Energy Resistance
Energy Resistance
Energy Resistance (ER) is a defensive trait used to reduce incoming energy damage. ER is most commonly acquired by equipping a shield that has been enchanted with the Energy Resistance property. However, several character classes can gain ER with class features, without the need to equip a shield.
ER is usually gained in one of six categories:
- ER x/<single type> — provides protection only against attacks which inflict the specific type of energy damage listed.
- ER x/common — provides protection against attacks which inflict damage of the type "energy, common"
- ER x/uncommon — provides protection against attacks which inflict damage of the type "energy, uncommon"
- ER x/rare — provides protection against attacks which inflict damage of the type "energy, rare"
- ER x/<class>, bypassed by <type> — provides protection against attacks which inflict damage of a given class (common, uncommon or rare), but is bypassed by a specific type of damage within that class.
- For example, a creature might have "ER x/common, bypassed by cold".
- ER x/- — provides protection against any attacks which inflict energy damage.
Energy resistance always has a numerical value (in place of the "x"), which is the amount of damage reduced from any single attack, if that attack is of a damage type the ER protects against. For example, a sorcerer with "ER 5/common" will reduce any "energy, common" damage by 5 points each time they would take damage of that type. If they are struck three different times by fire darts, each of those three hits is reduced by 5 points (assuming the fire darts are merely dealing "fire (energy, common)" damage).
It is possible for other variations of ER to exist. For example, some drakes possess "ER x/common, penetrated by cold", which protects against all "energy, common" damage sources except for cold, even though cold is also an "energy, common" damage type.
It is also possible to gain a weak form of ER that only protects against a single energy type, such as "ER 10/acid (energy, common)". Only acid (energy, common) damage would be reduced by this ER. All other energy damage types would go through without reduction.
Finally, it is possible to possess more than one type of ER. If you are attacked with an energy type that could be resisted by more than one of your types of ER, you only apply the single best ER type you possess, not both. For example, if you have ER 10/common, and ER 5/-, and are struck by an attack which inflicts "energy, common", you would only use the "ER 10/common", since it provides more mitigation than the "ER 5/-". Of course, if you have ER x/- with a value higher than all your other ER types, it is the only one that matters.
Primal (undefined damage type) damage cannot be resisted with DR, even with DR x/-. Primal damage is irresistible, and can never be reduced by either DR or ER, unless an ability specifically states it can be used to mitigate or resist Primal damage.