[Games] Way of the Fighter - Action Cards' Priority Score

This entry list various observations I have made when looking at all the actions in Way of the Fighter. I have a tendency to look at large sets of data and attempt to identify general patterns from it. These observations does not translate directly to actual improvement in playing the game. It might, however, give players some additional insight to the game which then would allow players to make better informed decisions. Hopefully some of you will find the information of some use or of interest.

Actions that have similar properties tend to have a Priority Score Value as summarized below:
1 - Fighter Pack Power Grab Actions
3 - Fighter Pack Strike and Blast Actions
5 - Technique Pack Strike, Grab, and Blast Actions / Heavy Block Actions
6 - Mode and Move Actions
7 - Medium Block Actions
9 - Light Block Actions

A note on some of the analysis done in this entry. I mainly looked at Priority Score and Primary Effects value of the action cards. At several sections I did consider Secondary Effects when summarizing patterns. I also surveyed both Technique Action Cards and Fighter Action Cards together. This might skew the numbers and patterns observed. At times, I take note of the differences between the Technique and Fighter Actions Cards from each other. One major difference between these actions is the ability to boost the Action's Primary Effects with Power Dice. The ability to boost an Action's Primary Effects (such as Damage Dealt) is found only on some Fighter Action Cards. None of the Technique Action Cards have that ability.

Action Cards Overall

There are 282 Unique Actions in Way of the Fighter. 154 of them are Fighter Action cards. The other 128 are Technique Actions. 8 of the Technique Actions are unique to Candy and ND-2000. The Priority Score of Action Cards range from 1 to 9 (mean 4.85, median 5, and mode 6). For each action type, the highest to lowest Priority Score averages: Blocks (7.2), Moves/Modes (6), Strikes (4.2), Grabs (4), and Blasts (3.9).

Approximately 65% of Action Cards deals Damage. For Action Cards that causes a constant Damage, the Primary value ranges from 0 to 3 (mean 1.52, median 1, mode 1). These values does not include Action Cards that scales with number of Power Dice or other unique factors.

For majority of those Actions that use Power Dice, the Damage Dealt can reached up to 5 Damage Dealt. Secondary Effects and Combos may lead to higher total Damage. Exceptions include Severina's Killer Snap, ND-2000's Self-Destruct Overload, and ND-2000's Roadkill Actions. The Priority Score value of attacks that use Power Dice to increase damage never exceeds 4. The main exception being ND-2000 Self-Destruct Overload.

Strike Actions

Strike Actions are the most common action cards, making up 37% of all actions in the game.

Overall, Strike Actions have a similar Priority Score value as Grab and Blast Actions. The Strike Actions that can deal Power Dice-Boosted or Scaled Damage have a Priority Score of 3 or less. The exceptions being Watanna's Twin Rising Uppercut and Brahm's Berzerker Rage.

Priority Score Range from 1 to 8
Priority Score Mean 4.2 (3.3 - Fighters only / 4.9 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Median 4 (3 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Mode 5 (3 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)

Damage Mean 1.6
Damage Median 1
Damage Mode 1

Grab Actions

10 of the Fighters have at least one Grab Action in their Fighter Packs.

Grab Action(s) within Technique Packs
Chi - 2 packs
Fluid - 1 pack
Hard - 2 packs
Soft - 4 packs
Wrestle - 6 packs

Overall, Grab Actions have a similar Priority Score value as Strike and Blast Actions. However, the Grab Actions that can deal Power Dice-Boosted Damage have a Priority Score of 1 normally. The exceptions being Severina's Killer Snap and Alberdus' Zeus Might.

Priority Score Range from 1 to 7
Priority Score Mean 4 (2.5 - Fighters only / 4.9 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Median 5 (2 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Mode 5 (1 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)

Damage Mean 1.3
Damage Median 1
Damage Mode 1

Blast Actions

13 of the Fighters have at least one Blast Action in their Fighter Packs. Out of the five general styles, only the 6 Chi Technique Packs have Blast Actions. Approximately 60% of Blast Actions are High Blasts and 40% are Low Blasts.

Overall, Blast Actions have a similar Priority Score value as Grab and Strike Actions. Blasts that are capable of doing 3 or more damage tends to have a Priority Score of 3 or less. The exceptions being ND-2000 Self-Destruct Overload and Ying Pei's Chi Eruption.

Priority Score Range from 1 to 7
Priority Score Mean 3.9 (3.3 - Fighters only / 4.9 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Median 3.5 (3 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)
Priority Score Mode 3 (3 - Fighters only / 5 - Techniques only)

Damage Mean 1.7
Damage Median 2
Damage Mode 2

Move Actions

12 of the Fighters have at least one Move Action in their Fighter Packs. All Fighters that have Fluid Techniques as listed in their Style will have at least one Move Action.

Move Action(s) within Technique Packs
Chi - 4 of 6 packs
Fluid - 6 of 6 packs
Hard - 3 of 6 packs
Soft - 2 of 6 packs
Wrestle - 1 of 6 pack

Majority of Move Actions are intended for aggressive playstyles. 18 Move Actions advances your fighter, while only 5 Move Actions retreats your fighter. 7 Move Actions allow movement both ways. In addition, majority of the Move Actions have the Link ability.

Priority Score Range from 4 to 8
Priority Score Mean 6
Priority Score Median 6
Priority Score Mode 6

Mode Actions

All Fighters have at least 1 unique Mode Action Card in their Decks. Ranveer has at least 4 unique Mode Action Cards and ND-2000 has at least 5 unique Mode Action Cards in their decks. All five of the general Technique Styles have Mode Actions in 3 of the 6 Technique Packs. All Mode Actions have a Priority Score value of 6. All Mode Actions can be executed while Crouching, Standing, or Jumping.

Priority Score Mean 6
Priority Score Median 6
Priority Score Mode 6

Block Actions

Players have the Block Action card in their hand for all the turns in the game. Compared to the other 5 action types, Block Actions have the highest average Priority Score value. Block Actions can be subdivided into three categories based on Damage Prevented: Heavy, Medium, and Light Block Group. The Heavy Block Group prevents R+1 Damage Dealt. The Priority Score Value of this group starts at 5 (5 fighters). Majority of the fighters fall into the Medium Block Group that prevents R Damage Dealt. They have a Priority Score Value starting at 7 (11 fighters). Finally, the Light Block Group prevents R-1 Damage Dealt and have a Priority Score Value of 9 (6 fighters).

Priority Score Range from 5 to 9
Priority Score Mean 7.2
Priority Score Median 7
Priority Score Mode 7