Board 8 > What's your favorite damage element?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I was thinking about this, and realized I couldn't think of a single game where sonic or acid are "normal" elements; they're always at least slightly annoying to obtain.

For once, I'd like to play a game where water isn't "the healing element." I can make stronger cases for, like, each of the other classical elements.

Meanwhile, fire is almost exclusively used for damage because earth = solid, water = liquid, air = gas, and fire = energy...but fire itself is surprisingly bad for generating concise damage.

So as a result, we end up with this divergence where in actual gameplay, fire ends up being a fantastic damage dealer, but in theory it should be basically anything but. I'm going to vote for the exact opposite of fire, which happens to usually be a pretty decent damaging element itself: ice.

Quantum.

zzzzap

it's been thunder because Raichu for as long as I can remember

Zapdos was also my fav of the birds so

Grimlyn posted...

it's been thunder because Raichu for as long as I can remember

Zapdos was also my fav of the birds so

what the fuck get out of my head

Final Fantasy got me to associate Wind with the color Green, which is also the grass type in pokemon so I go there.

And it's more heroic than most of the elements except maybe water. (or Light I guess, but Light is also used for really evil things too)

Anagram posted...

I was thinking about this, and realized I couldn't think of a single game where sonic or acid are "normal" elements; they're always at least slightly annoying to obtain.

...The SaGa series?

SF2 had it as one of the 6 basic elements, and I thought at least a few others had equipment to protect against sonic attacks.

Fire or electricity. I just think they're neat

Dark = Ice > Light > Earth > Electricity > the rest

Earth damage is underutilized, Avatar notwithstanding. Something in the air? Throw a boulder at 'em.

(Ice is also nice and will suffice.)

@hombad46 recently hit a guy who becomes the most terrible of dark wizards with Love damage

that's pretty good!

Fiscal Damage

Patriotic damage, duh

Where's poison, psychic, and sun

I feel like most games don't actually differentiate damage elements enough for me to really have a favorite.

But in a general sense, water I guess.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1ojUmdF42U

Ice for sure

azuarc posted...

For once, I'd like to play a game where water isn't "the healing element." I can make stronger cases for, like, each of the other classical elements.

Golden Sun 2 plays around with fire healing, since Jenna is the healer of the second party (but water is absolutely The Healing Element in 1). Dark Souls also generally associates any kind of healing with fire (if pyromancies) or light (if miracles), too.

Sonic and Acid damage spells are pretty common in WRPGs. They've been part of the D&D ruleset pretty much since the beginning, so they show up not only in explicitly D&D-based games like Baldur's Gate and NWN, but also D&D-'descended' games like Pathfinder and Solasta.

I guess I gotta go with lightning, it usually looks cool and can stun/paralyze/shock the enemy, which is nifty.

azuarc posted...

For once, I'd like to play a game where water isn't "the healing element." I can make stronger cases for, like, each of the other classical elements.

Totally agree. I love water based characters but they almost always end up with some type of support role. I don't necessarily mind it, but I'd really like to see more water damage dealers.

I think maybe part of the reason water isn't thought of as a damage element is in asking...how exactly does water hurt you? Make you a little wet? Mess up your perm?

And of course, this is dumb, because the sea is massively dangerous, but it takes a whole freaking ocean to bring that kind of threat, compared to a small (by comparison) flame or a momentary lightning bolt. Part of the reason I think it's silly to count ice as separate from water. Although, the problem is also solved by including acid as part of water, which the OP also lists separately on the poll. But without those, water is just "the element of life" because "our bodies are 90% water," blahblahblah.

Its why Jolteon is the superior Eeveelution.

azuarc posted...

I think maybe part of the reason water isn't thought of as a damage element is in asking...how exactly does water hurt you? Make you a little wet? Mess up your perm?

condensed jets of water can fuck you up, look at pressure washers

I feel like if the enemy has no elemental weaknesses I tend to use the lightning spell, so I guess I go electric here. Also

junk_funk posted...

Its why Jolteon is the superior Eeveelution.

what does spacial rend count under here