That evening, after a rushed dinner by himself, Daniel lies in bed and debates what to do with his new attribute points and skill proficiencies.

5 attribute points and 1 skill proficiency to allocate. Unlike his previous class as a Miner, the Adventurer class was much more open-ended on its attribute point allocation. Strength, Agility and Constitution were all key to his needs as a melee fighter, but it was his Intelligence and Willpower that dictated his ability to heal. He frowns for a moment, deciding to put a couple of extra points into Agility and a point each into Constitution, Intelligence and Wisdom. He was more than strong enough for now.

That done, he calls up his skill proficiency tree and stares at the new options available for him. All that training has increased his skills in both Shield, Dodge, Combat Sense and Club offering him more options than he knew what to do with. As he gains ability in each skill, new skill proficiencies would become available that allowed him to enhance the basic abilities of each skill. This even translated to his healing skill, with both mundane options like First Aid or at higher levels, powerful healing spells. Unsure of what to do, Daniel decides to peruse his proficiencies again, musing over his options.

An upgrade to his Minor Healing Spell would reduce the mana cost and increase the amount healed slightly. It was a good option for both the Clinic and the Dungeon. However, he had the backup of his own Gift which should be enough for now, so he dismisses that option.

In terms of defense, he could learn Hard Block, offering him a chance to beat aside an opponent’s weapon and potentially riposte on the line of attack.

A truly successful hard block could even damage or disarm an opponent. On the other hand, Tumbling under Dodge would provide a more efficient means of getting out of the way of large attacks or groups, though Sway was a passive skill proficiency that would offer him the chance to dodge blows by inches without giving ground. Daniel knew Mary favored that option, allowing her to hold her ground even against the strongest opponents. Sway was a skill particularly useful for the smaller, lighter Adventurer but after consideration, Daniel discards it. It just doesn’t suit his fighting style, especially as he intends to specialise in the use of a shield when he could afford one.

Dueling from Combat Sense would give him a bonus to hit and his critical hit skill while fighting a single opponent but as he was a solo Adventurer, multiple mobs were a guarantee at some point. While Daniel has no shield or armour to his name at this time, he has more hit points than most beginning Adventurers since he started out his career later than most of them. Trusting

in his ability to take damage, Daniel dismisses all but his combat skill proficiencies to review.

Shield Bash

An attack with your shield, turning it into an offensive weapon as well as a defensive tool.

Skill: Active

Cost: 12 Stamina

Effect: User’s Bash does 1-2 points of damage + 0.5 per level of the Shield Skill. Has a 1% chance per level of Shield Skill chance to Stun for 5 seconds.

Power Strike

Powerful single strike that causes additional damage to an opponent.

Skill: Active

Cost: 15 Stamina

Effect: User’s Power strike does 50% more damage + 2% per level of Club skill.

Double Strike

Cross strike allows the wielder to launch a chained attack, striking twice in the time it would take an inexperienced attacker to attack once. Each strike (if it lands) is at 70%

of the damage.

Skill: Active

Cost: 25 Stamina

Effect: User strikes twice in quick succession. Each strike does 70% of normal damage.

Damage increases +0.5% per Club skill level of user.

Power Strike was a very common attack for most melee fighters. It provided a high level of damage and could crush many lower level enemies if he could increase his skill level with clubs sufficiently. Shield Bash was

probably the next most common attack form, a safe skill that made both hands dangerous and one that was favored by shield users like himself. The stun effect could be very useful in a fight, but unfortunately, he didn’t own a shield at this time. Still, as Daniel thinks about the various sparring sessions he’s had with Mary, Daniel can only choose Double Strike. It was only with a flurry of blows did he ever make her move, make her take him semi-seriously.

Satisfied, he selects the Skill Proficiency and stares at his newly updated Status Screen.

Name: Daniel Chai

Class: Level 2 Adventurer (0%)

Sub-classes: Level 7 (Miner) (19%)

Human (Male)

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Statistics

Life: 176

Stamina: 176

Mana: 136

Critical Hit Chance: 4%

Attributes

Strength: 17

Agility: 14

Constitution: 24

Intelligence: 15

Willpower: 17

Luck: 13

Skills

Unarmed Combat: Level 2 (47/100)

Clubs: Level 7 (21/100)

Shield: Level 5 (18/100)

Dodge: Level 3 (16/100)

Combat Sense: Level 2 (12/100)

Perception: Level 3 (21/100)

Mining: Level 7 (78/100)

Healing: Level 7 (07/100)

Herb Lore: Level 3 (31/100)

Cooking: Level 2 (37/100)

Singing: Level 2 (14/100)

Skill Proficiencies

Double Strike

Mapping (II)

Spells

Minor Healing (I)

Gifts

Martyr’s Touch - The caster may heal oneself or others by touch and concentration, sacrificing a portion of his life to do so. Cost varies depending on the extent of the injuries healed.