DESIGN
Class Roster & Skill Schools
A design document: planned unless a "Prototype" note says it's built.
Part of The design hub. Drafted 2026-08-30. Implements the class-as-lens rule: gear owns stats; class owns the ability kit and gear affinities. Respec at the Chapel for a fee. Skill tomes (Blacksmith Ladder (building template) template's Scribe) teach skills within schools; 4 active skills equipped at a time. House rule carried from Aether Shard: no darkness-aligned hero classes — Subterfuge is trickery and shadow-play, never dark magic; no necromancy anywhere in the roster.
Prototype (v0.1.15, 2026-09-02): the Chapel is built and classes are live as passives: ordain once at the shrine (Wanderer → one of the six), respec behind the Reliquary module for 5 loot × ring distance. Passives on real knobs: Berserker +25% power under 30% stamina; Warlord half gear wear; Templar +20% protection in town; Aethermancer potions ×1.5; Trickster concealment ×0.6 + backstab ×2.5; Ranger extra boar meat + 10% speed. School gating of tomes is NOT enforced yet — the tome pool is Might-heavy; gating lands once every school has tomes.
The school hexagon
Six skill schools arranged in a ring; each class = two adjacent schools. Every school is shared by exactly two classes.
`` Might Wildcraft Bulwark Subterfuge Devotion Aether `` Ring order: Might → Bulwark → Devotion → Aether → Subterfuge → Wildcraft → (Might).
| School | Flavor | Example skills |
|---|---|---|
| Might | Heavy weapons, wrath | Cleave, Leap Slam, War Cry |
| Bulwark | Shields, holding ground | Shield Bash, Bracing Wall, Taunt |
| Devotion | Blessings, self-mending | Mend, Consecrate, Stand Firm |
| Aether | Elemental shard-magic | Aether Bolt, Flame Wave, Frost Snare |
| Subterfuge | Trickery, gadget play | Vanish, Smoke Step, Sabotage |
| Wildcraft | Bow, traps, beast-lore | Piercing Shot, Snare Trap, Track |
Why a ring: learned tomes are permanent; only your class's two schools are equippable. Respec to an adjacent class and half your kit stays usable — so experimentation is cheap next door, expensive across the ring. Chapel respec fee scales with gear era × ring distance.
The six classes
| Class | Schools | Gear affinity | Signature passive (pillar it touches) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berserker | Might + Wildcraft | 2H axes/mauls, medium armor | Blood-Fire: damage & speed up while stamina is low (combat) |
| Warlord | Might + Bulwark | 1H + shield or 2H, heavy armor | Quartermaster: gear dulls slower, repairs cheaper (economy/durability) |
| Templar | Bulwark + Devotion | Sword/mace + shield, heavy armor | Warden of the Wall: you and your emplacements are stronger inside your city during raids (defense) |
| Aethermancer | Devotion + Aether | Staves/foci, light armor | Attuned: enchants on your gear are stronger; essences drop more (enchanting) |
| Trickster | Aether + Subterfuge | Daggers/blades, light armor | Light-Fingered: stealth gadgets cost less, detection rises slower (stealth raids) |
| Ranger | Subterfuge + Wildcraft | Bows, medium armor | Provider: more meat/materials from kills; faster on roads; tracks rare wanderers (gathering/exploration) |
Every passive touches a different game pillar — class choice is also a choice about which loop gets easier, not just a combat style.
Starting flow
- You begin as a Wanderer: basic attack + dodge, no schools, no passive. Survivable, thin.
- Building the Chapel (t1) IS class selection — the priest ordains you, granting both schools (one starter skill each) and the passive. The city gates identity, same as it gates everything else.
- Respec thereafter at the Chapel: fee = gear era × ring distance; cheap experimentation early and next-door, a real decision late and far.
Rules of interaction
- Gear affinity is a bonus, not a lock: any class can wield anything, but affinity weapons hit full effectiveness and enable weapon-linked skills. (Keeps found-gear exciting for every class.)
- Tomes are school-tagged. The 4-skill loadout can mix both schools freely. Weapon-linked skills additionally require an affinity weapon equipped.
- Food/potion buffs, gear, gems, enchants are class-agnostic — the compounding layers never fragment by class.
Open questions
- Skills per school at launch (~8–10 each → 50–60 tomes total?).
- Does Devotion self-healing step on the Chapel/potion economy? (Cap in-combat healing so alchemist potions stay relevant.)
- Ultimate/capstone skills: one per school as era-5 dungeon tomes?
- Secret 7th class (Aether Shard tradition — Echo-Shard-style hidden unlock, opposite-corner school pairing e.g. Might + Aether)? Parked.
- Do passives tier up (era-scaled), or stay flat?