Combat

Combat is a core mechanic of Regions of Ruin. As Orcs aren't much for conversation, the Dwarves must retake their land with a sword or a hammer.

Quick Strikes
Quick strikes are the most basic attack, striking fast, but relatively weak. Hitting a raised shield with a quick strike will stun the attacker, and most of the damage will be resisted. The speed of the strike will vary depending on the weapon used.

Power Strikes
Power strikes are slow, but hit hard. Hitting a raised shield with a power strike will break through the block, damaging and stunning the defender. Stunned enemies take double damage when hit. The speed of the strike will vary depending on the weapon used.

Shielding
Shielding, or Blocking, will block most of the damage from quick strikes, and all of the damage from ranged attacks. However, power strikes will break through shields. Enemies will flash when they are preparing to perform a power strike, providing an opportunity dash away or counter them with a quick strike.

Throwing
Once the Throwing skill is unlocked, you can throw axes at your enemies. Holding down the throw button will increase the range of the throw, to a maximum range after about 3 seconds. Throwing attacks provide a good way to hurt enemies with minimal risk to oneself, but can only be upgraded by spending level-ups on Dexterity and throwing skills, and not better equipment, so the damage doesn't scale as well as normal attacks.

Sneaking
Sneaking provides the opportunity to kill off some or even all of the enemies before a fight begins. After enabling sneak, it will take a couple of seconds to fully hide. After hidden, enemies who look at you will take a couple of seconds to become fully aware and attack. Certain background objects, such as crates, chests, and some trees or structures can be snuck behind, making it even harder for enemies to spot you, sometimes hiding you indefinitely. Enemies who are facing away from you will never spot you while you are sneaking, unless they turn around or another enemy detects you. If you can successfully sneak up close to an enemy, they will take significantly increased damage from melee attacks, even if they are in the process of detecting you - if you have time, use a power strike for maximum damage.

Controls
Controls can be rebound at will in the options menu.