Critical Hits (EU2012)

When a shot connects with a target, it'll deal a certain amount of damage, dependant on the power of the weapon used. In many cases you may have a chance of instead dealing a Critical Hit - which can deal up to about 150% of the weapon's usual output (rounded down).

The chance to score a critical is calculated in much the same way as your chance to hit in the first place - a number of percentages are summed up, and the result is presented as your chance to deal a crit. Some are bonuses, which add to your total, some are penalties, which subtract. The Assault class in particular packs a number of perks that can boost the odds considerably.

The percentages displayed do not take into account your chance to hit the target in the first place. If you're shown an 80% chance to hit with a 25% chance of a critical, then your real chance to score a critical hit on the target is 20% (a 20% chance of missing, a 60% chance to score a regular hit, and a 20% (25% of 80) chance of getting a critical). If you're shown a 0% chance to hit with a 100% chance of scoring a critical, then you will not accomplish a critical hit on that target, because you won't hit it at all.

Equipment Bonuses

ToDo: List out the base crit chance attached to each weapon type. Talk about the pistol foundry upgrade, and scopes. Note that range doesn't affect your bonus.

Perk Bonuses

ToDo: List out the perks attached to each class that improve their chance of scoring critical hits.

Critical Defence

As a general rule, criticals are most likely to be scored when the target is flanked from an unprotected side, or caught entirely out of cover. Either way the bonus is the same - +50%.

The Second Wave option "Absolutely Critical", available for use after clearing the game on any difficulty other then easy, doubles this bonus to +100% - this ensures a critical against most enemies.

However, some units have an innate resistance to criticals, in the form of the "Hardened" passive perk. This imposes a -60% to the chance of a shot scoring a critical on that target (or -100%, with "Absolutely Critical"). Even so, by accruing enough bonuses it's still possible to overcome this and target a weak point.

Units with the Hardened property are:

Chryssalids Cyberdiscs

Drones Ethereals

Muton Berserkers Sectopods

SHIVs

Note that none of the above units are able to take cover (nor may Civilians or Zombies). Cyberdiscs are only Hardened when in disc form.

Whilst in cover, a unit may make himself immune to critical hits by using the hunker down ability (which also doubles their cover + armour defensive bonuses). However, firing on a hunkering unit from a flanking position ignores this immunity. Note that a unit's defence score doesn't affect the chances that any shots which lands will be criticals.