Delve — Game Design Documents

Delve is an asynchronous idle MMO with synchronous multiplayer elements, an original fantasy RPG inspired by classic tabletop games. Players create characters, prepare them for dungeon runs, and send them into danger — reviewing detailed results when the run completes. The game is free-to-play with convenience monetization.

Document Index

Key Design Decisions

• Species & Classes: 9 original species and 9 classes with 6 custom attributes (Might, Logic, Speed, Presence, Fortitude, Luck)
• Combat: d100 percentile dice system with skill queue combat, optimized for idle/async auto-resolution
• Progression: Levels 1-50 with Paragon system beyond cap
• Monetization: F2P + optional $5/mo Patron subscription (50% faster time-based activities). No premium currency, no cosmetic sales, no loot boxes.
• Multiplayer: Timed lobby system — group content starts at scheduled times, players prepare async
• Scope: Full sandbox — combat, crafting, gathering, economy, PVP, factions, social

How to Read These Docs

• Start with 01-Game Overview for the big picture
• 02-04 cover the character and combat core
• 05-06 cover the loot and dungeon loop
• 07-08 cover crafting and economy
• 09-11 cover multiplayer and social systems
• 12 covers the game world
• 13-15 cover meta-systems (time, money, retention)

Each document is self-contained but cross-references related docs where systems interact.

Status

All documents are in Draft status — ready for review and iteration.

Game Overview

Game Pitch

Delve is an asynchronous idle MMO where players create characters inspired by classic tabletop RPG archetypes and send them into dangerous dungeons, questlines, and encounters that resolve over real-world time. Players don’t control combat in real-time — they prepare, strategize, and configure their characters’ behavior, then set them loose and review the results.

Think of it as managing an adventurer’s career. You’re the strategist behind the hero: picking quests, equipping gear, setting combat priorities, stocking supplies, and joining up with other players’ characters for raids. The dungeon happens while you’re at work. You come back, read the battle log, see where things went right or wrong, adapt, and send them out again.

Core Fantasy

You are the mind behind the adventurer. Every decision you make before the dungeon matters — what spells to prioritize, when to use potions, whether to bring extra rations or a second weapon. The dungeon run plays out like a story you get to read, with your preparation determining the outcome.

Core Gameplay Loop

LOGIN
  │
  ▼
REVIEW RESULTS ─── Read the timeline of your last dungeon run.
  │                 See each encounter: combat rolls, trap checks,
  │                 loot found, resources consumed.
  │                 Understand exactly why you succeeded or failed.
  │
  ▼
MANAGE INVENTORY ── Equip new gear, sell unwanted loot,
  │                  salvage materials, brew potions,
  │                  restock supplies (rations, torches, scrolls).
  │
  ▼
BROWSE QUESTS ───── View the quest board: bounties, questlines,
  │                  dungeon crawls, guild raids.
  │                  Each shows difficulty, estimated duration,
  │                  potential rewards, and recommended level.
  │
  ▼
PREPARE ─────────── Configure combat AI priorities.
  │                  Select spells to memorize.
  │                  Choose supplies to bring.
  │                  Set trap detection behavior.
  │                  Join a party lobby (if multiplayer quest).
  │
  ▼
COMMIT ──────────── Lock in and send your character on the quest.
  │                  The run resolves over real-world time.
  │
  ▼
IDLE ───────────── While waiting, you can:
  │                 • Manage other characters (if unlocked)
  │                 • Craft items or gather materials
  │                 • Browse the marketplace
  │                 • Chat with guild members
  │                 • Review leaderboards
  │                 • Log off entirely — the run continues
  │
  ▼
NOTIFICATION ────── "Your dungeon run is complete!"
  │
  └──► Return to REVIEW RESULTS

Session Flow

Quick Session (5-10 minutes)

1. Review last run results
2. Sell junk loot, equip upgrades
3. Pick a new quest from the board
4. Use default combat settings or make minor tweaks
5. Commit and log off

Active Session (30-60 minutes)

1. Review results in detail — study the combat log
2. Reorganize inventory, craft consumables
3. Browse marketplace for upgrades
4. Fine-tune combat AI configuration
5. Coordinate with guild for an upcoming raid
6. Commit to a quest
7. While waiting: gather materials, manage a second character, chat

Check-in Session (1-2 minutes)

1. See notification that a run completed
2. Glance at results (success/fail, notable loot)
3. Quick-commit to another quest of similar difficulty
4. Log off

Target Audience

• Tabletop RPG fans who love character building and tactical decisions but don’t always have time for a full session
• Idle game enthusiasts who want deeper progression and strategy than typical idle/incremental games
• MMO players who want social features (guilds, raids, PVP) without demanding a fixed play schedule
• Strategy gamers who enjoy optimizing builds, min-maxing gear, and solving the puzzle of dungeon preparation

Platform Considerations

• Web-first — accessible from any browser, desktop or mobile
• Mobile-friendly — the async nature makes it perfect for phone check-ins
• No downloads required — low barrier to entry for F2P
• Push notifications — run complete, raid starting, auction sold

Monetization Philosophy

Delve is free to play with an optional $5/month subscription and small permanent purchases. No premium currency. No loot boxes. No cosmetic microtransactions.

The Patron Subscription ($5/month)

• 50% faster dungeon runs, crafting, and gathering
• That’s it. No bonus XP, no bonus loot, no combat advantages. Subscribers wait less — they don’t hit harder.

Permanent Purchases

• Additional character slots ($2 each, up to 5 extra)
• Expanded bank/storage space ($1 per upgrade)
• Name changes and appearance resets ($1 each)

What You CANNOT Buy

• Gear, weapons, or items with stats
• XP, gold, or loot boosts
• Premium currency (doesn’t exist)
• Loot boxes or randomized purchases (don’t exist)
• Combat advantages of any kind
• Cosmetics (earned through gameplay only)
• Content access (all gameplay is free)

Why This Model

Players should never feel like they lost a dungeon run because someone else spent money. A subscriber and a free player in the same dungeon have the same chance of success. The game makes money by being good enough that players want to support it — not by creating friction that drives impulse purchases.

See 14-monetization.md for full details.

What Makes Delve Different

Design Pillars

1. Preparation is gameplay. The decisions you make before a dungeon run ARE the game. Choosing the right spells, configuring smart combat behavior, bringing enough supplies — this is where skill lives.

2. Failure is a teacher. When a run fails, the player should understand exactly why and what to change. The run timeline is the core feedback mechanism.

3. Respect the player’s time. Whether you have 5 minutes or an hour, there’s something meaningful to do. You should never feel punished for not logging in.

4. Social without synchronous. Guilds, raids, and PVP should be engaging without requiring everyone to be online at the same time. The timed lobby system makes group content accessible to all schedules.

5. Earn, don’t buy, your power. Every piece of gear, every level, every achievement is earned through play. Money buys time savings, never power.

Character Creation

Overview

Character creation is the player’s first major decision point. Every option — species, class, attribute spread, background — should feel distinct and have a clear gameplay impact. The goal is meaningful choice without overwhelming new players.

Players start with one character slot for free. Additional slots can be purchased from the in-game shop (see 14-monetization.md).

Character Identity

Name

• Must be unique server-wide
• 3-20 characters, letters and spaces only
• Filtered for inappropriate content
• Can be changed for a small one-time purchase ($1 — see 14-monetization.md)

Appearance

• Visual portrait selection from a curated set per species
• Cosmetic armor skins overlay the portrait
• Additional portraits earned through achievements, faction reputation, and seasonal events

Title

• Displayed alongside the character name (e.g., “Korrin the Unyielding”)
• Earned through achievements, faction reputation, PVP rank, or seasonal events
• Players choose which earned title to display

Attributes

Delve uses six core attributes that affect every system in the game — combat, dungeon exploration, crafting, and social interactions.

The Six Attributes

How Attributes Affect Combat

Might:

• +2% melee skill accuracy per point above 10
• +1.5% melee skill damage per point above 10
• Determines Might-based resistance checks (grapples, knockdowns)

Logic:

• +2% magical skill accuracy per point above 10
• +1.5% magical skill damage per point above 10
• +3 mana per point
• Determines Logic-based resistance checks (illusions, puzzles)

Speed:

• +1.5% ranged skill accuracy per point above 10
• +1 evasion rating per point (makes you harder to hit)
• Tie-breaking value for skill initiative
• Determines Speed-based resistance checks (traps, AoE dodging)

Presence:

• +2% healing/buff skill effectiveness per point above 10
• +2% debuff potency per point above 10 (harder for enemies to resist)
• Determines Presence-based resistance checks (fear, charm, intimidation)

Fortitude:

• +5 max HP per point above 10
• +2 stamina/devotion per point
• +1.5% condition resistance per point above 10 (blanket bonus to resist poison, stun, etc.)
• Determines Fortitude-based resistance checks (poison, disease, exhaustion)

Luck:

• Critical hit threshold improved by 0.5% per point above 10 (base crit: ≤5 on d100; at 20 LCK: ≤10)
• Critical miss threshold reduced by 0.5% per point above 10 (base crit miss: 96-100; at 20 LCK: 98-100 only)
• +1% loot quality modifier per point above 10 (slightly better rolls on loot tables)
• Once per dungeon run per 5 points of LCK: automatically re-roll one failed d100 check

Attribute Scale

Attributes range from 1 to 30 (soft cap), with a theoretical maximum of 40 through endgame gear and buffs.

Attribute Point-Buy

At character creation, players distribute 40 points across the six attributes. All attributes start at 5 (baseline), and points raise them from there.

The escalating cost means players can build a well-rounded character (several 10-12s) or specialize heavily (one or two 14-15s with lower elsewhere). The maximum any single attribute can reach at creation is 15 before species bonuses.

Species bonus is applied AFTER point-buy and can push an attribute above 15 at creation.

Recommended Distributions

Each class has a one-click “Recommended” button that sets a sensible point-buy for new players. Advanced players can customize freely.

Species

Delve features 9 playable species at launch. Each species has a distinct visual identity, cultural flavor, a primary attribute bonus, a secondary attribute bonus, and a unique species skill usable in the skill queue (see 04-combat-system.md).

No species is mandatory for any class — bonuses nudge, they don’t dictate.

Ironborn

• Primary Attribute: +3 Fortitude
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Might
• Species Skill: Unyielding (Passive) — Once per dungeon run, when reduced below 20% HP, automatically gain Shielded (absorb damage equal to 15% max HP) and +10% damage for 2 rounds.
• Appearance: Tall, broad, stone-gray skin with metalite veins running through their body. Dense, almost sculpted features. Hair ranges from iron-black to rust-red.
• Lore: The Ironborn emerged from the deep mountains after the Sundering, their bodies permanently fused with the mineral-rich stone that sheltered them. They are naturally resilient and culturally stoic — they believe that to endure is to prevail. Ironborn communities are built around forges and mines, and they have a reputation as the finest blacksmiths in Aethermere.
• Playstyle nudge: Tanky frontline characters. Great with heavy armor and shields. The Fortitude bonus means more HP and better condition resistance.

