A new Skill/Level Hybrid System, A level system added upon a skill system Options

[Hawkins]

I think that a skill-based system is a must as players are actually getting tired/sick of the level clones. Yet a level-based system has its own merit. So I prefer a cross-over hybrid accommodating a level system on top of a skill-based system, plus a brand-new custom skill/special system.

The system starts with a general skill system just like that of UO, you can choose to grow in any skill combination as you wish to deal with the grinding and crafting situations, exactly like in UO. You can be miners, or fishermen or treasure hunters. However, a hidden level-based system is working behind the scene. That is, along the path of your skills growing, your experience against mobs will also be counted, as in a level-based system. And your level keeps increasing but it's done without your knowledge, you can't read back which level you are currently is, you will be given a message or a simple title to reflect roughly what your level is. For example, you are a journeyman when you are between level 10 and 20.

Just like a level system, the hidden level will determine the validity of your grouping. That is, grouping will be divided into 2 types. A free grouping type as in UO where no constrain is put that you can virtually group with people at all levels. The high levels may group with newbies to help them out. However, this kind of free grouping will not apply to tougher mobs. For tough mobs, a stricter grouping requirement is followed, where out of level toons are not suitable or not efficient for such a kind of grouping. The party leader will be warned of the situation that someone in the team is out of level. The party leader can however determine whether to continue the party hunting with an ultra low level or to tell him to leave in order to maintain the team's efficiency in fighting the tough mobs of the same level range.


Professional unions:
Now the player's toon keep growing, just like in UO. When he attains a certain level of proficiency in skills, that is, a skill combination milestone is met, the player is entiled to fit his toon to a pre-defined template. In UO, when you bring up your toon for awhile and decided to go the path of a treasure hunter, you will ask around for a good Thunter template. Then you'll get a bundle of these "good templates" and choose one to grow your toon.

Similarly in my design, there are different professional unions in game holding these different "good templates". Say, when you decided to grow your toon into a treasure hunter, you need to find him a Treasure Hunter Union. There are many treasure hunter unions in the world, with each holding a "good template". So finally, you choose your favortie one by joining a profession union (which is with a "good template").

Now your professional life begins. you are now already adapting a "class", as in a usual level system. Your class is called "Treasure Hunter" with a skillset template. Now the game starts to enhance your class bit by bit. In such a union, you start to acquire the treasure hunter specials. The set of specials is just like those so-called "skills" in a level-based game. The special sets of a treasure hunter will allow him to fight in a class-unique style. The special sets will mold your toon to that he'll be able to solo and party hunt in a style unique to the class "Treasure Hunter". Along with the special sets, some specials are given to be race-specific such that your toon will end up as a, say, dwarf (race) treasure hunter (class) with a set of treasure hunter skills (template) and a set of specials (level-based skills).

The same applies to other classes ranging from paladin, warrior, rogue, mage, druid, shaman, archer, fishermen, bard, tamer, ninja, samurai.......etc.

They are all formed with a template by joining the corresponding professional unions, then to acquire the level-based skills (specials) and race-specific skills (specials). You can hybrid as many skill combinations as possible, and as flexible as possible, just like in UO but in the form of unions.

The only difference from UO is that, you don't have pure mulls (pure crafters), everyone needs to armed with fighting skills / specials. While you don't need to worry about what fighting skills a mull requires, as when you mull joins a professional union, a template is always available which should have already included the fighting skills/specials needed by your mull/crafter.


Custom Skill set:
Other than the skills/specials mentioned above, you'll have another set of skills. You acquire these skills from mobs drops or quests. Low level toons will get low level skills while high level toons will get high level skills. This skill set contains only 2 to 3 special skills, they are either powerful death blow spells, or special crafting skills. For example, all the skills/specials of a tank are tactical skills in tanking the damage for a party, he has not much PvP skills at all. However, from a special mob drop or quest, he gets his custom skill. The skill is for the tank class, however this skill cannot be used in a party hunting. The skill can only be used in a one to one PvP. When a tank class acquired like 3 such 1-vs-1 PvP skills, he can thus be a nasty PvPer in a 1-vs-1 fight.

In effect, this kind of custom skills can be unlocked. For example, when all the players whine about that human Paladin is way too powerful in a group vs group fight. New custom skills can thus be unlocked, such that other classes can train up the new skills specially created for beating down the powerful human tanks, such that whenever the new skill is used a a buf, the human tank's offensive power will be greatly reduced, such that the human paladin will no longer be over powerful.



Skill Train-up:
The skill-based skills (UO-like) are trained up just like they are in UO. The level-based skills are unlike those in a usual level-based game. In a usual level-based game, you obtain skills by reaching a certain level, say, when you reach level 20, you acquire new available skills of which you can use freely.

