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Statistical Roleplaying ("Statplaying") Tutorial

Discussion in 'Statistical Roleplays' started by Eebit, May 22, 2014.

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    Roll up, roll up! Welcome, one and all, ZEJians big and small, to the official ZEJ Roleplaying Statistical Roleplaying Tutorial! I'm your host, @"Eebit". This style of roleplaying is a common feature on ZEJ, but often goes without being formally explained to newcomers. Maybe the profile sheet seems too daunting, or maybe it's the numbers. Regardless of what deters people, this tutorial aims to remedy the issues stemming from a lack of a cohesive resource, and will hopefully demystify the core components of this brand of roleplay. If you have ever played a video game of the tactical RPG genre, such as Final Fantasy Tactics, Luminous Arc, or Fire Emblem, then Statistical Roleplaying (or henceforth and colloquially known as, "statplaying") is, at its core, quite similar in nature to those. However, naturally, you the players will have much more control over the way the characters interact, develop, and grow. Such is the nature of play-by-post roleplaying, after all!

    Now, before we get any further, I must state that this guide is going to be focused on introductory-level concepts of the statplaying medium. It is by no means the end-all authority of the style, but it should act as a beginner's handbook, of sorts.

    Boiled down to something simple, the general goal of statplaying is to outwit and outplay your opponent, defeating the enemy through either brute force or cunning tactics. There are, really, endless ways to go about achieving this goal, but the "main" condition for victory is to reduce your opponent's Health Points (HP) to 0. You and your opponent go back and forth, moving around a grid within the confines of your stats and abilities, trading blows until one or the other is eliminated. The opponent can be an 'AI'-controlled enemy for the purposes of advancing along a story, or in a Player-versus-Player (PvP) setting.

    In origin, the system was created by a user named 'DragonMasterX' (as detailed here), before undergoing heavy modifications by @"Masquerade". There are an endless number of 'styles' or variations of that same original system, as each Game Master (GM) adds their own personal flair to the system. However, at its heart, each style of the traditional 'statplaying' system functions the same, and the majority of the principles taught here can translate into other styles. Particularly in this guide, I will be focusing on @"Shadow"'s system of statplaying. @Shadow has in turn made a number of modifications to @"Masquerade"'s system, and it is currently the most popular system on ZEJ.

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    I. Introductory Post
    II. The Basics: Priming Your Character
    III. Abilities, Grid System, and Damage Calculation
    IV. Finishing Touches: Excess, X-Gauge, and Levelling Up
    [CURRENT POST]
    V. Common Language

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    Whoa-ho there, eager beaver! If you are the type that wants to work ahead on this tutorial, I will leave this here for you to get started. Within this tutorial, I aim to do a step-by-step breakdown on the various component fields of a typical "ShadowSystem" profile, so as to make it a lot less daunting a task than it may originally appear. That said, I will not be preventing anyone from completing a profile if they feel that they are able. Quite the opposite, really. Fill out as much detail as you feel comfortable with, as you feel comfortable filling it out. However, I do ask that you refrain from immediately posting a fully complete profile within this thread, just for the sake of keeping a level of consistency with what I am teaching.

    Code:
    [b]Name:
    Gender:
    Age:
    Level:
    Progress:
    Appearance:[/b]
    
    [b]Profession:
    Weapon:
    Armor:
    Accessory:[/b]
    
    [b]A-Ability:[/b]
    
    [b]+ Skill #1:[/b]
    
    [b]+ Skill #2:[/b]
    
    
    [b]R-Ability:
    S-Ability:
    B-Ability:[/b]
    
    [b]E-Trigger:
    X-Ability:[/b]
    
    
    [b][u]~Statistics~[/u][/b]
    
    [b]HP:
    MP:
    Atk:
    Def:
    Int:
    Spr:
    Critical:
    Evasion:
    Movement:
    X-Gauge:[/b]
    
    [b]Skill Points:
    Upgrade Points:[/b]
     
  2. II. The Basics: Priming Your Character

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    Still with me? Excellent! This part of the tutorial is going to focus on the basic portion of the character sheet. It is pretty similar to what you would find in a freeform roleplay, so there is little that really needs to be explained in this section.

    Code:
    [b]Name:[/b]
    [b]Gender:[/b]
    [b]Age:[/b]
    [b]Level:[/b]
    [b]Progress:[/b]
    [b]Appearance:[/b]
    The two portions that do differ from the 'typical' freeform profile skeleton are, naturally, the 'Level' and 'Progress' sections. Both of these will be updated by YOU at the end of a battle in a statplay, based on the Experience that a GM will dish out based on the in-battle performance of the party.

    Typically when starting out, all characters will begin at Level 1, unless there are special circumstances that require otherwise. At that point, the Progress section will read '[0/10]' because the character will have gained no experience. Consider the Progress meter your Experience Bar equivalent. The denominator (the '/10' portion) will change every few levels in most statplaying systems, including @"Shadow"'s system. Exactly when you will change the denominator will be made clear to you by the GM. As you climb in level, it will grow exponentially harder for you to Level Up.

    I'll explain a little more on what exactly Levelling Up entails. For now, simply fill out the basic details of your character! Is she a boy or a girl (the age-old, timeless Pokémon question)? What does s/he look like?

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    I will be skipping over the Profession section for the moment since it is slightly more in-depth. For now, we are going to focus on the Equipment of the character. Naturally, the following three profile fields make up what your character wields as a weapon, what they defend themselves with as a piece of armour, and what extra bonus they get from a special trinket they are in possession of. All three of these fields are filled out on a Level 1 character. They provide very minimal bonuses individually, but eventually you will be equipping more powerful things.

    Code:
    [b]Weapon:[/b]
    [b]Armor:[/b]
    [b]Accessory:[/b]
    First of all, we start out with the character's Weapon. This is, naturally, what your character will be fighting with primarily. As you will typically be starting out with a very basic weapon that only provides one single point of bonus to your character's dominant Offensive Stat (that is, Atk [Attack, or Physical Offense] or Int [Intelligence, or Magical Offense]), it would be wise to not start out with a Weapon that the character holds near and dear to their heart. A common mistake of people who are first joining statplays is to provide the character with "their most powerful weapon." At Level 1, my knight character is not going to be holding a sword called 'Sacred Vanquisher of All Evil.' I would request that you stick to something relatively simplistic, such as 'Rusted Dagger,' 'Dusty Tome,' or 'Cracked Staff.' This way, your character will be able to purchase and equip other Weapons later on, tossing away their starting Weapon without much consequence.

    It is important to denote what stat you wish to be boosting with your Weapon. I would not want the GM to assume that my very physical Weapon would be boosting my Int stat. Therefore, it is good practice to include [+1 Atk] or [+1 Int] after your flavour text. This way, you can ensure that there will be no mistake in where you want your stat bonus allocated.
    On one further note of 'good practice,' including the Range of your Weapon is also necessary. Unless otherwise indicated by the player, the GM is to assume that the Range of your Weapon is Adjacent Cell, which means you can only attack an enemy immediately to the right, left, above, or below. No diagonals (which will be explained later)! If your character is an Archer, and is equipping a bow and arrow, please denote the Range accordingly (see the example Weapon below).

    Next up, we have Armor. This field will indicate what your character wears to mitigate the onslaught of attacks they will face. You can decide which Defensive Stat it will boost. Whether it will boost your Def (Defense, or Physical Defense) stat, or your Spr (Spirit, or Magical Defense) stat is entirely up to you. In a similar vein to the Weapon, it is common practice to include which statistic you would like to increase, so as not to raise any questions from the GM. Again, please stray from the practice of listing a piece of Armor that is near and dear to your character's heart. It is quite likely that you will want to upgrade the Armor at some point in the statplay, and as it will only be increasing a single point (i.e. [+1 Def] or [+1 Spr]), it is probably not going to be the Armor you end up with.
    Good strategists will determine what character 'archetype' or 'role' the character will be filling when determining which of the Defensive Stats to boost. Do you want to go all-out and have your Melee Tank be a full damage sponge and bolster their physical defenses? Or would you rather balance it out and make sure that said Melee character has a balance of Physical and Magical defense? The choice is entirely yours, so plan wisely!

