Appraisal

[HR-Trevor]

To give a little more info on the new appraisal feature for creatures, here's a litte info.

- This is based on appraisal and tactics. You need both. You cannot make up for lack of one with enough of the other.

- This teaches the appraisal skill in minute amounts.

- No skill is needed to see if the creature is aggressive toward you.

- The additional information one may receive includes, from easiest to hardest to acquire:
* the level of the creature
* the creature's agility, coordination, perception and strength in relation to your own
* the single greatest and weakest resistances the creature possesses to specific types of attacks.

A note about the resistance feature: If a creature is equally "most" or "least" resistant to multiple specific types (say its lowest resist is to both heat and electrical for instance) only one will be shown and it will be the lowest one in alpha order, so heat in this case. Also, resistance to poison, magic and psi is not appraised, only the elemental and physical attack resistances.

As noted in today's news update, certain professions need less skill to get information on specific creatures:
* Guardians: All humanoids and undead.
* Mage: All elementals.
* Mercenary: All non-undead humanoids.
* Psionics: All undead.
* Technicians: Mechanical.
* Tracker: Non-humanoids that are not undead or mechanical.
* Trooper: All non-undead humanoids.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." -- Plato

-- Trevor Rage / Rich Mondy

[soundless]

how much skill is needed to say, appraise an asapi?

with 16 app and 24 tactics i can't appraise those yet.
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A bright-eyed Thekko Ku Kalla dressed in a dapper sailor suit takes to flight and careers through the air toward the Modan Kucho and slams into him!
With a high-pitched cry, The Modan Kucho collapses in death.

[Seth Ventril]

With 20 int, 100 (116) appraisal and 100 tactics I can get the stat readout and their level, if that helps. I app monsters every level, so I'll tell you when I can see their weaknesses.

By the way, any chance (either in the appraisal or maybe some other kind of command) that we can maybe get fluff/rp info about mobs?

*Edit* Now that I think about it, this wouldn't be a half-bad thing for Trackers.
_________________
Victim: Well, what is the creed?
Assassin: It's very secret, passed down for hundreds of generations. If I told you, I'd have to kill you.
Victim: Aren't you already killing me anyway?
Assassin: That's a good point...The creed is..."Stick them with the pointy end." - Ctrl+Alt+Del parody of Assassin's Creed.
---
TELEPATHY [close]:  Yaru Dex - "Great now you made Mickey cry. Thanks a lot, Seth."
---
Korell Ventril exclaims, "Choo ain no guard! Choo a crackhead!"

[Seth Ventril]

Sorry for the double post, but I did wanna ask why Agents don't have a bonus. A majority of Agent stealth attacks require humanoid opponents, and it stands to reason that Assassin-style Agents would have a somewhat working knowledge of human anatomy.
_________________
Victim: Well, what is the creed?
Assassin: It's very secret, passed down for hundreds of generations. If I told you, I'd have to kill you.
Victim: Aren't you already killing me anyway?
Assassin: That's a good point...The creed is..."Stick them with the pointy end." - Ctrl+Alt+Del parody of Assassin's Creed.
---
TELEPATHY [close]:  Yaru Dex - "Great now you made Mickey cry. Thanks a lot, Seth."
---
Korell Ventril exclaims, "Choo ain no guard! Choo a crackhead!"

[Denavae]

I was just directed to this post a few days ago, and I noticed Psions have a bonus to appraising undead critters.

Well, I was curious about this, so I went to the Ancient ship to appraise the impish spirits there [level 10]. Nine levels above them, and with the necessary skills at :

[Seth Ventril]

So after about 15-20 levels of monitoring how well I can appraise critters, I am finally able to appraise for weaknesses and strengths. I'm not sure if this due to a low intelligence score, or if these are the hard numbers in situations where a class doesn't receive a profession bonus to appraising a mob type. Anyways, it seems to be 150/150 appraisal and tactics. And yes, it requires that much on both ends because at 74th promotion (148/148, respectively), I could get my appraisal upwind of 148 (190something), and still couldn't app for weakness/strength.
_________________
Victim: Well, what is the creed?
Assassin: It's very secret, passed down for hundreds of generations. If I told you, I'd have to kill you.
Victim: Aren't you already killing me anyway?
Assassin: That's a good point...The creed is..."Stick them with the pointy end." - Ctrl+Alt+Del parody of Assassin's Creed.
---
TELEPATHY [close]:  Yaru Dex - "Great now you made Mickey cry. Thanks a lot, Seth."
---
Korell Ventril exclaims, "Choo ain no guard! Choo a crackhead!"