Knowledge Skills

[EbbeLockert]

Hey forum,

I've got an idea for some additional skills, namely Knowledge Skills.

Background: In ADOM, you start amassing knowledge about mosters you fight, such as DV, PV, damage, attacks, HP and special abilities. I expect this to also be the case in JADE.

Idea: When meeting a monster for the first time, you get an automatic skill check on a related knowledge skill, and the better the skill check, the more information is uncovered, so you might have some clue as how to fight this new monster. Of course, you only get information on good results. On bad results, I guess the information should be false (just like you notice that orcs are able to teleport if you see one hitting a teleportation trap).

Question: Do you guys think this is an idea that's worth posting as a feature request? How would you prefer to see this skill - as one single knowledge skill that applies for every kind of monster, or multiple knowledge skills? Should the knowledge skills in that case be divided in groups of monster types such as:
- Knowledge Undead
- Knowledge Demons
- Knowledge Orcs and orclings
Or perhaps based on terrain:
- Knowledge Cave-dwellers
- Knowledge Hill-dwellers
- Knowledge Forrest-dwellers
Or perhaps based on alignment?

My answer: I personally think that more than one skill would be a good idea, but having one for each monster group seems too excessive, as you'd then need hundreds of skills. If you have skills based on terrain, then Knowledge Caves would be clearly much better than the others, as most fighting happens in caves. If you base on alignment, I feel Evil would be much better, as that would grant information about the monsters you are likely to fight.

[Al-Khwarizmi]

AD&D uses something like (off the top of my head) Knowledge (arcane), Knowledge (nature), Knowledge (war), Knowledge (dungeons)... so for example for animals and forest creatures you can use "nature", for demons or magical creatures "undead", etc.

The problem with adding something like this to JADE is that it doesn't matter much whether the PC doesn't know that, say, mummies are vulnerable to fire; if the player who controls the PC does know. Unless if the player roleplays. But in that case he probably doesn't need those skills anyway.

[Silfir]

On the other hand, if you randomize certain special abilities the monsters possess you could retain some of the usefulness of this skill for more skilled players (Do ghuls in this incarnation of ancardia poison or paralyze? Do kobolds use poisoned darts in this region, and what kind of poison?). D&D also grants an attack bonus for a successful knowledge check relating to the creature in combat.

Some knowledge skill alikes were in ADOM; like the merchant automatically identifying all the items pertaining to his specialty; lore abilities specific to each class could help them make automatic identifications too. Some skills already in JADE and ADOM are knowledge skills; Tactics, Metallurgy, Herbalism and so forth.

I definitely think this idea has merit, but it would have all the more once JADE is so rich in detail that knowledge skills can have a lot of potential uses to begin with. And then there is the matter of getting the skills that are already there to work before adding new ones

[Archenon]

Some knowledge skills could be nice. Tho JADE already has plenty of skills to spend points on.

One possible use would be recognizing sub-type of monster. For example before succesful check you see "goblin" after succesful check of (general or type-specific) knowledge skill you would see "goblin warrior". Check could be modified by distance and interaction with target.

Skills like demonlore and undeadlore could give synergy bonuses for combat and defense abilities against certain creatures. Area or nature knowledge skills could give you movement bonus at certain area or terrain, give bonus to your survival or herb gathering there or help you avoid unpleasant encounters.