Verdani

• Primary Attribute: +3 Logic
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Presence
• Species Skill: Aethersight (Active, Init 2) — Reveal all enemy weaknesses and resistances for 3 rounds. Allies gain +10% accuracy against revealed targets. 2 uses per dungeon run. Swift (doesn’t consume queue slot).
• Appearance: Slender, elongated limbs with faintly luminous skin in pale green or soft blue. Eyes without pupils that glow faintly. Intricate natural patterns on their skin resembling circuitry or veins of a leaf.
• Lore: The Verdani are an ancient species who claim to remember the world before the Sundering. They experience reality through a “second sense” — an innate ability to perceive magical currents. This makes them natural scholars and spellcasters, though their detached perspective sometimes puts them at odds with shorter-lived species. Their cities are grown from living crystal in the deep forests.
• Playstyle nudge: Spellcasters and support characters. The Logic bonus boosts magical damage and mana pools.

Kharren

• Primary Attribute: +3 Might
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Fortitude
• Species Skill: Blood Frenzy (Active, Init 1) — For 3 rounds, all melee skills deal +20% damage but you take 10% more damage from all sources. 2 uses per dungeon run.
• Appearance: Powerfully built with thick, layered skin ranging from deep crimson to dark bronze. Prominent lower canines (tusks). Scarification patterns are a cultural tradition — each scar tells a story.
• Lore: The Kharren are a proud warrior culture from the Ashlands, forged by generations of surviving volcanic wastelands and fighting for scarce resources. They value strength and honor in equal measure — a Kharren who wins through treachery is despised, but one who wins through might is celebrated. They were among the first to reclaim territory after the Sundering, and their holds are the most well-defended settlements in the harsh frontier.
• Playstyle nudge: Melee damage dealers. The Might bonus amplifies physical skill damage. Blood Frenzy is a classic risk/reward damage steroid.

Sylphari

• Primary Attribute: +3 Speed
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Logic
• Species Skill: Phase Step (Active, Init 0) — Become untargetable for 1 round. Your next offensive skill gains +15% accuracy and +15% damage. 2 uses per dungeon run.
• Appearance: Lean and angular with semi-translucent skin that shifts color subtly with their emotional state. Hair like spun glass or fiber optics. They move with an unnatural fluidity, as if slightly out of phase with reality.
• Lore: The Sylphari exist partially between dimensions — a side effect of the Sundering that affected their ancestors who lived near the epicenter. They flicker between planes of existence, making them appear to shimmer or blur at the edges. This gives them extraordinary reflexes and an uncanny ability to avoid danger. Their communities are nomadic, drifting along the ley lines that crisscross Aethermere.
• Playstyle nudge: Rogues, ranged damage, and evasion-focused builds. The Speed bonus boosts evasion and ranged accuracy. Phase Step is an incredible defensive/offensive hybrid.

Thornkin

• Primary Attribute: +3 Fortitude
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Logic
• Species Skill: Regenerative Bark (Active, Init 5) — Gain Regenerating condition (recover 5% max HP per round for 4 rounds). If already below 50% HP, the regeneration is doubled to 10%. 2 uses per dungeon run.
• Appearance: Bark-like skin in shades of brown, green, and amber. Leaves, moss, or small flowering vines grow naturally from their shoulders, head, and arms. Their eyes are deep amber or emerald. They are stocky and grounded.
• Lore: The Thornkin are a plant-humanoid species that arose when the Sundering’s magical fallout saturated the great forests. They are deeply connected to the natural world and grow stronger with age — elder Thornkin can be centuries old and massive in stature. They are patient, pragmatic, and difficult to kill. Thornkin communities grow their homes directly from living trees, and they have a symbiotic relationship with the forests they inhabit.
• Playstyle nudge: Tanks and healers. The Fortitude bonus stacks HP and condition resistance. Regenerative Bark is a powerful self-sustain tool that makes them excellent at enduring long dungeon runs.

Ashenmere (Ash Folk)

• Primary Attribute: +3 Presence
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Speed
• Species Skill: Soul Echo (Active, Init 3) — Target ally gains Inspired (+10% accuracy, +10% damage) for 3 rounds. If used on self, also gain +10% condition resistance. 3 uses per dungeon run.
• Appearance: Pale, almost translucent skin with faint ember-like markings that glow softly in dim light. Their hair is white, silver, or ashen blonde, and their eyes are striking — vivid amber, gold, or pale violet. They have an ethereal, otherworldly beauty.
• Lore: The Ashenmere are descendants of a civilization that was closest to the epicenter of the Sundering. Their ancestors should have been obliterated, but some survived by binding themselves to the lingering spirits of those who perished. Every Ashenmere carries an “echo” — a spiritual presence that enhances their force of personality and gives them an innate connection to others. They are natural diplomats, leaders, and healers. Their culture is built around community and memory — they honor the dead by living fully.
• Playstyle nudge: Support, healing, and leadership builds. The Presence bonus amplifies buff/debuff/heal skills. Soul Echo is a versatile party buff.

Glimkin

• Primary Attribute: +3 Luck
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Speed
• Species Skill: Fortune’s Favor (Passive) — Twice per dungeon run, when a skill would critically miss (96-100), downgrade it to a normal miss instead. Additionally, +5% to loot quality rolls on all encounters.
• Appearance: Small (about 4 feet tall), with large expressive eyes and slightly oversized ears. Their skin has a faint metallic sheen — copper, silver, or gold tones. Wild, unruly hair in improbable colors. They always seem to be grinning.
• Lore: No one is entirely sure where the Glimkin came from. They appeared shortly after the Sundering, cheerful and seemingly unbothered by the apocalypse. They have an inexplicable knack for being in the right place at the right time (and the wrong place at the wrong time, just as often). Glimkin claim this is “the Knack” — an innate connection to probability itself. Scholars suspect they were created by the Sundering’s chaotic magic. Glimkin communities are colorful, noisy, and organized only by accident.
• Playstyle nudge: Any class works. The Luck bonus makes crits more frequent, crit misses rarer, and loot better. Fortune’s Favor protects against catastrophic bad rolls. Great for players who enjoy the gambling aspect of the d100 system.

Vexari

• Primary Attribute: +3 Logic
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Luck
• Species Skill: Unravel (Active, Init 4) — Strip all buffs from target enemy. For each buff removed, deal moderate magical damage. If the target had no buffs, deal heavy magical damage instead. 2 uses per dungeon run.
• Appearance: Dark skin in shades of deep indigo or black, with glowing sigil-like markings that pulse faintly. Horns curl back from the forehead in various shapes. A thin, prehensile tail. Eyes are solid colors — red, violet, gold, or white with no visible pupil.
• Lore: The Vexari are touched by the chaotic energies that leaked through the Sundering’s dimensional tears. Their ancestors made pacts — willingly or not — with entities from beyond, and the mark persists in their bloodline. Other species are wary of them, but the Vexari have proven their loyalty to Aethermere time and again. They have an innate talent for manipulating magical energies, especially unweaving and disrupting spells. Vexari culture values self-determination above all — they refuse to be defined by their origins.
• Playstyle nudge: Spellcasters, especially disruptors and debuffers. Unravel is a powerful anti-mage tool. The Logic bonus feeds magical builds, and the Luck secondary helps with crits.

Ferathi

• Primary Attribute: +3 Speed
• Secondary Attribute: +1 Might
• Species Skill: Predator’s Instinct (Passive) — The first skill in your queue each encounter always executes before all enemies, regardless of initiative values. Additionally, if that first skill kills an enemy, your next skill gains +20% damage.
• Appearance: Lean, athletic builds with animalistic features — slit-pupil eyes, elongated canines, clawed fingertips, and fine fur covering their forearms, shoulders, and calves. Fur and eye colors vary widely (tawny, spotted, striped, solid). Ears are pointed and mobile.
• Lore: The Ferathi are beast-touched — their ancestors were hunters and trackers who bonded so deeply with the predators of the wild that the Sundering’s magic made the bond literal. They are fierce, territorial, and loyal to their pack (which, for adventuring Ferathi, means their party). Ferathi communities are clan-based, and each clan identifies with a different predator: wolf, hawk, panther, viper, bear. While they can seem feral to outsiders, Ferathi culture has a deep code of honor and surprisingly sophisticated oral traditions.
• Playstyle nudge: Aggressive builds — rogues, rangers, melee DPS. Predator’s Instinct guarantees you strike first, which synergizes beautifully with high-damage opening skills. The Speed + Might bonuses support fast, hard-hitting play.

Species Comparison Table

Classes

Each class defines the character’s combat role, resource system, and skill progression. Classes determine which class-specific skills unlock at which levels and how the character scales through the 1-50 level range.

Classes are archetypes — original to Delve but inspired by classic fantasy roles. Each class has 3 subclasses chosen at level 10.

Vanguard (Martial Frontline)

• Role: Frontline tank and sustained damage
• Resource: Stamina
• Key Attributes: Might, Fortitude
• Identity: The disciplined warrior. Vanguards are the backbone of any party — durable, reliable, and deadly with any weapon. They excel at staying in the fight longer than anyone else.
• Skills per round: 2 (base), increases to 3 at level 25
• Unique Mechanic: Battle Surge — Once per dungeon run (twice at level 30), execute 3 skills in a single round instead of the normal amount. Configured in queue with a conditional.
• Starting Gear: Medium armor, martial weapon of choice, shield, explorer’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Bulwark — Pure defense. Gains skills that redirect damage to self, buff party evasion, and create damage absorption shields. The immovable wall.
  • Warblade — Offense focus. Gains skills with higher damage multipliers, bleed effects, and execute-style finishers. The relentless attacker.
  • Tactician — Hybrid support. Gains skills that buff ally accuracy and damage, debuff enemy groups, and manipulate initiative order. The field commander.

Shade (Stealth & Precision)

• Role: Burst damage, trap specialist, evasion
• Resource: Momentum (starts at 0, builds +20 per round in combat. Retains 50% between encounters. Capped at 100. Spent on powerful skills.)
• Key Attributes: Speed, Luck
• Identity: The unseen blade. Shades strike from angles enemies don’t expect, exploit weaknesses, and specialize in ending fights before they become wars of attrition. Outside combat, they’re the best at detecting and disarming traps.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Exploit Weakness — When attacking an enemy affected by a debuff, all Shade skills deal +15% bonus damage. This makes debuffs from allies (or from the Shade’s own skills) extra valuable.
• Momentum Carry-Over: Momentum retains 50% between encounters. A Shade ending a fight at 80 momentum enters the next fight at 40 — enough to immediately use mid-tier skills. By encounter 4-5, the Shade is entering fights at full power from round 1.
• Trap Expertise: Shades have +25% to all trap detection and disarm checks. At level 20, traps that would deal damage deal 50% reduced damage even if triggered.
• Starting Gear: Light armor, two daggers, shortbow, lockpicks, infiltrator’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Assassin — Maximum burst. First-strike bonus damage, execute skills, and +1% damage per 5 momentum banked (at 80 momentum: +16% damage). Rewards building and holding momentum.
  • Phantom — Evasion focus. Skills that make you untargetable, redirect attacks, and let you skip past encounters entirely through stealth.
  • Saboteur — Trap and debuff specialist. Gains skills that apply DoTs, weaken enemies, and set up traps that damage enemies at the start of the next encounter.

