Massive Nerd

It's been a while since I've done an Aion Preview post. My apologies, I am a fail blogger.

At least I'm getting back in the saddle with a good one! The meat and potatoes of the game, Combat!

Aion's combat is heavily skill-based. However, it is not a spam-fest. Rather, the most successful way to play is through careful timing of your skills, using the right ones at the right times, in the right situations.

One of the great features of Aion's combat is the Skill Chaining system.

Opening up your skill menu, you will find a button labeled "Chains." Clicking on it displays your available Chains.


For my Warrior, Ferocious Strike is the first skill in the basic Chain.


Once Ferocious Strike has been used, it then makes Robust Blow available. Note that Robust Blow cannot be used by itself, it MUST follow a Ferocious Strike.

As you continue to level and gain skills, the Chains will grow longer, as well as branch. You have options. Would you rather follow the Chain that does more damage, or results in a possible Knockdown? There are certain skills that can only be used against Knocked Down, Stunned or Staggered enemies. Again, it's all about situational awareness and using the right skills at the right time.

Another interesting aspect of Aion's combat is the Combat Movement system. No, that's not its exact name, that's what I'm rolling with since I can't recall the exact term. >.>


See that little arrow I've oh-so-expertly pointed out? That indicates that you have a movement buff active.

If you are moving forward while in combat, you will have additional Damage at the cost of Defense. This affects both Physical and Magical combat.

Backing up will increase your Parry and Block chances, while lowering your Physical Damage.

Strafing increases Evasion at the cost of Physical Damage.

The third piece of Aion's combat is Divine Power. Killing enemies grants DP, which fills up the gauge below your Mana:


This gauge has three levels: 0-2000, 2000-3000 and 3000-4000. Each level grants your character a visual glow effect, letting you know that you're OVER 9000! Err... yeah. Anyway, When over 2000, you can use your DP skill!


Explosion of Rage deals a moderate amount of damage and leaves the enemy in a vulnerable state. It looks amazing, on top of that. With the exception of Spiritmaster, none of the DP skills that I have seen are game-changing, but it could be the difference between victory and defeat.

That's because combat in Aion is HARD.

An even-level enemy is not a pushover. A single unplanned add could be fatal.

I'll cover death in a follow-up post, since that merits a discussion of its own.