Critical hit

A critical hit (crit) is a much more powerful version of a regular hit, with a potential to apply status effects to the target.

Critical hits are governed by several closely related values: the chance to trigger one ("critical chance"), a base roll ("critical roll") and its multiplier ("critical power"), each with a separate resistance, and a cooldown-like limiter ("critical rate"). They have six potency brackets ("critical tiers") based on the final value of the critical roll that use predefined values ("critical tables") to determine the final amount of bonus damage ("critical damage") and special effects ("critical effects") that will amplify the force of the critical hit.

Critical chance

Critical chance is the probability that a successful hit is upgraded to a critical hit. It is capped at 100%.

Various modifiers can affect critical chance:

Critical chance modifiers

Body armor and helmets modify attackers' critical chance; the higher their tier, the better the protection they offer After Burner Gum (drug) grants +10% critical chance, but reduces Luck by 5 Rad-X (drug) reduces your critical chance by 5% Radiated Heart (Cannibal drug) grants +8% critical chance Even More Criticals (level perk) grants +10% to critical chance and +1% additional critical chance for every critical chance bonus that currently applies to your character More Critical (level perk) grants +6% critical chance, and +1% additional critical chance for aimed attacks per point of Luck Spray and Pray (level perk) removes your critical chance cap Marksman (perk synergy) grants +3% additional critical chance for aimed attacks per point of Luck CC (T1 WE stat) grants +5% critical chance S.CRT (T2 WE stat) grants +5% critical chance Finesse (trait) grants +15% critical chance, and an additional +10% critical chance vs. NPCs Dragon Module (combat implant) tiers 1-3 grant +5% critical chance each Dragon Module (combat implant) tiers 1-3 combined with the Warlord Enhancement relic implant grant +8% critical chance each Critical Shell (armor perk) increases your critical chance by up to 15% (or up to 20% for Hubologists) Bonus Critical Chance (weapon perk) increases critical chance by up to +20% (or up to 40% for Hubologists) Critical Master (legendary weapon perk) grants bonus critical chance vs. NPCs at various ranks (F: +5%, D: +5%, S: +10%) Assassin (class perk) gets +1% critical chance per point of Perception, +25% critical chance vs. NPCs Assassin's favorite weapon type (Range Pistols) grants +1% critical chance for each hex away from the target (can exceed 100%, ignores target's critical chance resistance) Clone (class perk) loses 1% critical chance per point of Endurance Deathclaw (class perk) gets +1% critical chance per point of Endurance, Intelligence, and Agility Leader (class perk)'s power flag grants +[CHA/2]% critical chance Random Boy (class perk)'s lucky rolls can grant +10% critical chance while unlucky rolls can result in -3% critical chance Scout's favorite weapon type (Sniper Rifles) grants +25% critical chance Soldier (class perk) gets +1% critical chance Plasma Converter (Alien-exclusive weapon perk, rank C) sets your critical chance to 100% Finesse (Regulator trait) doubles your critical chance Kamikaze (Regulator trait) sets your critical chance to 0 Mr. Handy (Robot's transformation) loses 10% critical chance Luck grants +1% critical chance per point Luck grants +4% bonus critical chance for aimed attacks per point Ear (Cannibal drug) grants +3 Luck Voodoo (drug) grants +3 Luck LK (T1 WE stat) grants +1 Luck Probability Calculator (SPECIAL implant) grants +1 Luck Absorbing radiation reduces your critical chance by 10% once you're above 720 rads; if you're above 1350 rads and still alive, your critical chance is set to 1%

Critical rate

Critical rate is the frequency with which you can land fully effective critical hits.

By default, if you score more than one critical hit within a 2-second (2000 ms) window, those additional critical hits' critical rolls are performed at a penalty of -0.1 for each millisecond remaining in that window.

Alternatively, you can think of it as a penalty that starts at -200 and then decays by 0.1 every millisecond until it completely goes away 2 seconds (2000 ms) later.

Whenever you see a perk that improves/reduces "critical rate" by some number of milliseconds, the thing actually being modified is the minimum period of time that must elapse between two "fully charged" criticals.

