you're looking for immense, physics-breaking firepower.

Eternal damage is incredibly powerful, as it can rapidly age enemies, turning them into ashes over time. As an enemy ages, their health will increase, but their damage will steadily decrease until they're either too weak to fight back, or they're dry-aged into a raisin.

Its only drawback is that all bosses, Infinimites, and "immortal" enemies are immune to Eternal damage. It's also the rarest element in the game, and Eternal ammunition is twice as expensive as HellRot Ammo.

## Combat

The game's combat is where the bulk of its complexity is focused. Many mechanics are taken into consideration, such as Guard, immunities, weaknesses, etc.

In total, the game has 6 major classes with 2 sub-classes: Melee, Gunner, Archer, Sorcerer, Classless, Alchemist, Assassin, and VoidLander. Each class has their own strengths and weaknesses that set them apart from one another, such as Melee only being effective at close quarters, and Sorcerers depending on Magic Power, which, unlike in *Terraria*, doesn’t regenerate on its own.

### Melee

Melee characters must maintain a short distance between their target in order to be effective, although polearms have a generally long range and can even pierce through multiple targets. Boomerangs, although not as fatal, are still considered melee weapons.

Guard is an important stat for melee attackers, as it’s required for parrying and blocking. Attack speed is important as well, and is calculated as the amount of time, in seconds, between attacks.

### Gunner

Firearms have a multitude of advantages over bows. They deal more damage, their projectiles travel much faster, and they don’t require a quiver. Regardless, bullets and shells are more expensive than arrows, especially if they're imbued with an element, not to mention that you can't reuse bullets (duh). While Firearms might sound pretty straightforward, there are important stats such as Spread, Range, Muzzle Velocity, etc. that add a bit of complexity to firearms. If you've played Escape from Tarkov or some of the better Call of Duty games, then I'm sure you already know what these stats mean.

**Handling**

A stat that determines how fast the wielder can aim down sights, alongside their movement speed while shooting.

**Muzzle Velocity**

A stat that determines how fast a weapon's bullets are once they leave the barrel.

**Range and Spread**

Range is self-explanatory, but spread is how much bullets will spread out once they leave a weapon's barrel. Less spread = more accuracy, but spread can sometimes be helpful to make sure a weapon isn't just a laser pointer that shoots. In shotguns, spread is crucial, as low spread can increase a shotgun's range.

**Jamming and Chain Firing**

Just like in real firearms, weapons that get to hot or are exposed to too much wear and tear will begin to fail. When a weapon jams in My Normal Obsession, the player will struggle with their gun for a moment before either ejecting the round in the chamber or reloading completely. Most of the time, a jammed revolver is a very quick fix, as it can be resolved simply by pressing R. Old revolvers and caplock firearms hold a risk of chain firing as opposed to jamming, in which case every loaded round will fire at once, which can be annoying throughout early game progression.

Using high-quality ammunition, fixing the components of old firearms at Musket & Brisket's, using modern firearms, refurbishing worn firearms at certain shops (preferably by bringing them to Mammon, The Stitched One, or Beelzebub), and using certain equipment can decrease the risk of a gun jamming or experiencing a chain fire.

### Sorcerer

Sorcerers are some of the most versatile characters in My Normal Obsession. They can fire projectiles, they can form protective barriers around themselves, and they often put up a good fight against enemies that rely on element-based damage. However, Sorcerers tend to be vulnerable to physical damage, especially to Bleeding and Gash. Switching a character to a mage also sacrifices their defense and/or stamina, as sorcerers have less of a need for stamina anyway.

**Magic Power**

All Spells and Curses require Magic Power, which is a form of energy that circulates through the arms and forehead. Magic Power only naturally regenerates when sleeping, praying to a god or goddess, or tuning oneself to the world. There are various non-natural ways of replenishing Magic Power, such as with