Feedback on Darktide Basic Training - Toughness Mechanics

The basic training teaches players to take toughness damage, lose all toughness, then take health damage. This accurately reflects how toughness works for ranged attacks: health damage only occurs after toughness is depleted.

However, melee attacks work differently. If hit with a melee attack at 50% toughness, half the damage bypasses toughness and hits health directly. The training fails to show this due to two issues:

  1. Players can approach the gunner, triggering melee range. Most will likely rush the gunner, expecting to “kill” it, only to realize they have no weapon.
  2. In training, melee attacks inexplicably don’t damage health until toughness is fully depleted, misrepresenting how melee works.

This design intends to demonstrate ranged attack mechanics but can be highly misleading.

Suggestion: Use a two-step approach:

  • Show ranged attack mechanics with an unreachable ranged unit.
  • Show melee attack mechanics with a melee-only unit, clearly stating: “Melee hits can pierce toughness, damaging health based on missing toughness.”
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