Does BDO have auto combat?

Yes, Black Desert Online introduced an auto combat or "auto battle" feature in a recent update. As a passionate BDO player and content creator, I couldn‘t wait to put this new functionality to the test on my characters!

In this in-depth guide, I‘ll cover everything you need to know about BDO‘s auto combat, including how to unlock and use it, what it does (and doesn‘t do), as well as analyzing its wider implications for gameplay and the meta. Let‘s get into it!

Unlocking Auto Combat

You first gain access to BDO‘s auto combat ability once your Black Spirit companion reaches a certain level of growth. For most players while leveling, this occurs around level 13.

Specifically, auto combat unlocks when you complete the "Awakening Complete" quest in the main story questline. Completing this quest signifies your Black Spirit has matured and strengthened its bond with you.

To check if you‘ve unlocked auto combat, look for the "Auto" button next to your health bar at bottom center of the screen:

Tapping or clicking this button will toggle auto combat on and off.

How BDO‘s Auto Combat Works

When enabled, BDO‘s auto combat system allows your character to automatically target, engage, and defeat enemies nearby without any active input.

Specifically, your character will:

• Target the closest enemy within aggro range
• Use basic attacks and skills to engage the enemy
• Attempt to sidestep or block major enemy attacks
• Continue attacking until all proximate enemies are eliminated
• Pause once victorious until new enemies approach

This allows you to efficiently grind enemies or complete kill quests while semi-afk. Your character will gain XP, skill points, loot items, and fulfill quest steps without you manually controlling every action.

However, BDO‘s auto combat isn‘t a fully automated god mode. There are some clear limitations:

• No complex attack combos, cancels, or rotations
• Minimal usage of potions or healing skills
• Unable to identify or avoid environmental hazards
• Possibility of death if swarmed by too many foes

So while very handy, you‘ll still want to be somewhat attentive when auto combat is active.

The Pros and Cons of Auto Combat

Based on my testing so far, here is my analysis of the pros and cons of BDO‘s new auto combat feature:

Pros:

• Grind experience and loot semi-afk
• Complete kill quests with less effort
• Level alts and secondary characters easier
• Take breaks without missing growth opportunities

Cons:

• Less skill development for players
• Reduced incentive to manually grind
• Possible imbalance in PvP due to effortless leveling

There are reasonable arguments on both sides. Ultimately it comes down to your personal priorities and playstyle preferences.

Some players love the auto combat as it makes leveling alts, getting loot, and completing daily quests require almost no active play. Other purist players dislike it as they feel the reduced grind diminishes a key aspect of the BDO experience.

How Does This Compare to Other MMOs?

Auto or bot grinding features have existed in some form across various MMOs over the years. For example:

• Older Korean MMOs like Lineage 2 and Aion had controversial bots that fully automated leveling and farming. These went directly against the games‘ Terms of Service.

• More recently, World of Warcraft added limited automation for questing via their "Auto Quest Accept/Turn-In" option. This only works on very specific types of quests though.

• On mobile, Black Desert Mobile allows auto-repeat grinding on designated areas and levels. However, this requires purchase of premium "Secret Books" to unlock unlimited farming.

Compared to the examples above, BDO‘s auto combat:

• Is an official, integrated game system available to all players.
• Provides general automation for battle and grinding.
• Has no time limits or other monetization hooks.

This makes BDO‘s version uniquely well-designed and player friendly compared to previous MMO implementations.

The Impact on PvE and PvP Meta

While auto combat provides obvious grinding and leveling boosts, it could also have subtle long-term impacts on BDO‘s meta for both PvE and PvP:

For example, auto-leveling could allow more casual players to reach level caps faster. This may lead to shifts in spots like Gyfin Rhasia by increasing competition for end-game PvE farming locations.

For PvP, the reduced grind time could result in a surplus of level 60 players. Since gear and skill still decide most battles, this may not undermine balance too severely. But increased churn of alts could exacerbate issues like open-world karma bombing.

And if future updates build on auto combat by adding additional auto-farming functions, the meta could see more drastic shifts as player behavior and progression changes.

Of course, this is mostly speculation for now. As players and guilds incorporate auto features into their routines, it will be interesting to see if it disrupts or enhances the expected meta progression curves. Lots more data needed!

Final Verdict on Auto Combat

At the end of the day, my verdict is that auto combat is a very positive update for BDO. The functionality strikes a good balance between convenience and maintaining core gameplay integrity.

Auto combat smooths out annoying redundancy in the early leveling phases when most players are still learning basics. Later on, there is still ample room for skill expression in PvE rotations and combos. And determined PvPers will continue to manually grind for every possible competitive edge anyway.

For more casual players like myself, I‘m thrilled to have the option to step away from the keyboard during lazy grinding sessions without sabotaging progress. And I can always manually take over to issue complex commands or handle intense combat situations.

That flexibility – maintaining BDO‘s signature depth while easing repetitive elements – is why I ultimately feel the auto combat feature is an excellent addition.

Now if you‘ll excuse me, I have a ranger alt that suddenly needs leveling! What do you think about BDO adding auto combat? Love it or hate it? Let me know in the comments!