SkillSpeedScale

Per-skill attack speed scaling configuration for balancing multi-hit and channeled abilities

The SkillSpeedScale plugin allows fine-tuning how attack speed affects individual skills, enabling precise balance control for multi-hit abilities that become overpowered at high attack speeds.

File Location

GameServer/Data/Plugins/SkillSpeedScale.xml

Dependencies

Depends On	Purpose
GameServerInfo - Common.dat	Uses global timing values from [SkillTiming] section: MaxAttackSpeed, BaseSkillDelay, MinSkillDelay, SpeedDelayMultiplierX10
Skill.txt	References skill IDs (Index) from the skill database. Skills with Delay > 0 in Skill.txt use fixed cooldowns and ignore speed scaling.

Configuration Structure

<SkillSpeedScale>
    <Skill Index="238" Name="Chaotic Diseier" SpeedScale="0.55" MinDelay="200" />
    <Skill Index="9" Name="Evil Spirit" SpeedScale="1.0" MinDelay="50" />
</SkillSpeedScale>

Each <Skill> entry overrides the default speed scaling behavior for a specific skill.

Attributes

Attribute	Type	Default	Range	Description
Index	int	Required	0-299	Skill ID from Skill.txt
Name	string	Optional	-	Skill name for readability (not used by server, documentation only)
SpeedScale	float	1.0	0.0-3.0	How much attack speed affects this skill's delay (see below)
MinDelay	int	0	0+	Per-skill minimum delay in milliseconds (0 = use global MinSkillDelay)
MaxDelay	int	0	0+	Per-skill maximum delay cap in milliseconds (0 = no cap)

SpeedScale Values Explained

The SpeedScale attribute controls how much the character's attack speed stat affects the skill's casting delay:

Value	Effect	Use Case
0.0	Speed has NO effect (fixed delay)	Utility skills like Teleport that shouldn't be spammable
0.5	Speed has HALF effect (nerfed)	Multi-hit skills that become overpowered at high speed
1.0	Normal speed scaling (default)	Balanced single-hit skills
1.5	Speed has 150% effect (buffed)	Underpowered skills that need speed scaling boost
2.0	Speed has DOUBLE effect (heavily buffed)	Skills that should benefit greatly from attack speed investment

Skills NOT listed in this config file default to SpeedScale="1.0" (normal speed scaling).

Timing Formula

The plugin modifies the skill delay calculation formula used by the server:

Step-by-Step Calculation

1. If skill has Delay > 0 in Skill.txt → return that delay (fixed cooldown, no speed scaling)
2. Get character's attack/magic speed (physical skills use PhysiSpeed, magic skills use MagicSpeed)
3. Cap speed: speed = min(speed, MaxAttackSpeed)    // Default: 270
4. Apply per-skill scaling: effectiveSpeed = speed × SpeedScale
5. Calculate raw delay: rawDelay = BaseSkillDelay - (effectiveSpeed × SpeedDelayMultiplier)
6. Apply max cap: if MaxDelay > 0 then rawDelay = min(rawDelay, MaxDelay)
7. Apply min floor: finalDelay = max(rawDelay, MinDelay or global MinSkillDelay)

Default Global Values

These are configured in GameServerInfo - Common.dat under the [SkillTiming] section:

Global Setting	Hardcoded Default	Purpose
MaxAttackSpeed	270	Maximum effective speed before formula (0 = no cap)
BaseSkillDelay	1500 ms	Starting delay before speed reduction
SpeedDelayMultiplierX10	50 (= 5.0)	Delay reduction per speed point (stored as x10 for precision)
MinSkillDelay	50 ms	Absolute minimum delay floor

The actual values in your server's config file may differ. These are the hardcoded defaults used when the config file doesn't specify values.

Formula Example

Chaotic Diseier with SpeedScale="0.55", MinDelay="200":

Low-speed character (speed = 200):

effectiveSpeed = 200 × 0.55 = 110
rawDelay = 1500 - (110 × 5.0) = 1500 - 550 = 950 ms
finalDelay = max(950, 200) = 950 ms

High-speed character (speed = 270, capped):

effectiveSpeed = 270 × 0.55 = 148.5
rawDelay = 1500 - (148.5 × 5.0) = 1500 - 742.5 = 757 ms
finalDelay = max(757, 200) = 757 ms

Compare to normal scaling (SpeedScale="1.0"):

effectiveSpeed = 270 × 1.0 = 270
rawDelay = 1500 - (270 × 5.0) = 1500 - 1350 = 150 ms
finalDelay = max(150, 50) = 150 ms

By reducing SpeedScale to 0.55, the skill casts at 757ms instead of 150ms at max speed—preventing spam of this powerful multi-hit AoE.

Important Behavior

Skills with Fixed Delay: If a skill has a non-zero Delay value in Skill.txt, that delay is used as a fixed cooldown and attack speed scaling is completely ignored. Only skills with Delay=0 in Skill.txt are affected by the speed scaling formula and this plugin.

