Combat

• Body, Mind, and Spirit

Combat, your abilities, your weapons – nearly every aspect of life in Sanctuary is intertwined with the attributes of Body, Mind, and Spirit. These attributes affect how you interact with friends and foes alike.

Weapons and abilities (save Chi Strike, which is explained below) are all inherently

aligned with a specific attribute. When using an ability, your store of that attribute will be decreased – though it will replenish over time when you are not engaged in combat. Unlike abilities, your weapons will not consume attributes when used for basic attacks.

Body, the attribute of physicality, is used for traditional attacks and weapons associated with physical prowess. Swords, claws, knockback and poisoning are all examples of weapons or attacks associated with the Body attribute.

Mind, the attribute of mental prowess, is used for abilities and weapons of information. Prismatic paintbrushes, holo-scrolls, and books are all examples of weapons associated with the Mind attribute. Mind abilities often focus on the transmission of ideas and their affect on others: inflicting the idea of pain on your opponents is an example of mind abilities.

Spirit, the attribute of exhilaration, is used for abilities and weapons associated with song, dance, and music. Gongs, drumsticks, and other musical instruments are all examples of weapons associated with the Spirit attribute.

• The Path

Body, Mind, and Spirit also govern your chosen pathways and skills. As you gain levels of experience, you will be given the opportunity to select from class-based options for advancement. For the first four levels, attributes and ability sets are intentionally rather generic. This allows you to make an informed decision in choosing the eventual direction you will take when you determine what focus of study, called The Path, you should pursue.

Your first branching choice is presented at level five. It is at this point that you will select either The Path of the Warrior (Body), Scribe (Mind), or Musician (Spirit). As you continue to advance, you may return to any branch point and follow a different pathway – giving you the freedom to explore other skill paths without requiring that you return to the very beginning to start over.

• Chi Strike

Finally, in addition to the Body, Mind, and Spirit-based skills and weapons at your disposal, you also possess an important skill known as Chi Strike.

During the course of combat, your Chi raises when you successfully strike an opponent and lowers when you miss an opponent or an opponent hits you. You may raise your Chi value quickly by alternating weapons and abilities to balance Body, Mind, and Spirit during combat. When any of the three central lights in your Chi gauge are lit, you may use the Chi Strike ability; however, the greater the value of your Chi (the more lights lit), the more devastating the damage Chi Strike will deal to your opponent. Use of a Chi Strike as a killing blow gives an additional bonus of replenishing your consumables (Body, Mind and Spirit attributes.)

• High Fashion Fighting

In a world where the ultimate weapon is in your head rather than in your hand, armor has no value in combat and, therefore, it won’t be found in Sanctuary or on the battlefields where you will face off against opponents. All combat is based on attribute vs. attribute calculations. Quickly measure up your adversary before engaging. Is he strong in Mind? Counter with something that has the properties related to Body or Spirit. Better yet, switch between the two. You’ll find not only that your Chi increases more rapidly, but that he will be dispatched more easily, too.

• Weapon Customization

You may choose to modify your favorite weapons through the use of the binding affinity. A weapon may be bound to you so that it increases in affinity to you as you deal damage with the weapon over time, following the same basic principle of a samurai’s sword becoming an extension of himself. Using a bound weapon to deal final blows will raise affinity levels even more quickly. The weapon will increase in levels and, with each level increase, you will be able to add modules to enhance its abilities.

Further customization is available through the use of weapon dyes. These won’t add to the ferocity of your attacks, but you’ll look fabulous!

• Share and Share Alike

All of your characters, no matter what incarnation, share everything: a common inventory, wealth, house, reputation and even weapon bindings.

All new arrivals begin as Recruits. The early choices recruits make, as they progress toward various career paths, will define the skills, abilities, weapons, tools, and armor that will be accessible during their term of service.

Below is a brief introduction to the basic career paths and the attendant skills and abilities that will be made available to those who successfully complete Recruit training.

All personnel and equipment specifications are subject to revision.