Arcanist (Arcane Spellcaster)

• Role: Versatile magical damage, AoE, and utility
• Resource: Mana
• Key Attributes: Logic, Fortitude (for concentration/durability)
• Identity: The scholar of destruction. Arcanists command raw magical energy — they can burn down groups of enemies or surgically dismantle a single target. Their weakness is durability; they need protection or distance.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Spell Mastery — The Arcanist’s mana cost for any skill decreases by 1% for each time that skill is used in the dungeon run (cumulative). By the 10th use of Arcane Bolt, it costs 10% less. Rewards consistent skill use.
• Starting Gear: Staff or wand, light armor, arcane focus, scholar’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Evoker — Raw damage. Fire, ice, lightning AoE skills. Can shape AoE to avoid allies. The blaster.
  • Chronomancer — Time manipulation. Skills that slow enemies, haste allies, and manipulate initiative values. The controller.
  • Voidcaller — Dark magic. Drain effects, DoTs, and skills that get stronger the lower the Arcanist’s HP (risk/reward). The gambler.

Warden (Divine Healer & Protector)

• Role: Healer, buffer, anti-undead, off-tank
• Resource: Devotion
• Key Attributes: Presence, Fortitude
• Identity: The divine conduit. Wardens channel power from a higher source to mend wounds, shield allies, and purge corruption. In a party, they’re the difference between victory and a wipe. Solo, they outlast enemies through attrition.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Sanctify — Once per encounter, the Warden can Sanctify the battlefield (automatic, no queue slot). While Sanctified, all healing done by the Warden is increased by 20% and undead enemies take 10% more damage from all sources. Lasts 3 rounds.
• Starting Gear: Medium armor, shield, mace, holy symbol, healer’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Lifebinder — Pure healing. Enhanced heal skills, resurrection ability, and skills that prevent damage rather than heal it after the fact.
  • Crusader — Offensive healer. Radiant damage skills, smite-like burst damage, and heals that trigger when you deal damage. The fighting priest.
  • Oathkeeper — Protection focus. Skills that redirect damage, grant damage immunity, and create healing zones. The guardian.

Pathfinder (Ranged & Scouting)

• Role: Ranged sustained damage, scouting, dungeon navigation
• Resource: Focus (regenerates faster than other resources — 40% between encounters)
• Key Attributes: Speed, Logic
• Identity: The wayfinder. Pathfinders are ranged specialists who read terrain, spot dangers, and strike from a distance. They bring a unique dungeon utility: scouting ahead to reveal traps, finding shortcuts, and identifying enemy composition before engagement.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Terrain Mastery — Before a dungeon run, the Pathfinder selects a terrain type (cave, forest, ruins, etc.). If the dungeon matches, they gain: +10% accuracy on all skills, +15% trap detection, and 10% chance per encounter to find a shortcut (skip the encounter entirely).
• Starting Gear: Light armor, bow, two short swords, explorer’s pack, scout’s kit
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Marksman — Pure ranged damage. Gains skills with extreme accuracy, long-range bonuses, and multi-shot abilities.
  • Beastcaller — Companion specialist. Gains an animal companion that acts as a separate combatant with its own mini-queue (2 skills). The companion persists across encounters but shares the Pathfinder’s HP pool.
  • Trailblazer — Dungeon utility. Enhanced scouting, skills that reveal the entire dungeon layout, and abilities that let the party skip non-combat encounters. Reduces dungeon run duration by up to 15%.

Berserker (Aggressive Melee)

• Role: High-risk, high-reward melee damage
• Resource: Fury (starts at 0, builds from damage DEALT. Capped at 100. Retains 25% between encounters. Decays -5/round while Raging.)
• Key Attributes: Might, Fortitude
• Identity: The storm of violence. Berserkers get stronger the more damage they deal — hitting things fuels their rage. They trade defense for offense and thrive when they can stay aggressive.
• Skills per round: 2 (base), 3 while in Rage state
• Unique Mechanic: Rage — When Fury reaches 50+, the Berserker enters Rage (automatic). While Raging: +25% melee damage, -15% evasion, 3 skills per round instead of 2, and immune to Frightened. Fury decays -5/round while Raging — the Berserker must keep landing hits to sustain Rage. Rage ends if Fury drops below 25.
• Fury Generation: +1 Fury per ~3% of target’s max HP dealt. A big hit against a boss generates more Fury than chip damage against minions. Front-loading the queue with fast, reliable hits builds Fury fastest.
• Fury Carry-Over: Retains 25% between encounters. Ending a fight at 80 Fury means starting the next at 20 — not enough for Rage, but a head start.
• Starting Gear: No armor (uses Fortitude for base evasion), two-handed weapon, berserker’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Ravager — Maximum damage. Skills that deal more damage the lower your HP. A crit-focused build that thrives at death’s door.
  • Totemist — Spiritual warrior. Choose a spirit totem (Bear: +30% HP, Eagle: -1 initiative on all skills, Wolf: allies deal +10% damage). Provides party utility while raging.
  • Bloodletter — Vampiric berserker. Skills that heal self based on damage dealt. The self-sustaining bruiser who gets harder to kill the harder they hit.

Songweaver (Support & Versatility)

• Role: Party buffer, debuffer, jack-of-all-trades
• Resource: Resonance (starts at max, depletes as abilities are used. Recovers 15% between encounters — the slowest pool recovery in the game. Rest points restore 50%.)
• Key Attributes: Presence, Speed
• Identity: The force multiplier. Songweavers don’t deal the most damage or have the most HP — they make everyone around them better. A good Songweaver in a party turns a mediocre group into an unstoppable force. Solo, they’re versatile enough to handle anything, just slower.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Anthem — The Songweaver maintains a persistent Anthem that provides a free passive bonus to all allies (including self) — Anthems cost NO Resonance. Choose one Anthem before the run:
  • Anthem of Valor: +8% damage to all allies
  • Anthem of Grace: +8% evasion to all allies
  • Anthem of Mending: All allies regenerate 2% max HP per round
  • Anthem of Haste: -1 initiative value on all ally skills (act faster)
• Resource Floor: Even at 0 Resonance, the Songweaver still provides value through the free Anthem and zero-cost basic weapon attacks. They decline over long dungeons but never become dead weight.
• Starting Gear: Light armor, rapier, musical instrument (cosmetic), entertainer’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Virtuoso — Enhanced anthems. Can maintain TWO anthems simultaneously. Anthem effects increased to 12%.
  • Dirge Singer — Offensive debuffer. Gains skills that weaken, slow, frighten, and disrupt enemy groups. The anti-support.
  • War Chanter — Hybrid fighter/support. Gains melee combat skills that also buff allies when they hit. Each successful attack grants an ally a small buff.

Oathblade (Holy Warrior)

• Role: Durable melee fighter with healing and burst damage
• Resource: Zeal (30% recovery between encounters. Moderate pool, but Smite burns extra on top of normal skill costs, making effective burn rate ~1.5-2x faster when Smiting.)
• Key Attributes: Might, Presence
• Identity: The righteous warrior. Oathblades are melee fighters who channel divine power through their weapon strikes. They can heal, they can tank, and they can deal devastating burst damage — but they can’t do all three in the same dungeon run without running dry. Resource management is their core challenge.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Smite — Any melee weapon skill in the queue can be “empowered” with a Smite modifier (set during queue configuration). Smiting costs extra Zeal but adds 50% bonus radiant damage to the skill and an additional 25% if the target is undead. Players choose which skills to Smite and which to leave normal — Smiting everything means running dry fast; Smiting only bosses means sustained power.
• Starting Gear: Heavy armor, martial weapon, shield, holy symbol, crusader’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Avenger — Offense focus. Smite costs reduced by 25%. Gains execute-style skills that deal bonus damage to low-HP enemies. The divine executioner.
  • Sentinel — Defense focus. Gains aura skills that grant allies condition immunity, damage reduction, and healing. The party protector.
  • Inquisitor — Anti-magic focus. Gains skills that silence enemy casters, strip magical buffs, and resist magical damage. The mage-hunter.

Hexbinder (Occult Caster)

• Role: Consistent magical damage, drain effects, dark utility
• Resource: Essence (unique: low base pool but recharges 50% between encounters — fast cycle, small bursts)
• Key Attributes: Logic, Presence
• Identity: The pact-maker. Hexbinders draw power from entities beyond the material world — not gods (that’s the Warden’s domain) but stranger, older things. Their magic is consistent and self-sustaining: many skills heal the caster or debuff enemies while dealing damage. They’re the magical equivalent of a war of attrition.
• Skills per round: 2 (base)
• Unique Mechanic: Soul Pact — Choose a pact entity at character creation. This determines the Hexbinder’s bonus skills and playstyle:
  • Pact of the Flame: Fire-themed. Bonus fire damage on all skills. Burning condition applied frequently.
  • Pact of the Void: Necrotic-themed. Drain effects heal the Hexbinder. Skills get stronger as the fight goes longer.
  • Pact of the Eye: Psychic-themed. Powerful debuffs, mind control, and information-gathering. Less damage, more control.
• Starting Gear: Light armor, wand or rod, occult focus, hexer’s pack
• Subclasses (Level 10):
  • Witch — Curse specialist. Gains powerful DoT and debuff skills that stack. Multiple curses on one enemy amplify each other.
  • Soulreaper — Drain specialist. All damage skills heal for a percentage of damage dealt. Gets stronger the closer to death.
  • Fateweaver — Luck manipulation. Gains skills that force enemies to re-roll successes, grant allies re-rolls on failures, and manipulate the d100 outcomes. The probability bender.

Class Comparison Table

Backgrounds

Backgrounds represent what the character did before becoming an adventurer. Each provides a passive perk that affects dungeon runs and an attribute bonus (+1 to a specific attribute).

Starting Equipment

Beyond class-specific gear, all characters start with:

• 50 gold
• 5 rations
• 2 basic healing salves
• 1 torch bundle (5 torches)
• Basic adventurer’s clothing

Character Slots

• First character: Free
• Additional slots: Purchased from the in-game shop
• Each character is fully independent — separate inventory, separate quests, separate progression
• Characters on the same account can mail items and gold to each other (with a small gold transfer fee as a gold sink)
• Only one character can be on an active dungeon run at a time per slot (but crafting/gathering can run in parallel)

New Player Experience

1. Name and appearance — Quick portrait selection per species
2. Species selection — Each shown with a brief description, clear attribute bonus, and species skill preview
3. Class selection — Presented with role description and playstyle summary
4. Attribute points — Point-buy with one-click “Recommended” per class
5. Background — Simple selection with clear perk description
6. Tutorial quest — A short, guided dungeon run (2 encounters) that teaches the core loop: review results → equip → build queue → commit → wait → results

The entire creation process should take under 5 minutes. Players can respec attribute points later (for a gold cost) but species and class are permanent.

Character Progression

Overview

Progression in Delve is the long-term reward cycle that keeps players engaged. Characters grow stronger through leveling (1-50), weapon proficiency (0-100), subclass specialization, feat selection, and eventually Paragon ranks after the level cap. The curve is designed for an idle game — meaningful gains every session, but the cap should take months to reach.

Level System

Level Cap: 50

50 levels provides a long, satisfying progression arc with room for meaningful milestones and customization. Every level provides something — a stat boost, a new skill, a feat choice, or a subclass feature.

XP Sources

XP on Failed Runs

Failed runs award partial XP based on progress. A character that cleared 8 of 10 encounters earns roughly 70-80% of the full run’s XP. Failure should sting but never feel like wasted time.

Leveling Curve

Total time to 50: Approximately 8-12 months of regular play (1-2 sessions per day). The journey IS the game.