Modifiers that affect critical rate:

• Marksman (perk synergy) improves your critical rate by 200 ms
• Ranger (perk synergy) improves your critical rate by 200 ms
• Slayer (perk synergy) improves your critical rate by 500 ms
• Combat Focus (armor perk) can improve your critical rate by up to 200 ms (or 500 ms for Hubologists)
• Suppression (armor perk) modifies your attackers' critical rate by anywhere from -100 ms to +1000 ms (or +200 ms to +3000 ms for Hubologists)

Critical roll

Whenever you score a crit, the game generates a value called the critical roll (capped at 750). Your base critical roll depends on your class.

Base critical roll values

Base critical roll by class Class Base crit roll No class 0–5 Alien 0–10 Assassin 0–90 Bounty Hunter 0–75 Chosen One 0–45 Clone 0–50 Combat Master 0–80 Cyborg 0–65 Deathclaw 0–55 Grenadier ??–?? Hubologist 10–20 Infantry 0–60 Killer 0–95 Leader 0–35 Paramedic 0–30 Priest 0–20 Random Boy 0–100 Raider 5–25 Regulator 10–40 Robot 40–80 Scout 0–105 Sniper 0–85 Soldier 0–70 Super Mutant 0–25 Wrecker 0–40

Critical roll modifiers

Critical roll modifiers: Voodoo (drug) increases your critical rolls by 10 Radiated Heart (Cannibal drug) increases your critical rolls by 5 Slayer (perk synergy) increases your critical rolls by 40 CP (T1 WE stat) grants +8 to critical rolls S.CRT (T2 WE stat) grants +8 to critical rolls Bonus Critical Power (weapon perk) can increase your critical rolls by up to 13 (or 23 for Hubologists) Aggressive Module (combat implant) tier 3 grants +3 to base critical roll for each point of Charisma Bounty Hunter's critical rolls receive +2 per point of BH's base critical chance and another +2 per point of BH's target's base critical chance Leader (class perk)'s power flag grants +CHA/3 to critical roll Random Boy (class perk)'s lucky rolls can grant +80 to critical rolls while unlucky rolls can result in a critical roll penalty of -30 Scout's favorite weapon type (Sniper Rifles) grants +25 to that class's critical rolls Plasma Converter (Alien weapon perk, Rank B) grants +50 to critical roll Each hit point above 150 reduces your critical rolls by 2 Heart (Cannibal drug) raises that threshold by 100 points Robobrain (Robot transformation) ignores the HP-based critical roll penalty Perception Mastery grants +20 to critical rolls

Critical power

After the critical roll is calculated, the value is multiplied by the attacker's critical power. Base critical power is always 100%.

There are several mechanics that interact with your critical power:

Critical power modifiers

Luck grants +1% critical power per point (capped at 20) Body armor and helmets modify critical power of incoming critical hits; the higher their tier, the better the protection they offer Better Criticals (level perk) grants +25% critical power Better HtH Criticals (level perk) grants +33% critical power when using melee weapons Phantom Presence (level perks) allows your unaimed attacks to gain +30% critical power while you're sneaking Marksman (perk synergy) grants 150% critical power when the target is less than 30 hexes away CE (T1 WE stat) grants +8% critical power S.CRT (T2 WE stat) grants +8% critical power Fast Shot (trait) caps your critical power at 149% Bonus Critical Power (weapon perk) can increase your critical power by up to 10% (or 20% for Hubologists) Bounty Hunter (class perk) suffers a -3% critical power penalty per point of Endurance Combat Master (class perk) gets +1% critical power per point of Strength, plus +6% more per Fury stack Cyborg (class perk) gets +1% critical power per point of Luck Sniper (class perk) receives +2% critical power per point of Perception, +10% critical power vs. NPCs; +1% critical power for each hex of distance away from their target (aimed shots only) which goes up to +2% per hex if their weapon has the Long Range weapon perk Soldier (class perk) gets +1% critical power Random Boy (class perk)'s lucky rolls can grant +40% critical power while unlucky rolls can result in -20% critical power Leader (class perk)'s power flag grants +[CHA/3]% critical power Bounty Hunter (class perk)'s favorite weapon type (Plasma Weapons) grant +10% critical power plus +1% critical power extra per 10 points of sight range Plasma Converter (Alien weapon perk, rank A) grants +50% critical power Robobrain gets +25% critical power

