“I can't believe you already made it to Level 6. I'm amazed.”
The next day, Hannah and I reported it to Phyllis-sensei, and she stared at us in astonishment.
Most people probably don't level up that fast. After all that Combat Training yesterday, I only gained one Level.
The Slime Respawn Marathon really was amazing.
Hannah and I reached Level 6 in about thirty minutes.
Now, on to practical training.
Before that, let's check my status.
――――――――――
Name: Zephyrus
Race: “Protagonist”
Job: 【Hero】 LV6
SUP (Status Up Points): 22P acquired in total
Restriction: None
【HP 30/30】
【MP 20/20】
【STR 10】
【VIT 10】
【INT 10】
【RES 10】
【AGI 10】
【DEX 10】
【SUP 132P】
【SP 11P】
〈Skills〉
None
〈Magic〉
None
〈Unique Skills〉
Not acquired
――――――――――
That's what it looks like.
Starting from the top, 【Name】 should be self-explanatory. It identifies whose status this is.
【Race】 refers to the traits a person possesses. I mentioned it briefly before.
In my case, it's “Protagonist.” For Hannah, it's “Villager.” For Sierra, it's “Earl.”
It's mainly related to acquiring Jobs, but I'll explain the details another time. It'd take too long.
Next is 【Job】. Mine displays 【Hero】, while Hannah's displays 【Alchemist】. The LV next to it is the Job Level.
Thanks to the Slime Respawn Marathon, my Job is now Level 6.
Next is 【SUP (Status Up Points): 22P acquired in total】.
This shows the total amount of SUP (Status Up Points) the 【Hero】 Job awards each time it levels up.
It says “in total” because some Jobs automatically allocate a portion of your SUP when you level up.
For example, if 10 of the 22P you gained are allocated automatically, you can only distribute 12P yourself. Since only 12P gets added to your available SUP each time you level up, this notation shows that you still gained 22P in total.
The next entry, 【Restriction】, explains that.
The 【Hero】 Job has no restrictions, but with 【Muscle Warrior】...
It would show 〈STR+10, VIT+10〉 out of 23P.
Since 20P is automatically allocated to your stats, you can only distribute 3P of SUP yourself. That's so little!
Whether you see being unable to allocate your own stats as a drawback or appreciate not having to distribute your points every time is up to the player.
Though I doubt many people would feel the latter way.
Next is the stat build.
My current values are the same as my stats at Level 0, before I allocated even a single point of SUP.
Those basic Level 0 stats don't change no matter which Job you take.
To explain them one by one:
【HP】 is like a barrier that absorbs attacks from monsters.
As long as you have HP remaining, some of the damage is reduced, making it harder to suffer serious injuries.
Once your HP runs out, the barrier disappears and you become incapacitated. If a monster attacks you then, you'll almost certainly suffer serious injuries or worse, so you must never take part in combat.
【HP 30/30】 The number on the right is your maximum HP; the number on the left is your remaining HP.
【MP】 is the resource you spend to use 〈Skills〉 and 〈Magic〉.
【MP 20/20】 The number on the right is your maximum MP; the number on the left is your remaining MP.
Also, the exchange rate for HP and MP is 3P of SUP.
In other words, 1P of SUP (Status Up Points) raises your maximum HP by 3P. The same goes for MP.
Next:
【STR】: Raises your attack power and strength. It's also a necessary stat for production Jobs like Blacksmith.
【VIT】: Raises your defense and makes your body tougher. It improves your resistance to physical attacks such as slashes, blows, thrusts, and Skills. It also contributes 20% of its value to your maximum HP.
【INT】: Your magical power. It raises your magic attack power and overall magical power. It also contributes 20% of its value to your maximum MP.
【RES】: Your resistance to magic. It raises your magical defense. Manipulating magic power also grants various resistances to magic.
【AGI】: Your agility and speed. It makes you run faster, use Skills faster, and cast Magic faster, among other things.
【DEX】: Your dexterity. It improves precision-based actions. It's essential for production Jobs, and some ranged physical Jobs, such as 【Archer】, also use it to calculate damage.
The exchange rate for each of these six stats is 1P of SUP.
In other words, 1P of SUP (Status Up Points) raises a stat by 1P.
【SUP (Status Up Points)】 is the number of points you currently have remaining. You can allocate that many points to whichever stats you like.
【SP (Skill Points)】. In 〈Dan-Katsu〉, you can “acquire and upgrade” 〈Skills〉 and 〈Magic〉 by using SP (Skill Points).
The 〈Skills〉 and 〈Magic〉 available to you differ depending on your Job. Items that let you learn them afterward, such as scrolls and orbs, don't exist in 〈Dan-Katsu〉. (There are exceptions.)
Well, if you could do that freely, there'd be no point to Jobs. That's only natural.
“Acquiring and upgrading” always costs one SP per action.
Acquiring a Skill costs one point, and upgrading one costs one point, too. You can upgrade a Skill up to nine times, so you can spend a total of ten points on a single Skill.
Every Job gives you one SP whenever you level up, and you receive five SP as a bonus when you acquire a Job. That brings my current total to 11P.
Lastly, there's 【Skills, Magic, and Unique Skills】.
〈Skills〉 are generally physical, while 〈Magic〉... is magic.
There are so many kinds and exceptions that I can't explain them all in one sweeping statement.
Every Job has one Unique Skill and possesses multiple Skills or Magic. (Muscle is an exception.)
You spend SP to acquire whichever ones you like, then use them in combat, production, and all sorts of other ways.
You can acquire a wide range of them, or specialize by upgrading a few. Build your character however you like! That's one of 〈Dan-Katsu〉's selling points.
As a side note,
Allocating SP was an extremely important part of 〈Dan-Katsu〉, too. Since SP was limited, I'd sometimes spend an hour agonizing over which Skills to choose. I also used to plan out a schedule and allocate my SP exactly as I'd mapped it out.
SP allocation gradually became one of 〈Dan-Katsu〉's main attractions.
The online forums were always arguing about which combination was best. Everyone insisted their own build was the strongest and refused to back down. Arguing about it was just part of allocating SP. Man, that was fun.
The only way to reset your SP was to change Jobs and reset your Level, so you absolutely couldn't afford to mess up. It was serious business.
Somebody, give me an undo button.
Now, the reason I checked my status just now is that I'm finally going to challenge a dungeon.
Phyllis-sensei volunteered to supervise the practical training for Hannah and me, so we're heading to a dungeon today.
I'm really grateful.
So I figured it was time to allocate the stat points I'd been holding onto.
“Zephyrus-kun, do you have a moment?”
“What is it?”
I'd gone back to get the weapons and armor we'd need for the dungeon, and while I was waiting for Phyllis-sensei to finish getting ready, Hannah came to my room.
I was free, too, so the timing was perfect.
“Actually, I wanted to ask you about allocating my stats. You seem to know a lot, Zephyrus-kun.”
“Sure, I don't mind at all. In fact, let me give you some advice.”
“Huh? Oh, um... Please?”
It seemed Hannah had been having trouble deciding how to allocate her stats, so she'd come to ask me. Perfect.
I invited Hannah into the room. She looked like she couldn't figure out why I'd jumped at the chance.
Hannah had the 【Alchemist】 Job, which was considered essential for founding a guild.
If she made a bad decision about her stats, I'd be the one in trouble, so I'd give her my very best advice!
I'll introduce Hannah to my ultimate stat build!