    The final piece on the docket of Equipment is the Accessory. As I mentioned before, it is a special 'trinket' that your character happens to be in possession of. This is a little different in what it offers; it can boost any of your 'main' statistics. I will list the options here for the sake of clarity:
    • [+5 HP]
    • [+5 MP]
    • [+1 Atk]
    • [+1 Def]
    • [+1 Int]
    • [+1 Spr]
    As you can see, a starting Accessory can play a big part in how your character will shape up. For example, a Mage might want to have a bigger pool of Mana Points (MP), in order to cast more spells. A Knight focusing on all-out offense might want an extra boost in Atk for some extra damage early on. A character that is to take all the damage for the party might want to add some Health Points (HP) to stay alive just a tad longer. Please note also that HP and MP are handled in increments of 5 as opposed to increments of 1; however both are equivalent to ONE Stat Point.

    Now, we get to some examples. The first three listed all come from different Level 1 characters from statplays around ZEJ. They are fairly simple examples of what your typical Level 1 equipment will look like. Try and follow the pattern set by these exemplars. The name of the piece of Equipment, followed by some Flavour Text, followed by any bonuses or stipulations on your Equipment.

    Example Equipment (Level 1):

    Weapon: Wooden Shortbow - A basic bow with no particular traits to set it apart from any other. [+1 Atk / Range: 4 Cells (No Adjacent)]
    ** Note that the Range here includes the tag of (No Adjacent). That means that the Archer who wielded this Bow would not have been able to target an enemy in Melee Range with a Basic Attack.

    Armor: Dancer's Dress - A lightweight, comfortable, and most likely overly-revealing dress that's easy to dance in. [+1 Spr]
    ** Although the initial wearer of this armour was focused on close-ranged attacking, the creator of this character wanted to give her some sort of defense against incoming magical attacks.

    Accessory: Splintered Prism - A fragment of a transparent stone that creates beautiful rainbows if it catches the light in just the right way. [+5 MP]
    ** The original character who was in possession of this Accessory was a Mage who was focused on casting a lot of weaker spells in order to whittle down the HP of their opponent. In that sense, a bigger pool of MP was needed so that other characters were able to go in and finish the job on the behalf of this character.

    Example Equipment (Level 7+):

    PLEASE note that these examples are simply shown to display how much more intricate Equipment can get. These are not to be used as examples, and are being shown as more of a 'showcase' than anything else as to why it is unwise to immediately give your character their 'signature' Weapon or Armor with the Level 1 bonuses. You will get Equipment like this by progressing through a statplay - as loot from defeating enemies, through Synthesis of materials found in your journey, or bought in stores from peddling merchants.

    Weapon: Otherworld - Ominous sword with a black hilt and a silver blade with a violet wave pattern upon it, it is rumored to call spirits from different dimensions. [+7 Atk / +2 Int / Added Effect: Fear (Mod. 0) / Range: Adjacent Cell]

    Armor: Perfect Maid - Relatively simplistic maid's outfit of impeccable white and somber purples that seems to be completely normal at first glance, but is in reality a magic system used both conceal weapons within and protect the user with subtle spells applied to the fabric. [+3 Def / +2 Spr / First Attack: Critical Rate +2]

    Accessory: Winged Amulet - Strange necklace made of silver thread and a golden oval amulet with intricate golden wings. [+3 Spr / Resist Light / Repel Dark / Healing Input +10%]

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    Code:
    [b]Profession:[/b]
    The character's Profession can be boiled down to the archetype of what the character is, or more aptly, what it will end up doing. It is a loose definition of their combat style, what abilities he or she uses, and ultimately determines how he or she will be constructed, from a statistical perspective. The GM will assign your character their Base Stats based on what you set as your initial Profession. A big, clunky Knight would probably have little need for Magical Offense, and would be much too heavy to have a lot of Evasion. However, they would be more likely to strike Critically, and would hit harder Physically.

    That is the complicated way of putting it. In essence, if you have ever played an RPG with a Job or Class system, such as the Final Fantasy series, then this is extremely similar to that. The Profession can range anywhere from the 'standard' RPG character classes, such as "White Mage," "Knight," or "Rogue," or they can stretch into anything that your mind can conjure up for the character, such as "Serial Killer" or "Barrier Master." The name is more of an indicator than anything else; you will see it (in @"Shadow"'s and @"Masquerade"'s systems) next to their name in battle. The real 'definition' portion comes from the flavour text that is assigned by you. Drop a little bit of an explanation of what your character does in there!

    It is common (albeit not necessary or crucial) to express the Profession's flavour text with the phrase "The one who claims this profession...". This is more of a convention than an actual rule, so take it with a grain of salt when you are describing the Profession of your character.
    And on that note, one last word on convention. It is important to denote what 'type' of Basic Attack this character will be doling out. The 'tags' of [Basic Attack: Physical] and [Basic Attack: Magical] differentiate between whether you want your character to be attacking with their Atk stat, mitigated by the target's Def stat, OR your character attacking with their Int stat, mitigated by the target's Spr stat. It is assumed to be Physical by default, so please indicate if you are planning differently! It would be most unwise to have the character trying to inflict damage using their less-dominant Offensive Stat.

    Like with the Equipment on a starting character, the Profession is sure to change over the course of your character's growth. This is known as Job Promotion, and it occurs thrice. Once at Level 10, once at Level 20, and one final time at Level 40. In that sense, please stray from giving a character the Profession of 'Master of All the Universe' at Level 1. It would be quite silly to do that unless you have something that can trump that three times as your character levels up.

    As this is your first opportunity to really flex your creative muscles within the statplaying system, make sure you take advantage of it. The sky's the limit! Let your imagination soar, and be sure to add some creative flavour text that sets your character apart from others of its ilk. Below you will find some sample Professions to use as guidelines for your first 'Job.'

    Example Professions (at Level 1):

    Profession: Illusionist - The one who claims this profession is able to create illusions with limited Mana to cause diverse ranges of effects. [Basic Attack: Magical]

    Profession: Serial Killer - The one who claims this profession has had enough experience, through years of coldblooded butchery, to have perfected the most efficient ways of leading those who oppose her to the doors of death with frightening versatility and concealed abilities. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Sharp Juggler] [Dual Wield]

    Profession: Trapper - To subjugate and oppress. Those are the primary goals that the one who claims this profession aims to achieve in combat, utilizing strange magics to root foes in place while blasting them with an array of odd and arcane magic. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Alignment]

    Profession: Barrier Master - The one who claims this Profession utilizes a vast knowledge of spells and incantations specifically designed to create barriers in order to provide an ample variety of supporting effects for oneself and his or her allies. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Barrier Potential] [Shieldbearer]

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    What's that you say? "@"Eebit", what are those tags that follow the Profession's flavour text?" I am very glad that you asked that question, as it is something that is very rarely explained. Even our 'seasoned veterans' of the system have had problems in the past with defining it. These are Innate Properties. They are unique mechanics that define your character, and are essential to your character's functioning correctly. Historically, they used to be a free way for people to get an extra Support Ability (S-Ability) for their characters. However, they have since been standardized to be a mechanic that your character depends upon to function correctly.

    In this sense, it is difficult, if not impossible, to disable a character's Innate Property. This can occur, but typically only under very special circumstances. You will not see a standard Player Character have the potential to disable another's Innate Property. On the other hand, an S-Ability can be disabled, so there is some degree of distinction to be made.

    If your character has wings and has the potential to enter flight, the Innate Property of [Airborne Switch] can be applied. Innate Properties are often the most difficult to get the feeling for, since they are so unique to each character. Feel free to poke around ZEJ's Character Database section for examples on how to word an Innate Property. It takes practice!

    Also of note is that your character does not necessarily need an Innate Property. However, if you would like to include one, your character may have a maximum of TWO Innate Properties with their starting Profession. This does include things such as Shieldbearer, or Dual Wield, but does NOT include the tag of [Basic Attack: Physical/Magical].