What You Get Per Level

Every level provides:

• +Max HP (based on class + Fortitude)
• +Resource pool (Stamina, Mana, Devotion, etc. — class dependent)
• +1 attribute point every 5 levels (10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50 — total of 9 bonus attribute points)

Level Milestone Table

Attribute Growth Summary

• At creation: ~40 distributed points + species bonus (+3/+1) + background (+1)
• Through leveling: +9 attribute points (one every 5 levels from 10-50)
• From gear: Varies, typically +3-8 total across equipped items at endgame
• Theoretical endgame total: A primary attribute can reach 25-30 through optimization, 30-40 with top-tier gear and Paragon bonuses

Subclasses

Subclass selection at level 10 is the biggest single progression choice after class selection. It defines the character’s specialization for the rest of their career.

Each class has 3 subclasses (detailed in 02-character-creation.md). Subclasses provide:

• Level 10: Core subclass skill + passive
• Level 15: Subclass skill upgrade or new skill
• Level 22: Subclass feature (passive enhancement)
• Level 30: Advanced subclass skill
• Level 38: Subclass feature (passive enhancement)
• Level 45: Subclass capstone — a powerful ultimate ability

Subclass Cannot Be Changed

Subclass is a permanent choice. This makes it feel meaningful and encourages players to roll new characters to try different paths. Combined with weapon proficiency (which takes months to level), each character becomes a unique investment.

Feats

At levels 5, 12, 20, 28, 35, 42, and 48, players select a Feat — a permanent passive or activated bonus that customizes the character beyond class and species.

7 total feat slots over 50 levels gives players significant build variety. Two characters of the same class and subclass can play very differently based on feat choices.

Feat List (Launch Set)

Combat Feats

Dungeon Feats

Social/Economic Feats

Luck Feats

Feat Synergies

Feats are designed to create interesting build decisions when combined:

• Heavy Hitter + Weapon Specialist (axes) = Devastating power strikes with axes
• Quick Reflexes + Lethal Precision = Fast skills that crit frequently
• Blood Magic + Relentless = A desperation caster who trades HP for power with a safety net
• Lucky + Fate’s Chosen = Maximum dice manipulation — the “luck build”

Skills (Non-Combat)

Skills represent trained abilities that affect dungeon outcomes outside of combat. Each character has proficiency in skills based on class, background, and species.

Skill List

Skill Checks in Dungeons

d100 roll vs. success chance
Success Chance = Skill Base (from proficiency) + Attribute Modifier + Gear Bonuses

Proficient skills have a significantly higher base than non-proficient ones. This makes class choice matter for dungeon utility, not just combat.

Paragon System (Post-Level-50)

After hitting level 50, XP continues accumulating toward Paragon Ranks — an endgame horizontal progression system that provides incremental, uncapped growth.

Paragon Ranks

• Each Paragon Rank requires increasing XP (same curve as late levels)
• Each rank grants a Paragon Point
• Paragon Points are spent on a universal Paragon tree with minor but meaningful bonuses:

Paragon Tree Categories:

Diminishing Returns

• Paragon Points are uncapped, but each subsequent point gives slightly less total impact
• The difference between Paragon 0 and Paragon 20 is significant
• The difference between Paragon 80 and Paragon 100 is barely noticeable
• This gives endgame players continuous progression without making them unreachable for newer max-level characters

Paragon Milestones

• Paragon 10: “Paragon” title + portrait frame
• Paragon 25: “Champion” title + enhanced portrait frame
• Paragon 50: “Legend” title + unique cosmetic armor effect
• Paragon 100: “Eternal” title + animated portrait frame + character statue in guild hall

Weapon Proficiency as Progression

See 04-combat-system.md for full details. Key points:

• Each weapon type (swords, axes, daggers, bows, etc.) has an independent 0-100 proficiency track
• Using a weapon in combat increases proficiency → unlocks new skills and passives
• This never ends. Even at level 50 with Paragon ranks, picking up a new weapon type means starting at proficiency 0 — a whole new progression journey
• A veteran player might have swords at 100 and axes at 60, but daggers at 15. Trying daggers gives them months of fresh progression.

Respec Rules

Respec costs act as a gold sink (see 08-economy-and-trading.md). The intent: attributes and feats are adaptable, but the core identity of the character (species, class, subclass) is permanent and meaningful.

Combat System

Overview

Combat in Delve is never witnessed in real-time. The player’s job is to build a skill queue — an ordered list of skills their character will execute — and the server resolves combat automatically. After the run, the player reads a detailed combat log showing every roll, every skill fired, and exactly what happened.

The core strategic loop: build your queue → run the dungeon → read the results → adjust your queue → run again.

Design Philosophy

• The player is the coach, not the athlete. You draft the game plan. The character executes it. Your preparation determines the outcome.
• Every failure is a lesson. The combat log must make it clear WHY something happened — which skill missed, which enemy acted first, where the queue fell apart.
• Progression never ends. Between character level, weapon proficiency, skill unlocks, and gear, there’s always something to improve.

Core Dice System: d100 Percentile

Delve uses a d100 (percentile) system for all combat resolution. Every skill, attack, and effect rolls a number from 1-100 against a success threshold.

How It Works

Roll d100 → Compare to success chance → Determine outcome

Every skill has a base accuracy (e.g., 75%). This is modified by the attacker’s stats, the defender’s stats, conditions, and buffs/debuffs to produce a final success chance.

Success Chance = Skill Base Accuracy + Attacker Modifier - Defender Modifier + Buffs/Debuffs

• Roll ≤ success chance → Hit
• Roll > success chance → Miss
• Roll ≤ 5 → Critical Hit (bonus damage, usually 1.5x)
• Roll 96-100 → Critical Miss (skill fails and may have a penalty — wasted resource, self-debuff, etc.)

Why d100?

• Percentages are intuitive — “you have a 73% chance to hit” is immediately understood
• Fine-grained balance — designers can tune in 1% increments
• Critical hits and misses are always possible, creating dramatic “clutch” and “heartbreak” moments
• Legally distinct from any existing tabletop system

Modifiers

Attacker Modifier is derived from:

• Relevant attribute (Might for melee, Speed for ranged, Logic/Presence for magic)
• Weapon proficiency level (0-100, grants +0 to +15)
• Gear bonuses
• Buff effects

Defender Modifier is derived from:

• Evasion rating (derived from armor, Speed, shields, and class features)
• Debuff effects
• Terrain/positional modifiers

Example

Skill: Crushing Blow (base accuracy 80%)
Attacker Might modifier: +8
Weapon proficiency bonus: +6 (sword mastery at level 40)
Target Evasion modifier: -12 (plate armor + shield)
Buff: Precision Stance +5

Final success chance: 80 + 8 + 6 - 12 + 5 = 87%
Roll: 34 → HIT (34 ≤ 87)

Saving Throws

When a skill inflicts a condition or effect (poison, stun, fear), the target makes a resistance check:

Roll d100 vs. Resistance Chance
Resistance Chance = Base Resistance + Relevant Ability Modifier + Gear/Buff Bonuses

• Roll ≤ resistance chance → effect is resisted (negated or halved)
• Roll > resistance chance → effect lands

This means high-Fortitude characters resist poison more often, high-Presence characters resist fear, etc.

The Skill Queue

The skill queue is the player’s primary interaction with combat. Before a dungeon run, the player arranges their available skills into an ordered queue. During combat, skills execute from this queue based on their initiative values, interleaved with enemy skills.

How the Queue Works

1. The player arranges their skills in a queue (ordered list, typically 4-8 skills)
2. Each skill has an initiative value — a fixed speed rating that determines when it fires relative to other actions in the round
3. Each round, ALL skills from ALL combatants are sorted by initiative (lowest = fastest)
4. Skills execute in initiative order
5. When the player’s queue reaches the end, it loops back to the beginning
6. The queue resets to position 1 at the start of each new encounter (but resources carry over — see Encounter Reset)

Initiative and Turn Order

Every skill has a fixed initiative value representing how fast the skill executes. Lower initiative = acts first.

Think of initiative as “wind-up time” — a quick dagger stab (init 2) fires before a heavy overhead swing (init 8).

Each round, the system collects the “next queued skill” from every combatant and sorts them:

ROUND 1 — Turn Order (sorted by initiative, lowest first):

Player Queue:          Enemy (Dire Rat):
  Slot 1: Crushing Blow (init 5)    Slot 1: Bite (init 2)
  Slot 2: Strengthening Shout (init 7)  Slot 2: Squeal (init 6)

Execution order:
  1. [Init 2] Dire Rat → Bite
  2. [Init 5] Player → Crushing Blow
  3. [Init 6] Dire Rat → Squeal
  4. [Init 7] Player → Strengthening Shout

ROUND 2 — Queue loops:
Player Queue:          Enemy (Dire Rat):
  Slot 3: Quick Slash (init 3)     Slot 3: Bite (init 2)
  Slot 4: Healing Surge (init 9)    Slot 4: Flee Check (init 10)

Execution order:
  1. [Init 2] Dire Rat → Bite
  2. [Init 3] Player → Quick Slash
  3. [Init 9] Player → Healing Surge
  4. [Init 10] Dire Rat → Flee Check

Skills Per Round

Each combatant executes 2 skills per round by default. This can be modified by:

• Class features (e.g., Fighter gets 3 skills per round at level 11)
• Haste-type buffs (+1 skill per round for duration)
• Exhaustion or debuffs (-1 skill per round)
• Specific skills that are “swift” and don’t consume a slot

This means a queue of 6 skills takes 3 rounds to cycle through before looping.

Tie-Breaking

When two skills have the same initiative value:

1. Player character breaks ties using their character initiative stat (derived from DEX + class bonuses + gear). Higher character initiative goes first.
2. If still tied (e.g., two enemies), resolve randomly.

Queue Slots

• Base queue size: 6 slots
• Certain class features expand this (e.g., Bard gets +1 slot for a support skill, Wizard gets +1 slot at level 10)
• Maximum queue size: 10 slots (with all bonuses)
• Minimum queue size: 3 slots (must have at least 3 skills queued)

Light Conditionals

Each skill slot in the queue can have one optional condition attached. If the condition is not met when the skill’s turn comes up, the skill is skipped and the queue advances to the next skill.

Available Conditions

Self Conditions:

• “Use if my HP is below X%” (e.g., only heal when hurt)
• “Use if my HP is above X%” (e.g., only use risky skills when healthy)
• “Skip if [condition] is active on me” (e.g., don’t buff if already buffed)
• “Use if I have [resource] remaining” (e.g., only use mana skill if mana available)

Target Conditions:

• “Use if enemy count is above/below X”
• “Use if target HP is above/below X%”
• “Use if target is [enemy type]” (undead, beast, humanoid, etc.)
• “Skip if target has [condition]” (e.g., don’t re-poison a poisoned target)

Ally Conditions (party play):

• “Use if any ally HP is below X%”
• “Use if ally count is below X” (e.g., emergency heal when party is dying)

Conditional Behavior

• A skill with no condition always fires when its turn comes
• A skill with a failed condition is skipped — the queue advances and that round’s action is lost (the character hesitates)
• This means poorly configured conditionals can waste turns — an intentional risk/reward for using them
• New players should leave most conditions empty and add them as they learn

Example Queue with Conditions

Slot 1: Quick Slash (init 3) ............. [no condition — always fires]
Slot 2: Crushing Blow (init 5) ........... [no condition — always fires]
Slot 3: Healing Surge (init 9) ........... [IF my HP < 50%]
Slot 4: Power Strike (init 6) ............ [no condition — always fires]
Slot 5: War Cry (init 7) ................. [IF enemy count ≥ 3]
Slot 6: Defensive Stance (init 4) ........ [IF my HP < 25%]

In this queue:

• Slots 1, 2, and 4 always fire — reliable damage core
• Slot 3 heals only when needed — skips if healthy (preserving the action for next cycle? No — it’s lost. The player accepts this trade-off for not wasting a heal at full HP)
• Slot 5 only War Cries against groups — skipped against single targets
• Slot 6 is an emergency defensive stance — almost always skipped, but catches emergencies

Skill Targeting

Each skill in the queue has a target rule that determines who it affects. The player configures this per slot.

