---
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
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
---
# Soulslikes and stamina management

id: melee-combat--t014
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/melee-combat--t014
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/melee-combat--t014/

The player preserves a response to the next threat by dividing a resource between attacking, dodging, blocking and repositioning.

## At a glance

![Character gauges in the official Dark Souls manual](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/dark-souls-stamina-manual.webp)

[Dark Souls](https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Screenshot supplied in the official guide; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.

1. Stamina below the health gauge
2. Character carrying a weapon and shield

- Communicate action costs and resource recovery time.

- [Dark Souls](https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/)

## How it works

The player preserves a response to the next threat by dividing a resource between attacking, dodging, blocking and repositioning.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t014-variants"></a>

- Shared reserves: attacks and defenses compete for the same resource. <a id="t014-v1"></a>
- Exposed recovery: a sequence requires a pause, distance or a safe position afterward. <a id="t014-v2"></a>
- Heavy commitment: powerful actions are harder to interrupt and riskier to use blindly. <a id="t014-v3"></a>
- Distinct defenses: spacing, blocking and dodging solve different threats. <a id="t014-v4"></a>

## Design example

At a heavy doorway, the player saves enough reserve to dodge after a second strike even though a third could finish the current target.

Prototype check: Compare full and nearly depleted reserves: feedback should explain an unavailable action before the player makes a dangerous attempt.

## Context and limits

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.

## Connected materials

- Sources in the selection: [State: Game Programming Patterns](https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern) (key: resource/state-pattern)

## Sources and 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.

- [Robert Nystrom: State](https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown) (id: source-3817d420df0baa92)
- [Godot: AnimationTree](https://docs.godotengine.org/en/stable/tutorials/animation/animation_tree.html) (id: source-e7703f0b61e1f579)
- [Dark Souls](https://store.steampowered.com/app/211420/) (id: source-818b67d41c84bd82)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors