ROLLING UP YOUR CHARACTER

 

First of all, ya needs some nice numbers, which means ye has to step into da "Grinder" (yes, as in meat grinder) to get the raw material fer ya body. We calls it da "Grinder", cause it eats up yer hopes and dreams, yer sex lives and marriages, and even yer trust funds as you sit online trying to get that MAGIC combo rather then goin' to work like the rest of the responsible slobs in the world.

A few folks seem to miss the point of / to maximizing the placement of a characters rolled numbers. The object is to make the most efficient use of those numbers, as well as their inherent growth curves. Each ability's Statistic has a particular rate of growth, dependent upon the characters chosen race and profession. You don't want your fastest growing Stat (often one of the 2 that receive a +10 bonus upon choosing a profession) to get your highest number, while dooming your slowest growing Stat to your lowest. Even more important to remember is you’re maximizing your character for his / her INHERANT abilities and skills, not EVERY skill. A Warrior's focus of training is Physical, but not to the detriment of his/her Mental requirements. The same can be said for a Spell Caster, were he/she should focus on the Mental, yet not ignore their inherent Physical needs. This Guide will help you develop a Warrior who will not only excel his or her peers in ability, but in training as well, both now and in the future.

 

I can give you some help on how to make your Grinder experience a bit more productive, if not enjoyable. First, never use the Quick Generation Method for anything other then generating 'Mules'. Mules are what folks use to hang onto all the crap their REAL characters can't bear to get rid of, yet haven't got the room to keep. Locker space can sometimes be at a premium, depending on whether or not you're a 'Tax-Payer', and what Guilds or associations you belong to, but more on that later.

 

ROLLING UP YOUR CHARACTER:

 

I have found there are 2 options for making Grinder sessions better and more productive. You can make up a special profile, call it what ever you like, in your Wizard Front End (If'n ye dinna even ken what da Wizard FE is, yer in a world 'o hurt me friend). I call mine 'Roller'. It's only got 2 windows in it, the 'Game' window and the 'Voln thought’ window. I went through, and under Script Highlights', I color-coded all numbers that I wanted to recognize, depending on how close they were to what I wanted. The results are something like this:

	80 to 84,
	85 to 89,
	90 to 94
and finally	95 to 100.

As you can see, It works really well, and is excellent for letting you know at a quick glance if you have descent numbers or not.

Okies, option #1 is Manual Roll-up of a Full Generation Mode Character. Doing the afore mentioned text mods really help keep your eyes from crossing after a couple hours, and shooting past that nice set of numbers that just popped up (I’ve done THAT more then once). It's a bit more difficult, and you have to take time if you see good colors to check the whole list of numbers, and then take 'em or move on.

'Auto Rolling' is option number 2, and has become MUCH more common, since the Gods saw fit to cripple the Grinder's number generation capabilities. Ya see, da Grinder USED to give an average roll of about 580, but now the average has dropped to 480 (I've been seeing numbers in the 410-420 range MUCH more frequently these days). This means its MUCH harder (though NOT impossible) to get nice rolls. That's why I suggest getting a nice Auto-Roller, and just let 'er rip till you get a nice total (I set mine when I go to bed and let it roll all night). There are a few good ones out there, my favorite being The Lost Rangers Auto-Rolling Utility.

Never take a total less the 650, and never take a roll with any number less then 40. I personally shoot for 665 to 670, and get it every time, just takes a few days of patience.

You are looking for:

1 number in the 90's,

3 numbers in the upper 80's,

3 numbers in the upper 50's,

and 3 numbers in the upper 40's.

Its not easy, but you WILL be VERY happy you waited for the good roll, rather then getting frustrated and taking something close.

Ok, you got your numbers, now HOW do you place them. That depends on what race your running with. This Guide HIGHLY recommends Giant-men/women & I will give you the reasons FOR that choice. Dwarves are nearly as fine a choice as Giants, as they have very similar Racial Modifiers (and they're vicious knee-cap ambushers and ankle biters to boot!!). Unfortunately they cant lop off heads till they take OUT those knee-caps. Most folks will admit that Giants make the most effective and impressive Warriors, and other choices are simply a matter of personal taste and degrees of Role-Playing.

Growth Rates based on a Warrior's Race: (The higher the number the FASTER it's Stat grows)

STAT MODIFIERS HPF=Hit Point Factor Max=Maximum Blood Possible BEFORE Constitution Bonus / Penalty

Combinations of numbers reflect HEAVILY on how your warrior will perform, both immediately as well as in the future. As a Giantman and a Warrior, your 2 PRIME statistics will be Strength and Constitution. What this means is, they will grow the fastest, and AS a Giantman, both get an excellent Racial bonus. NEVER place these numbers in the top 4. I strongly recommend placing them 9th and 10th respectively, and will explain in a bit.

(biggest/largest number 1st, smallest last,:

Aura and Discipline should be placed 1st and 2nd, as they BOTH count towards Physical and Mental training points, grow fairly slow, and Aura should get the largest number as Giantmen take a -5 hit in situations that involve Aura, due to Racial Modifier. Aura also dictates the amount of mana you have to play with, which is good for later on in life.

Reflex and Dexterity should be 3rd and 4th, as both reflect your ability to both move and swing with armor and weapons, as well as how well you can complete complex manual tasks (like hiding or disarming traps). Though they grow nicely, low placement will cripple your Warrior’s ability to do basic tasks for a very long time. Reflex should come before Dexterity, as Giants again take a -5 Racial hit in any situations involving Reflex.

Intelligence and Logic should be 5th and 6th, as they control not only how much raw learning your brain can hold at any given time, but how quickly you can process it into experience as well. They may also affect your ability to use the Warrior’s ability to Assess weapons and armor, and possibly help with recognizing and disarming traps on chests and such. These 2 are your slowest growing Stats, and Intelligence should come before Logic, as Giantmen take another -5 racial hit.

Wisdom and Charisma should be 7th & 8th, with Wisdom again helping with traps. Other then that I have no clue. Charisma aids in merchant interaction (a waste of time in most cases, unless your talking about an item costing MILLIONS), and helps you hide and stay hidden while moving /stalking. It may also help you while using Guild Skills like Warcry. Both grow just a bit faster then Intelligence and Logic.

Strength and Constitution are 9th & 10th, getting a whopping +15 & +10 Racial modifier, as well as the actual numbers themselves getting a bump of +10 EACH, just for being a Warrior. Pretty sweet huh? Strength dictates how much damage you do, weight you can carry, help you swing faster, and how well you swing to begin with. Constitution says how much blood you get when you train, how well you resist diseases and poisons, and how quickly you get back your Spirit points after losing yer head and assorted body parts while hunting 'cause ya bobbed when you shoulda weaved.

 

 

zarilynx@hotmail.com

 

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Web page last updated 9/25/2000