Directional Combat

Directional Combat is a dynamic directional melee system for Minecraft Fabric where every attack's effectiveness depends on your position, weapon, and timing. Strike from behind for devastating backstabs, stagger foes with side attacks, or break through defenses with overhead blows. Every hit shapes the flow of battle, unlocking combo bonuses, special effects, and unique mob interactions.

Key Features

Directional Damage — Backstab, Side Strike, and Frontal Guard, each with unique multipliers, armor effects, and knockback.
Vertical Combat — Overhead and underfoot attacks grant bonus or reduced damage.
Combo System — Chain hits for escalating damage and finisher effects.
Mob Specialization — Optional per-mob vulnerabilities and resistances (e.g., zombies, golems, skeletons).
Weapon Type Bonuses — Swords, axes, and more each excel at different attack types.
Parry & Exhaustion (Optional) — Parry windows, damage reflection, and hunger costs for advanced play.
Sound & Particle Feedback — Directional audio cues and particles for hits, combos, and blocks.
Combat Statistics — Per-player stats tracked and viewable in-game.
Fully Configurable — Every multiplier, threshold, and toggle is exposed in the config file.

How It Works

Directional Hits

Every melee attack is classified by angle:

Type	Angle	Effect
Backstab	Behind	Highest damage, armor penetration, reduced knockback
Side Strike	Side	Moderate damage, increased knockback, chance to stagger
Frontal Guard	Front	Reduced damage, bonus armor, shield bonus

Vertical Attacks

Type	Condition	Effect
Overhead	Above	Bonus damage, extra knockback
Underfoot	Below	Reduced damage

Combo System

Consecutive hits build a combo multiplier:

Up to 5x combo stack
+2% damage per combo level
Variety bonus for mixing attack types
Special sound/particle on finisher

Mob Specialization & Weapon Types

Optional per-mob bonuses (e.g., zombies take more from backstabs)
Weapon classes (sword, axe, etc.) have unique strengths for each attack type

Parry & Exhaustion

Parry window (configurable ticks) reflects damage if timed right
Special attacks (backstab, overhead, combos) cost hunger

Passive Effects by Attack Type

Attack	Effect
Backstab	+15% damage, +10% armor penetration, -30% knockback
Side Strike	+5% damage, +15% knockback, 10% stagger chance
Frontal Guard	-10% damage, +5% armor, +10% shield bonus
Overhead	+12% damage, +10% knockback
Underfoot	-8% damage

Apex Abilities

At max combo, trigger a finisher:

Combo Level	Effect
5	Special sound, bonus damage, particle burst

Mob Perception & Specialization

Optional: Certain mobs have unique vulnerabilities or resistances to attack types (see config for details).

The Fracture System

Not present in Directional Combat. (No soul fracture mechanic.)

Momentum System

Combo system acts as momentum: consecutive hits increase damage up to a cap, resets on timeout.

Anti-Grinder Protection

Not present in Directional Combat. (No anti-grinder system.)

Commands

All commands are under /dircombat (alias /dc):

Command	Permission	Description
`/dircombat stats`	All	Show combat statistics
`/dircombat reset`	All	Reset your combat statistics and combo
`/dircombat info`	All	Show mod status and config values
`/dircombat toggle`	OP (Level 2)	Toggle the mod on/off
`/dircombat reload`	OP (Level 2)	Reload configuration

Visual Indicators

State	Particle Effect
Backstab	Crit particles
Side Strike	Sweep attack particles
Overhead	Knockback particles
Combo Finisher	Experience orb sound, burst particles
Shield Block	Shield block sound

Configuration

Config file location: .minecraft/config/directional-combat.json

{
	"globalEnabled": true,
	"backstabDamageMultiplier": 1.15,
	"backstabArmorPenetration": 0.10,
	"backstabKnockbackReduction": 0.3,
	"sideStrikeDamageMultiplier": 1.05,
	"sideStrikeKnockbackIncrease": 0.15,
	"sideStrikeStaggerChance": 0.10,
	"frontalGuardDamageReduction": 0.90,
	"frontalGuardArmorBonus": 0.05,
	"frontalGuardShieldBonus": 0.10,
	"verticalAttacksEnabled": true,
	"overheadDamageMultiplier": 1.12,
	"underfootDamageReduction": 0.92,
	"weaponTypeBonusesEnabled": true,
	"comboSystemEnabled": true,
	"comboTimeoutMs": 3000,
	"maxComboCount": 5,
	"comboBaseDamageBonus": 0.02,
	"comboVarietyBonus": 0.01,
	"maxComboMultiplier": 1.15,
	"soundFeedbackEnabled": true,
	"soundVolume": 0.7,
	"statisticsTrackingEnabled": true,
	"mobSpecializationEnabled": false,
	"parrySystemEnabled": false,
	"parryWindowTicks": 5,
	"parryDamageReflection": 0.25,
	"parryStaminaCost": 0.15,
	"exhaustionEnabled": true,
	"backstabExhaustion": 0.3,
	"comboExhaustion": 0.1,
	"overheadExhaustion": 0.2
}

Installation

Install Fabric Loader (0.15.0 or newer) for Minecraft 1.20.1.
Install Fabric API (compatible with 1.20.1).
Download the mod JAR file.
Place the JAR into your .minecraft/mods folder (or server mods folder).
Launch Minecraft with the Fabric profile.

Building from Source

Clone the repository and run the Gradle build:

git clone https://github.com/AaravVishal1/directional-combat
cd directional-combat
./gradlew build

The compiled JAR will be in build/libs/.

For development:

./gradlew runClient    # Run Minecraft client
./gradlew runServer    # Run dedicated server

Requirements

Dependency	Version
Minecraft	1.20.1
Fabric Loader	0.15.0+
Fabric API	compatible
Java	17+

Troubleshooting

Directional effects not working

Check that globalEnabled is true in the config.
Ensure mixins are applied (check logs).
Verify you are using a supported Fabric/Minecraft version.

Combos not applying

Ensure comboSystemEnabled is true.
Check that server tick events are running.

Sounds/particles missing

Confirm soundFeedbackEnabled is true.
Ensure server allows particle spawning.

Mob specializations not working

Set mobSpecializationEnabled to true.
Check per-mob config values.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.