Target Rules

Offensive Skills:

Defensive/Support Skills:

Area-of-Effect (AoE) Skills:

• AoE skills automatically target the cluster with the most enemies
• Player can set: “Prioritize damage” (hit max enemies) or “Prioritize safety” (avoid hitting allies in the blast)

Weapon Proficiency System

Every weapon type in the game has a proficiency track from 0 to 100. Using a weapon in combat increases proficiency with that weapon type, unlocking stronger skills and passive bonuses.

Weapon Types

Each weapon belongs to a type. Proficiency is tracked per type, not per individual weapon.

Proficiency Progression

Proficiency XP Gain

• Each combat encounter where the weapon is used grants weapon proficiency XP
• XP scales with encounter difficulty (harder fights = faster weapon growth)
• Proficiency slows down at higher levels (0→50 takes roughly the same time as 50→100)
• Estimated time to 100: 3-4 months of regular play with one weapon type
• Players can level multiple weapon types, but spreading focus means slower progress per type
• Weapon proficiency is character-bound — each character tracks their own

Passive Bonuses

At proficiency milestones (40, 60, 80, 100), the weapon type grants a passive bonus that’s always active when wielding that weapon type:

Example — Swords:

• Prof 40: +5% critical hit chance with swords
• Prof 60: Sword skills cost 10% less resource (mana/stamina)
• Prof 80: +10% damage with swords
• Prof 100: Sword attacks have a 10% chance to strike twice

These passives are unique per weapon type, encouraging players to specialize.

Skill Sources

Skills come from four sources. A character’s total available skill pool is the union of all skills they’ve unlocked from each source.

1. Weapon Skills

Unlocked by weapon proficiency (see above). These are the bulk of a character’s offensive skills.

Example — Sword Skills (unlocked at proficiency milestones):

2. Class Skills

Granted by character class at specific levels. These define the class’s unique combat identity.

Example — Fighter Class Skills:

Example — Wizard Class Skills:

3. Species Skills

One skill granted by species (race). Always available from level 1.

4. Gear Skills

Some equipment grants bonus skills that can be placed in the queue. These are a major part of the loot chase — finding a weapon with a powerful attached skill is exciting.

Examples:

• Flamebrand Longsword (Rare): Grants “Flame Burst” (init 5, AoE fire damage around the target)
• Shield of the Sentinel (Very Rare): Grants “Guardian’s Wall” (init 1, absorb damage for lowest-HP ally for 1 round)
• Cloak of Shadows (Uncommon): Grants “Vanish” (init 2, become untargetable for 1 round, next attack is a guaranteed critical)
• Ring of Mending (Rare): Grants “Pulse Heal” (init 8, heal self and all allies for 10% max HP)

Gear skills follow the same rules as all other skills — they occupy a queue slot, have initiative values, and can have conditionals.

Resource System

Skills aren’t free. Most non-basic skills cost resources to use. Resource management across a multi-encounter dungeon is a core strategic concern. Each class has a unique resource with different pool sizes, recovery rates, and behaviors — this is what makes classes feel fundamentally different even when using the same weapons.

The Zero-Cost Rule

Every class has access to zero-cost basic weapon attacks. The basic attack for each weapon type (Basic Slash, Stab, Shoot, etc. at proficiency 0) costs NO resources. This ensures a character is never completely helpless when their resource runs dry — they just lose access to their powerful skills and fall back on basics. Running on empty is weak, but it’s not dead in the water.

Resource Types

Pool sizes are approximate at level 25 with moderate attributes. Actual values scale with level + relevant attribute.

Resource Pool Formulas

Detailed Resource Behaviors

Stamina (Vanguard, Pathfinder)

The baseline “reliable” resource. High pool, 50% recovery between encounters. A Vanguard or Pathfinder should be able to use powered skills in every encounter of a 10-encounter dungeon without running dry — as long as they don’t exclusively spam their most expensive skills.

• Dungeon curve: Flat. Consistent performance from encounter 1 to encounter 10.
• Strategic tension: Low. Stamina users focus more on queue optimization than resource management.

Momentum (Shade)

Starts at 0 each dungeon. Builds +20 per round of combat. Retains 50% between encounters (rounded down).

• Round 1: Momentum = 0 (or carry-over from last fight). Basic skills only.
• Round 2: Momentum = 20+. Cheap powered skills available.
• Round 3: Momentum = 40+. Mid-tier skills available.
• Round 4+: Momentum = 60+. Premium skills available.
• Between encounters: If ending a fight at 80 momentum → carry 40 into the next fight.
• Dungeon curve: Ramps up. Early encounters are weaker; by encounter 3-4 the Shade enters each fight with 30-40 banked momentum and hits their power spike faster.
• Strategic tension: Queue ordering matters enormously. Cheap skills early in the queue build momentum; expensive skills later in the queue spend it.
• Assassin subclass bonus: Skills deal +1% damage per 5 momentum currently banked (at 80 momentum: +16% damage). Rewards banking momentum rather than spending it freely.

Mana (Arcanist)

Classic caster resource. 25% recovery is the second-lowest among pool resources (only Resonance is lower). The Arcanist must choose: go nuclear on early encounters (Fireball everything) and scrape by later, or conserve mana and deal moderate damage throughout.

• Spell Mastery class feature reduces costs the more a skill is used in a dungeon, rewarding consistent skill selection over the full run.
• Dungeon curve: Declining. Peak power in encounters 1-3, then gradually weaker as mana depletes. Strategic play extends the peak.
• Strategic tension: High. Which encounters deserve your expensive spells? Can you clear this fight with cantrips and save mana for the boss?

Devotion (Warden)

Same 25% recovery as mana. But the stakes are higher: when the Warden runs dry, the party loses ALL healing. This makes Warden resource management the most consequential in the game for party play.

• Sanctify (free, once per encounter) provides a 20% healing boost window — timing Sanctify with your biggest heals maximizes devotion efficiency.
• Dungeon curve: Declining, with catastrophic failure state. Smart Wardens heal only when necessary and let natural regen handle minor damage.
• Strategic tension: Highest of any class. Over-healing wastes devotion. Under-healing risks party death. The Warden is always making resource calls.

Focus (Pathfinder)

50% recovery — tied with Stamina for the best among pool resources. Combined with a moderate pool size, the Pathfinder is the most sustainable ranged class.

• Dungeon curve: Nearly flat. Slight decline over very long dungeons but generally consistent.
• Strategic tension: Low-medium. Pathfinders can afford to use powered skills most rounds.

Fury (Berserker)

Starts at 0. Builds based on damage dealt only (not damage taken). Each skill that hits grants Fury proportional to the damage dealt (roughly +1 Fury per 3% of target’s max HP dealt). Retains 25% between encounters.

• Rage triggers at 50 Fury: +25% melee damage, -15% evasion, 3 skills per round, immune to Frightened.
• Rage ends if Fury drops below 25 (Fury naturally decays -5/round while Raging, creating a timer — must keep hitting to sustain it).
• Between encounters: If ending at 70 Fury → carry 17 into next fight. Not enough to start Raging, but a head start.
• Dungeon curve: Volatile. Short easy fights may never trigger Rage. Long hard fights trigger Rage quickly. Boss encounters are where Berserkers shine.
• Strategic tension: Medium. Queue should front-load fast, reliable hits to build Fury, then switch to heavy power skills once Raging.

Resonance (Songweaver)

Starts at max. 15% recovery between encounters — the lowest of any pool resource. The Songweaver’s arc is unique: they start as the strongest buffer in the game and gradually weaken.

• Anthem is free — the passive Anthem effect costs no Resonance and is always active. The Songweaver is never useless.
• Active skills (buffs, debuffs, heals) cost Resonance.
• Dungeon curve: Declining, but with a floor. Even at 0 Resonance, the Anthem provides value and basic weapon attacks are free.
• Strategic tension: Very high. Every active skill expenditure is a permanent investment. Is this encounter worth blowing a buff, or should you coast on the Anthem and basic attacks?
• Rest points provide a significant Resonance boost (50%), making rest point decisions critical for Songweavers.

Zeal (Oathblade)

Moderate pool, 30% recovery. The catch: Smite costs Zeal ON TOP OF the skill’s normal cost. A Smited Crushing Blow costs the base Crushing Blow stamina/zeal PLUS the Smite surcharge. This makes Oathblades burn resources roughly 1.5-2x faster than other classes when Smiting.

• Dungeon curve: Depends entirely on Smite usage. An Oathblade who Smites every skill is dry by encounter 5. One who only Smites bosses lasts the whole dungeon.
• Strategic tension: High. Which skills to Smite is the core Oathblade decision. Smite the opening power strike for burst? Or save Smites for the boss?
• Avenger subclass reduces Smite cost by 25%, making the burn rate much more sustainable.

Essence (Hexbinder)

Smallest pool but 50% recovery — the fast-cycle resource. A Hexbinder enters each encounter with a small burst window (3-4 powered skills), then falls back to basics or drain-style skills that are cheap/free.

• Pact of the Void subpath makes drain skills cost 0 Essence but deal 15% less damage — the sustained option.
• Dungeon curve: Flat but in a different way from Stamina. Each encounter is a mini-cycle: burst → conserve → burst → conserve.
• Strategic tension: Medium. The question isn’t “will I run dry over the dungeon” but “how do I get maximum value out of my 3-4 powered skills per encounter.”

Resource Recovery at Rest Points

Rest points (see 06-quests-and-dungeons.md) provide enhanced recovery:

Running Out of Resources

When a skill in the queue would fire but the character doesn’t have enough resources:

• The skill is skipped (same as a failed conditional)
• The queue advances to the next slot
• The character does NOT lose the action — if the next slot has an affordable skill (or a zero-cost basic attack), it fires instead
• If NO skills in the queue are affordable, the character performs a zero-cost basic weapon attack as a fallback

This means even depleted characters contribute damage. They’re significantly weaker, but never dead weight.

10-Encounter Dungeon Performance Summary

How each class performs across a full 10-encounter dungeon (no rest points):

This diversity of power curves is intentional. Parties benefit from mixing classes with different arcs — an Arcanist who goes nuclear early paired with a Shade who comes online later creates sustained total DPS across the dungeon.

