Status Effects — deadcells

Status effects are temporary buffs and debuffs that benefit or hurt enemies and the player in a variety of unique ways. They can be broken down into two main groups: Positive effects and Negative effects. Most positive effects are more often given to the player, while negative ones are usually only inflicted on enemies.

Positive status effects are effects that strengthen the damage, defensive, or even movement capabilities of the player or enemies in some way.
Negative status effects are effects that hurt or weaken enemies or the player in some way, either directly, or indirectly.
- Weapons and skills can have affixes that increase damage dealt to an enemy suffering from a specific negative status effect. This only includes specific effects. Other negative effects do not have such a affix.

Negative Effects

Negative effects are all grouped together because of their nature of harming their target in some way, whether that be the player, or enemies.

Stun, root, freeze, and slow all restrict enemy movement or attack in some way. Inflicting one of these effects multiple times on an enemy will simply refresh the duration of the effect.

Fire, poison, bleed and shock all deal damage-over-time. They can be stacked on top of one another as well as themselves to increase damage dealt. Weapons that inflict these effects display the elemental DPS as per mark of the effect. However, they each have unique mechanics involving how their effects are applied to enemies. Oil does not inherently damage enemies but instead boosts the damage and duration of fire.

Effects that increase damage taken are also listed here, though their exact mechanics often vary greatly depending on their source.

Note that negative status effects, when inflicted on Bosses and Elites, expire 20% faster than normal. Additionally, elite enemies and bosses will grow a resistance to 'crowd control' effects, like freeze and root, if they repeatedly receive these effects in a short period of time, but their resistance will eventually return to normal. Certain bosses and enemies are also completely resistant to some effects and they cannot be inflicted at all on them.

Stun

Stun incapacitates a target briefly and continues regardless of damage taken. Stun also cancels most enemy attacks and attack combos.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
Most weapons can briefly stun enemies after dealing enough damage, in the form of Breach, but there are a few items that will inherently inflict the stun effect.
The player can also be stunned by certain enemy attacks and from falling large distances without dive-slamming.

The following items/affixes inflict stun: Toothpick, Cudgel, Thunder Shield, Heavy Turret, Crusher, Emergency Door, Stun Grenade, Grappling Hook, Throwable Objects, Cocoon, Scavenged Bombard Heavy Stun affix, Mario Jump affix

Root

Root prevents an enemy from moving and turning, though they can perform actions otherwise. Some enemies are able to root the player using certain attacks, but the player can still use most weapons and skills. Enemies that are rooted will have visible roots or chains connected to them from the ground.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
Root often comes with a secondary effect such as damage-over-time or increased damage on enemies inflicted with it, such as with the Repeater Crossbow or the Wolf Trap.
Ice based items can freeze water sources, which will cause enemies that are in the affected water source to be rooted and slowed briefly until the water unfreezes.

The following items/affixes inflict root: Seismic Strike, Quiver of Bolts, The Boy's Axe, Wolf Trap, Root Grenade, Phaser, Heavy Crossbow, Maw of the Deep

Freeze

Freeze incapacitates a target who will thaw out when they're damaged again or after several seconds. Enemies that have thawed will have slowed movement and attacks for a brief period. Enemies that are frozen will be visibly covered in ice until they thaw.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
This effect does not have an icon, but instead makes the enemy visibly covered in ice.
Certain enemies have a chance to resist freeze, although they may still be slowed even if they resist the initial effect.
Fire will nullify the effect of freeze with each tick of damage.
- Unlike the freeze effect, slow is not removed by fire based attacks.
Bleeding and poisoning inflicted beforehand cannot thaw enemies on their own.
The player can be inflicted with Freeze when hit by their projectile the Queen redirects.

