Skills
Archaelund ❯ Character Development ❯ Stats • Races • Skills • Traits
There is a total number of 18 skills in the game which define how player characters can interact with their surroundings, other people, and the world in general. The rank of each skill can range from 0 to 10 and is raised by investing skill points, which are earned at each new character level. The chosen Career determines which skills are available for further improvement and also the number of skill points per level (typically 1...3).
During Skill Checks the rank of a skill is compared to the difficulty level of the check. If both are equal, the base chance for success is 60%. Each skill rank above difficulty grants +20% base chance, each rank below reduces it by −40%.
An additional bonus is added to the base chance, depending on several factors:
- The Traits of the character. Each skill has one major and one minor trait which contributes ⟨(trait value − 4) × 4%⟩ and ⟨(trait value − 4) × 2%⟩ to the bonus chance, respectively. See the table below for details.
- The chosen Race. Some races grant an additional bonus to certain skills. See the table below for details.
- Special equipment found throughout the game.
The following table gives an overview on all skills, including their associated major and minor traits as well as other bonuses. (Note that not all skills are fully implemented in the current Early Access release of the game.)
| Name | Description | Trait ×4% | Trait ×2% | Other bonuses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics | Physical prowess, affecting the ability to hold your breath and break things open. Used in some skill checks during dialogues involving strength. | STR | DEX | +15% to Varannari |
| Scouting | Detecting hidden enemies or objects in the wilderness. This skill doesn't work in dungeons or cities (Spot Secrets is used instead there). | AWA | SLF | |
| Healing & Herbs | Used to gather herbs and other foraged goods efficiently, and also to mend wounds after battle. | INT | PER | |
| Maps & Charts | Enhances the minimap and area map functions. Some maze-like areas will require a high skill rank to even view the minimap. NOT YET IMPLEMENTED | INT | AWA | |
| Survival | Tracking, hunting, finding safe camping locations. Survival will reduce your chance of hostile encounters while camping by 5% per rank. Occasionally used in skill checks. | SLF | AWA | +15% to Varannari |
| Disarm Traps | The ability to deactivate devices and even retrieve some of their components. | AWA | DEX | |
| Human Insight | Perceiving lies or ill intentions from others from subtle signs in their words and behavior, or sometimes as a mere gut feeling. Used often in skill checks. | AWA | INT | |
| Pick Locks | The art of deftly manipulating tumblers and bypass locks, to open doors, safes, and chests. An important skill for adventuring parties. | INT | DEX | |
| Spot Secrets | Detecting hidden enemies or objects in dungeons or urban environments. This skill doesn't work in natural environments (Scouting is used instead there). | AWA | INT | |
| Deception | The ability to fool others through blather, bluffing, impersonating others, or hiding your intentions. In contrast to Diplomacy skill, Deception doesn't rely much on what is actually said, but on how to say it. Used often in skill checks. | PER | AWA | |
| Diplomacy | Persuading someone, earning trust, negotiating terms or solving conflicts peacefully through words. Diplomacy may sometimes be based on half-truths, but ultimately relies on logic and convincing someone (unlike Deception skill, that typically involves tricks, fast-talk and little substance). Used often in skill checks. | PER | INT | |
| Charisma | Ability to befriend strangers, sing, tell jokes, and blend into any crowd to learn rumors. Required for playing certain musical instruments. Each rank will reduce prices in most shops by 2% (using the best rank in the party). Occasionally used in skill checks. | PER | SLF | |
| Alchemy | Preparing potions and other alchemical mixtures. | INT | DEX | |
| Ancient Lore | The ability to understand archaic languages and symbols, familiarity with history of the Empire and other civilizations, and the understanding of ancient devices and contraptions. Used often in skill checks. | INT | SLF | |
| Crafting | Working with metal, wood or leather to craft new objects or repair them. | SLF | DEX | |
| Meditation | Ability to restore inner peace and serenity, recovering some willpower after battles. A character with at least 1 rank in this skill will make a check with a difficulty equal to his rank, adding +1 difficulty for each time the character suffered damage or received a negative effect. Characters can't meditate if a party member was killed or knocked out. The WP recovered is equal to 2x skill rank but limited to half (rounded down) what was spent in the battle. | SLF | PER | |
| Mythology | Allows to identify enemy creatures and their powers. The higher the skill, the more detailed the information. May on occassion be used in skill checks. | INT | AWA | |
| Runes & Arcana | The knowledge of magic in all its forms, in particular magical scripture and enchanted objects. Is often a requisite to use magic items such as scrolls, or enter magic-oriented careers. Occasionally used in skill checks. | SLF | INT |
