Chapter 5: Combat

Combat is an essential and strategic part of any role-playing game. This is not surprising, given that RPGs began as a variation of popular battle-simulation war games. RPGs as we know them today appeared in the early 1970s when a man named Gary Gygax assembled a group of friends together for an evening of gaming. But that night he added a small twist to the regular game: He decided it might be fun if each of the players assumed a different "role", to add a bit of plot to the usual battle simulation. And, to make a long story short, the role-playing game as we know it was born that fateful night.

Jewel of Arabia is largely an exploratory game, where you assume the role of a Prince and his allies and journey through the land on a mission of discovery. There is also an intriguing amount of mystery, as you struggle to understand and fulfill your own destiny. But Jewel of Arabia also remains true to its war game heritage, and includes a good deal of strategic combat. Combat is central to the game and provides the experience necessary for your characters to advance in rank, which will allow them to explore new areas populated with more difficult foes.

How combat works: an overview

The combat interface in Jewel of Arabia is very straightforward, but if you have never played a computer RPG before, there are a few key ideas that need to be explained. So, if you are new to RPGs, read this section carefully before attempting to play the game.

While you are out exploring the world, you will encounter roving bands of monsters. At this time, you will hear what will become a familiar drum beat and the map's point of view will change to a "blow-up" map. All of the characters who comprise your party will appear on this combat map along with the monsters you must fight.

There is a new combat display with new buttons appearing on the bottom left of the screen, but this is explained in the following section. For now, we are just concerned with the "idea" of combat.

Combat in Jewel of Arabia is turn-based, and each fighter on the screen, whether a monster or a member of your party, gets to take a turn, while all other fighters wait for their own turns. Except in rare cases of surprise attacks, your party members and the monsters will pretty much trade off turns: with your first party member taking a turn, and then a monster taking a turn, followed by your second party member, and so forth.

The fighter whose turn it is will be shown with a little animated circle moving around his or her combat figure. If the current fighter is a member of your party, then you will take the turn for this character. There are many things you can choose to do at this point, all of which will be described below, but the most basic move is to attack a monster.

To attack a monster, move your character's figure to a square adjacent to the monster you wish to attack, and then attempt to move onto the square occupied by the monster. If your attack is successful, you will hear a sound of the monster being smashed and see a big splash of blood. If you are unsuccessful, you will hear the swish of your weapon as it strikes thin air.

When it is a monster's turn to move, control will revert to the computer, and the computer program will make the move for that fighter. Different monsters fight with different abilities and strategies, and you will have to answer each monster's attack with an intelligent and strategic move of your own if you hope to win the battle.

If you move a character away from any adjacent monsters, those monsters will be allowed a penalty attack on your retreating character. These penalty attacks are reduced in strength and are usually not fatal. This penalty also applies to monsters, and if they retreat from one of your characters during battle, your character will attack automatically. This is the only instance where you do not perform the actions for your own characters.

The combat display

The main Jewel of Arabia display actually changes very little when you enter combat. Your characters and their short stats forms still appear to the left, and the map and text scroll appear on the right side of the screen. But the main game control display at the bottom left is replaced with a new set of buttons and new information relevant to combat.

This next section briefly describes the functions of the new controls, and is followed by sections describing the rest of the combat display.

Combat controls

During combat, map movement is the same as it is out of combat. You may use the mouse or the numeric keypad to move each of your own characters. You can also click on the map frame border to scroll around and show areas of the "blow-up" combat map that might be out of view.

The guard button basically allows one of your characters to "pass" his turn. If for some reason you do not wish to attack a monster this round, or if you can not get to a monster in time to execute an attack, you may wish to guard. Guarding also improves your character's chances of dodging away from any subsequent attacks that round. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "g".

The spells button performs the exact same function as it does on the main display: it brings up the spells form. If the current fighter is a spellcaster, then she may cast a spell from her spell list. See Chapter 6: Spells for more information. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "s".

The meditate button also remains from the main display. You can chant meditations during combat, but be aware that they will only be half as effective, due to the more stressful conditions of meditating in the midst of battle. Meditations are described in detail in Chapter 7: Meditations. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "m".

The center button centers the map on the current fighter. This is useful if you have scrolled off to one side of the combat map and want to snap back to the current fighter. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "c".