The following items/affixes inflict freeze: Ice Bow, Ice Crossbow, Frost Blast, Ice Shield, Ice Grenade, Ice Armor, Ygdar Orus Li Ox, Frost Shield affix, Death Freeze affix, Ice on Stop affix, Ice Skin affix

Slow

Slow reduces enemy movement and attack speed to around half of what it would normally be, making enemies easier to engage as they will not be able to attack as quickly.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
Slow is most commonly inflicted after a frozen enemy thaws, meaning that all ice based items will always inflict slow. There are however a few mutations, items, and affixes which simply inflict slow itself.
- The ranged weapon Ice Shards is one of the only ice based items to inflict slow without first freezing the enemy.
Attacks from enemies that are slowed down will still give a yellow indicator relative to when the hit is about to land, making it easier to be able to parry or dodge attacks from slowed enemies without messing up the timing.
The Frostbite mutation will transform slow into a pseudo ‘damage-over-time’ effect, however the extra damage caused by this ability is often minimal as slow effects cannot stack.
Ice based items can freeze water sources, which will cause enemies that are in the affected water source to be rooted and slowed briefly until the water unfreezes.
Some enemies, such as the Hand of the King and the Giant, are immune to slow.

The following items/affixes inflict slow: Ice Shards, Crusher, Melee, Crow's Foot, Tactical Retreat, Heavy Death Thaw affix

Fire

Fire is a short lasting effect that damages enemies over the course of its duration. It is inflicted on enemies by fire based attacks as well as any patches of burning ground. Enemies that are burning will have a visible flame effect emanating from them.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits.
Fire based attacks cover the ground with fire, allowing for fire effects to stack repeatedly with single attacks.
Fire and any enemy inflicted by a burning attack is affected by water. The status is removed when entering water and will resist the effect entirely if standing in water. Any weapons or skills that leave fire will not do so over water, making burning weapons and skills significantly weaker against enemies in water.
Some enemies, such as the Demon, are immune to fire damage.

The following items/affixes inflict fire: Torch, Flint (when igniting an oil trail), Firebrands, Pyrotechnics, Fire Blast, Flamethrower Turret, Fire Grenade, Fire Shield affix, Death Fire affix, Dive Attack Fire affix, Fire on Use affix, Fire on Destroy affix, Fire on Stop affix, Fire Bullet affix, Fire Feet affix, Fire Dodge affix

Blue Fire

Blue Fire, or Burning Oil, is a version of the fire effect that occurs while an enemy is covered in oil. Burning Oil deals 12% extra damage over its regular counterpart and lasts longer as well.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits.
When an oil effect runs out on enemy, any burning oil effects are turned back into regular fire effects.

Oil

Oil is an effect that increases the damage and duration of fire and turns it into Burning Oil. Enemies that are covered in oil will be visibly covered in oil droplets.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
Oil based attacks can have slight environmental effects, as items and affixes that inflict oil will leave oil slicks on the ground. These slicks do not inherently have any negative impact on enemies, except inflicting the oil effect on them. Creating pools of fire on these oil slicks, or vice versa, causes the slicks to ignite, producing blue flames which still inflict the normal orange fire effect, but last for longer than normal red flames.
Enemies drenched in oil will normally keep the effect for a long period of time, but when they receive the burn effect the oil will be removed much more quickly.
Enemies standing in water can be burned if oiled.
Oil explosions, whenever they occur, deal 16 base damage.

The following items/affixes inflict oil: Oiled Sword, Oil Grenade, Oil Deploy affix, Dive Attack Oil affix, Oil on Use affix, Oil affix
The following items/affixes inflict burning oil: Oil and Fire on Use affix, Oil and Fire on Destroy affix

Poison

Poison causes enemies to take damage over an extended period of time. When an enemy is killed while poisoned while there are other enemies nearby, the enemy explodes into a toxic cloud that inflicts more poison, but with reduced damage and only for the remainder of the duration of the original instance of poison. Enemies that are poisoned will be visibly emanating green gas clouds.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits.
Poison is most often inflicted by poisonous gas clouds, which are usually created by poison-based abilities and weapons.
Poison is affected by water. Enemies covered in water have a 0.21 second delay on getting poisoned.
The player may also be inflicted with poison, albeit rarely, from certain enemies, as well as toxic pools of water in the Toxic Sewers and Ancient Sewers.
Enemies will not spread poison if not poisoned prior to the killing blow.

