Core Concepts

This page explains how StatFlux thinks, in plain language. Five minutes here and the whole system will feel obvious.

How a stat's value is calculated

Every stat has a base value (what it is naturally) and a current value (what it is right now, after buffs). The current value is always computed the same way:

current = (base + all ADD buffs) × (1 + all MULTADD buffs) × (all MULTMULT buffs multiplied together)

Or in words: flat bonuses first, then percentage bonuses, then multipliers.

Worked example. Your character's base Speed is 100. Three buffs are active:

Buff	Type	Value	Meaning
Swift Boots	ADD	+10	flat +10 speed
Wind Blessing	MULTADD	+0.2	+20%
Haste Spell	MULTMULT	×2	doubled

(100 + 10) × (1 + 0.2) × 2  =  110 × 1.2 × 2  =  264

Remove the Haste Spell and it recomputes instantly: 110 × 1.2 = 132. You never do this math yourself — but the Wizard, the inspectors, and the Debugger all show it to you live.

Why two kinds of multipliers? They stack differently, and that's a design lever:

• MULTADD bonuses add together before multiplying: two +20% buffs give +40% (× 1.4). Use this when you want percentage bonuses to feel fair and linear.
• MULTMULT bonuses compound: two ×1.2 buffs give ×1.44. Use this for rare, dramatic effects — or ×0 for a hard stop (that's how the demo's Root works: Speed × 0 = frozen).

There's also ABSOLUTE, which ignores everything and pins the value outright ("polymorph: your attack is 1"). Use it sparingly.

The building blocks

GameTag — a name that's an asset

Instead of identifying stats by fragile strings ("Speed", "speed", "SPD"?), everything in StatFlux is identified by a GameTag asset. Your code and your data both point at the same asset, so typos are impossible and renames are safe.

StatBase — the definition of a stat

A StatBase asset answers three questions about a stat:

1. What is it? — which GameTag identifies it.
2. What's its base value? — either a plain number, or computed from other stats:
   • Linear: a weighted sum. MaxHealth = 100 + 10 × Vitality — every point of Vitality is worth 10 max health.
   • Curve: read the value off a curve you draw. MaxHealth = curve(Level) — perfect for level-up tables that aren't a straight line. Computed stats update automatically the moment their inputs change.
3. What are its limits? — optional Min and Max bounds. A bound can be a number, or another stat: set current Health's max bound to the MaxHealth stat, and when MaxHealth drops, current Health is pulled down with it — instantly, no code.

Inheritance for variants. A StatBase can have a parent. The child inherits every value and overrides only what you check. Build Tank once; make Speedy Tank by overriding just its speed. Right-click any StatBase → Make Child Stat.

StatSheet — stats on a thing

A component you put on anything — player, enemy, door, treasure chest. You list which StatBases it has; at runtime it builds live stats from them. Read and write by tag:

float hp = sheet.GetStatValue(healthTag);
sheet.SetStatBaseValue(healthTag, hp - 10f, attacker);   // take damage
sheet.OnStatChanged += (stat, source) => UpdateHealthBar(stat);

Buff — one change to one stat

A Buff asset modifies a single stat using one of the four types above, for one of three lifetimes:

• Instant — happens once and is done. Damage, healing, a permanent level-up bonus.
• Timed — lives for N seconds as a modifier, then removes itself and the stat springs back.
• Infinite — stays until your code removes it. Equipment bonuses, toggled auras.

Each buff also picks a stacking rule for when a second copy arrives: stack alongside, replace, or be ignored (with a smarter variant that only ignores weaker incoming buffs).

StatusEffect — a bundle of buffs with a clock

Real game effects are rarely one number. Frost slows movement AND attack speed. Poison deals damage every second for five seconds. A StatusEffect wraps a list of buffs and applies them together, with two superpowers:

• Apply Interval — re-apply the buffs every N seconds. Poison is literally: a Timed 5s effect, interval 1s, containing an Instant −5 Health buff. Five ticks, done.
• Automatic cleanup — when the effect ends (or is dispelled), every buff it applied is removed. Nothing leaks.

Ability — a button players press

Cooldown + optional cost + what it casts. TryCast checks the cooldown, checks and spends the cost stat (mana, stamina...), applies the effect/buffs to a target, and starts the cooldown. One call.

Categories, resistances, conditions

• Categories are tags on buffs/effects used for group removal — "cleanse all Debuffs", "dispel all Magic". (Stacking is decided by the buff's own identity tag, not its categories.)
• Resistance: a buff can name a resist stat. If the target has PoisonResist = 0.25, incoming poison is 25% weaker and shorter; at 1.0 they're immune. Since resists are stats, they can be buffed like anything else.
• Conditions: a buff or effect can require things about the target — "only applies if Health is below 25" — checked at apply time.

The buff bar

Ship-ready UI in one component: add BuffBarUI, point it at a BuffManager, done — it builds its own canvas. Each buff/effect asset chooses how it appears via its Indicator settings:

• countdown number (hidden for infinite effects),
• a grey radial sweep filling as time runs out,
• an expiring flash that pulses faster as the end approaches,
• stack counts (x3) — or one icon per instance if you prefer,
• or hidden from the bar entirely (internal mechanics).

Watching it all work

Open Bacon Dragon → StatFlux → Debugger and select any entity. Every stat shows its live calculation — the exact formula from the top of this page, with real numbers, updating as buffs come and go. Toggle Separate Buff Values to see each buff's individual contribution. If a number ever surprises you, the answer is one click away.