The reveal button highlights fighters who are fighting on your side in blue, and highlights your foes in red. To use the reveal button, press and hold it down during combat. You will quickly see how useful it is. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "r".

There are times during the game when "monsters" will be highlighted in orange or yellow. These colors have special meanings, depending on the situation, and it is up to you to figure out what they mean.

The items button is the same as on the main display, but there are a few important differences worth mentioning. First, a character may only use an item in his inventory if it is his turn. And second, if a character uses an item (for example, he drinks a stamina potion), then that action takes his whole turn and he will not be allowed to fight that round. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "i".

The wait button allows a character to wait to take her turn until all other fighters have moved. This can be strategic if, for example, this character is trapped behind another party member who is blocking her path. However, a character must choose to wait at the very start of her turn only, before she has taken any steps. That is, she can not move three steps and then decide to wait to take the rest. The keyboard shortcut for this button is the letter "w".

Combat display statistics

Beneath the control buttons portion of the combat display is information pertaining to your current fighter. A picture of the combat display is shown here so you can refer to it while you read the explanations.

Current fighter. Important combat information for your current fighter is shown when it is that character's turn to move. In the example, the current fighter is the Princess, and her combat figure is shown.

Moves. The Princess's remaining moves are also displayed. This is the number of steps she can take total, and it automatically decrements each time she takes a step. Remember to save at least one move for her attack. An attack usually takes two moves, but if it is the last move, you need only one.

Attacks. Under the Moves field is the attacks field. This is the number of attacks the Princess gets this round. Since she gets two attacks and has four moves, she can either move one more square and then take two attacks (the last attack takes just one move). Or, she can attack now (if she's next to a monster) and then attack again. She can of course do other things, like meditate, but this is the basic move.

Current weapon. The next picture displays the weapon the princess is currently wielding, and text describing it. In this case, it is a citrus wood scepter.

Enemies left. Finally, the number of monsters remaining to fight is shown beneath the weapon.

Combat conditions

The final line of the combat display is reserved for the current fighter's conditions. Combat conditions are often the result of beneficial spells cast by allies (for example the Djinn or Magi characters), or they are due to abilities the fighter has or perhaps meditations she has chanted during battle. In the example above, the Princess has the "true aim" condition and the "sharpened weapon" condition. Both of these are advantageous and were cast by her allies.

There are also negative conditions that are usually the result of spells cast by your foes. These are listed along with the positive conditions. Since there are so many conditions that are relevant to combat, they are all shown below graphically, with a brief description next to them explaining what they mean.

Character is injured and his total vitality is decreased. The character's second vitality statistic is displayed in red to indicate that it is below the total amount.


Character is poisoned. Poisoning lasts beyond combat and affects vitality, which is shown in green while the character is still poisoned.


Character is asleep. While asleep, a character is easier to attack and she misses her combat turn.


Character is blurred and can retreat without penalty. Ordinarily, any monsters standing adjacent to a retreating character get a "free" attack.


Character attacks with improved accuracy.


Character's accuracy is decreased.


Character's dodge is improved.


Character's dodge is hindered.


Character is quickened and gets an extra attack every other round.


Characer is slowed and gets to move only every other round.


Character's weapon is sharpened and does more damage.


Character's weapon is dulled and does less damage.


Character's armor class is naturally enhanced.


Character's load is lightened, and his combat movement increases.


Character is burdened, and his combat movement is decreased.


Character is hallucinating, and swings wildly at hallucinations, missing the intended target 3 out of 4 times.


Character is pacified and lacks the will to attack.


Character is levitating and can move freely in and out of pits and traps.


Character is fire resistant and suffers reduced damage from fire.


Character can endure greater damage. Half of all damage is absorbed by vitality, the other half by stamina.


Character's mind is shielded and she is resistant to mental attacks.

The following two conditions are relevant for monsters only, but you may wonder what they mean, so they are included here:

Monster is afraid and will retreat during battle.


Monster is angered and will attack the provoker (whoever cast the anger spell).


Monster is your weakest foe on the battlefield.


Monster is your strongest foe on the battlefield.

How combat experience is divvied up

Your characters gain experience every time they are victorious in battle, and this experience is recorded on their individual character records. Once a character has enough experience points, he gains a level. If the character is a spellcaster, then he'll learn two new spells with each level. And, when characters reach new milestones, they are rewarded with additional attacks per combat round, extra damage bonuses, and other perks.

