Death and PvP
Every frog falls sooner or later. This guide covers what it costs, how to soften the blow, and the rules for fights between players.
When you fall
The screen goes dark and tells you who or what killed you, plus anything you lost. A few seconds later you wake at the Arrival Ring with full health, and the ring flares green beneath you.
From level 8 on, your body stays where you fell. It lies there for 600 seconds with whatever dropped from your bags. For the first 15 seconds, only you, your party and your killers can open it. After that, anyone can. So walk back quickly.
What death costs
Below level 8, nothing. The dark takes nothing from a young frog, so go ahead and learn by falling over.
From level 8 on:
- You lose 10% of all your experience. That can cost you a level.
- Each skill loses 10% of its progress toward the next skill level. You never lose a skill level itself.
- Your worn gear is safe. Each stack in your bags has a 10% chance of falling into your body.
- Bound items, the kind that say "That stays with you", never drop.
Blessings
There are 4 blessings, one for each of four old powers: the Waters, the Endless, the Waiting Dark and the Hidden. Bardo the Fire-Keeper sells them by the wayfire. Ask him to buy blessings and he gives you every one you're missing at once, paid from the coins you carry (not your bank). Say bless to see which ones you already hold, or blessings to hear how they work.
- Each blessing cuts 2 points off the experience you lose. With all four, a death costs only a sliver.
- Each blessing also cuts the chance of losing a bag stack by a quarter. With all four, nothing drops from your bags.
- They cost 2000 copper each up to level 30, then 200 copper more for every level after that, up to 10000 at most.
- A death uses them all up, so buy them again afterwards.
- Below level 8, Bardo won't sell you any. You don't need them yet.
Safe zones
Some ground is protected. Nobody can attack anyone standing in a safe zone, or attack out of one. A status icon appears while you're inside, and the chat tells you when you step in or out.
In the grove there are two:
- The Arrival Ring, inside its eight standing stones.
- Mabry's trading ground, round her cart, inside the ring of low sunk kerb stones.
Inside a safe zone, players pass through each other, so nobody can block the ring or the cart.
There are no others yet. The West Road, Harrowfield and the Hearth outpost are all open ground, so keep secure mode on out there.
Fighting other players
Outside safe zones, players can fight players. A few rules keep it fair:
- Level 8 first. Below it you can't attack anyone, and nobody can attack you.
- Damage from players is halved (times 0.5), so fights between frogs last longer than fights with beasts.
- Secure mode is on by default. It stops you from attacking anyone in a way that would earn you a skull, and your area spells skip unmarked players. Press
[X]to switch it off, and again to switch it back on. Turn it off only when you mean it. - No running from a fight. For 60 seconds after any swing, given or taken, you can't log out. If you close the tab, your frog stays standing there until that time runs out. Standing in a safe zone lifts the lock.
- No hiding after an attack. After attacking a player, no safe zone will let you in for 60 seconds. After an unjust kill, that lasts 15 minutes.
Skulls
A skull over a frog's head tells you what they've been up to.
| Mark | What it means |
|---|---|
| White skull | They attacked an unmarked player who hadn't attacked them first. It lasts 15 minutes after their last such attack. |
| Defence mark | Only you see this one: that frog attacked you, so you may defend yourself without a skull. |
| Revenge mark | Only you see this one: that frog killed you unjustly. You may take revenge for 7 days. |
| Red skull | Too many unjust kills: 3 in a day, 5 in a week or 10 in a month. It lasts 30 days after the last one. |
| Black skull | An unjust kill while already red, or 6 in a day, 10 in a week or 20 in a month. It lasts 45 days. |
A red or black skull is a heavy thing to carry. Die with one and you drop everything, worn gear included, and blessings won't help (they still get used up). A black skull can only fight back, never strike first at an unmarked player, and wakes after death with just 10% of its health.
An unjust kill counts against everyone who did at least 10% of the damage. The highscores' kills board counts only fair kills, where the victim was at least 50% of the killer's level and no more than 3 players joined in. Ganging up on small frogs won't get you on the board.
Wandering off
Leave your frog idle for 15 minutes out in the wild, or 30 minutes in a safe zone, and you'll be logged out. You get a warning 1 minute before. That never happens in the middle of a fight, though. The fight has to end first.