Critical resistances

Defenders can mitigate critical hits through three types of resistance:

• Critical chance resistance, which reduces the attacker's capped critical chance
• Critical roll resistance, which reduces the attacker's critical roll before multiplication
• Critical power resistance, which reduces the attacker's critical power

Various modifiers can affect these resistances:

Critical resistance modifiers

Cigarettes (drug) grant +5% critical chance resistance Ear (Cannibal drug) reduces your critical chance resistance by 33% Radiated Eye (Cannibal drug) reduces your critical power resistance by 20% Man of Steel (level perk) grants +25% critical chance resistance and +50% critical power resistance Unbreakable (level perk) increases critical damage resistance by 20% and prevents you from being critically hit twice in a row Iron Man (perk synergy) grants +30% critical chance resistance and +30% critical roll resistance HR (T1 WE stat) grants +8% critical power resistance CR (T1 WE stat) grants +5% critical chance resistance S.SHD (T2 WE stat) grants +8% critical power resistance and +5% critical chance resistance; taking hits also boosts critical resistances against NPCs Bonehead (trait) reduces the attacker's critical chance by 25% and critical roll by 50% when you are hit in the head; it also grants +30% critical chance resistance against NPCs Fill The Gaps (armor perk) grants critical chance resistance (up to +43%, or +75% for Hubologists) and reduces attacker critical damage (up to -100%, or -200% for Hubologists) Heavy (armor perk) grants critical roll resistance (up to +50, or +100 for Hubologists) and critical power resistance (up to +24%, or +45% for Hubologists) Great Shield (legendary armor perk)'s rank E grants +10% critical chance resistance against NPCs; rank C grants critical power resistance equal to your critical chance resistance against NPCs; rank S makes NPCs lose their critical chance resistance penetration Dermal Module (combat implant) tier 3 reduces attackers' critical rolls by 1 for every point of Charisma you have Phoenix Module (combat implant) tier 3 reduces your critical power by 10% for every 5 points of Charisma you have Aggressive Module (combat implant) tiers 1-3 reduce the target's critical resistance by 15% per tier; with the Warlord Enhancement relic implant, this becomes 24% per tier Deathclaw (class perk) gets +5% critical chance resistance, +[10 + movement-only APs]% critical power resistance, and critical roll resistance equal to its movement speed modifiers Leader (class perk) gets +40% critical chance resistance Semi-tanks (class role) receive a 20% penalty to critical damage resistance Bonehead (Regulator trait) grants +75% critical chance resistance Unity flag (Leader flag) grants +[CHA/2]% critical chance resistance, +[CHA/3]% critical power resistance, and +[CHA/2]% critical effect resistance Strength grants +1% critical power resistance per point Strength Mastery grants +35% critical chance resistance Luck grants +1% critical power resistance (capped at 20%) per point if you have more implants than your opponent

Critical resistance penetration

Critical resistances can be penetrated (reduced) by a number of effects.

Critical resistance penetration modifiers

Mentats (drug) grant +15% critical chance resistance penetration Better HtH Criticals (level perk) grants +20% critical chance resistance penetration when using melee weapons Right between the Eyes (level perk) reduces your target's helmet's critical modifiers by 90% Hit the Gaps (level perk) reduces your target's body armor's critical modifiers by 80% Ranger (perk synergy) grants +50% critical chance resistance penetration and +50% critical power resistance penetration when the target is 60+ hexes away Slayer (perk synergy) reduces the target's armor's critical roll protection by 80% Chip Shot (weapon perk) grants critical chance resistance penetration (up to 60%, or 100% for Hubologists) Critical Beast (Alien weapon perk)'s rank F ignores 50% of target's critical chance resistance; rank D ignores 50% of target's critical roll resistance; rank C ignores 50% of target's critical power resistance; rank S ignores 50% of target's critical damage resistance Random Boy (class perk)'s lucky rolls can grant +15% critical power resistance penetration while unlucky rolls can result in -5% critical power resistance penetration Bounty Hunter (class perk) ignores the target's critical chance/power resistance if they have 66+ bounty stacks Combat Master (class perk)'s Rage allows them to ignore all critical resistances for 10 seconds Scout's favorite weapon type (Sniper Rifles) grants +25% critical power resistance penetration Leader (class perk)'s Aggression flag allows bursts to ignore critical resistances Plasma damage ignores critical chance/power resistance Fast Shot (trait) disables plasma damage's ability to ignore critical chance/power resistance

