Martial Art Skill Explained
Table of Contents [+]
Class: All Classes
Faction: All Factions
Level: All Levels
Item Links:
Quicklink (copy this):
Feedback: Feedback-Thread
Faction: All Factions
Level: All Levels
Item Links:
Quicklink (copy this):
Feedback: Feedback-Thread
⇑
A Guide to the Martial Arts Skill in Anarchy OnlineWelcome to this guide on the inner workings of the Martial Arts (MA) skill. Unarmed combat in Anarchy Online is more complex than it might seem at first glance. Instead of a simple linear progression, your fist damage and speed are determined by a tiered system, where your character effectively equips a new "invisible" fist weapon at certain skill thresholds.
⇑
The Core Mechanic: Tiers and Quality LevelsThe Martial Arts skill operates in three distinct tiers, each spanning 1000 skill points. Within each tier, your fists' performance scales as if they were an item with a Quality Level (QL) ranging from 1 to 500.
- Tier 1: Covers MA Skill 1-1000. This corresponds to an item scaling from QL 1 to QL 500.
- Tier 2: Covers MA Skill 1001-2000. When you hit 1001 MA skill, you get a new set of fists that start at QL 1 and scale up to QL 500 at 2000 MA skill.
- Tier 3: Covers MA Skill 2001-3000. At 2001 MA skill, you get the final set of fists, again starting at QL 1 and scaling to QL 500 at 3000 MA skill.
Any skill points in Martial Arts above 3000 will not provide any further increase to your fist speed or damage; you will remain at the peak Tier 3 (QL 500) performance. The stats for your fists differ based on your profession, primarily separated into three groups: Martial Artist, Shade, and All Other Professions.
Helpful Notes:
- Players can check the exact stats of their fists for any skill level by messaging the in-game bot, Nadybot. Use the command: /tell nadybot mafist <Your MAskill value>
- To understand how much Physical Initiative is required to reach the optimal 1s/1s attack speed with your fists, please refer to the official Weapon Initiatives Guide.
- A Note for Shades: You will notice a significant discrepancy in damage and critical bonus between Martial Artist and Shade fists. Because of this, using fists as a primary damage source is generally not recommended for Shades while leveling. However, at the endgame, with high-end gear and buffs, it can become a viable and powerful option.
⇑
Tier 1: Martial Arts Skill 1 - 1000This is the starting tier for all characters.
Start of Tier 1 (MA Skill: 1)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.15s/1.15s | 4-8 | (3) |
| Shade | 1.25s/1.25s | 3-5 | (3) |
| All other professions | 1.25s/1.25s | 3-5 | (3) |
End of Tier 1 (MA Skill: 1000)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.25s/1.25s | 125-400 | (500) |
| Shade | 1.45s/1.45s | 55-258 | (250) |
| All other professions | 1.45s/1.45s | 65-280 | (500) |
⇑
Tier 2: Martial Arts Skill 1001 - 2000Upon reaching 1001 MA skill, your fists are replaced with a more powerful, albeit slightly slower, set.
Start of Tier 2 (MA Skill: 1001)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.3s/1.3s | 130-405 | (501) |
| Shade | 1.45s/1.45s | 56-259 | (251) |
| All other professions | 1.45s/1.45s | 66-281 | (501) |
End of Tier 2 (MA Skill: 2000)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.35s/1.35s | 220-830 | (560) |
| Shade | 1.65s/1.65s | 130-682 | (275) |
| All other professions | 1.65s/1.65s | 140-715 | (605) |
⇑
Tier 3: Martial Arts Skill 2001 - 3000+This is the final and most powerful tier for unarmed combat. The stats achieved at 3000 MA skill are the maximum possible from the skill itself.
Start of Tier 3 (MA Skill: 2001)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.45s/1.45s | 225-831 | (561) |
| Shade | 1.65s/1.65s | 131-683 | (276) |
| All other professions | 1.65s/1.65s | 204-831 | (605) |
End of Tier 3 (MA Skill: 3000)
| Profession | Fist Speed | Fist Damage | Crit Bonus |
| Martial Artist | 1.5s/1.5s | 450-1300 | (800) |
| Shade | 1.85s/1.85s | 280-890 | (300) |
| All other professions | 1.85s/1.85s | 300-990 | (630) |
⇑
Summary & Key Observations- Damage vs. Speed: As you advance through the tiers, your damage and critical hit bonus increase dramatically. However, this comes at the cost of attack speed, as your fists generally get slower with each new tier.
- Martial Artists: Unsurprisingly, the Martial Artist profession has the best damage scaling and the fastest fists in every tier.
- Shades: Shades have a unique progression, with their critical hit bonus scaling significantly lower than other professions. Their damage also lags behind, and their fists become the slowest at the highest tier. This is balanced by other profession-specific abilities.
- Skill Breakpoints: The most significant changes happen at skill 1, 1001, and 2001, where you transition to a new tier. The values at 1000, 2000, and 3000 represent the maximum potential for that tier.
⇑
Dual and Triple WieldingBeyond using just your fists, Martial Arts allows for a unique form of multi-wielding. Certain weapons possess a special skill called "MA for combined attack," which allows them to be wielded alongside your regular fist attacks. A good example of this is the Aleksander's Blooded Punchknife.
This system fundamentally changes the number of attacks you can perform per minute, assuming you have reached the maximum attack speed of 1 second attack and 1 second recharge (`1s/1s`).
Attacks Per Minute Comparison
| Attack Style | Weapons Used | Max Attacks per Minute | Attacks per Weapon |
| Pure Martial Arts | Fists Only | 30 | 30 |
| Dual Wielding | 1 Weapon + Fists | 40 | 20 |
| Triple Wielding | 2 Weapons + Fists | 45 | 15 |
⇑
When to Dual or Triple WieldChoosing whether to dual or triple wield involves a significant trade-off. While adding weapons increases your total number of attacks, it reduces the frequency of your powerful fist attacks.
The key is to determine if the damage from the additional weapon hits makes up for the loss of fist hits. A simple and effective rule of thumb is:
If your weapon's average damage is more than 50% of your fists' average damage, you will gain overall damage by dual or triple wielding.
This relationship is illustrated in the graph below. The "Normalized DPM" represents your total damage output relative to using fists alone. As you can see, once the weapon-to-fist damage ratio exceeds 0.5 (or 50%), both dual and triple wielding surpass the damage of using single fists.
Ultimately, the decision comes down to balancing a few key questions:
- Is your weapon's average damage greater than 50% of your fist's average damage?
- Can your character maintain the maximum attack speed of 1s/1s with the chosen weapon setup?
- Do you prefer more total attacks per minute, or do you want to maximize the number of potentially stronger hits from your fists? (This is especially relevant for professions other than Shade, who have a high fist crit bonus).
Last updated on 07.30.2025 by lopnk
Do you have questions about this article or found an error? 1 comment(s) - Click here to view them!
Do you have questions about this article or found an error? 1 comment(s) - Click here to view them!
