Concussion

The concussion brand, exclusive to Maces & Flails, does the following:

• Pushes monsters backwards and stuns them, with duration proportional to weapon delay to prevent stunlocks.
  • If a monster is the primary target,<ref>E.g., any normal attack, but not Wu Jian's whirlwind or Oni's potion cleave.</ref> the player will follow.
  • If the monster is knocked into a solid feature,<ref>Solid features are any non-traversable terrain parts, including statues, walls, and trees, but not monsters.</ref> it'll take an extra 0-75% damage (avg. 37.5%) instead of being stunned.
  • No effect if there is another creature behind your target.

Sources

Concussion can only generate and exist on Maces & Flails. It is available through both random generation and through a scroll of brand weapon.

Strategy

Concussion has a heavy player-side risk. Since it causes the player to move forward for every attack, it can cause positioning errors, e.g., moving too far forward and attracting new enemies, or moving yourself so you exit a chokepoint. However, in most cases, it is easy to swap to a different weapon if concussion's push is inappropriate. Alternatively, it is possible to lure enemies in a cleared location so these errors are less likely to be punished.

Still, concussion is unique as it allows the player to move and attack at the same time whilst slowing attacks, which can be useful in its own right. For example, if an enemy blocks the stairs or an important tile, concussion can push it off. If attacked from enemies at different angles, the other enemies will have you chase you as you push a target away. If the enemy is in front of a wall, the collision damage is excellent, outdamaging freezing and flaming while dealing physical damage.

History

• Concussion was introduced, along with the other weapon type specific brands, in 0.34.

References

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