Critical tables

The Final Critical Roll Value used to look up the outcome on the critical table is a random value between 1 and (Total Critical Roll - Critical Roll Resistance) x (Total Critical Power - Critical Power Resistance).

The cell of the critical table your critical hit gets placed in will always lie at the intersection of your weapon type (melee, one-/two-handed ranged), the body part you critically hit (eyes, head, groin, hands, legs, torso), and the final value of your critical roll.

Melee attacks

Tier (roll range)	Eyes	Head	Groin	Hands	Legs	Unaimed/Torso
0 (0–25)	50%–70% DMG	45%–65% DMG	40%–60% DMG	35%–55% DMG	30%–50% DMG	5%–20% DMG
1 (26–60)	75%–100% DMG + Confusion	70%–95% DMG + Confusion	65%–90% DMG + Confusion	60%–85% DMG + Confusion	55%–80% DMG + Confusion	25%–40% DMG
2 (61–90)	105%–135% DMG + Taunt	100%–130% DMG + Taunt	95%–125% DMG + Taunt	90%–120% DMG + Taunt	85%–115% DMG + Taunt	45%–60% DMG + Taunt
3 (91–115)	140%–175% DMG + Knockdown	135%–170% DMG + Knockdown	130%–165% DMG + Knockdown	125%–160% DMG + AP Drain	120%–155% DMG + Knockdown	55%–70% DMG + Slow
4 (116–150)	180%–220% DMG + Bewilderment	175%–215% DMG + Bewilderment	170%–210% DMG + Bewilderment	165%–205% DMG + Bewilderment	160%–200% DMG + Bewilderment	75%–90% DMG + Bewilderment
5 (151–199)	225%–270% DMG + Bleed	220%–265% DMG + Bleed	215%–260% DMG + Knockout	210%–255% DMG + Weapon Drop	205%–250% DMG + Crippled Leg	95%–110% DMG + Confusion
6 (200+)	75%–125% + CR DMG	70%–120% + CR DMG	65%–115% + CR DMG	60%–110% + CR DMG	55%–105% + CR DMG	100%–115% DMG

1‑handed ranged weapons

Tier (roll range)	Eyes	Head	Groin	Hands	Legs	Unaimed/Torso
0 (0–25)	80%–125% DMG	70%–110% DMG	95%–125% DMG	45%–160% DMG	50%–150% DMG	10%–35% DMG
1 (26–60)	110%–160% DMG + Slow	115%–150% DMG + Taunt	120%–160% DMG + Taunt	80%–190% DMG + Weakness	75%–200% DMG + Slow	30%–50% DMG + Weakness
2 (61–90)	145%–195% DMG + Mark	145%–195% DMG + Shock	145%–195% DMG + Bewilderment	120%–235% DMG + AP Drain	100%–260% DMG + Knockdown	50%–75% DMG + Slow
3 (91–115)	160%–230% DMG + Confusion	155%–210% DMG + Confusion	170%–230% DMG + Confusion	150%–280% DMG + Weapon Drop	125%–310% DMG + Confusion	60%–85% DMG + Knockdown
4 (116–150)	185%–265% DMG + Blind	180%–255% DMG + Bypass	195%–265% DMG + "Death"	200%–325% DMG + Crippled Arm	150%–350% DMG + Crippled Leg	80%–105% DMG
5 (151–199)	220%–300% DMG + "Death"	215%–290% DMG + Bleed	230%–300% DMG + Bleed	230%–370% DMG + Paralysis	175%–400% DMG + Bleed	100%–130% DMG + Weapon Destroyed
6 (200+)	35%–135% + CR DMG + Bypass	30%–125% + CR DMG + "Death"	45%–135% + CR DMG + Bypass	0%–190% + CR DMG + Knockout	0%–300% + CR DMG + Knockout	105%–140% DMG + Bypass