In my design however, even the level-based skills require to be trained up just like the skill-based skills. However, the level-based skills take much shorter time to train. For example, a tamer's taming skill may take 9 months to max, just like in UO. The tamer's death blow special (a level-based like skill) will take only 1 to 2 months to complete. And unlike the skill-based skills which you can use even before you max out them, a level-based special requires to complete the training in order to be used. That is, before you max out the skill, you cannot use it as a special.

Since custom skills are also specials, they are thus trained up the same way as that of the specials. You need 1 to 2 month to complete the custom skill training then use it as a special.

[Hawkins]

The skill/level system can work along with a asymmetric skill tree as follows,

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I never like nowaday's symmetric class trees. Take Lineage II as an example, each race has like 2 classes branches out at level 20 then later on further branch out with each into 2 other classes.

In my idea, an asymmetric class tree is like this,

human - paladin, warrior, mage, druid, rogue, healer, crafter

orc - warrior, shaman

high elf - archer, warrior, paladin, mage

dark elf - rogue, warrior, paladin, mage, archer

dwarf - paladin, warrior, crafter

pixie - mage fighter, healer

gargoyle - paladin, warrior, mage

So that a human paladin starts the same as a dwarf paladin, but when they branch out at level 20, they start to acquire some race-specific paladin skills, something like that.

The whole idea is that this seems to be more realistic, and moreover a hybrid skill/class system can be introduced where you can't choose to be a dwarf druid, or an orc rogue nonsense, but with both the class tree maintained and players can have some flexibility in choosing both the race-independent common skills and race-dependent skills.

[Hawkins]

It should also work well with the battle system I post in another thread. Balance should be made to allow classes to be group friendly, solo friendly or both or crafting friendly.

For example, grouping with crafters such as tailors and blacksmiths will not be a burden to the timeslot/token desgin I mentioned, that is, they are not bound by the timeslots. They are free fighters can do medium damages to the enemies. They are nice to have damage dealers who will not give too much burden to the group. And each group may allow up to, say, 2 to 3 these free fighters doing stable but not serious damages through puts.

On the other hand, those crafters may have their own specials doing special things in a group. For example, a tailor will cause direct damage to the leather armors, such that enemy classes wearing leather type armor may be more subject to melee and spell damage when they are hit by a tailor's special. The same applies to blacksmith and other crafter classes. So that even in siege group PvP, these crafters can do the dirty (even disgusting) jobs of damaging the other side's uber gears. Something like that, hehe...

Some other classes such as fisherman can have powerful under-water spells such that they will be teamed up for under-water battles. When in lands they become the free fighters capable of stumbling the enemies with his threads using for fishing-nets. etc.

[StaticGrazer]

Okay, so here are some of my thoughts.

Start with the skills.

I'd like to see this skill system work in 2 seperate parts, that work in unison.
Example.
As a young adventurer, you would swing a sword, and swing a sword...ect, ya raise that skill untill you join the profession of; say, gladiator . As a gladiator you could specialize in a jab or slash with the sword. Or using the terrain to your advantage; trees, rocks, nets, ect.

I suppose they could be called General, and Class specific. Though I generaly think a /class/ should be a guideline, insted of a set standard. I'd also like to see skills be mutauly benifical.

I think a good example of what we're going for is a game from Europe called The Witcher.

Use this link as a referance.
http://waiting4oblivion.com/private/witcher/levelup.jpg

Okay, so in this picture we see many things, but in this I want to concentrate on a few aspects. First you will see a hand with what appears to be a piece of paper in it. To the left is a Gold, Silver, and Bronze spot with the number 0 next to thim.

These numbers represent how many skills are alocated by the game to spend, the the more precious the skill ( gold, silver, ect) the harder it is to gain. In this, Bronze is 3 every level, Gold is 1 every 15, and gold is 1 every 30. This is a way we could use to implament a dynamic skill system.
Mabye not every 15 or 30 levels, but you guys get the idea.

I do like the idea of some skills only being available if they are droped. If I recall Ultima has a scroll drop system which alowes you to get your skill levels slightly past the max. ( highest is 1/4 higher than the max )
I would like to see scrolls, or books that gives your character the knowledge of a skill that others, whom have not read it will not have. But, the book can only be read once ( With the benifit of the new skill) Thus making unread skill books quite valuable, espicaly if they contain skills like...say two handed mining.

I am one to make mistakes, so I'd like to see some sort of 'Forgetfull ness' potion that alowes you to forget certain skills...for a price. Or, if the skill was just purchased ( say 10 minutes ago? ) then it could be reverted without penalty. Mabye a maximum of 3 reverts?

I also believe that all classes should have craftables. Just because an orc likes to smash, doesn't mean he won't want preety skulls and brains on his shield.