    Examples of Commonly-Used Innate Properties:

    Note that these are not the limit of the Innate Properties that your character can have. Quite the opposite; these three listed are merely commonplace ones that are seen throughout statplaying. Do not feel that you need to use one, or any of these when building your character. That said, these are the standard wording for these Innate Properties, and if you do use them, this wording should be followed (for @"Shadow"'s system, at least).

    *[Shieldbearer]: The User is granted an extra Equipment slot called "Shield", making available the use of Shield-type Equipment.

    *[Dual Wield]: User acquires an additional Weapon slot in their Equipment. User may wield two one-handed weapons or one two-handed weapon. When wielding two Weapons, the user's second hit of a Basic Attack has its damage output reduced by 20%. Additionally, the user receives a Defensive Stat penalty.

    *[Airborne Switch]: The User may activate the Special Command: Enter Flight for free once on a given Turn, bestowing them with Airborne for an unlimited duration. While Airborne, this character may avoid certain obstacle Cells. The User may also activate the Special Command: End Flight on any Turn that Enter Flight was not used.

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    This is where we will stop for the first portion of the tutorial. As it is intended to be interactive, I will be waiting for (at the very least) the six people who expressed interest in my Interest Check before continuing. This does not prevent you from joining in if you didn't voice any interest in the first place, but I will not be waiting for anyone beyond those original six (that is, Cerby, Cody, Espy, Gist, Rose, and Ziolang).

    If you have any questions about anything I have explained so far, I am only a Private Message away! Alternatively, you may post in this thread any questions you may have. Who knows, other people may be faced with the same question!

    Post your progress thus far when you can, up to the end of the Equipment section.
     
  3. This is what I have so far. We do post it here, yes?

    Name Aloes Grandissima Stellato
    Gender Female
    Age 26
    Level 1
    Progress 0/10
    Appearance A woman of mysterious origins possessing an air of bombast and magniloquence and an aura of stifled familiarity. She dons long and flowing clothes of brilliant and rainbow colours for effect; this does not go well with her moderately fair skintone, her green eyes and bleached–white hair. Her physical features are dainty and reserved, but her mannerisms and actions are often belied by said features completely.

    Profession Shining Prodigy — the one who claims this Profession adores basking in her own light, with some mastery of the light element, hoping one day to fashion it to her will. [Basic Attack: Magical]
    Weapon Hickory Baton — a long wand fashioned from hickory wood perfect for poking someone's eyes out. Magically, of course. [+1 INT]
    Armour Rainbow Garment — this is not very durable, but oh my goodness that's distractingly pretty. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory Chakra — a circular wheel–shaped brooch that serves as an instrument for focus. My eyes are up here! Fresh! [+1 SPR]
     
  4. Yep! That's the idea, at least. As I mentioned in the "Any Questions?" section, I'd like for all of my participants to work their way up to the end of the Equipment fields of the profile (including Profession) before I move on to the next step. So what you've done there is just perfect!
     
  5. Name: Charmaigne Gallagher
    Gender: Female
    Age: 25
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10

    Appearance: Charmaigne is an ordinary-looking girl who just tries to live through each day and move on to the next. She wears shoulder-length brown hair, blue eyes, and a long yellow dress. She likes helping people, and she will do whatever she can in order to make sure that everyone is alright. She doesn't seem to have much of a presence.

    Profession: Stabilizer - The one who claims this profession is someone who tries to keep everyone from going into the deep end. [Basic Attack: Physical]
    Weapon: Longbow - Certainly something to watch out for, this large bow can shoot arrows at an impressive distance, but at the end of the day, it can be easily broken. [+1 ATK] [Range: 4 Cells, No Adjacent]
    Armor: Leather Vest - A thick vest that defends against shallow blows. Not the best out there, that's for sure. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Vial of Ash - The ash of something significant could drive anyone forward. What exactly is important to this person, though? [+1 INT]

    I think I only have two questions at the moment: If my character's main form of attack is with bows, do I need to put that she is limited to bows? Do I get to have different types of arrows?
     
  6. Both of these are very good questions! With respects to your first question, it is not necessary to include the 'category' of your character's chosen profession's Weapons. It is generally implicit, and the GM will provide you with various new Weapons of a similar type to your original chosen one. Therefore, it is not necessary to include [Equips: <Weapon Type>] as a tag onto your Profession.

    As for different arrow types, it depends on the GM. Some will handle projectile Weapons, such as guns or bows and arrows, as a single unit (as though the character had an unlimited supply of arrows) without any added effects beyond those of the weapons. In other cases, such as what we see in @"Shadow"'s roleplay, This Dream, projectiles are given to the player characters as a finite resource that get consumed with Basic Attacks.

    We see here:
    This means that these arrows can be used in Synthesis to create greater arrows (provided the users have other Materials to synthesize it with). The tag '[Arrow Rounds]' also means that one arrow is used up in a Basic Attack.

    So, in short, yes you will be able to get new types of arrows with a variety of effects within a 'standard' roleplay that utilizes @"Shadow"'s systems. This can come from chests, or enemy drops, or through Synthesis of these arrows with other materials. Bear in mind that with these parameters in place, once your character has no more arrows, they will no longer be able to Basic Attack at a Range!

    (@"Shadow", on this note, I would like to request that you add any more detail if you think it is necessary, or post confirming my explanation. It has been a while since we have discussed the way Projectile Rounds are handled, and I would rather not feed everyone outdated information!)
     
  7. I've seen ammunition be equipped as "sub-weapons", with or without their own bonuses. Would I need to do that in this case, like:

    Weapon: Longbow
    --- Ammunition: Normal Arrows (x30)

    And so on?
     
  8. Name: Rowena Scarborough
    Gender: Female
    Age: 24
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10

    Appearance: Rowena has long, flowing brown hair that descends to her waist in light curls. Her complexion is rosy, but does little to bring out the eyes that match the brown of her hair. She’s lean and lanky in build, and can be seen wearing forest greens and browns. She also really likes to wear a brown hat with a cool feather in it, because hats are cool.

    Profession: Hunter- The one who claims this profession can hunt for food and climb trees like a boss. [Basic Attack: Physical]
    Weapon: Rusty Dagger- It at least has a pointy end, and even if you don’t kill him, you can at least make him need a tetanus shot. [+1 ATK]
    Armor: Patched Leather Jacket- Do the patches make it stronger? Probably not. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Leather Pouch- A small pouch with something inside and leather cords to go around the neck. Not really sure what’s inside. Never really thought to open it. [+5 HP]

    If I fucked this up Eebro feel free to shout at me... v_v I tried to make her stuff crappy.
     
  9. If I might briefly intrude in this thread;

    In short, yes, Projectile Rounds are handled precisely like you stated: in general, they can and will possess additional parameters that are applied per Basic Attack OR A-Skill (if applicable; this is subject to GM ruling) upon use.

    However, I also have to note that this is by no means a restriction on these types of characters. In fact, I originally added the mechanic as a way for further customization and flexibility, and a way to make up for the MP-exhausting nature of their abilities, due to their more-or-less required long range.

    By all means, feel free to be creative in incorporating them to the character's playstyle.


    Not necessary for the current version of ShadowSystem, as it does not inherently include an ammunition-equipping system like that. Projectile Rounds will be automatically spent from the Inventory upon usage, prioritizing the least-valuable items unless explicitly defined.

    One might be able to denote a switch in default ammunition during combat, but just for convenience and future reference more than anything else.
     
