Purchasable Skills
Purchasable Skills are items that can be found in the
Magicka Shoppe and purchased with, you guessed it, magicka. They are intended to be another magicka sink of sorts, however will act like an item that your character possesses, similar to spells. Skills won't fall under an elemental category, meaning that they can be learned by anybody that can afford it. They are also meant to be a reward for characters who don't specialize in magic; a special treat for characters that focus on other aspects of the level path: physical combat and other. Once a character obtains a skill, they are most likely to succeed in what they are attempting to do, where characters that don't have that particular skill will most likely fail. That, and it provides a nice little summary of your character's abilities.
Here are some possible mechanics for Purchasable Skills that we could implement:
Skill Level: Buying a skill, your level for that skill will start at 1. Your proficiency at the skill will increase as you use it more.
Apply Skill: Similar to the 'attempt' boxes at the bottom of a post, you will be given the option to check off an 'Apply Skill' box and select a skill from the dropdown. This won't roll to use the skill - instead, it will automatically add to your post that you have applied a skill. This will create a GM request for the post, where the GM will read the post, determine whether or not you have applied your skill (to avoid cheating). If the GM has deemed it acceptable, they will click a button that adds +1 to your skill level.
Level Path Requirements: Instead of charging a flat magicka cost to advance to the Brawler, Champion, Strategist or Genius levels, these levels will require characters to possess at least 1 skill (Brawler and Strategist), and 3 skills (Champion and Genius), evening out the path progressions for all three level paths.
And here's a few example skills that you may find in the Magicka Shoppe:
Fast Fighter: Gives +1-5 (depending on level) to character's first roll in a fight if they start the fight. Cost: ʡ500.
Shields Up: Gives +1-5 (depending on level) to character's roll if they spend the round rolling to defend instead of attacking. Can only be used once per battle. Cost: ʡ500.
C-C-Combo Breaker: Gives +1-10 (depending on level) to roll of second attack if character combines two different elemental spells AND possesses the achievement for that specific elemental specialty. Both attacks must roll minimum of Barely Successful. Cost: ʡ700.
Scribe: The Lorekeeper has taught your character how to read and write. Cost: ʡ500.
Leather Crafting: Your character can manipulate leather and cloths they find in the cave to form armor, trinkets, etc without the use of magic. Cost: ʡ500.
Metal Crafting: Your character can manipulate scrap metal they find in the cave to form armor, trinkets, etc without the use of magic. Cost: ʡ700.
Animal Whisperer: The behavior patterns of the lesser Gembounds are memorized such that your character can track their movements, identify vocalizations, etc. Cost: ʡ500.
Regarding characters who already have these skills: we won't change anything that has happened in threads in the past, however your characters won't be able to continue using these skills until they have purchased them, otherwise it may be unfair to newer users who never got the opportunity to give their characters these skills.
This is a tentative idea, and the mechanics of it may change depending on what you as a community decide on. It may not even be implemented at all if you guys don't think it to be necessary, or certain parts may be dropped or altered drastically. Of course, we're always open to suggestions! So please, let us know both in the poll whether you think this feature would be a good addition to the site, or in the posts below if you have any suggestions, critiques, questions, or general comments.
The poll closes on September 30th.
You can vote for ONE option, using ONE account only. Please do not vote with multiple characters - we'll know! If you have any opinions or suggestions, please post them below!