Characters do not all gain their levels in lock step. Some characters are better fighters than others, and they will likely gain levels at a faster rate. This is because the experience points are weighted in favor of the character who delivers the decisive, killing blow.

Each monster you fight is worth a certain number of experience points. This number of points varies with how difficult or challenging the monster is for you. When you are engaged in battle, the character who delivers the killing blow receives 1/3 of the monster's total experience points. The remaining 2/3 of the experience points are distributed across all party members.

An exception to this is the Princely character's pet. When your animal makes the killing blow, all of the experience points are distributed across your party members. This is because animals can not gain levels. As your party members get better and better, they will in essence "outgrow" their animal. You will then need to trade your pet for another, more advanced animal who can keep up with your party.

What should I do if one of my characters dies?

If your Princely character or Djinn character dies at any point during the game, the game is over. You can not go on, since these two characters are necessary to finish the game.

If one or more of your other characters dies, you can choose to go on without them, but you can not bring them back to life. There is no idea of "resurrection" in Jewel of Arabia, and there is no magic pill that will restore a character to life. Your best option is to restart the game from your last save file and avoid the situation that killed your character.

If your animal dies, you will not be able to replace it with another animal, since all of the animal keepers require you to trade your existing animal for one of theirs. Your pet is your responsibility, so don't let it die.

In the second part of the game, after the shareware portion, you will meet non-player characters who will join your party for a time and adventure with you. These characters are your allies and you should make every effort to protect their lives as you would your own. Sometimes, though, despite all of your efforts, these characters will die in combat. If this happens, the story may possibly take a different turn. But whatever the outcome, you will always be able to finish the ultimate goal of the game, but certain sub-goals may be cut off.

Basic combat strategies

This section of the manual describes some very basic combat strategies and is intended for beginning players. If you are a veteran of these games, you are probably a better player than I am, so you can safely skip this section.

Remain calm. The most important advice I can think of for beginning players is to remain calm. If a battle is going badly, or if you find yourself outnumbered by your enemies, don't panic. When I panic, I tend to wildly swing away at whatever monster hits me, and I throw away my careful battle plan. Don't allow this to happen. Since combat is not happening in real time, you have time to stop and look over the battlefield and try to come up with a plan to hopefully get you out of trouble.

Have a battle plan. This leads to the next strategy which is: have a battle plan. Recall the immortal words of a great general: "Even a bad plan is better than no plan at all." The worst thing you can do is fight without a plan and just swing at the monsters and hope they die. Instead, a simple and effective plan (and one that is too often overlooked) is to concentrate on eliminating one monster at a time. If each of your party members fights a different monster, then unless one blow kills those monsters, they'll all be around next round to strike back at you. So if you can whittle the enemy down one by one, there will be fewer and fewer monsters to fight back.

Use the battle formation to your advantage. Each combat encounter in Jewel of Arabia is unique, and while both sides' forces are placed down at random, they always adhere to certain predefined "battle formations". Some of these battle formations place the monsters farther away from you. When this happens, stand back and wait for the monsters to come to you to fight. Use this precious extra time to cast defensive and useful spells like "sharpen" and "true aim" and "quicken" on your party members.

Monitor your characters' statistics. Pay attention to your characters' statistics, especially vitality. If you notice that one of your characters is badly hurt, prepare to have him retreat from battle. Once your Djinn knows the "blur" spell, you can cast this beforehand so that the badly hurt character can retreat without penalty. Once a character's vitality falls to half or less of his total, a "shroud of impending death" appears atop his portrait to alert you that this character requires immediate attention. If you have a healing potion or know the healing meditation, by all means use it when it is that character's turn.

Leave an area if it is just too difficult. If the monsters you are fighting are just too hard and nothing seems to be working, leave this area and look for something easier to fight. Every monster in the game has a level just like you do. If you are trying to fight monsters of a level beyond your own, you will be fighting an uphill battle all the way. The game has been tested and carefully paced, so if you just keep dying and dying, you are likely in over your head and should plan to return to this area once your characters are all higher in level.

Save often. And finally, save often. If one of your characters dies, you can always restart from your last save file and try again.

Good luck!