  10. Name: Aslroette-Verann "Aloe Vera" Thaernshire, Baroness of Asparagale Island
    Gender: Female
    Age: 18
    Level: TopKek (Shadow said I could)
    Progress: 0/69 ^
    Appearance:
    Aloe is a petite girl with a small frame- standing at around 5 feet, she is the shortest of her family. Her parents made love on a flowerbed and rather than growing inside her mother, she appeared one day inside the hollow of a tree. That being said, she has several plant features, the most prominent ones being the leafiness that flows down her arms and the random leaves that grow in place of several strands of hair. Her face has slimmed over the years, but still remains child-like and welcoming, with her cute snout and long eyelashes. Her wide, hazel-colored eyes define most of her face, although it partakes in a gorgeous battle between innocence and maturity. They are filled with a glistening curiosity, but gazing into them would be staring into an abyss of knowledge, taking each and every bit of information it can. She has long, light-brunette hair that is ever-changing in accordance to different occasions, allowing her leaf-hair to look like simple accessories. Correspondingly, she also has three outfits which she frequents.
    Most often, she is seen wearing her Gown of Immortality. This gown is a long, flowing dress made up of pieces of fabric put together in a floral shape for the skirt and several shades of green silk wrapping her upper body, complete with a near-translucent veil that goes around her shoulders like a cape. Each piece of skirt fabric is hemmed and lined with frills. This gown is what the world pictures her wearing when her royalty is involved- It symbolizes her status as well as the idea behind her actions- immortality.
    Aside from that, she also has a more offensive outfit- one she would wear into battle if ever needed. This flexible armor is made out of vines and treated plant fibre, with the only firm accessories on her body being her thorned shoulder blades. It hugs her body down to her waist, where it fans out slightly. Her legs are covered in the same armor, except the pattern is of leaves instead of the mesh design seen on her top.
    Her casual wear includes a teal-colored, sleeveless dress that goes to just above the knee. It buttons down to her naval line and a thin belt wraps around her, just below the last button. It has pockets. Aloe Vera leaves make up her underskirt. She also wears a white, woven cardigan loosely around her shoulders during the colder seasons, along with white thigh-highs.
    She will always be seen wearing a golden anklet, something that she’s been wearing since she was discovered in that tree.
    Her footwear remains simple, wearing whatever is around or whatever is convenient at the time. Combat boots are a popular choice with the latter two outfits. She will always wear small pastel-green colored heels with her gown.

    Profession: Bio-Botanical Baroness: The bearer of this title is given the ability to communicate with and request the aid of the earth she resides upon and its natural elements so long as she assumes the responsibilities they have put forth. [Basic Attack: Physical]
    Weapon: Butterfly Knife: Not often used in battle, but since it is made out of the tree Aloe was “born” in, they are kept around for a more sentimental purpose, and also to poke people. [+1 Atk]
    Armor: Organic Armor: Still in their developmental stages, these garments still have many weak spots but at least they’re better than nothing! But they look sooooooo weird… [+1 Def]
    Accessory: Golden Leaf Anklet An oddity that somehow has the spirit of the tree embedded into its golden, metallic leaves. [+1 Spr]
     
  11. Name: Zreg Cardonell
    Gender: Male
    Age: 21
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10
    Appearance: Zreg stands at a height of 6'3 and has a long mess of black hair atop his head with dark green eyes that always seem to have a piercing glare effect. A bit of a goatee sprouts from his chin but he keeps the rest of his face trimmed neatly. With a chainmail shirt and an old sword at his side, Zreg is always ready for combat.

    Profession: Knight: The one who claims this profession is a dedicated warrior who fights for what is right and in defense of those who cannot. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Shield Bearer]
    Weapon: Chipped Sword: An old sword that's become chipped in several places. Whoever last owned it didn't take good care of it. [+1 ATK]
    Shield: Dented Buckler: A small buckler shield that's seen combat. Might want to fix the dents in it someday. [+1 DEF]
    Armor: Smelly Chainmail: A basic chainmail shirt with a few broken links. Smells like piss. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Green Ring: A basic green ring. If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it [+1 ATK]
     
  12. Name: Judit Staunton
    Gender: Female
    Age: 19
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10
    Appearance:
    [​IMG]


    Profession: Pawn - A Queen in training, this odd profession entitles the user to conjure up chess pieces and inherit some of their moves. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Pawn Step]

    Pawn Step: Movement range is doubled for the first turn.

    Weapon: Short Lance- Lances like these are common weaponry for Queens/Kings in training. [+1 ATK]
    Armor: Pawn's Armor - Basic armor issued to every Pawn. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Odd Tiara - This odd-looking tiara is standard uniform for female soldiers in Judit's homeland. [+5 Max MP]
     
  13. III. Abilities, Grid System, and Damage Calculation

    [​IMG]


    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } A
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } B
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } C
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } D
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } E
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } F
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } G
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } H
    { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } I
    -1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9-


    Now that we have covered the more basic facets of the profile, it is time to take a brief intermission from working on the profile sheet itself. Before we continue, it is important that we cover some equally basic concepts that do not directly involve the profile sheet. The first of those is possibly the most basic and run-of-the-mill part of statistical roleplaying. The Grid System is the arena in which your characters will do battle with their enemies - for glory, for fun, or perhaps just for a smashing good time. The Grid itself displays all of the information of the current environment by way of various colours and letters, always accompanied by a Legend section, as one would expect from a map of any sort!

    Every Grid is made up of Cells, which is the basic unit of measure in all things statplaying. A character typically occupies a single Cell on their own. A Cell is used to measure the amount of distance a character can cover by using their Move Command during their Turn. A Cell also is what makes up a character's Range, in either their Basic Attack or for an A-Skill. Cells can also be occupied by environmental objects, as mentioned briefly above. Character's can interact with these objects by using Trigger Commands, which may or may not yield results! It all depends on the circumstances, as well as the GM in question.

    A character in every Turn (unless affected by a status effect that changes this) will always have one Movement Command and one Action Command. It is not required that the character uses both of these, or sometimes either of them. It is all done strategically, and in coordination with the character's allies.

    Moving a character around the Grid happens on that character's individual Turn. A Movement Command will always result in your character moving a Cell in any vertical or horizontal direction along the Grid - a character cannot move on a diagonal! This would result in your character traversing two Cells. In this sense, it is important that you keep in mind your character's given Movement statistic. A character can only move as many Cells as it possesses in that stat! Movement is a limited quantity per Turn, so positioning your character offensively, so that they are in Range of attacking an opponent, and defensively, such that they will not be tactically picked off by a group of their roaming opponents, is crucial.

    An Action Command is much more diverse. It spans a vast amount of things - utilizing the aforementioned Trigger Commands to interact with the environment, unleashing a Basic Attack (or a Basic Attack combo, provided the character has multiple Basic Attacks [as described below]), using an A-Skill... there are many possibilities! But be aware that, again, your character can only do one of these many things on a given Turn.

    [​IMG]

    Now that we have covered the basics of Action Commands, it is time to cover a little more regarding what one can specifically do with an Action Command. Although it may seem rather self-explanatory, a Basic Attack (or less commonly, a Normal Attack) is the simplest form of inflicting Damage that any character has. The character will consume no Mana Points (MP) when using it, making it a rather standard tool in any character's arsenal. It is important to note exactly what a Basic Attack entails so that one can make an accurate gauge of the exact 'power level' of a character when one goes on to create the character's A-Skills, which will be covered later in this post.

    A Basic Attack will deal 100% of the character's chosen Offensive Stat (which was selected previously when we created the Profession of the character), meaning that if my character had a Physical Basic Attack, and had an Atk stat of 8, then my character's Basic Attack would deal 8 Base Damage. This is technical jargon, which can be summarized as the unaltered Damage that the character will do, before taking the target's respective Defensive Stat into account.

    Again, though it may seem obvious, when this system has been taught in the past, some new players have severely underestimated the base power of a character. It is important that every new and prospective statistical roleplayer realizes the basic power of their character.

    At Level 1, a character can launch a single Basic Attack per turn. However, this number can increase by way of various pieces of Equipment, through Status Conditions, or even by using A-Skills. Through Levelling Up and reaching Job Promotion, the number of Basic Attacks a character can launch per Turn increases.

    In addition, a character may also gain access to different 'types' of Basic Attack, such as a Hard Hit or a Finisher Blow (both explained below), by Levelling Up. These different types of Basic Attack allow for your character to set up devastating combos later on. Bear in mind that they would never be made available to a character at Level 1 due to the number of Basic Attacks required to 'set up' these types. A couple 'standardized' variations have been listed below for the sake of illustrating the point that there are indeed different ways of executing a Basic Attack. A new player need not concern themselves with the below! At least until a certain point in a character's growth is met.