Encounter Flow

1. Surprise Check

Attacker Stealth Rating vs. Defender Perception Rating → d100 roll

• If the party’s scout (highest stealth) beats the enemies’ perception → party gets a surprise round (one full cycle of skills before enemies act)
• If enemies beat the party’s perception → enemies get a surprise round
• Shades and Pathfinders have class bonuses to stealth; Perception is a key defensive stat

2. Combat Rounds

Each round:

1. Collect the next queued skill from each combatant
2. Sort all skills by initiative value (lowest first)
3. Execute skills in order, resolving hits/misses/effects
4. Check for triggered reactive skills (species abilities, gear procs)
5. Apply end-of-round effects (DoTs, condition timers, regeneration)
6. Check for combat end conditions

3. Combat Ends When

• All enemies reach 0 HP (victory)
• The player character reaches 0 HP (defeat — see Death and Recovery)
• A special condition is met (survive X rounds, destroy an object, etc.)
• An enemy flees (some enemies flee at low HP)

4. Between Encounters (Partial Reset)

• Queue resets to slot 1
• HP does NOT fully recover — only natural regen (5-10% based on Fortitude) unless a healing skill or potion is available
• Resource recovery varies by type (see Resource System above):
  • Stamina/Focus/Essence: 50%
  • Zeal: 30%
  • Mana/Devotion: 25%
  • Resonance: 15%
  • Momentum: retains 50% of current value
  • Fury: retains 25% of current value
  • Charges: do NOT recover
• Conditions persist (poison, bleeding, etc. carry to next encounter unless cured)
• Cooldowns tick down (a 5-encounter cooldown skill becomes available sooner)

This partial reset creates tension across a full dungeon run. A player who blows all their mana in encounter 1 will struggle by encounter 5.

Conditions and Effects

Conditions are status effects applied during combat by skills, traps, environmental hazards, and enemy abilities. They are central to strategy — applying the right debuffs and avoiding the wrong ones is as important as raw damage.

Conditions fall into three categories: Debuffs (harmful, applied to enemies), Buffs (beneficial, applied to self/allies), and Environmental (caused by dungeon hazards, affect everyone).

How Conditions Work

• Application: A skill that inflicts a condition triggers a resistance check on the target (unless the condition is irresistible or a buff)
• Resistance check: d100 roll vs. target's Resistance Chance for the relevant attribute. Roll ≤ resistance chance = resisted (condition doesn’t apply). Roll > resistance chance = condition lands.
• Resistance Chance formula: Base Resistance (30%) + (Relevant Attribute × 2%) + Gear/Buff Bonuses + Fortitude Blanket Bonus
• Fortitude blanket bonus: Every point of Fortitude above 10 adds +1.5% to ALL resistance checks, regardless of type. This makes Fortitude the universal defensive attribute for conditions.
• Stacking: Most conditions do NOT stack with themselves. Reapplying a condition refreshes the duration instead. Exceptions are noted (Bleeding, Exhaustion).
• Condition cap: A character can be affected by a maximum of 5 debuffs simultaneously. If a 6th is applied, the one with the shortest remaining duration is removed. This prevents debuff avalanches from making a character completely nonfunctional.
• Cleansing: Conditions can be removed early by cleanse skills (Warden, Songweaver, some consumables), or by specific counters noted per condition.

Debuffs (Harmful Conditions)

Physical Debuffs

Bleeding

• Effect: Lose 4% of max HP at the end of each round. Does not trigger resistance checks to end — runs its full duration.
• Duration: 3 rounds
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: YES — each application adds a separate Bleeding stack. 3 stacks of Bleeding = 12% max HP per round. Max 5 stacks.
• Cured By: Healing skill (removes 1 stack per heal), Healer’s Kit consumable (removes all stacks), rest point (removes all stacks)
• Strategic Notes: Bleeding is the primary sustained damage condition. Classes like the Shade (Saboteur) and weapons like daggers (Bleeding Edge) specialize in stacking bleeds. Against high-HP bosses, stacking bleeds can outdamage direct attacks. Fortitude-heavy builds resist the initial application but can’t stop it once it’s on.
• Combat Log Display: ⚠ BLEEDING (×2) — Losing 8% max HP/round (14 damage/round). 2 rounds remaining.

Poisoned

• Effect: -12% accuracy on all skills AND -12% damage dealt.
• Duration: 4 rounds OR until cured
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Antidote consumable (instant cure), Warden cleanse skill, rest point, or Fortitude resistance check at end of each round (separate roll — 50% of normal resistance chance, so it’s hard to shake off naturally)
• Strategic Notes: Poison is a comprehensive debuff that makes the target worse at everything. It’s most effective against damage dealers (reducing their output) and against enemies with high accuracy (making them miss). The per-round resistance check means high-Fortitude characters can shrug it off naturally; low-Fortitude characters are stuck for the full duration.
• Combat Log Display: ☠ POISONED — -12% accuracy, -12% damage. 3 rounds remaining. End-of-round Fortitude check: d100: 72 vs. 23% → FAILED to shake off.

Weakened

• Effect: -20% damage dealt on all skills.
• Duration: 3 rounds
• Resisted By: Might
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Buff skills that grant Empowered (overrides Weakened), cleanse, rest point
• Strategic Notes: Pure damage reduction debuff. Most effective against enemies with few but powerful attacks (bosses). Less useful against swarm enemies. Resisted by Might, so casters and healers are more vulnerable to it.

Exhaustion

• Effect: Cumulative debuff with escalating levels. Each level stacks on the previous:
  • Level 1: -5% accuracy, -5% damage, -5% evasion
  • Level 2: -10% all stats, resource recovery between encounters halved
  • Level 3: -20% all stats, only 1 skill per round
  • Level 4: Unconscious (effectively dead for the encounter; in party play, can be revived)
• Duration: Until a rest point is reached OR the dungeon ends. Does NOT expire on its own.
• Resisted By: Cannot be resisted. Exhaustion is a dungeon management mechanic, not a combat mechanic.
• Stacking: YES — by levels. Each new source of exhaustion adds +1 level.
• Caused By: Running out of rations, failing certain environmental hazards, Berserker’s Frenzy subclass abilities, some boss mechanics, consecutive fights without rest
• Cured By: Rest points reduce exhaustion by 1 level. Some Warden skills can reduce by 1 level. Completing the dungeon fully removes exhaustion.
• Strategic Notes: Exhaustion is the penalty for poor preparation — not bringing enough rations, skipping rest points, or pushing through content that’s too hard. It’s also a design tool for making dungeon length matter. A 15-encounter dungeon without rest points will exhaust characters who aren’t prepared.
• Combat Log Display: ⚡ EXHAUSTION Level 2 — -10% all stats, resource recovery halved.

Elemental Debuffs

Burning

• Effect: Lose 6% of max HP at the start of each round. If another Burning creature is adjacent, 25% chance to spread Burning to non-burning adjacent targets (enemies AND allies — friendly fire risk for AoE fire skills).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Speed (dodge the initial source)
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Using an action to extinguish (costs a queue slot — the “Extinguish” fallback action), water-based environmental effects, cold damage (removes Burning), cleanse
• Strategic Notes: Burning is high damage-over-time but short duration and has a built-in counterplay (spend an action to extinguish). The spread mechanic makes Burning powerful against groups but dangerous in parties — an Arcanist (Evoker) who Burns an enemy adjacent to the party’s Vanguard may accidentally set the tank on fire. The Evoker subclass can shape AoE to avoid this.

Frozen

• Effect: Initiative values on ALL skills increased by +4 (act significantly slower). -10% evasion (harder to dodge while frozen in place).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Fire damage (removes Frozen), Burning condition (removes Frozen — fire and ice cancel), cleanse, natural expiration
• Counter-Synergy with Burning: Frozen and Burning cancel each other. Applying Burning to a Frozen target removes Frozen (and vice versa). This creates tactical decisions — do you Freeze an enemy to slow them, knowing your Arcanist’s fire spells will unfreeze them?
• Strategic Notes: Frozen is the premier “slow you down” debuff. In the skill queue system, +4 initiative is devastating — a Quick Thrust (init 3) becomes init 7, acting after most enemy skills. Frozen is best used against fast enemies to neutralize their speed advantage.

Shocked (Lightning)

• Effect: 30% chance each round that the next queued skill fizzles (activates but automatically misses, still consuming resources). Additionally, -5% accuracy on all skills.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Cleanse, natural expiration
• Strategic Notes: Shocked is the most RNG-heavy debuff. The 30% fizzle chance creates dramatic moments in the combat log — the enemy boss’s devastating power strike fizzles harmlessly due to being Shocked. Unreliable but potentially game-changing.

Corroded (Acid)

• Effect: -15% evasion (armor is dissolving) AND all incoming damage increased by 10%.
• Duration: 3 rounds
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Cleanse, natural expiration
• Strategic Notes: Corroded is a “damage amplifier” debuff. It doesn’t deal damage directly but makes the target dramatically more vulnerable to everything else. Apply Corroded first, THEN hit with power strikes. Excellent in party play where one character applies Corroded and others exploit it.

Mental Debuffs

Frightened

• Effect: -15% accuracy on all skills. Cannot target the source of fear (skills targeting the frightener are redirected to the next valid target per the target rule). If the source of fear is the ONLY enemy, -25% accuracy instead (nowhere to redirect).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Presence
• End-of-round check: At the end of each round, the Frightened character makes a Presence resistance check at 50% of normal resistance chance. Success removes Frightened early.
• Cured By: Warden cleanse, Songweaver’s Anthem of Valor (provides immunity while active), Berserker’s Rage (grants immunity), natural end-of-round check
• Strategic Notes: Frightened is the premiere “keep away” condition. A tank who Frightens enemies protects squishier allies. An enemy that Frightens the party’s damage dealer can stall a fight. Presence-focused classes (Warden, Songweaver, Oathblade) resist it easily; Logic/Speed classes are more vulnerable.

Charmed

• Effect: Cannot target the charmer with any offensive skill. 25% chance each round that the Charmed character’s offensive skill targets a random ally instead of an enemy (in party play — solo characters target themselves for reduced damage). The Charmed character’s accuracy against non-charmer targets is unaffected.
• Duration: 3 rounds OR until the Charmed character takes damage from any source (damage breaks the charm)
• Resisted By: Presence
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration and source)
• Cured By: Taking any damage (including DoTs — a Bleeding character auto-breaks charm), cleanse, natural expiration
• Strategic Notes: Charm is terrifying in party play — a Charmed Berserker might Crushing Blow their own Warden. The counterplay is immediate: ANY damage breaks it. This means Burning or Bleeding actually serves as charm protection. Clever parties ensure their high-damage members always have a minor DoT ticking to prevent charm disasters.
• Combat Log Display: 💜 CHARMED by Siren — Cannot target Siren. Friendly fire risk: 25%. Damage will break charm.

Confused

• Effect: Each round, 40% chance that the queued skill targets a random combatant (could be an ally, an enemy, or self) instead of the configured target. Remaining 60% of the time, skills execute normally.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Logic
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Cleanse, natural expiration
• Strategic Notes: Confused is the “chaos” debuff. Unlike Charm (which has a clear source and clear counterplay), Confusion is just random disruption. It’s less severe than Charm (40% misdirection vs. guaranteed) but has no easy counterplay. Most dangerous on high-damage characters.

Silenced

• Effect: Cannot use magical skills (any skill tagged as Magical type). Physical and weapon skills are unaffected. Resource-based class skills that require verbal/magical components are also blocked.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Logic
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Cleanse, natural expiration
• Affected Classes: Arcanist (severely — most skills are magical), Warden (healing skills are magical), Hexbinder (most skills), Songweaver (active buffs are magical, but Anthem persists since it’s passive). Vanguard, Shade, Berserker, Pathfinder largely unaffected.
• Strategic Notes: Silence is an anti-caster condition. The Oathblade (Inquisitor) subclass specializes in applying Silence. Against a party, Silencing the Warden shuts down healing. Against enemy casters, Silence is the best counter available.
• Combat Log Display: 🔇 SILENCED — Cannot use magical skills. Physical skills unaffected. 2 rounds remaining.