Per-Skill Overrides: The MinDelay attribute in this config overrides the global MinSkillDelay from GameServerInfo - Common.dat for the specified skill only.

Clamping: Invalid SpeedScale values are automatically clamped:

• Values below 0.0 → clamped to 0.0

• Values above 3.0 → clamped to 3.0

Physical vs Magic Skills: Physical skills (melee attacks, bow skills) use PhysiSpeed for timing calculations, while magic skills use MagicSpeed. This means the same character may have different casting speeds for different skill types based on their equipment and stats.

Reload Support: Configuration can be reloaded at runtime using the /reload plugins GM command without restarting the server.

Negative Values Ignored: Negative values for MinDelay or MaxDelay are treated as 0 (use global/no cap).

Common Use Cases

Multi-Hit Skills - Nerf Speed Scaling

Multi-target or multi-hit skills become overpowered when spammed at high attack speed:

<!-- Evil Spirit: 10-target AoE -->
<Skill Index="9" Name="Evil Spirit" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="350" />

<!-- Chaotic Diseier: 2-hit directional AoE -->
<Skill Index="238" Name="Chaotic Diseier" SpeedScale="0.55" MinDelay="200" />

<!-- Chain Lightning: Multi-target chain -->
<Skill Index="215" Name="Chain Lightning" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="400" />

By reducing SpeedScale below 1.0, these skills remain powerful but can't be spammed continuously.

Channeled Skills - Heavy Nerf

Skills with continuous or hold effects should be heavily rate-limited:

<!-- Force: Channeled push skill -->
<Skill Index="60" Name="Force" SpeedScale="0.2" MinDelay="600" />

A very low SpeedScale (0.2) combined with high MinDelay (600ms) ensures this utility skill cannot be spammed.

Utility Skills - Fixed Delay

Teleport and buff skills should have fixed delays regardless of attack speed:

<!-- Teleport: Should not be spammable -->
<Skill Index="6" Name="Teleport" SpeedScale="0.0" MinDelay="1000" />

<!-- Soul Barrier: Defensive buff -->
<Skill Index="16" Name="Soul Barrier" SpeedScale="0.0" MinDelay="500" />

Setting SpeedScale="0.0" makes attack speed completely ineffective, using only the MinDelay value.

Single-Hit Burst Skills - Buff Speed Scaling

Underpowered single-hit skills can benefit MORE from attack speed:

<!-- Twisting Slash: Benefits greatly from attack speed -->
<Skill Index="41" Name="Twisting Slash" SpeedScale="1.5" MinDelay="50" />

A SpeedScale above 1.0 makes attack speed investment more rewarding for this skill.

Examples

Balanced Multi-Hit

<SkillSpeedScale>
    <!-- Multi-hit skills nerfed to 50-60% speed scaling -->
    <Skill Index="78" Name="Fire Scream" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="350" />
    <Skill Index="237" Name="Gigantic Storm" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="400" />
    <Skill Index="238" Name="Chaotic Diseier" SpeedScale="0.55" MinDelay="200" />
    <Skill Index="215" Name="Chain Lightning" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="400" />
    <Skill Index="230" Name="Lightning Shock" SpeedScale="0.5" MinDelay="350" />
</SkillSpeedScale>

Fixed Utility Delays

Mixed Balance

Class-Specific: Rage Fighter

Common Issues

Skills Still Too Fast: If a skill is still being spammed at high speed, check:

1. Is the skill's Index correct? Verify against Skill.txt

2. Is the config file loaded? Check server logs for "SkillSpeedScale" entries

3. Try increasing MinDelay or decreasing SpeedScale further

Skills Too Slow: If a skill feels unresponsive:

1. Increase SpeedScale value (closer to 1.0)

2. Decrease MinDelay value

3. Check that global MaxAttackSpeed isn't too restrictive

Config Not Reloading: Use /reload plugins command. If issues persist, restart the GameServer. Check logs for XML parsing errors.

Testing Changes: Use characters with different attack speed values to verify the scaling behaves as expected:

• Low speed (~100): Tests base delay

• Medium speed (~200): Tests scaling curve

• High speed (~270): Tests minimum delay floor

Finding Skill IDs

Skill IDs (Index attribute) come from GameServer/Data/Skill.txt. Each line represents a skill:

// Format: Index   Name   ...other attributes...
0    Energy Ball
1    Poison
...
238  Chaotic Diseier

Alternatively, check in-game or in the client's Skill.txt data file.

Related Configurations

• GameServerInfo - Common.dat ([SkillTiming] section): Global attack speed settings (MaxAttackSpeed, BaseSkillDelay, MinSkillDelay, SpeedDelayMultiplierX10)

• Skill.txt: Base skill definitions, IDs, and fixed delays (Delay column)

• SkillManager.cpp: Server-side skill validation and timing enforcement (implements the speed scaling formula)

Reload Command

/reload plugins

This command reloads all plugin configurations including SkillSpeedScale.xml without restarting the server.