    Examples of Variations on Basic Attacks:
    ** Please note that these variations are only available through Levelling Up. As such, they are not important to the creation of a Level 1 character, and are merely being shown for the sake of explanation. Specifically, the two listed below are only available for character use after Level 9, and do replace one of the Innate Properties that a character can gain upon Job Promotion.

    *[Hard Hit]: Allows the User to link a Hard Hit after a successful Basic Attack Combo composed of at least two prior Basic Attacks. A Hard Hit is classified as a Basic Attack, and has the following parameters: 120% Stat Damage. Decreases the Effectiveness of Defensive Effects by 50% for Damage Calculation ONLY. Default Range. Default Element.

    *[Finisher Blow]: Allows the User to link a Finisher Blow after a successful Basic Attack Combo composed of at least three prior Basic Attacks. A Finisher Blow is classified as a Basic Attack, and has the following parameters: 150% Stat Damage. Chance of Instant Death ONLY if Target's Current HP is below 50% Max HP. Default Range. Default Element.

    [​IMG]

    Code:
    [b]A-Ability:[/b]
    
    [b]+ Skill #1:[/b]
    
    [b]+ Skill #2:[/b]
    Alright! Diving back now into the profile sheet. Since we have now covered the basic aspects of how damage is calculated, we can move on to the 'meat and potatoes' of the statistical profile. First things first, we need to cover what exactly is an A-Ability, and why do I have it separated from A-Skills in this section's header?

    Within @"Shadow"'s system, we have made a distinction between an Action Ability and its components, which are individually referred to as Action Skills. Think of it this way: an A-Ability is the name of overarching 'pool' or group of A-Skills that a character may utilize. At most, a character can have four distinct A-Abilities - one group of skills to correspond with each Job Promotion. Each A-Ability that a character has holds ten Skill Slots, which means that, at most, a character can have ten unique A-Skills for each of their Professions.

    A-Abilities tend to be named according to the Profession. For example, a character with the starting Profession of 'Illusionist' might call their first A-Ability Illusory Magic. A 'Swordsman' might have the starting A-Ability of Blade Skills. One of the example Professions of the previous post in this tutorial, Serial Killer, was given the A-Ability name of Another Murder. As you can see, the trend is to typically just summarize the character's natural abilities, techniques, and skills with a couple words. No description necessary! If you are still feeling stuck on this particular convention, feel free to visit the Character Database section for some inspiration on how others have named their character's A-Abilities.

    Every Level 1 character begins with two A-Skills unlocked under their first A-Ability. This means that, as a beginning profile, your character must begin with two A-Skills. No more, no less. This is the part of the tutorial where your character will truly come to life - the part where you really get to flex your creative muscles. A character's A-Skills are their means of dishing out huge damage, attacking with a special technique, casting spells, supporting allies... really, just about anything! This is what Mana Points (MP) are used for. Without adequate MP to use a given A-Skill, the character will be forced to resort to Basic Attacks, which as we have noticed do not have the special effects that can be applied to an A-Skill.

    Eventually, as your character grows in Level through gaining Experience, they will have access to more and more powerful A-Skills. Similarly, as a character increases in Level, they will also have more MP at their disposal. Therefore, it is important to remember that a Level 1 character should have skills that are relatively cheap in terms of their MP Cost, to best make use of the resources they have available to them so early on. After all, in the Final Fantasy series, the early-level protagonists cannot be seen casting Ultima, the arguable highest-level spell in the game.

    A-Skills typically can be found in the following format:

    + Skill Name: Description. Number of Hits. Damage Percentage. Effect. Cast Time. Accuracy. Variance. Range. Element. MP.​

    * Skill Name: Obviously, the name of the skill, such as Fireball, or Gouge.

    * Description: Although this section is optional, it is very recommended so that both you and readers of your skill can visualize what exactly the skill does. This is the "flavour text" of the skill. Flex your creative muscles, and explain what it does!

    * Number of Hits: By default, this is a single-hit skill. However, you are allowed to have skills that do multiple hits of damage, denoted as "# Hits." This will cause your skill to cost more MP to cast. An example could be a lower-level character which has a skill that dealt "2 Hits. 80% Atk Damage per Hit."

    * Damage Percentage: Include this if you want the skill to deal damage or healing. Damage is calculated by percentages, and relies on either the Atk or Int stats. Level 1 characters typically do not go over 120% damage, just for the sake of a lower MP Cost. For example, a physical skill might deal '120% Atk Damage' or '80% Atk Damage,' depending on the power level. For Healing skills, the syntax is '100% Int Healing,' for example.

    * Effect: Optional. Feel free to be creative, as the effects can be almost anything you can think of, such as inflicting Poison or a Burn on an opponent. Keep in mind that more powerful effects will cost more MP. The syntax of an effect would be -
    • (on an ally): 'Bestows <status> for Three Turns'
    • (on an enemy): 'Chance of <status> (Mod. 0) for Three Turns'
    IMPORTANT - A list of Status Disorders can be found in the "Official Inflictionary" pinned thread in our Statistical Roleplays section.

    * Cast Time: How many turns the skill takes to use. "Instant" by default. "Normal" means it is simply a delayed effect; for example, "Normal (2 turns)" means the skill is actually used in 2 turns. "Charge" is just like Normal, except the user can't do anything until the skill is used. MP Cost can be decreased as more turns are used to cast it, though it obviously takes much more time to get the attack off. Decisions! If you are in need of a more in-depth explanation of Cast Time, please refer to @"Shadow"'s post HERE.

    * Accuracy: The percentage of how often the skill hits. This is calculated separately from the foe's Evasion stat. The default value of this is 100%, though for additional MP one can increase their Accuracy on a given skill to Sure Hit, or to lower the MP Cost, it can be lowered by increments of 10%.

    * Variance: Variance is a more 'advanced' field, which essentially adds a 'range of damage' that the skill can fall under. For example, a skill with the Damage Percentage of 100% Atk Damage, and a Variance of 10%, has the possibility of dealing either 90% Atk Damage, 100% Atk Damage, or 110% Atk Damage. This adds an element of risk and chance to battles.

    * Range: How far your attack can hit, measured by cells. Range can define the attack travelling a certain number of cells, target adjacent cells (those immediately beside, above, and below the user), surrounding cells (all cells surrounding the user, including diagonals), straight line, all enemies or allies, infinite (one single enemy, regardless of distance), etc.
    For the sake of clarity, I have included two 'diagrams' to illustrate the difference between a skill targeting Adjacent Cells, and Surrounding Cells, where the red-coloured Cells are the ones that are affected.

    Adjacent Cells

    { } { } { } A
    { } {P} { } B
    { } { } { } C
    -1---2---3-

    Surrounding Cells

    { } { } { } A
    { } {P} { } B
    { } { } { } C
    -1---2---3-

    * Element: Which elemental alignment your skill falls under. This may provide certain bonuses or reductions to the damage that your character will deal with the skill, depending on the elemental affinity of both your character and their target. The elements available are as follows: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Ice, Nature, Thunder, Light, Dark, and Arcane. If the skill doesn't fall into any of these, its element is Neutral, in which case you do not have to list the element.

    * MP: Finally, the cost of the skill. MP is determined by the GM (using a formula that is not public to avoid manipulation by players). Rarely, a skill may instead be assigned Use Counters which limit the amount of times the skill may be used in a given battle, without expending MP. These are very situational cases assigned exclusively by the GM, and usually involve restricting a powerful buff or mechanic.
    When you post your character to this point, please be sure to not include an MP Cost. @"Shadow" will be costing the A-Skills that you post after you have done so, so stay tuned for that. For now, when you get to this point, please just leave the end of the skill as "? MP".


    One final note: at Level 1, the traditional start to a character involves giving them one A-Skill to 'buff' themselves or their allies, or to enhance their playstyle in some way, and one A-Skill that allows them to deal damage in a way that is better than relying upon their Basic Attack. Use this little tidbit of information as you would like. Or do not use it at all! The important thing is that your character works for you.

    Example A-Skills:

    + Bloodlust: Lets the true craving for the spilling of blood to emerge meaning nothing but sheer pain for the enemies. Damage output +20% for 3 turns. User takes 2 Act Actions per turn for 3 turns. Range: Self. 12 MP.