The following items/affixes inflict poison: Snake Fangs, Alchemic Carbine, Blowgun, Corrosive Cloud, Poison Skin affix, Poison Skin affix, Poison Shield affix, Poison Deploy affix, Poison on Use affix, Poison on Stop affix, Poison on Hit affix, Poison Bullet affix, Poison Cloud on Hit affix, Poison Dodge affix, Bleed Poison affix

Bleed

Bleed effects cause enemies to take small amounts of damage over the course of their duration. If 5 bleed effects are inflicted upon an enemy, all of the damage they would have inflicted over the course of their duration is dealt all at once. Enemies that are bleeding will be visibly squirting blood.

Stacking Capability: Only 5 effects can stack at a time in total, but they can be from any source.
Bleed is almost exclusively inflicted by direct hits from weapons that cause Bleeding, with few exceptions.
Bleed usually lasts for a shorter period of time than other effects and as such usually needs to be reapplied to enemies more often.

The following items/affixes inflict bleed: Blood Sword, Hemorrhage, Throwing Knife, Bloodthirsty Shield, Sinew Slicer, Cleaver, Knife Dance, Corrosive Cloud, Open Wounds, Maw of the Deep, Leghugger, Bleed Shield affix, Ice Bleed affix, Bleed on Stop affix, Bleed on Hit affix

Shock

Shock is a special effect that will deal damage-over-time to the enemy that it was inflicted upon, as well as any enemies around it (with reduced damage) by shooting lightning bolts out of the afflicted enemy.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
- Applying electricity on electrified enemies resets electricity and applies it again, updating damage value if hit with a different weapon.
Shock is mainly inflicted directly by electricity based items, such as the Electric Whip.
Electricity based attacks will cause water to become electrified, dealing critical damage to enemies within the water.
The player cannot be inflicted with this effect.

The following items/affixes inflict shock: Electric Whip, Lightning Bolt, Thunder Shield, Tesla Coil, Magnetic Grenade, Wings of the Crow, Lightning Rods

Extra Damage Taken

Effects that Increase Damage Taken are a group of effects that all increase the amount of damage received from incoming attacks by enemies or the player. This is either in the form of an increased damage percentage, or a flat amount of extra damage added with each hit. These effects can last over a period of time or with a single hit, and some are indefinite.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source.
When one of these effects are inflicted on the player it’s usually as a tradeoff for some other ability, whereas for enemies it’s only used to simply kill them more quickly.
Some increased damage effects do not use the icon, however they still fall under this category of effects.
There is an affix for turrets that boosts the damage the player deals when they are near the affixed turret, which uses the icon. This is slightly contradictory as the effect increases outgoing damage instead of incoming damage, while the effect icon is normally used to indicate the afflicted individual will take increased damage, not the other way around.
Percentage-based effects are additive, meaning if you have more than one active, the total percentage is added from each effect. For example, if the player takes 30% more damage because of Corrupted Power, and a double damage affix on one of their weapons, they will take 130% more damage from enemy attacks.

The following items/affixes inflict increased damage taken: Wolf Trap

Positive Effects

These are effects that directly benefit the player or enemies, by increasing their defensive or offensive capabilities in some way, such as by reducing incoming damage, invincibility, or some other similar effects.

Most of these effects are used primarily by the player, and enemies are rarely ever able to receive most of them.

Damage Resistance

Damage Resistance reduces the damage of incoming hits by a percentage. It is most commonly used by the player, as multiple skills, affixes, and mutations will grant this buff to the player.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source.
This effect cannot be stacked multiple times from the same source, as the effect will simply be refreshed. However, if there are multiple sources that are providing the effect, the damage reduction effects will stack.
The affix that gives the player damage reduction when nearby a turret uses a slightly different golden icon. The exact reasons for this are unknown, however the effect that is given works exactly the same as the normal damage reduction effect.