Movement/Action Debuffs

Stunned

• Effect: Skip the next queued skill entirely (lose 1 action). If a character would execute 2 skills this round, they only execute 1. If they would execute 1 (already Slowed), they execute 0.
• Duration: 1 round (always — Stun is short but devastating)
• Resisted By: Fortitude
• Stacking: No. If already Stunned, reapplication has no effect (can’t double-stun).
• Cured By: Automatic after 1 round. Cannot be cleansed early (it’s too fast — cleanse happens on your turn, but the stun already consumed your action).
• Strategic Notes: Stun is the strongest single-round debuff in the game. Losing an entire action in a queue-based system is massive — it pushes back your entire queue by one slot, potentially desynchronizing combos. The Shield skill line (Shield Bash) is one of the most reliable Stun sources. Bosses typically have increased Stun resistance or are immune.

Slowed

• Effect: Only execute 1 skill per round instead of 2 (or instead of 3 for Raging Berserkers / Vanguards at level 25+).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Speed
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Haste buff (overrides Slow — they cancel each other), cleanse, natural expiration
• Counter-synergy with Haste: Slowed and Hasted cancel each other. Applying Haste to a Slowed character removes Slow. Applying Slow to a Hasted character removes Haste.
• Strategic Notes: Slowed is Stun’s longer, milder cousin. Losing 1 skill per round for 2 rounds means losing 2 total skills — same as being Stunned twice. But Slowed is resistable, cleansable, and counterable with Haste. Most effective against Berserkers (drops them from 3 skills/round while Raging to 1 — devastating).

Blinded

• Effect: -25% accuracy on all skills. Cannot detect traps (if Blinded during a trap encounter). Auto-fail sight-based skill checks.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Speed (dodge the blinding effect)
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Cleanse, Warden healing skill (some remove Blinded as a secondary effect), natural expiration
• Strategic Notes: Blinded is the heaviest single accuracy penalty in the game. A Blinded character with 80% base accuracy drops to 55% — coin-flip territory. Most impactful on power-strike builds where every miss is a massive DPS loss. Less impactful on DoT/condition builds that don’t rely on accuracy as much.

Rooted

• Effect: Cannot use skills tagged as “movement” or “repositioning.” Melee skills can only target adjacent enemies (can’t close distance). Ranged skills are unaffected. -10% evasion.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Resisted By: Might (brute force to break free)
• Stacking: No (refreshes duration)
• Cured By: Might resistance check at end of each round (50% of normal chance), cleanse, fire damage (burns the roots)
• Strategic Notes: Rooted is a positioning debuff. In a system without physical movement, its primary effect is preventing certain skills that involve repositioning (Shadow Step, dash-type abilities) and reducing evasion. Most impactful against Shades and other mobile classes.

Buffs (Beneficial Conditions)

Buffs are applied by support skills, self-buffs, consumables, and some class mechanics. They cannot be resisted (you don’t resist your own buffs). They CAN be dispelled by enemy skills that strip buffs (Vexari’s Unravel, Hexbinder’s Witch subclass).

Inspired

• Effect: +10% accuracy and +10% damage on all skills.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Source: Songweaver skills, Ashenmere species skill (Soul Echo), some gear
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: The bread-and-butter combat buff. Simple, universally useful, always worth applying. Best on high-damage allies (10% of a big number is a big bonus).

Empowered

• Effect: +20% damage on all skills. Overrides Weakened (removes it if present).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Source: Berserker self-buffs, Oathblade aura skills, Songweaver War Chanter skills
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: Stronger than Inspired’s damage component but doesn’t include accuracy. Best on characters who already have high accuracy and want to push their damage ceiling.

Shielded

• Effect: Absorb the next X points of damage before HP is affected. Shield value varies by the skill that applied it (typically 10-30% of the caster’s max HP). Multiple Shielded effects stack their absorb values.
• Duration: Until depleted OR 5 rounds (whichever comes first)
• Source: Vanguard (Bulwark), Warden skills, Shield weapon skills, some gear
• Dispellable: Yes (dispel removes the entire shield)
• Strategic Notes: Shielded is the premier damage prevention buff. It’s more efficient than healing because it prevents damage before it happens (no HP lost, no healing needed). Stacking shields on a character before a boss encounter is a powerful preparation strategy.

Regenerating

• Effect: Recover 4% of max HP at the start of each round.
• Duration: 3 rounds
• Source: Warden heal-over-time skills, Thornkin species skill (Regenerative Bark — enhanced version), some potions, Songweaver Anthem of Mending (weaker but free and permanent)
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: Efficient healing over time. 4% per round × 3 rounds = 12% total — often more than a direct heal for the same resource cost. Best applied proactively before damage is taken.

Hasted

• Effect: Execute 3 skills per round instead of 2 (or 4 instead of 3 for Raging Berserkers). Overrides Slowed (removes it if present).
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Source: Arcanist (Chronomancer) skills, rare consumables (Potion of Speed), high-level Songweaver skills
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: Haste is one of the most powerful buffs in the game. An extra skill per round for 2 rounds means 2 extra actions total — effectively a free round of combat. Because the skill queue loops, Haste doesn’t just add actions, it accelerates your queue cycle, getting you back to your best skills faster. Extremely valuable on damage dealers.

Fortified

• Effect: +15% evasion and +15% resistance to all conditions.
• Duration: 3 rounds
• Source: Vanguard defensive skills, Shield skills (Shield Wall), Oathblade (Sentinel) aura, some potions
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: The defensive counterpart to Inspired. Makes a character harder to hit and harder to debuff. Best applied to the character most likely to be targeted (the tank) or most vulnerable to conditions (the Arcanist with low Fortitude).

Focused

• Effect: Critical hit threshold improved by +5% (e.g., base ≤5 becomes ≤10). Next critical hit deals 2x damage instead of the normal 1.5x.
• Duration: 3 rounds OR until a critical hit is scored (whichever comes first)
• Source: Shade self-buffs, Pathfinder (Eagle Eye), Assassin subclass skills, some gear
• Dispellable: Yes
• Strategic Notes: Focused turns the next critical hit into a devastating blow. Best applied before a high-accuracy, multi-hit skill (Viper’s Dance, Arrow Storm) to maximize the chance of triggering the enhanced crit.

Invisible

• Effect: Cannot be targeted by single-target enemy skills for the duration. AoE skills still affect Invisible characters. First offensive skill used while Invisible gains +20% accuracy and +20% damage (the Invisible character then becomes visible).
• Duration: 1 round OR until an offensive skill is used
• Source: Shade (Phase Step, Shadow Step), Potion of Invisibility, Phantom subclass skills
• Dispellable: No (it’s a physical state, not a magical effect)
• Strategic Notes: Invisibility is a powerful burst setup — become invisible, then unleash a devastating skill at +20%. It’s also defensive in that enemies can’t target you for a round. The AoE vulnerability prevents it from being a complete immunity.

Taunted (Forced Targeting)

• Effect: Affected enemy MUST target the Taunter with their next offensive skill. If the Taunter is untargetable (Invisible, dead), the Taunt breaks.
• Duration: 2 rounds
• Source: Vanguard skills (Guardian Stance, Bulwark subclass), Shield skills, Intimidation-based skills
• Applied to: Enemies (it’s technically a debuff on the enemy, but listed here because it’s a tank BUFF mechanic)
• Resisted By: Presence (the enemy resists being forced)
• Strategic Notes: Taunt is the core tanking mechanic. A Vanguard who can reliably Taunt enemies protects the party’s squishier members. Taunt interacts with the enemy’s queue — the enemy’s next skill is forced to target the Taunter, which may waste a heal or buff on an offensive action. Bosses may have Taunt resistance or immunity on certain phases.

Environmental Conditions

These are applied by dungeon hazards, traps, and environmental effects — not by skills. They affect any character in the encounter.

Darkness

• Effect: All characters without Darkvision: -15% accuracy, -25% trap detection, cannot detect hidden rooms. Characters WITH Darkvision (some species or gear) are unaffected.
• Duration: Entire encounter (or until a torch is used)
• Cured By: Using a torch (consumable), Light-producing skills, Darkvision gear
• Strategic Notes: This is why you bring torches. A dark encounter without torches is a serious handicap, especially for trap detection. Some dungeon types (caves, crypts) are primarily dark.

Wet

• Effect: +50% damage from Lightning/Shock effects. -50% damage from Fire effects. Burning condition is immediately removed.
• Duration: Entire encounter OR 3 rounds after the water source is passed
• Caused By: Flooded rooms, rain, water traps
• Strategic Notes: Wet dramatically changes elemental combat math. An Arcanist (Evoker) should switch from fire to lightning spells in wet encounters. Enemies in a flooded room are extremely vulnerable to Chain Lightning.

Extreme Heat

• Effect: All characters lose 2% max HP per round. Fire resistance reduces this to 1%. Fortitude resistance check each round — failure adds 1 Exhaustion level at the end of the encounter.
• Duration: Entire encounter
• Caused By: Volcanic areas, fire-themed dungeons, desert environments
• Strategic Notes: Extreme Heat makes long fights dangerous. Quick kills are rewarded. Fire Resistance Potions become essential in fire-themed dungeons.

Extreme Cold

• Effect: All characters have +2 initiative on all skills (act slower). Fortitude resistance check each round — failure adds 1 Exhaustion level at the end of the encounter. Fire-based skills deal +15% damage (the heat is welcome).
• Duration: Entire encounter
• Caused By: Frozen areas, ice-themed dungeons, mountain peaks
• Strategic Notes: Extreme Cold slows everyone down and punishes long fights. The fire damage bonus makes fire-based builds situationally excellent in cold dungeons.

Cursed Ground

• Effect: Healing effectiveness reduced by 50%. Regenerating condition ticks for half value. Necrotic damage increased by 25%.
• Duration: Entire encounter
• Caused By: Undead lairs, corrupted areas, necromantic rituals
• Strategic Notes: Cursed Ground makes healer-dependent parties struggle and is the signature hazard of undead dungeons. Parties should bring extra healing potions for cursed encounters and avoid relying solely on the Warden.

Arcane Interference

• Effect: All magical skills have -10% accuracy. Mana/Essence/Devotion costs increased by 25%. Physical skills are unaffected.
• Duration: Entire encounter
• Caused By: Anti-magic zones, Sundering scars, specific dungeon rooms
• Strategic Notes: Arcane Interference punishes magic-heavy parties. Fights in these zones favor physical damage dealers (Vanguard, Shade, Berserker, Pathfinder with bows). Arcanists and Hexbinders should switch to weapon skills if they have proficiency.

Condition Interactions

Certain conditions interact with each other in specific ways. These interactions create tactical depth and reward players who understand the system.

Condition Immunity

Some abilities grant immunity to specific conditions:

• Berserker Rage: Immune to Frightened
• Ironborn (Unyielding): Immune to Rooted while Shielded
• Fortified buff: Not immunity, but +15% resistance makes conditions much harder to land
• Boss mechanics: Many bosses are immune to Stunned and Charmed (noted in their stat block). No boss is immune to Bleeding or Burning (DoTs always work, ensuring damage-over-time builds remain viable against all content).