    + Zonde: Sends a crackling bolt of Thunder Mana straight towards the target, set to replicate the disabling properties of electricity with magic alone. 120% Int Damage. Chance of Spasm. Accuracy: 100%. Variance: 0%. Range: 3 Cells. Element: Thunder. 11 MP.

    + Serpent Flame: The user channels her Mana in order to call forth a small, serpentine burst of fire from her staff to inflict a venomous bite on her opponent of choice. 100% INT Damage. Effect: Chance of Poison. Range: 3 Cells. Accuracy: 100%. Element: Fire. 8 MP.

    + Double Radius: Coats a slasher with Mana to strengthen it then throws it in a direction to slice everything along the trajectory before it turns to slice everything in the way back. 2 Hits. 120% Atk Damage (Every Hit). Obstructed by Obstacle Cells. Use Time: Instant. Hit Rate: 100%. Range: Straight Line. Element: Neutral. 12 MP.

    + Rejuvenate: Releases a ray of light at the target, healing them of minor wounds and ailments. 100% Int Healing. Removes minor negative statuses. Range: Self or 3 cells. Element: Light. 10 MP.

    [​IMG]

    (Damage Value - Protection Value) * Damage Modifiers = Total Damage​
    Where 'Damage Value' equals the Base Damage plus any internal modifiers (i.e. those which modify Damage Output, or boost the source character's attacking Stat), and 'Protection Value' equals the target's respective Defensive Stat (i.e. if it is a Physical attack, this would be the target's Def stat).
    Damage Modifiers denote final calculations such as Protect, Shell, Elemental Weaknesses and Resistances, Critical Hits, etc.


    As we have been noticing in the previous sections, in Statistical Roleplaying, damage is calculated based on percentages, or 'multipliers' of your character's Offensive Stats.

    Basic Attacks are the most simple example of this. As previously covered in the Basic Attacks section, by default Basic Attacks are given a Damage Output of 100% of the character’s dominant (or otherwise specified) Offensive Stat. This means that they will be dealing exactly what the statistic reads as their Base Damage, before calculating the resistance of the target.

    We also noticed that A-Skills can 'customize' this percentage when they inflict Damage - one A-Skill might be able to have a Damage Output of 140% while another is allowed to have one of 80%. This directly influences the A-Skill's MP Cost. A general rule of thumb to follow is the simple rule that, "the more damage it intends to deal, the more expensive the A-Skill will be." Naturally, a character would not be able to continually utilize their most powerful attack without any sort of consequence! Since Damage Output is calculated using multipliers rather than additions to stats based on the rolls of die (or other arbitrary methods) as seen in something like Dungeons & Dragons, often times the resulting Damage, or Base Damage, will have decimal values, which will then have to be either floored or ceiled.

    Base Damage calculation is fairly straightforward: the Offensive Stat in question will be multiplied by the Damage Output (also referred to as Damage Percentage) that it is subjected to. The resulting number (after rounding occurs) is dubbed the 'Base Damage.' For example, if a character's Atk stat was 7, and it utilized an A-Skill with a Damage Output of 120% Atk Damage, the resulting value (8.4) would be floored (or rounded down) to 8 before it was subjected to Defense Calculations. Similarly, the same Atk value passed through a lower-than-average Damage Output of 80% Atk Damage would yield 5.6, ceiled (or rounded up) to 6 Base Damage.

    The principle for the rounding is one that is often taught in elementary schools; that is, if the decimal value is below 0.5 the GM will round the value down. If the decimal value is equal to or above 0.5, the number will be rounded up. Simple!

    Something important to add is that there is a monumental difference in dealing with A-Skills or Basic Attacks that have multiple successive Hits as opposed to a single shot of Damage. This difference is how Total Damage is handled. To continue, Total Damage is defined as the target's Defensive Stat (Def or Spr, depending on whether the Skill is based upon the user's Atk or Int stat, respectively), subtracted from the Base Damage value, the calculation we learned in the above paragraphs.

    The important difference is that three Hits for 40% Damage does not amount to 120% Damage of a given Offensive Stat. Rather than the multipliers adding up, each Hit's Base Damage is calculated separately into Total Damage values. These are then subtracted successively from the target's HP value. To illustrate this point, we will be examining an example provided by @"Shadow":

    Hopefully this illuminates the basic concepts of Damage Calculation in Statistical Roleplaying. It does do one well to understand how Base Damage is calculated, based on the statistics of their own character, when crafting skills. However, for the most part, damage is calculated by the GM - particularly Total Damage, removing the burden of players needing to do a lot of math.

    [​IMG]

    Code:
    [b]R-Ability:[/b]
    A character's Reaction Ability (commonly shortened to R-Ability) is a special type of Ability which activates in response to a certain action, or pre-determined event. Commonly, this 'trigger' is engaged in response to an instance of damage upon the character. However, this is not necessarily always the case! A character's R-Ability can be much more diverse than having them launch a simple counterstrike upon their assailant. In fact, a character could respond to being KO'd, or respond by acquiring an Elemental Affinity based on the last A-Skill they have utilized. It can include other concepts as well, such as increasing Stats, recovering HP or MP based on damage received, and so on. The possibilities are extremely diverse!

    Unfortunately, Level 1 characters do not start with an R-Ability, so you should leave the field blank for now. They are acquired by spending 3 Skill Points, which are in turn acquired through the Level Up process. More on this later! Any one character is only eligible to have one single R-Ability for use in a battle. It would be a waste of Skill Points and character growth to spend more on a second R-Ability that cannot even be used!

    Example R-Abilities:

    R-Ability: Swift Mug - When the user is attacked physically, steals an Item from the attacker.

    R-Ability: Natural Immunity - When the user is afflicted with a Negative Status Condition, the user becomes immune to that affliction for the duration of the battle.

    R-Ability: Final Attempt - When the user takes fatal damage, he or she may use a Skill with no MP Cost before being KO'd.

    [​IMG]

    Code:
    [b]S-Ability:[/b]
    A Support Ability (shortened to S-Ability) is an Ability which is designed to, redundantly, provide 'support' for the character in practically any way, shape, or form. More specifically, the character's S-Ability should be a passive 'boost' to your character's combat style, or role on the battlefield. Typically, we define S-Abilities as being connected to the 'playstyle' that you have visualized for your character. The way that you choose to have your character manifest this Ability is, as a roleplayer, entirely up to you!

    When you are creating an S-Ability for your character, keep in mind that they are meant to be passive Abilities, similar to the Innate Properties that we covered in the last post. However, the core difference is that S-Abilities are not indispensable parts of your character. They can, under select circumstances, be disabled. In this sense, an S-Ability could take the form of something simple, such as a permanent modifier to a character's Base Stats, or offer an immunity to a Status Effect, or imbue their Basic Attacks with some form of additional bonus. Again, you are only limited here by your creativity, as well as the fact that it must remain as a passive 'bonus.'

    As a Level 1 character, you can expect to start out with one single S-Ability or a B-Ability (which will be explained in the next section), but NOT both. For example, if you choose to give your Level 1 character an S-Ability, they will not be allowed to have a B-Ability until they acquire one for the price of two Skill Points, which are obtained during the Level Up process. As with R-Abilities, a character can only have one S-Ability.

    Example S-Abilities:

    S-Ability: Cycle Siphon - Basic attacks deal 10% Piercing Atk damage to the target's MP which is then absorbed by the user.
    ** Important note: An attack dubbed as 'Piercing' ignores all Defensive Calculations when targetting an opponent.

    S-Ability: Strike of the Viper - User receives a constant 10% increase to Critical Hit Rate.

    S-Ability: Mental Clarity - Due to their years of rigorous training of the mind, the User is unaffected by all mental status conditions, such as Infatuation or Confusion.

    [​IMG]

    Code:
    [b]B-Ability:[/b]
    A more recent addition to ShadowSystem statistical roleplays is that of Burst Abilities (shortened to B-Abilities). Previously, S-Abilities had been divided into two categories - passive S-Abilities, which simply stuck with the character as a constant boost, and active S-Abilities, which were one-off 'bursts' that could be used to support the character. For the sake of flexibility, B-Abilities are what we used to call active S-Abilities.

