Newb Question

Is there a good way to defend against melee attacks?

dexterity

train them so that you can dodge them like Neo in the Matrix

There is no specific method to defend against certain attacks (well apart from wearing moto helms or hazmat suits against tear gas + pepper spray)

Best you can do is find a set of good/affordable armor and keep spending your energy at the gym.

have higher battle stats than your opponent

The only way not to lose is to have better stats than the person you're fighting!

Rent a property that has a larger happiness cap if you can, train hard, and before you know it there will be people you can beat. It takes time, but using your energy in a smart way is key.

Best to turn the Ls into Lessons and accept that you will get your butt kicked often because no matter how strong you get there are always people stronger. That's the game! 

How do I check that?

And thanks for fast replies, guys. Love this game more already!!

Does dex good against melee attacks only?

theres no difference between melee attacks and ranged 

dex makes you harder to hit

defence makes hits do less

strength makes you hit higher

speed makes you hit more often

 

good luck best friend

Well you can check trade chat to see if anyone is selling stat spys

Or you can join the army job or join a player company that has the stat spy special.

Attack them.  If you lose, they had higher stats.  If you win, they had lower stats.

Their age, level, # xanax used, # crimes done, things like that can give you a rough idea of who you can't beat and who you can't, but those are can't give you a definitive answer, just a guess.  In theory, you can hire someone to spy their stats, but in practice, i's not feasible for new players to do on every target.

 

Thanks a lot guys. This has been super helpful!!

From my guide:

Firstly, you want to be equipped with the best gear you can get. While you'll still lose against stronger statted opponents, having better weapons and armor than your target will give you an edge against those of a similar stat range. See "What weapons and armor should I use?" below for the best stuff to use.

Secondly, your battle stats are (almost) everything. Not even the best weapons and armor in the game will save you against someone who has vastly more battle stats than you. Unfortunately for you, unless you pay for a stat spy from another player, you can't see another player's stats. Unless you already know them, this means you're going to have to make an educated guess. Their level isn't an indicator of their stats, since anyone can choose to hold their level. Age can be an indicator, since someone younger than you has had less time to train, but that's not perfect either. Someone 4000 days old may be weak as hell just because they've been inactive, and someone younger may have been training even harder. Check their personal stats. Look at their Xanax and LSD use, if it's higher than yours, they've had more energy to use than you. Xanax and LSD give energy, and if they've been using it to train with then they're possibly stronger. Look at their days been a donator, their refills used too, all of this are a clue as to how much energy they've had to play with. Check their attacks won, because it shows how much energy has been used not training. Also, look at their defends won and their defends lost. If they've won a higher ration of defends compared to how many they've lost, they might be stronger than they appear, and other people have already found that out the hard way. 

It can be tricky at first to gauge a person's might in battle from their personal stats, and everyone, even the best players can guess incorrectly and lose a fight from time to time.