The quick answer
Read combat stats in groups: attack and damage effects, hit-result rates, survival, and the resources used during combat. Precision, Critical and Affinity are distinct mechanics. Choose attributes for your Martial Arts and activity rather than treating one number as the best stat for every character.
On this page
Open detailed attributes before comparing equipment
Open Develop and inspect Details for the character’s attribute information. Read the combat panel separately from Exploration Skills. Before comparing numbers, keep the same active build and note which gear, passives or temporary effects you changed.
Start with a practical question: are you struggling to survive, running out of a resource, or trying to improve a particular attack? That question determines which rows deserve attention. A long attribute panel becomes easier to read when you are looking for one cause.
The five base combat attributes
| Attribute | Main relationship |
|---|---|
| Body | Maximum HP. |
| Power | Physical Attack. |
| Defense | Physical Defence and HP. |
| Agility | Minimum Physical Attack and Critical Rate. |
| Momentum | Maximum Physical Attack and Affinity Rate. |
These relationships explain why two items with similar-looking base totals can support different goals. Inspect the resulting detailed stats rather than assuming every point contributes equally to the attack or support action you care about.
Precision, Critical and Affinity are not interchangeable
Precision is a hit-result check, not a guarantee that your attack physically connects with the target. Critical results depend on a Precision hit; non-Precision outcomes can include Abrasion, while Affinity can occur without Precision. Affinity uses the maximum-attack side of the calculation, whereas Critical Damage describes a different bonus. Raising one rate does not make the other rates redundant.
That means the largest isolated rate is not automatically the best upgrade. Compare the complete setup and the skill being used. This foundation guide does not present a universal damage formula or a single target percentage: skill guarantees, modes and balance changes can alter the relevant calculation.
This is why “my Critical Rate went up, but I barely notice it” needs more than another Critical upgrade. Inspect Precision, the skill’s guaranteed-hit effects and the other stats lost in the swap. Likewise, a direct Affinity effect is not the same thing as a generic Critical Damage line. No universal percentage target follows from those relationships alone.
Survival and resources explain many failed attempts
| Stat or resource | What to distinguish |
|---|---|
| HP | How much damage you can take before defeat. |
| Qi | The combat state associated with being broken or Exhausted. |
| Endurance | The resource budget behind movement and many actions. |
| Vitality | A separate resource used by offensive Mystic Skills. |
| Defence and damage reduction | Ways of changing incoming damage, rather than simply enlarging HP. |
If you repeatedly cannot dodge after attacking, inspect your sequence and Endurance use before assuming more HP solves the problem. If one unavoidable-looking hit kills you, first establish whether it was actually a mechanic you could avoid.
Compare one change at a time
Save the current setup, equip the candidate piece, and inspect both the detailed panel and set effects. Then test a repeatable sequence against the same target. Keep buffs, starting resources and the duration of the attempt as consistent as you can.
Look beyond the largest damage number. Does the new setup make your regular attacks more consistent? Can you finish the sequence? Does it preserve the support effect you needed? A spectacular single hit can distract from a worse result over the whole encounter.
Choose stats from the build outward
Start with the important skills and their descriptions. Identify the attack type, any named stat scaling and any conditional or guaranteed result. Then choose equipment and passive effects that support those features. Generic stat advice is least reliable when a style has a special interaction you have not read.
Keep exploration attributes separate from this process. A requirement involving Perception or Total Aspiration belongs to exploration progression, not necessarily to damage optimisation. Use the dedicated exploration guide when a world ability is locked behind those attributes.
Decode the wording around a stat
| Word in the description | How to read it |
|---|---|
| Rate | How often the stated result can occur, subject to the mechanic’s conditions. |
| Damage | The size or modification of a result, not automatically its chance. |
| Maximum / minimum attack | Different ends of the attack range; read the skill’s interaction. |
| Conditional bonus | An effect that needs the named action, state or target. |
| Capacity | How much a resource can hold; separate from the amount available now. |
For example, a Critical Damage increase does not itself say you will get Critical results more often. Likewise, more maximum Vitality does not explain why a skill is on cooldown. Read the noun after the number.
A worked comparison without an invented best-stat target
Suppose you are choosing between two pieces: one raises an attractive offensive number, while the other preserves a set effect that supports your regular sequence. First compare the full equipped result, including the set. Then check whether the skill you use benefits from the new attribute.
Test against the same target with the same actions and similar starting resources. Repeat enough to notice whether the whole sequence becomes more consistent; do not decide from one unusually large hit. This is a comparison method, not a claim that a particular percentage is universally optimal.
Match a combat problem to a useful check
| What you experience | Inspect first | Avoid assuming |
|---|---|---|
| Cannot dodge after attacking | Endurance use and sequence length. | Every failure is a lack of HP. |
| Mystic Skill cannot be cast | Vitality, cooldown and skill conditions. | More Physical Attack makes it available. |
| Damage varies more than expected | Hit-result mechanics and conditional effects. | The largest single hit describes normal output. |
| A world skill is locked | Named exploration attributes and total requirement. | Combat power substitutes for exploration progress. |
| One hit defeats you | The attack mechanic, mitigation and HP. | Every apparent one-shot is unavoidable. |
Change the smallest part that addresses the cause, then compare again. This keeps attribute decisions connected to the way you actually play.
What to read next
Common questions
Is more Critical Rate always better than more Affinity Rate?
There is no universal answer for every style and activity. Compare the relevant attack, existing rates, skill conditions and complete build. Do not use an isolated panel number as a replacement for that comparison.