Skills

BACKSTAB
Backstab is the favored attack of thieves, murderers, and other rogues. It can be used with any weapon type, but is most effective with piercing weapons. The damage inflicted by a backstab is determined by the attacker's level, his weapon skill, his backstab skill, and the power of his opponent. Only thieves may learn the backstab.

BASH
The bash skill is a warrior talent, a brute-force attack designed to knock your foe to his knees. Its success depends on many factors, including the bash rating, your weight, and the size of your opponent. Bashing a dragon is not generally a wise idea.

BERSERK
Only powerful warriors can master berserking, the ability to enter insane rage in combat. Its effects are not altogether unlike the frenzy spell -- a huge surge of combat prowess, coupled with a disregard for personal safety. Berserking warriors are more resistant to the effects of magic.

CIRCLE
Syntax: circle

Circle is the even more dishonorable skill of moving behind opponents while they are otherwise engaged with the leaders of your party, and plunging your blade into their squishy vulnerable parts. AVAILABLE TO:

Daemon Level 75

Horreur Level 60

Thief Level 25

DIRT KICK
Consider by some to be a cowardly skill, dirt kicking gives the clever combatant a chance to blind his opponent by casting dirt into his eyes. The blindness does not last long, but can provide an edge in combat. Dexterity helps in hitting or avoiding a dirt kick. Only warriors and thieves may learn this skill.

DISABLE
Syntax: disable

This skill allows you to disable any traps set on a container. Please note, the container must be unlocked, and you must first have the detect traps spell cast upon you.

See also: DETECT TRAPS

AVAILABLE TO:

Daemon         Level 23 Horreur        Level 28 Thief          Level 7

DISARM
Disarm is a somewhat showy and unreliable skill, designed to relieve your opponent of his weapon. The best possible chance of disarming occurs when you are skilled both your own and your opponent's weapon. Only talented thieves and warriors may learn this skill.

DODGE
In the words of one wise warrior, 'the best way to block a blow is to not be where it lands'. The dodge skill honors this tradition, by improving the character's natural agility to the point where many blows will miss the target. The chance of dodging is also affected by the dexterity of the attacker and the target. Any class may learn dodging.

DUAL WIELD
Syntax: second To use dual wield, empty all hands but your primary weapon, and take care that your secondary weapon is significantly lighter than your primary. (No shield allowed) Then type second. AVAILABLE TO: Daemon         Level 55 Horreur        Level 45 Hunter         Level 25 Ranger         Level 30 Thief          Level 35 Warrior        Level 15

ENHANCED DAMAGE
Warriors and skilled thieves can become skilled enough in combat that they are able to inflict more damage than other classes. Enhanced damage is checked for with each hit, although with a low skill, the chance of receiving a bonus is very low indeed.

ENVENOM
The envenom skill is a cowardly skill practiced only by thieves, designed to win a battle through alchemy and treachery rather than skill or strength. Or, put another way, it's a skill used by the smart to kill the foolish. Food, drink, and weapons may be envenomed, with varying effects. Poisoned food or drink puts a mild poison spell on the consumer, and is unlikely to be more than a minor inconvience (after all, the typical adventurer could drink sewer water with only a trace of the runs). A poisoned weapon, on the other hand, can inflict serious damage on an opponent as the poison burns through his bloodstream. But be careful, blade venom evaporates quickly and is rendered almost powerless by repeated blows in combat.

FAST HEALING
The fast healing skill improves wound healing rates, whether walking, resting, or sleeping. It represents knowledge of healing herbs or just general toughness and stamina. Fast healing is checked every tick, and it is possible for it to fail. All class may learn this skill, but mages find it very difficult to master, due to their bookish lifestyle.

FIFTH ATTACK
Training in fifth attack allows the character a chance at an additional strike in a combat, and increases the chance of a fourth attack as well. Perfect fifth attack does NOT assure five attacks per round.

FOURTH ATTACK
Training in fourth attack allows the character a chance at an additional strike in a combat, and increases the chance of a third attack as well. Perfect fourth attack does NOT assure four attacks per round.

FOURTH CAST
Training in fourth cast allows the character a chance at additional strikes with offensive spells at no extra mana cost, and increases the chance of a third cast as well. 100% training in fourth cast does NOT guarantee four strikes per spell cast.

HAGGLE
Haggling is an indispensable skill to the trader. It allows a character to match wits with a merchant, seeking to get a better price for merchandise, or to buy at the lowest possible cost. Unfortunately, most merchants are already very skilled at haggling, so the untrainined adventurer had best guard his treasure closely. Thieves are natural masters at haggling, although other classes may learn it as well.

HAND TO HAND
Hand to hand combat is a rare skill in the lands of Taheria. Learning this style of fighting gives the player a weapon even when disarmed -- bare hands. Trained hand to hand experts are far more effective than many swordsmen. Clerics and warriors are the best at this skill, although thieves and mages may also learn it.

HIDE SNEAK
Hide and sneak are similar skills, both related to remaining undetected. Hide has a very high chance of success, but only works for as long as the character remains stationary. Sneak may be used when moving (including to sneak by monsters), but has a lower chance of success. Only warriors and thieves may learn these skills.

KICK
Kicking allows the adventurer to receive an extra attack in combat, a powerful kick. However, a failed kick may throw an unwary fighter off balance. Fighters and clerics are the most skilled at kicking, although thieves may also learn it.

