{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/melee-combat--t014","type":"mechanic","id":"melee-combat--t014","lang":"en","title":"Soulslikes and stamina management","summary":"The player preserves a response to the next threat by dividing a resource between attacking, dodging, blocking and repositioning.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/melee-combat--t014/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t014.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t014.md","aliases":["Stamina-based combat"],"tags":["Melee and combat systems","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-3817d420df0baa92","source-e7703f0b61e1f579","source-818b67d41c84bd82"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3817d420df0baa92","title":"Robert Nystrom: State","url":"https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-e7703f0b61e1f579","title":"Godot: AnimationTree","url":"https://docs.godotengine.org/en/stable/tutorials/animation/animation_tree.html","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-818b67d41c84bd82","title":"Dark Souls","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"The player preserves a response to the next threat by dividing a resource between attacking, dodging, blocking and repositioning."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t014-variants\"></a>\n\n- Shared reserves: attacks and defenses compete for the same resource. <a id=\"t014-v1\"></a>\n- Exposed recovery: a sequence requires a pause, distance or a safe position afterward. <a id=\"t014-v2\"></a>\n- Heavy commitment: powerful actions are harder to interrupt and riskier to use blindly. <a id=\"t014-v3\"></a>\n- Distinct defenses: spacing, blocking and dodging solve different threats. <a id=\"t014-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"At a heavy doorway, the player saves enough reserve to dodge after a second strike even though a third could finish the current target.\n\nPrototype check: Compare full and nearly depleted reserves: feedback should explain an unavailable action before the player makes a dangerous attempt."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Melee combat revolves around distance and the moment of commitment. Starting an action can temporarily remove the ability to defend, so opponents need readable preparation, reach and contact results. These overviews separate decisions about targets, continuing a sequence, choosing a defense and escaping a bad position. Start by testing one attack and one response without decorative effects. The dedicated boss reference remains available in the direction map; this catalog covers the other contact-combat topics. Sources illustrate state and animation-transition models rather than prescribing a universal combat formula."}],"relations":[{"type":"uses","direction":"outgoing","label":"Sources in the selection","key":"resource/state-pattern","title":"State: Game Programming Patterns","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md"}],"placements":[{"catalogId":"melee-combat","id":"t014","title":"Melee and combat systems","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/melee-combat/#t014","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Stamina-based combat","description":"The player preserves a response to the next threat by dividing a resource between attacking, dodging, blocking and repositioning.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/dark-souls-stamina-manual.webp","width":534,"height":287,"game":"Dark Souls","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/","originalUrl":"https://shared.fastly.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/211420/manuals/DarkSouls_PC_Manual_Online_GB.pdf?t=1721682669#page=6","credit":"FromSoftware / Bandai Namco; screenshot extracted from official PC manual, PDF page 6","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Screenshot supplied in the official guide; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"Character gauges in the official Dark Souls manual","alt":"Character gauges in the official Dark Souls manual","markers":[{"x":20,"y":10,"label":"Stamina below the health gauge"},{"x":49,"y":65,"label":"Character carrying a weapon and shield"}]},"tips":["Communicate action costs and resource recovery time."],"examples":[{"title":"Dark Souls","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/melee-combat"}}