    A B-Ability can only be activated once per battle. Much like its counterpart in the form of an S-Ability, they are typically designed to augment the 'playstyle' of the character you are creating. For instance, if your character is acting as some sort of a damage sponge, it might be wise to give them a B-Ability that mitigates the damage they will be taking for a little bit, just to let them draw the attention of their opponents away from the weaker allies. If your character is going to be spending a lot of MP casting spells, such that you expect them to drain out their pool of Mana Points before the battle draws to a close, then perhaps a B-Ability that restores MP over a span of time would be wise.

    At Level 1, as mentioned in the above section, a character can only begin with one S-Ability, or one B-Ability. The other can be purchased for the price of two Skill Points, obtained by Levelling Up your character. A character is only allowed to have one B-Ability.

    Example B-Abilities:

    B-Ability: Iron Will - The user steels their mind, preparing them to deal with attacks of a magical nature. Bestows the user with 25% Damage Reduction from Magical Attacks. Lasts 3 Turns.

    B-Ability: Savior's Blessing – The act of sacrificial service, especially out of pure love alone, bestows a special gift upon the user. When activated, the user gains Auto-Life status.

    B-Ability: Mana Surge - Upon activation, the user recovers 15% Max MP every Turn for 5 Turns.

    [​IMG]

    Again, it is here that we will stop. I would request that all of those participating in the tutorial post their progress up until the end of the B-Ability section before we continue further into the tutorial. A reminder that your profile should now include the following:
    • A named A-Ability, according to your character's Profession
    • Two starting A-Skills with no MP Cost attached to them (please have your A-Skills end in "? MP" until @Shadow gets to costing them)
    • An S-Ability OR a B-Ability, but not both
    As usual, if you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a PM, or ask again in this thread. This is often the most confusing part of the profile process, so do not feel bad if you have questions! If you feel there is something I have not yet adequately explained, then I would love to know how to further clarify those concepts. After all, this is meant to boost knowledge on the 'tougher' concepts involved in Statplaying!
     
  14. Name: Hannel "Nelly" Olson
    Gender: Female
    Age: 19
    Level: 1
    Next Level: 0/10
    Appearance:
    [​IMG]

    Job Promotion: Aero Magus ~ ??? ~ ??? ~ ???

    Profession: Aero Magus: The one who claims this profession has begun the art of of illusion magic, focusing on the aspects of body replication. [Dual Wield] [Illusion Affinity I]

    Dual Wield: Hannel acquires an additional Weapon slot in her Equipment. Hannel may wield two one-handed weapons or one two-handed weapon. When wielding two Weapons, Hannel's second hit of a Basic Attack has its damage output reduced by 20%. Additionally, Hannel receives a Defensive Stat penalty.
    Illusion Affinity I: Hannel's Evasion is innately increased by 5%. In addition, When Hannel performs a skill, she gains 1 Use Point toward that skill; when enough Use Points are acquired, that skill gains a Use Counter. A skill requires 1 Use Point per 5MP in its original cost to gain a Use Counter. Use Points and Use counters carry over; Use Points instantly reset to 0 when the required amount is obtained for a Use Counter. Limit 1 Use Counter per skill at a time.

    Weapon:
    |-RH-> Chipped Chakram: A simple, magical, circular bladed weapon that's seen too much battle. [+1 INT]
    |-LH-> Scarred Chakram: A well-made steel, magical, circular blade that had been greatly damaged. [+1 INT]
    Armor: Padded Clothes: Simple attire that has been padded for light protection. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Mark of Kitsune: A mask that gifts the wielder with strange powers, based upon the materials it swallows. [+5 MP]
    A-Ability: Encircle

    + Replicate ~ "Strike": A distortion of the wind mixed with magic creates a circle around the target, starting from herself; a replica of herself appears at each other available compass direction and bear down with their blades. 100% INT damage. 1 hit plus an additional hit for each empty cell adjacent to the target. Chance of Wound[First hit only]. Use Time: Instant. Hit Rate: 100%. Variance:  None. Range: Adjacent Cell. Element: Wind. 10 MP.

    + Chakram Tailwind: A magical wind cloaks a thrown chakram, allowing for return trips and deadlier strikes.  Increases range of basic attacks to 3 cells and crit by 10% for 3 turns. No Chain. Use Time: Instant. Hit Rate: 100%. Variance:  None. Range: Self. Element: Wind. 10 MP.


    R-Ability: None.
    S-Ability: False Imagery I: Hannel's Evasion is innately increased by 3% and Spr is innately increased by 15%.
    B-Ability: None.
     
  15. Name: Judit Staunton
    Gender: Female
    Age: 19
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10
    Appearance:
    [​IMG]

    Profession: Pawn - A Queen in training, this odd profession entitles the user to conjure up chess pieces and inherit some of their moves. [Basic Attack: Physical] [Pawn Influence]

    Pawn Influence: A single diagonal space can act as an adjacent space once per turn.

    Weapon: Short Lance - Lances like these are commonplace for Queens/Kings in training. [+1 ATK]
    Armor: Pawn's Armor - Cheap armor issued to every Pawn. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Odd Tiara - This odd-looking tiara is standard uniform for female soldiers in Judit's homeland. [+5 Max MP]

    A-Ability - Soul of the Game

    + Bishop's Teachings  - The user is reminded of their teachings by the academy bishop and calms down. 80% DEF healing. Dispels mental ailments. Range: Self. 8 MP.

    + Pawn Strike  - User embodies the strategical strength of a Pawn and strikes the opponent with force. If paired with Pawn Influence, the force of this attack is increased. 130% ATK damage, 110% otherwise.  Range: Adjacent cell. Chance of Immobilization. Use time: Instant. Hit rate: 100%. Variance: 0. 8 MP.

    R-Ability: None
    S-Ability: Unconventional attacker - Non-Adjacent attacks gain a 15% boost in critical-hit rate.
    B-Ability: None

    [hr]
    I made some changes with Judit's innate if that's okay
     
  16. Name Aloes Grandissima Stellato
    Gender Female
    Age 26
    Level 1
    Progress 0/10
    Appearance A woman of mysterious origins possessing an air of bombast and magniloquence and an aura of stifled familiarity. She dons long and flowing clothes of brilliant and rainbow colours for effect; this does not go well with her moderately fair skintone, her green eyes and bleached–white hair. Her physical features are dainty and reserved, but her mannerisms and actions are often belied by said features completely.

    Profession Shining Prodigy — the one who claims this Profession adores basking in her own light, with some mastery of the light element, hoping one day to fashion it to her will. [Basic Attack: Magical]
    Weapon Hickory Baton — a long wand fashioned from hickory wood perfect for poking someone's eyes out. Magically, of course. [+1 INT]
    Armour Rainbow Garment — this is not very durable, but oh my goodness that's distractingly pretty. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory Chakra — a circular wheel–shaped brooch that serves as an instrument for focus. My eyes are up here! Fresh! [+1 SPR]

    A-Ability Solar Cell

    + Evil Eye Creates a globe of light above the foe and crashes it into them, causing an explosion of brilliance. I'm sorry, you wanted to use your eyes…? 1 hit. 100% INT Light damage. Chance of Blind. Cast time: Instant. Accuracy: 100%. Variance: none. Target: 1 unit. Range: 3 cells. MP: 9

    + Woven Sunbeams Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? I can at least make the sun work, which can less than be said for you. Weaves together light to create an éclat that overwhelms the foe. 1 hit 100% INT Light damage + 1 hit 80% INT Light damage to enemies in adjacent cells if a Light–element atmosphere is in effect. Cast time: Instant. Accuracy: 100%. Variance: ±5%. Target: 1 unit. Range: 2 cells. MP: 8

    R-Ability -n/a-
    S-Ability Incandescent Charisma — At the beginning of the battle, adds the atmospheric phenomenon [Apollo's Sunsong]. As long as Aloes' HP is 33% or above, Apollo's Song cannot be removed, nullified, ignored or eliminated in any way. The conditions for Apollo's Sunsong must be met for this ability to activate.