The following items/affixes provide damage reduction: Tonic, Vengeance, Berserker, Deployed Resist affix

Damage buffs

Damage Buffs are a group of effects that temporarily increase the amount of damage the player deals. They are mostly only given by Mutations. They can work as a percent increase or just a flat amount of added damage, and can last for a single hit, over a period of time, or even only while certain conditions are met.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source.
The number of active damage buffs the player currently has is represented using a counter, which takes the form of a number next to a sword icon. When there is no active buffs the icon disappears.
- Some damage buffs, such as the Spite mutation, do not add to the counter, as they are always active, or are only applied to enemies who are under certain conditions, as it is with the Ripper mutation. The counter only takes into account abilities that increase the players total damage to all enemies, and don’t last indefinitely.
- The turret affix that increases your damage when near a turret does not add to the counter but instead uses a different yellow icon. However, it is mechanically identical to the buff provided by the Support mutation as well as the one given by the Heavy Turret, which both add to the damage buff counter, so this distinction is odd.
- The Corrupted Power skill does not increase the counter, even though it would make sense for it to do so. Instead, it makes the players head glow purple to indicate that it is active.
Percent based damage increases are additive, so having multiple will simply add to the total increased damage percentage.

The following items/affixes provide damage buffs: Front Line Shield, Heavy Turret, Corrupted Power, Combo, Vengeance, Tainted Flask, Scheme, Initiative, Support, Tranquility, Ranger's Gear, Point Blank, Counterattack, Spite, Extended Healing, Gastronomy, Relentless aspect, Damned aspect, Gotta Go Fast aspect, Menagerie aspect, Deployed Damage affix, Counter Attack (affix),

Force Field

Force Field is an effect that provides nearly total invincibility for the subject of the effect.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
There are a number of items, affixes, and mutations that will create force fields for the player.
Damaging status effects already active on the subject won't be interrupted by a force field and can continue to damage them.
Certain enemies will generate force fields for other nearby enemies.
Having any shield equipped will grant a force field for 0.65 seconds after taking damage.
Bosses will often use force fields during phase changes to prevent them from being interrupted during the change.
Force fields always appear as pink-ish, see-through domes that encapsulate the target of the effect.
Active force fields reduce the health recovery when dealing damage from the recovery mechanic by 65%.

The following items/affixes provide force fields: Force Shield, Vampirism, Tonic, Ygdar Orus Li Ox, Disengagement

Invisibility

Invisibility is an effect that makes the subject of the effect invisible. For enemies, this makes them extremely difficult for the player to see, but makes the player undetectable to enemies if they are the subject of the effect.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
Some enemies can also have invisibility, making them much harder for the player to see.
If the player takes damage while invisible, the effect is removed. This is a good thing to keep in mind as enemies can still hit you while invisible if you gained the effect when an enemy was attacking you.
Maskers can make large amounts of enemies invisible with the use of thick fog, making areas much more dangerous to traverse due to the risk of a surprise attack at any moment.
Bosses cannot be fooled by invisibility.

The following items/affixes provide invisibility: Explosive Decoy, Smoke Bomb, Predator, Invisibility affix

Health Regeneration

Health Regeneration is an effect that restores a percentage of the players health bar over a short period of time, which is usually within the span of a second or less.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits.
This effect can be can be obtained through eating food, drinking a health potion, certain rare affixes, or activating the effects of some healing Mutations. Currently enemies have no way of receiving health regeneration (except for one particular foe in a certain spoiler boss fight).
- There is however, an unused enemy in the games files which could heal other enemies.

The following items/affixes provide the health regeneration effect: Health Flask, Food, Adrenaline, Alienation, Frenzy, What Doesn't Kill Me, Necromancy, Toxin Lover aspect, Blood Drinker aspect, Leech affix, Heal Mid Life affix

Health Leech

Health Leech is given to the player by the Frenzy and Adrenaline mutations. It causes you to restore a certain amount of health when damaging enemies with melee attacks.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source.
The amount of health restored is determined by the base damage of the weapon you used.
There are a few affixes that provide a similar ability, however they restore a flat 1% of your health bar with each hit and are not restricted to melee attacks. They also don’t use any icon as they are constantly active while the weapon they are affixed to is equipped.

Speed boost

Speed buffs increase the movement speed of the player.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source, but multiple speed buffs stack.
The player character will be visibly running when a speed boost is active.

