Stats
Stats are the basic statistics for your character. The primary attributes are Strength (Str), Intelligence (Int) and Dexterity (Dex). If any of these stats reaches zero (or below) your character may die.
The three defensive stats are your Armour class (AC), your chance of blocking with a shield (SH) and your chance of dodging an attack (Evasion or EV).
Your character also has a limited reserve of hit points (HP) and mana (Magic or MP).
Over the course of the game, your character will gain experience, and may also gain a variety of intrinsics and mutations.
Contents
Starting Stats
Your starting stats are determined by two things: your species and your class. While they do not by any means define your character, it is generally easier to build your character in a way that is compatible with your stats.
Each starting stat is equal to 2 + your species contribution + your class contribution.
Species contributions
Note that not all races are created equal: Some have higher total stats than others, with High Elves and Demigods having the highest, and Ghouls having the lowest. The "gain" column describes how the race gains stats as they level up: a letter indicates the stat beginning with that letter can be chosen, and the number before the colon indicates the frequency of stat gains. So a Demigod, who would gain one Str, Int, or Dex every 2 levels, is represented by 2:SID
Species | Strength | Intelligence | Dexterity | Sum | Gain |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Centaur | 8 | 5 | 2 | 15 | 4:SD |
Deep Dwarf | 9 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 4:SI |
Deep Elf | 3 | 10 | 8 | 21 | 4:I |
Demigod | 9 | 10 | 9 | 28 | 2:SID |
Demonspawn | 6 | 7 | 6 | 19 | 4:SID |
Draconian | 8 | 6 | 4 | 18 | 4:SID |
Felid | 2 | 7 | 9 | 18 | 4:ID |
Ghoul | 9 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 5:S |
Halfling | 3 | 6 | 9 | 18 | 5:D |
High Elf | 5 | 9 | 8 | 22 | 3:ID |
Hill Orc | 9 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 5:S |
Human | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 4:SID |
Kobold | 5 | 4 | 8 | 17 | 5:SD |
Merfolk | 6 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 5:SID |
Minotaur | 10 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 4:SD |
Mummy | 9 | 5 | 5 | 19 | none |
Naga | 8 | 6 | 4 | 18 | 4:SID |
Ogre | 10 | 5 | 3 | 18 | 3:S |
Octopode | 5 | 8 | 5 | 18 | 5:SID |
Sludge Elf | 6 | 7 | 7 | 20 | 4:ID |
Spriggan | 2 | 7 | 9 | 18 | 5:ID |
Tengu | 6 | 6 | 7 | 19 | 4:SID |
Troll | 13 | 2 | 3 | 18 | 3:S |
Vampire | 5 | 8 | 7 | 20 | none |
Class contribution
Your class also contributes to your starting stats, although to a lesser degree than your race. Unlike with race, the sum of the starting stats is the same across all classes: it always totals to 12.
Class | Strength | Intelligence | Dexterity |
---|---|---|---|
Abyssal Knight | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Air Elementalist | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Artificer | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Assassin | 3 | 3 | 6 |
Berserker | 9 | -1 | 4 |
Chaos Knight | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Conjurer | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Death Knight | 5 | 3 | 4 |
Earth Elementalist | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Enchanter | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Fighter | 8 | 0 | 4 |
Fire Elementalist | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Gladiator | 7 | 0 | 5 |
Healer | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Hunter | 4 | 3 | 5 |
Ice Elementalist | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Monk | 3 | 2 | 7 |
Necromancer | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Priest | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Skald | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Stalker | 2 | 4 | 6 |
Summoner | 0 | 7 | 5 |
Transmuter | 2 | 5 | 5 |
Wanderer | * | * | * |
Warper | 3 | 5 | 4 |
Wizard | -1 | 10 | 3 |
*A wanderer's starting stats are random, but will also total 12. However, if a stat is greater than 17, it is 50% less likely to be increased.
Your initial Strength, Intelligence and Dexterity cannot be less than 3. In the case where a class/race combo causes a value to be less than three, it is increased and another decreased until equal to 3. Currently, this is only ever relevant to ghoul berserkers and possibly ghoul wanderers.
72 is the absolute maximum value for Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence. Theses ability scores can never go above 72, regardless of racial bonuses, equipment, mutations, or any other bonuses.
Gaining attributes
Characters get to increase an attribute of their choice every three levels; in addition, there is a level-based increase based on race.
- Humans gain a randomly chosen stat every 4 levels.
- High Elf characters gain either Int or Dex randomly every 3 levels.
- Deep Elf characters gain Int every 4 levels.
- Sludge Elf characters gain Int or Dex randomly every 4 levels.
- Deep Dwarf characters gain Str or Int randomly every 4 levels.
- Halflings gain Dex every 5 levels.
- Kobolds gain Dex or Str every 5 levels.
- Hill Orcs characters gain Str every 5 levels.
- Mummy characters do not gain any extra stats.
- Vampires do not gain any extra stats.
- Nagas gain a random stat every 4 levels.
- Ogres gain Str every 3 levels.
- Draconians gain a random stat every 4 levels.
- Centaurs gain Dex or Str every 4 levels.
- Demigods gain a random stat every 2 levels.
- Spriggans gain Int or Dex every 5 levels.
- Minotaurs gain Dex or Str every 4 levels.
- Demonspawns gain a random stat every 4 levels.
- Ghouls gain Str every 5 levels.
- Tengu gain a random stat every 4 levels.
- Merfolk gain a random stat every 5 levels.
- Trolls gain Str and 1 MP every 3 levels starting at level 3.
- Felids gain Dex or Int every 5 levels.
- Octopodes gain a randomly chosen stat every 5 levels.
History
The extra 2 that all characters get to all their stats is a holdover from when stats were randomized: previously there were eight stat points that would be allocated randomly, with a slight tendency to raise lower stats in preference to higher ones; the remaining two were added to the class stat points, which used to total 10 instead of 12.
Additionally, Wanderers' stats used to total only 6, making the class considerably more difficult. Artificers' totaled 9, although that difference was not too significant. As for races, numerous small changes have been made over the years, but one of the more significant ones is to Mummies: they have gone from having some of the worst starting stats (7/3/3, or 13 total) to being among the higher-stat races.