Skills are a general term that covers physical, mental, or supernatural capabilities acquired through some type of learning or training over time. In the most simple terms, skills represent a character’s ability to do stuff. All skills are grouped into individual skill trees with each based on one of the six attribute scores. As characters level up they are able to add skill points to the tree to increase the odds of success for all skills that have been purchased under it, purchase new skills in an existing tree, and/or purchase skills in new trees.

In this system, there are eight categories of skill trees.

  • Combat Specialties are a group of trained physical skills that revolve around the ability to cause or avoid damage.
  • Magic Specialties consist of the various mystics arts involved in spell casting
  • Incantory Specialties primarily support the magic skills with expanded capabilities and defining concepts.
  • Druidic Specialties cover nature magic and keepers of the natural world, with each specialty focusing on a different aspect.
  • Metaphysical Specialties revolve around spiritual and psychic combat and support abilities.
  • Support Specialties includes trained skills that tend to be more educational, professional, or vocational in nature.
  • Proficiencies represent common skills that require little training, needing only an instructor and an afternoon to gain the basics.
  • Background Skills encompasses the general experience that relates to character origin, status, etc.

Characters typically acquire their skill trees during character generation, advancing the Skill Tree Rank and adding skills as the game progresses.

There are four classes of skills within each tree.

  • Novice skills may be immediately purchased for any owned tree and have a 1:1 skill slot cost.
  • Expert skills may be purchased in an owned tree with four skill points at Expert character rank (level 12), and have a 2:1 skill slot cost.
  • Master skills can be purchase in an owned tree with eight skill points at Master character rank (level 24), and have a 3:1 skill slot cost.
  • Epic skills are part of an advanced rules set that involves chaining skill effects available at the Epic character rank.

As noted above, advancement in the system is level-based, beginning at level 0 and a Novice character rank. As characters level up they gain skill points (to increase the Skill Tree Rank), additional skill slots (to add more skills to the tree), action points, and reputation points, as well as higher character ranks that in turn allow for the acquisition of more advanced skills with more capabilities. Epic ranks do not have a level requirement, it is a transcendental state dealing with powers beyond known existence.

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