    [Apollo's Sunsong] 'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe–the sun shines harsh like blaze, breaking through the atmosphere and beating down on the ground and all its children. Element: Light. +20% Damage/Healing Output to all Light–element skills. -5% Evasion of all units without Light Affinity. Can only be activated during daytime outdoors.

    B-Ability -n/a-
     
  17. Name: Rowena Scarborough
    Gender: Female
    Age: 24
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/10

    Appearance: Rowena has long, flowing brown hair that descends to her waist in light curls. Her complexion is rosy, but does little to bring out the eyes that match the brown of her hair. She’s lean and lanky in build, and can be seen wearing forest greens and browns. She also really likes to wear a brown hat with a cool feather in it, because hats are cool.

    Profession: Hunter- The one who claims this profession can hunt for food and climb trees like a boss. [Basic Attack: Physical]
    Weapon: Rusty Dagger- It at least has a pointy end, and even if you don’t kill him, you can at least make him need a tetanus shot. [+1 ATK]
    Armor: Patched Leather Jacket- Do the patches make it stronger? Probably not. [+1 DEF]
    Accessory: Leather Pouch- A small pouch with something inside and leather cords to go around the neck. Not really sure what’s inside. Never really thought to open it. [+5 HP]

    A-Ability: Thrill of the Hunt
    + Track: The user carefully watches a target and its actions. Increases Critical by 20% against select target for 3 Turns. Range: 3 Cells. 6 MP.
    + Cut: The user swipes at a target with a blade. Range: Immediate. 120% Atk. Damage. Chance of Wound. Use time: Instant. Hit rate: 100%. Variance: None. 8MP

    R-Ability: None
    S-Ability: Stalk Prey-The User gains 1 Cell of Movement when Moving over a Cell an enemy Moved over in the recent Enemy Phase. The User's Atk. is also raised by 15% against enemies whose Movements she follows in this way.
    B-Ability: None

    @CerberusLycan was a huge help in this by the way thank you so much friend
     
  18. Name: Aslroette-Verann "Aloe Vera" Thaernshire, Baroness of Asparagale Island
    Gender: Female
    Age: 18
    Level: TopKek (Shadow said I could)
    Progress: 0/69 ^
    Appearance:
    Aloe is a petite girl with a small frame- standing at around 5 feet, she is the shortest of her family. Her parents made love on a flowerbed and rather than growing inside her mother, she appeared one day inside the hollow of a tree. That being said, she has several plant features, the most prominent ones being the leafiness that flows down her arms and the random leaves that grow in place of several strands of hair. Her face has slimmed over the years, but still remains child-like and welcoming, with her cute snout and long eyelashes. Her wide, hazel-colored eyes define most of her face, although it partakes in a gorgeous battle between innocence and maturity. They are filled with a glistening curiosity, but gazing into them would be staring into an abyss of knowledge, taking each and every bit of information it can. She has long, light-brunette hair that is ever-changing in accordance to different occasions, allowing her leaf-hair to look like simple accessories. Correspondingly, she also has three outfits which she frequents.
    Most often, she is seen wearing her Gown of Immortality. This gown is a long, flowing dress made up of pieces of fabric put together in a floral shape for the skirt and several shades of green silk wrapping her upper body, complete with a near-translucent veil that goes around her shoulders like a cape. Each piece of skirt fabric is hemmed and lined with frills. This gown is what the world pictures her wearing when her royalty is involved- It symbolizes her status as well as the idea behind her actions- immortality.
    Aside from that, she also has a more offensive outfit- one she would wear into battle if ever needed. This flexible armor is made out of vines and treated plant fibre, with the only firm accessories on her body being her thorned shoulder blades. It hugs her body down to her waist, where it fans out slightly. Her legs are covered in the same armor, except the pattern is of leaves instead of the mesh design seen on her top.
    Her casual wear includes a teal-colored, sleeveless dress that goes to just above the knee. It buttons down to her naval line and a thin belt wraps around her, just below the last button. It has pockets. Aloe Vera leaves make up her underskirt. She also wears a white, woven cardigan loosely around her shoulders during the colder seasons, along with white thigh-highs.
    She will always be seen wearing a golden anklet, something that she’s been wearing since she was discovered in that tree.
    Her footwear remains simple, wearing whatever is around or whatever is convenient at the time. Combat boots are a popular choice with the latter two outfits. She will always wear small pastel-green colored heels with her gown.

    Profession: Bio-Botanical Baroness: The bearer of this title is given the ability to communicate with and request the aid of the earth she resides upon and its natural elements so long as she assumes the responsibilities they have put forth. [Basic Attack: Physical]
    Weapon: Butterfly Knife: Not often used in battle, but since it is made out of the tree Aloe was “born” in, they are kept around for a more sentimental purpose, and also to poke people. [+1 Atk]
    Armor: Organic Armor: Still in their developmental stages, these garments still have many weak spots but at least they’re better than nothing! But they look sooooooo weird… [+1 Def]
    Accessory: Golden Leaf Anklet An oddity that somehow has the spirit of the tree embedded into its golden, metallic leaves. [+1 Spr]

    A-Ability: Shaman’s Whisper
    + Kiss of the Nymph: “It’s only a peck on the cheek!” User acquires the skills of a docile forest spirit and can heal a nearby target of wounds. 120% Int Healing; Range: 3 cells. Hit Rate: 100% Cast Time: Instant Element: Nature. 10 MP
    + Nature’s Wrath: “Sticks and stones will break your bones.” User summons the spirits of the trees to reign terror, branches, and leaves upon an enemy. 120% Atk Damage. Range: Any Enemy. Hit Rate: 100% Cast Time: Instant Element: Nature. 9 MP

    R-Ability: ????????????????????????????
    S-Ability: ????????????????????????????
    B-Ability: Golden Leaflets: Leaves are flown to each ally, absorbing 20% of all damage taken for 3 turns. Has a 25% chance to null incoming status ailments.
     
  19. Name: Vie ("Vee") Bladethrone 
    Gender: Female
    Age: 16
    Level: 1
    Progress: 0/12
    Appearance: 
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    Profession: Bard: Capable of both support and attack, the bard is a profession for those with high musical talent and fine footwork. [Basic Attack: Magical]


    Weapon: Splinter Flute: An old flute barely held together by constant use of binding broken bits together with cloth. Oh and watch out for- Oooh that's gonna' be a really painful splinter! Should I call a healer? No really, you're like, bleeding profusely... Why are you foaming at the mouth!? I'M SCARED!! [+1 Int.] [Range 2 cells]
    Armor: Plain sweater/vest combo: The fanciest clothing a commoner can find? It provides minimal protection but a bard needs to look good at performances! [+1 Def.]
    Accessory: Chipped Earplugs: helps protect a bard from there own magical music! It'c chipped but I swear it won't hurt like the flute- Hey! Where are you going!? You need these!! [+1 Spr.]

    A-Ability: Woodwind Witchcraft
     +Dog Whistle: Produces a tone that attracts wild dogs to  attack! OK, their just pups... 110% Int damage, Range: All enemies within 3 cells, Hit rate: 90%, Cast Time: Instant, 10  MP.
    +Sharp Notes: Play an ungodly high pitched noise and make those pests scream blood murder! Thank god you're wearing earplugs! 130% Int damage, Range: Surrounding cells, Hit rate: 100%, Cast time: Instant, 11 MP.

    R-Ability: I Can Also Dance: When HP is down to 30%, there is a 20% chance of evading physical damage with your fancy footwork.
    S-Ability: Serene Sound: Attacks have a 10% chance of inflicting Sleep on the target.
    B-Ability: ???
     
  20. Hey @"Black-Moon", that looks good so far, though the damages are rather weird-- I'd suggest rounding them out to 110% and 130%. If you take those skills with what I listed, Shadow appraised them at 10 and 11 MP respectively, and for Sharp Notes, that range is more concisely put as 'Surrounding Cells'. You should also make an S-Ability or B-Ability for your character at this stage in the tutorial; if you want help with this, feel free to stop by #CoE!
     

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