The following items/affixes provide speed buffs: Vampirism, Masochist, Wings of the Crow, Run Speed on Use affix, Run Speed on Crit affix, Run Speed on Kill affix, Kill Combo mechanic

Bonus Health

Bonus Health is a temporary amount of extra health based on the current health remaining in their health bar and the tonic's scaling on player stats. It is represented by a separate, blue chunk of health taking up the health bar.

Stacking Capability: N/A
Take note that bonus health does not protect from curses, or stop the player's killstreak from resetting.
If the player is at maximum health capacity, they cannot receive more bonus health. However, bonus health is not removed if the player drinks a potion.

The following items/affixes provide bonus health: Tonic, Diverse Deck, Overshield on Crit affix

Item Exclusive Effects

Effects that are inflicted exclusively by one item, usually as it's main mechanic.

Hokuto's Bow Mark

Hokuto's Mark is a unique effect applied by the Hokuto's Bow. It causes enemies to take extra damage from your attacks, and if a marked enemy dies it spreads to all nearby foes.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
- if enemy has more than one, only highest damaging mark actually works.
The extra damage applied to a hit can only be added at most every 0.3 seconds.

Doom

Doom is a status effect that is exclusive to the Tombstone. It deals a singular chunk of damage when the effect ends, and the effect spreads to nearby enemies if it kills the target, but only up to 3 times.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits, but damage gets reduced with each time the effect spreads.

Hard Light Mark

Hard Light Marks are an effect inflicted by the Hard Light Gun. They make the Hard Light Sword deal critical damage to marked enemies. The critical damage amount depends on how many marks the target has.

Stacking Capability: Up to 6 marks per enemy.
Marks usually only last 4 seconds, but inflicting another mark on an enemy refreshes the duration of all other marks on the enemy.

Serenade's Marks

Serenade's Marks are a status effect that is unique to Serenade. Red marks are inflicted by its flying state, and blue marks are inflicted by the weapon state, and each enables the opposite state of the item to deal critical damage.

Stacking Capability: No stacking limits.
Every time a mark is used to deal critical damage, that mark is removed from the enemy.

Taunted

Taunted is a special effect inflicted by the Taunt skill, which enrages enemies and makes them take 75% extra damage.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.

Removed Effects

These effects are unused in the current version of the game and are not available in normal gameplay.

Max Infection

This was a status effect applied to the player when their Malaise infection level was full. It lowered the player's health to 10% of their max health and prevented them from healing past that cap until their infection level was reduced.

Stacking Capability: N/A
This effect was removed due to the complete rework of the Malaise in Version 2.1.
The icon for this effect will still appear if the Malaise bar fills completely, but it does nothing.

Malaise Immunity

Malaise Immunity was an effect that makes the player immune to receiving Malaise from enemies until the effect ends. As of Version 2.1, all abilities that granted this status effect have had that functionality removed, and as such, it is no longer available.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect per source.
Enemies could not get this effect as the Malaise was not something that affected them.
Certain mutations (Namely Melee and Tactical Retreat) can make affected enemies incapable of inflicting the malaise, however the player still isn’t immune, as unaffected enemies could still potentially inflict Malaise.
The Malaise immunity effect was mostly only used by a few mutations and the skill Tonic.

The following items used to provide malaise immunity: Tonic, Soldier's Resistance, Berserker

Flawless Indicator

An effect used by the Flawless to indicate that the player can't currently deal critical damage due to taking a hit within the last 15 seconds.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time. Its duration refreshes if the player takes damage again.
This is technically still in the game, but the icon has been replaced by a glowing indicator on the Flawless's sprite icon when the player hasn't taken damage.

Slowed Time

Slowed Time was inflicted by the unused skill Temporal Distortion. It would greatly slow down all enemies including falling, attacking and other action.

Stacking Capability: Only one effect at a time.
This effect had the unique capability of being able to be inflicted upon projectiles.
This effect is not obtainable as the only item that inflicts it has been removed.
No enemies could inflict this effect to the player.

Notes

Status effects, in this case, mostly refer to any temporary effect that shows an icon above an enemy or the player. There are exceptions to this, such as with force fields, invisibility, or freeze.
- Some icons are not used for status effects, but instead indicators to represent something else. Examples include the star icon used by enemies that are carrying Scrolls, and the icon used by elite enemies.

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