Combat rating
Introduction
Combat rating is a fairly controversial subject involving the unseen (ie, passive) dynamics of the Fighting system after the infamous 'fight fix'. What the theory proposes is a flat value assigned to the character that actively decides their chance to hit, damage multiplier and damage mitigation based on a unit, herein referred to as CR.
Basics of the Theory
1 CR = 2-5% (exact value is not certain) hit chance 1 CR is gained for every 10 Fighting overall skill obtained (in PvE - player vs creatures) 1 CR is gained for every 5 Fighting overall skill obtained (in PvP) 1 CR is gained for equipping a weapon, and 1 more CR added for every extra 10ql of the sword
Combat rating is multiplicative, and only applies to the Fighting skill, not Archery or anything else.
Focus level is seen to add a flat 20% additional CR per focus level, to a maximum of 100% additional CR at focus level five
This would mean, that a fighter with 40 FS wearing 60ql studded armor and using two 70ql longswords would have: 4 CR (fighting skill) + 16 CR (dual longswords) = 20 CR (40-80% chance to hit) (in PvE, add another 4 CR for PVP)
Another fighter, with 50 FS wearing 60ql chain and using a 60ql large iron shield and longsword with 30 substat would have: 5 CR (fighting skill) + 7 CR (longsword) = 16 CR (32-62% chance to hit) (in PvP, add another 5 CR)
However, since the second fighter is adept in using his large iron shield, his Defensive rating essentially mitigates a large portion of the other player's damage through parry chance and glance alone. This means the fight boils down to a focus race - which the shield user has a significant advantage (shieldbash breaks focus). Stances appear to influence CR and DR respectively - normal giving a slight CR boost and a slight DR boost, defensive giving a large DR boost but a large CR impediment and aggressive giving a large CR boost and a large DR impediment.
Combat Rating on NPCs
Similar attributes apply when fighting monsters and animals in the Wurm universe - all creatures appear to have a base CR which increases with their age and is dependent on what prefix they may have. For example, an aged fierce spider could have CR similar to that of a young, no prefix troll. Obviously, the troll would have an advantage of being a self healer, but the spider attacks marginally faster and would likely stack dangerous wounds far, far quicker than the younger troll. CR has also been observed in animals to increase the chance they target sensitive areas, such as the head and shoulder areas, and even the legs in some cases. Aged creatures are viewed as the most dangerous, with some aged species strength is comparable to that of a younger champion.
Combat rating is a versatile tool which can be used to effectively compare players and understand the nuances of the new fighting system, but take it with a pinch of salt and realize that CR is not definite information, and has not been verified by the developers (the concept has, but actual values assigned are not) or even hinted to be even slightly correct. Make your own decisions based from the data presented here to you.