2‑handed ranged weapons

Tier (roll range)	Eyes	Head	Groin	Hands	Legs	Unaimed/Torso
0 (0–25)	125%–150% DMG	95%–125% DMG	95%–125% DMG	60%–90% DMG	65%–95% DMG	5%–25% DMG
1 (26–60)	160%–195% DMG + Slow	130%–170% DMG + Taunt	120%–160% DMG + Taunt	85%–125% DMG + Weakness	90%–130% DMG + Slow	25%–45% DMG + Weakness
2 (61–90)	195%–240% DMG + Mark	165%–215% DMG + Confusion	145%–195% DMG + Bewilderment	110%–160% DMG + AP Drain	115%–165% DMG + Knockdown	45%–65% DMG + Slow
3 (91–115)	230%–285% DMG + Confusion	200%–260% DMG + Shock	170%–230% DMG + Confusion	135%–195% DMG + Weapon Drop	140%–200% DMG + Confusion	55%–75% DMG + Knockdown
4 (116–150)	265%–330% DMG + Blind	235%–305% DMG + Bypass	195%–265% DMG + "Death"	160%–230% DMG + Crippled Arm	165%–235% DMG + Crippled Leg	75%–95% DMG
5 (151–199)	300%–375% DMG + Knockout	270%–350% DMG + Lost Turn	230%–300% DMG + Bleed	195%–265% DMG + Paralysis	200%–270% DMG + Bleed	95%–120% DMG + AP Drain
6 (200+)	130%–220% + CR DMG + Bypass	105%–195% + CR DMG + "Death"	45%–135% + CR DMG + Knockout	10%–100% + CR DMG + Weapon Destroyed	15%–105% + CR DMG + Bypass	100%–150% DMG + "Death"

Note: "+ CR" means an additional 1% damage multiplier per point of critical roll

Several modifiers affect the attacker's critical tier directly:

• Ear (Cannibal drug) unlocks the last two critical tiers
• Voodoo (drug) unlocks the last two critical tiers
• Tiger Module (combat implant) tier 3 upgrades melee critical hits by 1 tier
• Nemean Module (combat implant) tier 3 downgrades your critical hits by 1 tier for every 5 points of Charisma
• Critical Beast (Alien weapon perk)'s rank B increases the critical bracket by 1 and rank A increases it by 1 (stacks with B)
• Combat Master (class perk) uses the superior 2‑handed weapon critical table for melee attacks
• Bonehead (Regulator trait) downgrades opponents' criticals by 1 tier
• Heavy Handed (Regulator trait) downgrades your own critical hits to the lowest tier
• Critical Master (legendary weapon perk)'s rank B upgrades critical hits against NPCs by 1 bracket; rank S+ sets the minimum critical tier against NPCs to 5

Critical damage

Critical damage is any extra damage dealt by a critical hit. The base critical damage multiplier depends on your weapon type.

Base critical damage multiplier by weapon type

Weapon type Base crit damage multiplier Assault Rifles 50% Clubs 100% Damage Knives 150% Damage Pistols 125% Electric Weapons 30% Explosive Small Guns 10% Fast Knives 100% Fast Pistols 60% Fire Weapons 30% Flamers 75% Hammers 100% Heavy Sniper Rifles 100% Laser Weapons 75% Machine Guns 50% Miniguns 100% Plasma Weapons 100% Punch Weapons 0% Range Pistols 70% Rocket Launchers 50% Shotguns 50% SMGs 75% Spears 125% Support Rifles 100%

Additional modifiers that affect critical damage:

• Ear (Cannibal drug) grants +40% critical damage
• Better HtH Criticals (level perk) grants +75% critical damage when using melee weapons
• Phantom Presence (level perk) grants +60% critical damage to your unaimed attacks while sneaking
• Focused Striker (level perk) grants +2% critical damage every second you do not attack (maximum 50 stacks)
• S.CRT (T2 WE stat) progressively boosts your critical damage against NPCs as you kill them
• More Critical Damage (weapon perk) can increase critical damage by up to 50% (or 200% for Hubologists)
• Spiked (weapon perk) increases melee critical damage by up to 105% (or 120% for Hubologists)
• Heresy Shot (Alien weapon perk, rank A) grants +25% critical damage
• Leader's aggression flag doubles bonus critical damage for bursts (stacks with After Burner Gum)
• Iron Man (perk synergy) reduces incoming critical damage by 20%
• After Burner Gum (drug) doubles bonus critical damage for bursts

