skills

Dusk MUD is a skill-based game, meaning that there are no classes (as in traditional D&D style games) or guilds (as in the old version of Dusk). Instead your character can choose to learn any skills that they choose. Skills are organized into skill groups. You must first gain a skill group before you can learn the skills within it.

Your character has a rank in each skill group that they know, starting from 1 (novice) up to 4 (master). You can display all of your skill groups via the skills command. You cannot learn an infinite number of skill groups; each character has only 7 skill group slots available. Each rank in a skill group costs a slot. Once all seven slots are filled, you cannot gain any more groups. You can always demote a group in order to make room for another. In this way, your character is infinitely customizable; you can keep a skill group for a while, and if you tire of it, get rid of it.

screenshot of skills command output

In the example depicted above, the character is a rank 2 brawler and a rank 1 solider. They are therefore using 3 available slots, with 4 remaining to be filled either with other skill groups, or with advances in their existing skill group. Note that brawler and solider are both combat styles, but not all skill groups are combat-related.