MEDITATION
This skill is similar to fast healing, but relies on the concentration and mantras to increase mana recovery when the character is sleeping or resting. Thieves and warriors, with their troubled minds and violent attitudes, have much trouble learning to meditate.

PARRY
If at first you fail to dodge, block it. Parry is useful for deflecting attacks, and is succesful more often than dodge. Parry requires a weapon for full success, the hand-to-hand skill may also be used, but results in reduced damage instead of no damage. The best chance of parrying occurs when the defender is skilled in both his and his opponent's weapon type.

PEEK
The peek skill is useful for seeing what a player or monster is carrying, the better to use the steal command with. More intelligent characters are harder to peek at. All characters may learn peek, but thieves are the most common practicioners.

PICK LOCK
Lock picking is one of the prime skills of thieves, allowing them to gain access to many secured areas. Lock picking chances are improved by intelligence, and hindered by the difficulty of the lock. Other classes may learn to pick locks, but they will never find it easy.

RECALL
Syntax: RECALL RECALL prays to Mota for miraculous transportation from where you are back to the Temple of Taheria. '/' is a synonym for RECALL.

If you RECALL during combat, you will lose experience (more than for fleeing), and you will have a chance of failing (again, more than for fleeing). This chance is based on your recall skill, although a 100% recall does not insure success.

RECALL costs half of your movement points.

RECALL doesn't work in certain god-forsaken rooms. Characters afflicted by a curse may not recall at all.

RESCUE
A friend in need is a friend indeed. And when in combat, a warrior with the rescue skill is just the friend you need. Rescue allows you to intercede in combat, protecting weaker characters from bodily harm. Hopefully the favor will be returned. Success in rescuing depends on the skill rating, as well as a comparision of level, dexterity, and speed between the character and the target. (note: you rescue a friend, not the monster)

SCROLLS STAVES WANDS
Magical items require training to use properly. If your character lacks the necessary skill to use an item, he will fail, possibly destroying it. The item skills are as follows:

scrolls The reading of magical scrolls and books

staves The use of staves and similar devices

wands The use of wands and similar items

Syntax: brandish

Syntax: quaff

Syntax: recite

Syntax: zap

Syntax: zap

BRANDISH brandishes a magical staff. QUAFF quaffs a magical potion (as opposed to DRINK, which drinks mundane liquids). RECITE recites a magical scroll; the is optional, depending on the nature of the scroll. ZAP zaps a magical wand at a target. If the target is not specified, and you are fighting someone, then that character is used for a target.

You must HOLD a wand or a staff before using BRANDISH or ZAP.

All of these commands use up their objects. Potions and scrolls have a single charge. Wands and staves have multiple charges. When a magical object has no more charges, it will be consumed.

These commands may require an item skill to be succesful, see the help entries on the skills scrolls, staves, and wands for more information.

SECOND ATTACK
Training in second attack allows the character a chance at additional strikes in combat -- allow a 100% second attack does NOT guarantee 2 attacks every round.

SECOND CAST
Training in second cast allows the character a chance at additional strikes with offensive spells at no extra mana cost -- although a 100% second cast does NOT guarantee the spell will go off twice every cast.

SHARPEN
Syntax: sharpen

Sharpen finely tunes the blades of edged weapons so that they will slice through your opponent much more thoroughly (more damage).

AVAILABLE TO:

Thief Level 35

SHIELD BLOCK
With this skill, defense is the name of the game. Much better to suffer a few dents in your shield than to suffer those same dents in your skull, don't you think?

SIXTH ATTACK
Training in sixth attack allows the character a chance at an additional strike in a combat, and increases the chance of a fifth attack as well. Perfect sixth attack does NOT assure six attacks per round.

SKIN
Syntax: skin corpse

This skill allows you to remove the skin from a corpse and wear it as a rough cloak. At later levels, some classes will gain the ability to tailor the skin into hard, durable armors.

See also: TAILOR

AVAILABLE TO:

Hunter         Level 15 Ranger        Level 25

STEAL
Theft is the defining skill of the thief, and is only available to that class. It allows items to be stolen from the inventory of monsters and characters, and even from shops! But beware, shop keepers gaurd their merchandise carefully, and attempting to steal from a character earns you a THIEF flag if you are caught (making you free game for killing).

TAILOR
Syntax: tailor skin

where armor is one of the following: boots leggings gloves cowl mask cloak  This skill allows you to take previously skinned skins, and form them into powerful armors. The higher your level, the more powerful the armor will turn out.

See also: SKIN

AVAILABLE TO:

Hunter Level 40

Ranger Level 65

THIRD ATTACK
Training in third attack allows the character a chance at an additional strike in a combat, and increases the chance of a second attack as well. Perfect third attack does NOT assure three attacks per round.

THIRD CAST
Training in third cast allows the character a chance at additional strikes with offensive spells at no extra mana cost, and increases the chance of a second cast as well. 100% training does NOT guarantee three strikes per spell.

TRIP
Back by popular demand. Trip is a somewhat dastardly attack, and involves using any one of a number of methods to bring your opponent down to the ground. Tripping large monsters is generally not a good idea, and agile ones will find the attack easy to avoid. Thieves and warriors may learn trip.