Help System

IV. Skills

Skills are special feats, or actions, your character can take that produce
certain (usually) predictible results. Skills are broken up into two major
types: Spells and Proficiencies. Spells are of a magical nature and require
the use of spell power to cast. They also usually require physical magical
supplies (known as reagents). Proficiencies are everything else, including
the more physical skills (weapon use, tracking, stealing, etc.) and special
race-based skills such as Fey and Sidhe shape-shifting. The skills your
character will have access to are dependent upon his race and class
selection. Some magical items can also grant the use of particular skills to
a character.

There are several different schools among which proficiencies and spells
are divided. Schools are a way of classifying the tangible aspects of a
spell or proficiency, and while some skills may seem to overlap schools,
there is generally one main school in which they fit the best, as follows:

Proficiency Schools
    
Weaponry  (WEA)    Proficiencies that involve a physical weapon.

Defense   (DEF)    Proficiencies that are primarily defensive in nature

Combat    (COM)    Proficiencies that are primarily combative in nature

Technical (TEK)    Proficiencies that involve technical knowledge

Mystical  (MYS)    Proficiencies that use supernatural forces or mental powers


Spell Schools

Fundamental (FUN) Basic spells not requiring reagents or memorization

Abjuration  (ABJ) Spells that banish something

Alteration  (ALT) Spells that change the state of an item or being

Summoning   (SUM) Spells that summon an item or a being to the caster

Enchantment (ENC) Spells that enhance the nature of an item or being

Illusion    (ILL) Spells that confuse and mislead

Thought     (THO) Spells that require no spoken words and few reagents

Invocation  (INV) Spells that bring an outside force to bear on the caster

Evocation   (EVO) Spells that cause a physical manifestation of a force

Divination  (DIV) Spells that reveal details about items or beings

Necromancy  (NEC) Spells that deal with the dead or with a beings life
force

Elemental   (ELE) Spells that deal with one of the four primal elements

Conjuration (CON) Spells that mold astral energy into a physical force

Chaos       (CHA) Spells that deal with chaos and the nature of chaos magic


Spell and Proficiency Complexity and Comprehension (SCC and PCC)

Spell and Proficiency comprehension percentages are used to determine what
skills your character can use, and how difficult they are for him to use.
These comprehension ratings run from 1% to 100%, 100% being the best, and 1%
being the worst. For example, if a spell had a complexity rating of 45%, it
means that only a spellcaster who had a Spell Complexity Comprehension (SCC)
rating of 45% or higher would be able to cast it. And, of course, the more
above 45% his SCC rating was, the easier the spell would become to cast, and
the less spell points it would take.

Spell Complexity Comprehension has just one rating, which applies to all
magic across all schools used by the character. Proficiency Complexity
Comprehension is split up into five separate ratings, based on the school of
that proficiency.

Practicing Skills

The PRACTICE command allows you to train a skill (proficiency or spell) and
increase your knowledge of it. It is different from the TRAIN command in t
that you are not learning about an attribute or a vital statistic, but about
something more specific.

You may only PRACTICE at a designated trainer (sometimes called
Guildmasters). These trainers can be found in most major cities and in some
remote locations.

You cannot practice all available skills at the same trainer. As in real
life, each trainer has a skill set he or she is most familiar with and
offers that knowledge to Adventurers. Also, trainers may only offer limited
practice sessions in a particular skill (for instance, the trainer may only
offer 10 practice sessions of the spell 'kill' each day - first come, first
served).

The number of practice sessions a spell or proficiency will take in order
to raise it one percentage point is largely based on your level. As you
progress through levels and change classes, it will take more and more
practices to raise a skill one percentage point, as it is harder to learn
new skills as you get more experienced in multiple disciplines.

When you start out in the Village of Lasler at your first trainer, you will
want to note the weapon your character had equipped from the start, and
train that proficiency as much as you can (By default, you will have this
skill learned at 40% of the maximum). This will give you a good start in
fighting with that weapon. If you are a magic-user, you will want to
practice one or two of your key spells, as well - defensive or offensive (or
both) is up to your preference, as well as your available practice points.
Bards may also want to use some practices to increase their music
proficiency learned percentage.

Now that you know more about what goes into making your character unique,
it is time to choose a gender, race, and class.

NEXT: Gender, Race, and Class (help guide_5)

SEE ALSO
Guide_1, Guide_2, Guide_3, Guide_5, Guide_6, Guide_7, Guide_8, Guide_9, Guide_10, Guide_11, Guide_12, Guide_13