Critical effects

Any effects listed in the relevant column of the critical table for critical tiers up to and including the tier of your critical hit have a 33% chance to proc. If they do, the defender may then make defensive rolls (based on their perks and stats) to resist them. Any modifier that affects your "critical effect resistance(s)" actually modifies your defensive roll(s).

• Base chance to apply a critical effect: 33% (66% with the Alien class perk, +33% with the Finesse trait)
• Chip Shot (weapon perk) increases the chance to apply a critical effect by up to 60% (or 100% for Hubologists)
• Med-Tec Antidote (drug) can be used to instantly cleanse all negative status effects

Critical effect	Definition	Counter
AP Drain	Steals 2 to 4 action points from the target	Quick Recovery: +8% resistance per point of Luck
Bewilderment	Target's actions cost double the normal amount of action points	Coolheaded shortens the duration of Bewilderment by 30%
Bleed	Target's healing rate causes them to lose hit points rather than regenerate them	Brotherhood Metal Armor grants immunity to Bleed
Blind	Target's maximum chance to hit is reduced by 50%
Bypass	Target's DTs and DRs are cut in half	Man of Steel: +8% resistance per point of Endurance
Confusion	Target's sight range is reduced by 2 hexes per stack	Firefighter: +8% resistance per point of Intelligence
Crippled limb	Target's leg, hand, or eyes are crippled	Iron Limbs: +8% resistance per point of Agility
"Death"	Target takes 100 extra damage that bypasses all defenses	Lethal Protection: reduces "Death" effect damage by 8% per point of Perception
Knockdown	Target falls to the ground and loses 3 action points	Stonewall: grants knockdown immunity (critical effect only)
Knockout	Target falls to the ground and loses 10 to 30 action points	Stonewall: +8% chance to avoid knockouts per point of Strength
Lost Turn	Target loses an amount of action points equal to their maximum action points	Stonewall: +8% chance to avoid lost turns per point of Strength
Mark	Target becomes visible to the team that marked them for the duration of the effect	Coolheaded shortens the duration of Mark by 30%
Paralysis	Target is immobilized for 3 seconds	Tesla Armor grants immunity to Paralysis
Shock	Target cannot attack or use meds	Coolheaded: +8% resistance per point of Charisma
Slow	Reduces target's movement/attack speed by 20% per critical tier for 20 seconds	Adrenaline Rush: +8% resistance per point of Charisma
Taunt	Target is only able to attack the character that applied Taunt to them	Baiter grants immunity to Taunt
Weakness	Target loses 1% of one DR per stack
Weapon Drop	Target's weapon drops to the ground	Iron Limbs grants full immunity
Weapon Destroyed	Target's weapon's condition decreases by 1 to 25%

The following modifiers grant or reduce critical effect resistance:

• Heart (Cannibal drug) grants +15% critical effect chance
• SHD (T1 WE stat) grants +1 to defensive rolls
• S.SHD (T2 WE stat) grants +1 to defensive rolls
• Knockback (weapon perk) causes critical hits to always knock back the target
• Soldier (class perk) suffers -100 to defensive rolls and receives 1% less critical effect defense from level perks such as Stonewall
• Leader's unity flag grants +[CHA/2]% critical effect resistance

Miscellaneous crit-related effects

• Bloody (weapon perk, rank A): your criticals apply Bleed stacks
• Crasher (level perk): your criticals ignore 50% of the target's melee power defense and bypass their melee DR penetration protection
• Gunner (level perk): critical hits convert double the amount of base damage to lethal damage
• Awareness (level perk): displays other characters' critical chance and resistances
• Providence (level perk): you have a chance equal to your critical chance to gain 75% damage protection whenever you're hit