History Main / RandomizedDamageAttack

* In several ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' games there's a high-level spell called "Comet" or "Meteor" with a huge variability in its damage output -- it could do 100 points damage one turn and [[OneHitKill 9999]] the next, when other spells are more consistent from one use to the next.

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* ''{{VideoGame/Dota2}}'': Every unit from the heroes to creeps has attack damage that has a variable so damage is always dealing between minimal or maximum damage. Chaos Knight not only has the most extreme damage variable (-15/+15 compare to most heroes's -3/+3 at average) but also has Chaos Bolt, which inflicts a random but inversely-related amount of damage and stun. Upgrading the spell increases both the maximum and minimum values of both the damage and stun, but there's still a big difference between a 275 damage skill that stuns for 2 seconds, and one that does 100 and stuns for 4.

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** The "Damage Roulette" Second Wave option for ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'' changes all attacks save for explosives, psionics and MEC subsystems ([[FireBreathingWeapon flamethrower]], [[PowerFist Kinetic Strike Module]] and [[ElectromagneticPulse Electro Pulse]]) so they can can deal between [[ScratchDamage 1 damage]] and 150% of the max base damage. A CriticalHit will deal the weapon's base damage ''plus'' what the regular attack would cause, so they're especially powerful. Which means your soldier can be [[ScratchDamage tickled]] by a Sectopod's [[WaveMotionGun chest cannon]], or someone with Titan armor can be one-shot by a lucky crit from a Muton with a plasma rifle that hurts as much as a non-roulette Sectopod cannon shot.

* Crackle in ''VideoGame/{{Hearthstone}}'' is a Shaman spell from ''Goblins vs. Gnomes'' that costs 2 Mana with 1 Overload[[note]]You have X less Mana the next turn[[/note]] that deals somewhere between 3 and 6 damage to a single target. At worst, it's a more expensive Darkbomb, and at best it's a cheaper Fireball. It's one of the most hated cards to see against Aggro Shaman decks because it lets them squeeze in a cheap win for a low cost right before they lose steam, and Aggro Shamans hate using it because it can fizzle and cost them the match.
** Shamans also have Lightning Storm and Elemental Destruction, which have a damage range of 2-3 and 4-5, respectively. While RNG is aplenty in ''Hearthstone'', these are the only examples of randomized damage values.

* ''{{VideoGame/Dota2}}'': Every unit from the heroes to creeps has attack damage that has a variable so damage is always dealing between minimal or maximum damage. Chaos Knight takes this UpToEleven where he not only has the most extreme damage variable (-15/+15 compare to most heroes's -3/+3 at average) but also has Chaos Bolt, which inflicts a random but inversely-related amount of damage and stun. Upgrading the spell increases both the maximum and minimum values of both the damage and stun, but there's still a big difference between a 275 damage skill that stuns for 2 seconds, and one that does 100 and stuns for 4.

* ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'': Lucca has the Wondershot that deals random damage.

* The ''VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy'' series' role-playing entries, starting with ''VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy1'' and ''[[VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy2 2]]'', gives Natalie the ''Manga/LuckyStar'' spell, which is cheap on MP, but its damage varies wildly-it can range from a mere tickle to damage highly devastating for such a cheap spell. ''[[VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy3 3]]'', ''[[VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy4 4]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy5 5]]'' onward also gives her Star Shower, a multi-hitting AreaOfEffect version of the spell.

** {{Exaggerated|Trope}} with The Nothing, a wand that can be purchased as a reward for completing the [[TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon Eldritch Outlook]]. Its damage parameters and [[VideoGameWeaponStats identifications]] are such that it will ''either'' deal several thousands of points of damage in a single hit, or [[CriticalFailure none at all]].

** {{Exaggerated|Trope}} with The Nothing, a wand that can be purchased as a reward for completing the [[TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon Eldritch Outlook]]. Its damage parameters and [[VideoGameWeaponStats identifications]] are such that it will ''either'' deal thousands of damage in a single hit, or [[CriticalFailure none at all]].

* While all weapons in ''VideoGame/{{Wynncraft}}'' deal damage determined by a range of values, the limits are often further apart with [[ElementalPowers Thunder]]-based weapons, reflecting Thunder's portrayal as a more chaotic element.