> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.asphodel.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.asphodel.io/prologue/how-to-play/battles.md).
# Battles
Battles in Asphodel Prologue happen automatically, with the actions your Taruchi takes being affected by things such as their stats, their Battle Spec, and more.
Spell actions are a bonus on top of another action type; when they fire, your Taruchi will cast a Spell before picking another action to do in the same turn.
It's not possible for both Taruchi to Guard simultaneously; if both Taruchi pick Guard, they'll decide who actually Guards based on their Harmony, and the other Taruchi will pick a new action.
#### How Stats Work In Battle
Every Taruchi has four stats, which all play a role in battle.
| Stat | In battle |
| ------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Health** | Your HP pool, and the fuel for the **HEAVY** move. A big pool also makes the Fortify ability stronger. |
| **Violence** | Drives **STRIKE** damage. The straightforward aggression stat. |
| **Power** | Triggers and fuels your **SPELL**, and breaks ties: when both fighters act at the same priority, the higher-Power one goes first. |
| **Harmony** | Drives **GUARD**, both the damage it blocks and the damage it reflects back. Also walls incoming STRIKEs, softens your own HEAVY recoil, and defends against SPELLs. |
#### Battle Specs
Before your Taruchi fights, you must allocate bonus points into its **Battle Spec**: an in-battle layer of extra stats on top of its trained base. The budget grows with your league:
| League | Spec points |
| ------------ | ----------- |
| **Rookie** | 10 |
| **Veteran** | 20 |
| **Champion** | 30 |
These extra stats allow you to compensate for weaknesses, or enhance strengths. You can change this before every battle, and your previous Battle Spec will be saved between matches.
#### Special Abilities
Your Taruchi will also be granted a Special Ability, which depends on which stat you allocate the most points to in your Battle Spec.
| Dominant stat | Ability | What it does |
| ------------- | ------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Violence** | **Bloodlust** | Every **3rd attack** deals bonus damage equal to **10% of the defender's max HP**, and **heals you for 50%** of the damage dealt. |
| **Power** | **Sorcery** | Every **6th turn**, your SPELL is **guaranteed to fire at 300% damage**. |
| **Health** | **Fortify** | While **below 35% HP**, you take **20% less damage** from every source (except Sudden Death) **and** deal bonus damage equal to **1% of your max HP** on every hit. |
| **Harmony** | **Attune** | Every time you GUARD, gain a charge. At **3 charges**, the next GUARD will reflect **double damage** and heal you for **10% of your Harmony**. |
Offensive Special Abilities can be guarded against. You can only have one ability active at a time, and if you split points equally between skills then the priority will be whichever is highest overall.
#### The Moves
Your Taruchi uses four moves in battle. The active Special Ability works alongside them.
| Move | Scales Off | Priority | Notes |
| ------ | ----------------------- | ------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Strike | Violence | Normal | Reliable damage. Scales better against low-Harmony defenders. |
| Heavy | HP (yours + opponent's) | Always last | Highest damage, but recoils on you. Heavier Taruchi hit harder, but take more damage. |
| Guard | Harmony | Always first | Reduces incoming damage AND reflects a % back at the attacker. Both effects scale with your Harmony. |
| Spell | Power | Pre-Action (before other moves) | Each turn, has a chance to fire before any move. Bypasses type matchups, but a raised Guard blocks and partly reflects it, so Harmony is a real answer to magic. Damage scales Power vs Power. |
### Sudden Death
If nobody has won after **30 turns**, the battle enters **Sudden Death**: both fighters lose **10% of their max HP every round** until one falls. Fortify does not protect against this. If both fall in the same round, the winner is a coin flip.