#amusphere

“Berserk” is a status effect, which can be imposed upon targets via a Darkness-type or Music-type spell or voluntarily assumed by a player or mob who possesses the “Berserkergang” Skill. As this status effect combines various advantages and disadvantages within one state, it is not strictly either a buff or debuff, and is therefore usually labeled as one or the other depending on whether the target would find the state desirable in a particular situation.

While it was very possible for the NerveGear to induce an actual state of blind rage in a player, the AmuSphere was specifically designed to have no such capacity at all. The designers of ALfheim Online, therefore, got very creative with various bonuses, incentives, soft penalties and hard restrictions built into this status effect. These would not only simulate the experience of blind rage for players to enjoy roleplaying a berserker, they would even incline players involuntarily subjected to the effect to behave “appropriately”.

Each faction has an NPC trainer who can impart the “Berserkergang” Skill as a quest reward. It levels up from being used, especially from the player hitting enemies and being hit while under the “berserk” effect, and most especially when exchanging blows with a “higher-level” mob or boss. Players with sufficient levels in the “Beast Taming” and “Familiar Communication” Skills do not need to possess the “Berserkergang” Skill to teach it to one of their tamed pets.

Players subjected to the “berserk” effect through external sources, once the effect has ended, are given the choice of equipping the Skill to their characters. When a player who already has the Skill is subjected to the “berserk” status effect from an external source, it counts for the purposes of grinding up the Skill’s level, and the player still receives the benefits from his or her Skill’s level.

Activating the “Berserkergang” Skill is purely a matter of will; just as the AmuSphere would respond to a player’s desire to take a step forward, the desire to enter the “berserk” state is recognized and acted upon. Fortunately, the sensitivity of the mental trigger is considerably dull; whereas a player might take a step forward or back involuntarily, only a strong and clear desire to activate this Skill will do so.

The primary advantage of “berserk” is the dramatic increase of bodily-strength and wing-thrust, especially for the purposes of advancing towards or attacking a hostile target upon which the player is visually focused. Players unaccustomed to this boost will find economical or precise movements near-impossible, resulting in a clumsiness which can render the potential advantage into a serious disadvantage, especially against opponents prepared to fight berserkers. Even experienced berserkers who can anticipate and compensate for the explosive power find it easier and more rewarding to accept its limitations and dedicate themselves to wild leaps and brutal swings.

The other advantage of the “berserk” effect is an increased resistance to the “stun” simulated pain/flinch effect, “sleep” effect, or “charm” effect, especially from hostile targets upon which the player is visually focused.

While “berserk”, the player’s senses of sight and hearing are artificially impaired by the system. Vision is tunneled upon any hostile target on which the player is visually focused, and the sound of speech is slightly muted and distorted so that it becomes more difficult to clearly make out what others are saying. Text-messages are completely blocked. (After the Transition, these artificial limitations have been replaced by the very real side-effects of true rage. That is, the berserker suffers natural tunnel-vision rather than artificial, and voices are harder to make out over the literal and metaphoric sound of blood thundering through one’s head. And naturally, there is no more text-messaging.)

While “berserk”, the player’s ability to speak intelligibly is locked; the system permits growling, snarling, screaming, laughing, sobbing, and other animalistic noises, but will render any attempt to speak into mere grunts and howls.

The inability to properly speak is simulated so far as the system preventing the player from incanting spells, rendering the berserker unable to use magic. However, a special exception exists for the Illusion-type “Bestial Transformation” spell. With a high enough Skill level in the “Berserkergang” and “Illusion Magic” Skills, a player under the “berserk” effect is capable of activating that spell with the same degree of deliberate intent as is required to activate the “Berserkergang” Skill. The fairy runes appear, but automatically set themselves without vocal input or the required pose.

While “berserk”, accessing one’s inventory or retrieving materialized items from sheaths, packs or pockets is completely impossible; if it’s not already in your hand, it’s beyond your reach. Items such as potion bottles or trigger-dependent talismans cannot be activated at all; even if they’re in your hand, they can be used only as improvised clubs or projectiles.

The duration of the “berserk” status effect is dependent upon the player character’s MP gauge, which continuously drains for as long as the player is under the effect. The drain is faster when the player remains still or is visually focused on an allied target, but slower when the player is visually focused on a hostile target, moving at best speed, or straining with all possible might. Having the “Berserkergang” Skill and raising its level reduces the rate of the drain further still. (As does the hidden “Stamina” attribute modifier for fairies of particular factions, such as enjoyed by Gnomes, Leprechauns and Salamanders, in descending order of degree.)

Hitting things and being hit while “berserk” refills the MP gauge, prolonging the duration of the “berserk” effect. The MP reward becomes greater depending on the extent of damage inflicted or recieved, but there is at least a small reward even if no damage is done at all.

When the player’s MP gauge runs out, the “berserk” buff is replaced with an “exhaustion” debuff that severly impairs physical parameters and the recovery of HP and MP. Having the “Berserkergang” Skill and raising its level reduces the duration of the debuff. (The aforementioned “Stamina” modifier also applies to reducing the debuff duration.)

A fairy or mob who has voluntarily assumed the “berserk” status through use of the “Berserkergang” Skill is capable of willing the state to prematurely end, instantly emptying his or her MP gauge and suffering the “exhaustion” debuff. At higher levels of “Berserkergang”, a player can retain an increasing portion of MP after voluntarily and prematurely ending the “berserk” effect.

Player Strategy Notes:

If you want to bring a berserker down quickly, attempt to trap and restrict their movements, such as with a Binding spell, so that the rage expires faster and they cannot use the time to attack you. The only thing better is successfully managing to put one to Sleep.

If your Music or Illusion Magic proficiency is high enough, a Charmed berserker attacking its own allies is a wonderful way to change the odds of battle. By the same token, professional berserkers should strenuously avoid falling under the Charm effect.

Berserk-Tanking is a strategy which either works very well or not at all. Because bosses are tougher and stronger than individual player characters by design, this strategy generally requires very high character skill levels, considerable player skill, and advanced gear. Further, there are many bosses whose behavior patterns make this strategy utter suicide and the prelude to a Total Party Wipe. As always, the most successful berserkers are those who know when to avoid berserking.

Berserk-DSPing as a strategy is only as viable as the effectiveness of the party tank’s ability to keep the boss’s attention away from a DPSer who will not stop generating massive amounts of Hate. If the DPS player is “lower-tier” than the tank, such as a professional healer only using Berserk to make up for being a very poor source of DPS, then this strategy can be made to work against bosses with appropriate behavior patterns.

Berserk-Retreating deserves a special mention for being so completely counter-intuitive. Few people ever imagine that the Berserk effect can be used to better escape from danger, but nothing in ALO actually requires a berserker to attack anyone or anything. The boost to bodily-strength and wing-thrust aren’t good only for chasing after a target, but also fleeing at top speed. The player’s MP gauge will drain faster for avoiding visual focus on any enemy, but moving at your best speed, battering obstacles aside, and taking damage from whipping tree branches or projectiles from behind can prolong the Berserk-Retreat long enough to make the difference between life and death. Just watch out for that Exhaustion penalty at the end! If possible, concentrate on getting out of sight long enough to hide by the time your gauge runs dry.