Condition Priority in the Combat Log

The combat log displays active conditions prominently:

YOUR STATUS: HP 142/200 (71%) | Stamina 64/180
  Active: Inspired (1 round), Bleeding ×2 (2 rounds)
  Losing 8% HP/round from Bleeding

ENEMY STATUS: Goblin Boss HP 89/150 (59%)
  Active: Poisoned (3 rounds), Corroded (2 rounds)
  -12% accuracy, -12% damage, -15% evasion, +10% incoming damage

After each encounter, the log summarizes condition impact:

📊 CONDITION IMPACT:
  Your Bleeding stacks dealt 42 total damage to you (24% of damage taken)
  Your Poisoned debuff on Goblin Boss reduced its damage output by ~18 points
  Your Corroded debuff on Goblin Boss increased party damage to it by ~31 points
  💡 TIP: Bringing Antidotes would have prevented 42 Bleeding damage.
     The Goblin Shaman applied Bleeding twice — consider focusing it first.

Death and Recovery

Falling to 0 HP

When a character reaches 0 HP:

• Solo play: The character is defeated. The encounter (and the run, if no revival items) ends in failure.
• Party play: The character falls unconscious. Each round, roll d100:
  • ≤30: Stabilize (stop dying, remain unconscious at 1 HP)
  • 31-90: No change (still dying)
  • 91-100: Worsen (one step closer to death — 3 worsens = eliminated from the run)
  • Allies can use healing skills/items on unconscious characters to revive them

Revival Items

• Revive Scroll (consumable): Immediately revive with 25% HP. Rare and valuable.
• Certain class skills can revive (Warden’s “Breath of Life”, Oathblade’s “Lay on Hands” at high level)

Run Failure Penalties

• Character returns to town
• Partial XP awarded based on encounters completed (~70-80% of earned XP)
• Consumables used during the run are lost (potions, rations, scrolls, charges)
• Gear is NOT lost — no durability loss, no item destruction
• Recovery timer before next run: 15 minutes to 2 hours (scales with dungeon depth)
  • Can be sped up with convenience purchase (see 14-monetization.md)
• Weapon proficiency XP is kept — even failed runs contribute to weapon mastery

Why No Permadeath

You can’t intervene in an idle game. Permadeath for something you couldn’t control would be rage-inducing. The penalty — lost time, lost consumables, recovery timer — is meaningful enough to make preparation matter without being devastating.

Skill Design Framework

Skills are categorized by role to ensure a wide variety of strategic options. Every weapon type and class should have skills across multiple categories.

Skill Categories

Skill Design Rules

1. Every skill must have a meaningful initiative value. Fast skills are weaker; slow skills are stronger. This is the core trade-off.
2. No skill should be strictly better than another in all situations. Quick Thrust is faster but weaker than Crushing Blow — both have a place.
3. Skills should combo. A debuff that lowers evasion makes the next power strike more likely to hit. A buff that increases damage makes the next AoE more devastating. Queue ordering matters.
4. Resource costs create choices. A full queue of power strikes runs out of stamina fast. Mixing in basic attacks extends the run.
5. Skills per weapon should feel thematically distinct. Sword skills feel different from axe skills — swords are precise and combo-oriented; axes are raw power and cleave.

Expanded Skill Lists by Weapon Type

Axes

Daggers

Bows

Staves (Melee/Hybrid)

Wands

Shields (Off-Hand)

Party Combat

In multiplayer encounters, all party members’ queues execute simultaneously alongside enemies.

Turn Order (Party)

ROUND 1 — 4-Player Party vs. Orc Warband

All combatants' next queued skills, sorted by initiative:
  [Init 1] Fighter → Block (shield skill)
  [Init 2] Rogue → Backstab
  [Init 2] Orc Grunt A → Slash (tie: resolved by character initiative stat)
  [Init 3] Ranger → Rapid Shot
  [Init 4] Orc Shaman → Hex Bolt
  [Init 5] Wizard → Arcane Bolt
  [Init 5] Orc Grunt B → Slash
  [Init 6] Orc Chief → War Cry (buff)
  [Init 7] Fighter → Crushing Blow
  [Init 8] Rogue → Eviscerate
  [Init 8] Ranger → Aimed Shot
  [Init 9] Wizard → Elemental Burst

Healing and Support Targeting

• Heal skills target based on the player’s configured target rule (e.g., “lowest HP ally”)
• Buff skills target based on configured rule (e.g., “self” or “highest threat ally”)
• Party synergy: A well-coordinated party queues complementary skills:
  • Tank leads with Block/Guardian Stance (fast initiative, protects party)
  • Debuffer applies Weakened/Sunder Armor early
  • DPS follows with Power Strikes against softened targets
  • Healer places heals mid-queue with “if ally HP < 50%” conditionals

Combat Log / Replay

The combat log is how players experience combat after the fact. It must be detailed, readable, and instructional.

Log Format Example

═══ ENCOUNTER 4: Goblin Ambush ═══
Location: Collapsed Mine, Chamber 3
Enemies: Goblin Boss (Lv.5), Goblin Archer ×3 (Lv.3), Goblin Shaman (Lv.4)

⚠ SURPRISE: Perception check: d100 roll 67 vs. 42% detection chance → FAIL
  Enemies get a surprise round!

── Surprise Round ──
  [Init 2] Goblin Archer 1 → Snap Shot at YOU: d100: 31 vs. 68% → HIT → 7 piercing
  [Init 2] Goblin Archer 2 → Snap Shot at YOU: d100: 82 vs. 68% → MISS
  [Init 4] Goblin Shaman → Hex Bolt at YOU: d100: 28 vs. 71% → HIT → 5 necrotic + Weakened (2 rounds)

── Round 1 ──
  [Init 2] Goblin Archer 3 → Snap Shot at YOU: d100: 55 vs. 68% → HIT → 7 piercing
  [Init 3] YOU → Queue Slot 1: Quick Thrust → Goblin Shaman [Target: Highest Threat]
       d100: 22 vs. 81% → HIT → 14 piercing damage (Shaman HP: 18/32)
  [Init 5] YOU → Queue Slot 2: Crushing Blow → Goblin Shaman [Target: Highest Threat]
       d100: 44 vs. 74% → HIT → 23 slashing damage (Shaman HP: 0/32) → DEAD
  [Init 5] Goblin Boss → Power Swing at YOU: d100: 15 vs. 72% → HIT → 12 slashing
  [Init 6] Goblin Archer 1 → Aimed Shot at YOU: d100: 91 vs. 65% → MISS
  [Init 6] Goblin Archer 2 → Snap Shot at YOU: d100: 48 vs. 68% → HIT → 7 piercing

  Your HP: 38/62 (61%) | Stamina: 74/100 | Conditions: Weakened (1 round remaining)

── Round 2 ──
  [Init 3] YOU → Queue Slot 3: Whirlwind Slash → All Adjacent [AoE: max enemies]
       Goblin Boss: d100: 38 vs. 69% → HIT → 11 slashing
       Goblin Archer 1: d100: 71 vs. 69% → MISS
       Goblin Archer 2: d100: 12 vs. 69% → HIT → 11 slashing (HP: 3/14)
  [Init 4] Goblin Boss → Rallying Shout → All goblins gain Inspired (+10% acc, +10% dmg, 2 rounds)
  [Init 5] YOU → Queue Slot 4: Healing Surge [IF HP < 50%]
       Condition MET (HP at 61%... wait, 61% > 50%) → SKIPPED
       ↳ Queue advances to Slot 5: Power Strike → Goblin Boss [Target: Highest HP]
       d100: 03 vs. 78% → ★ CRITICAL HIT ★ → 34 slashing (1.5× damage!) → Boss HP: 21/48
  [Init 5] Goblin Archer 1 → Aimed Shot at YOU: d100: 29 vs. 75% (Inspired) → HIT → 9 piercing
  [Init 5] Goblin Archer 2 → Snap Shot at YOU: d100: 88 vs. 78% (Inspired) → MISS
  ...

── Result ──
  VICTORY — All enemies defeated in 4 rounds
  HP remaining: 26/62 (42%)
  Stamina remaining: 41/100
  Consumables used: 0

  📊 QUEUE PERFORMANCE:
     Quick Thrust: 2 uses, 2 hits (100%)
     Crushing Blow: 2 uses, 1 hit, 1 miss (50%)
     Whirlwind Slash: 1 use, 2/3 targets hit (67%)
     Healing Surge: 1 trigger, 1 skipped (condition not met)
     Power Strike: 1 use, 1 crit! (100%)

  💡 TIP: You entered this fight at 61% HP due to surprise round damage.
     Higher Perception (currently 42%, need ~68%) would avoid ambushes here.
     Consider gear with Perception bonuses or the Observant feat.

  Loot: 15 gold, Goblin Scimitar +1, Minor Healing Potion

Log Features

• Color-coded outcomes: Hits highlighted, misses dimmed, crits in gold, heals in green
• Queue transparency: Shows which slot fired, the target rule used, and conditional evaluation
• Queue performance summary: After each encounter, shows hit rates per skill — helps the player evaluate their queue effectiveness
• Dice breakdown: Every d100 roll shown with the success threshold
• Tips: Context-sensitive suggestions after tough encounters
• Expandable detail: Summary view by default, expand for full roll-by-roll
• Run timeline: Visual progress bar showing all encounters, colored by outcome

Enemy Design and AI

Overview

Enemies use the same skill queue system as player characters. Every enemy has a stat block, a skill list, and a fixed skill queue that determines their behavior in combat. The key difference: enemy queues are pre-authored by designers, not configured by players. This makes enemy behavior predictable once learned — the first time you fight a Goblin Shaman, you don’t know what it does. The tenth time, you know exactly what’s coming and can build your queue to counter it.

Enemy Stat Blocks

Every enemy has:

GOBLIN SHAMAN (Level 12 Elite)
─────────────────────────────────
HP: 180
Evasion: 14
Attributes: MGT 8 | LOG 16 | SPD 10 | PRS 14 | FRT 10 | LCK 8
Resistances: +20% vs. Charmed, +10% vs. Silenced
Weaknesses: Vulnerable to fire (+25% fire damage taken)
Loot Table: Goblinoid Caster (Uncommon+)

Skill Queue (loops):
  1. Hex Bolt (Init 4, magical, targets highest-threat player) — 78% accuracy, moderate necrotic damage + Weakened (2 rounds)
  2. Healing Chant (Init 7, heal, targets lowest-HP ally) — Heal 15% of target's max HP [IF any ally below 50% HP, else skip]
  3. Venom Cloud (Init 6, AoE magical, targets player cluster) — 70% accuracy, Poisoned condition (4 rounds)
  4. Hex Bolt (Init 4, targets highest-threat player) — repeat damage

Skills per round: 2

Enemy Tiers

Enemy Queue Behavior

Enemies have the same queue mechanics as players — fixed order, looping, with light conditionals. The difference is that enemy queues are designed to create specific challenges:

Aggressive enemies (orcs, demons, berserkers):

• Front-load damage skills with low initiative (act fast, hit hard)
• Few or no defensive skills
• Designed to pressure the player’s HP and test their healing/defensive planning

Tactical enemies (shamans, commanders, mages):

• Mix of damage, debuffs, and support skills
• Conditionals like “heal ally if below 50% HP”
• Designed to create priority targets — “kill the healer first” moments

Defensive enemies (golems, shield-bearers, turtles):

• High evasion, Shielded buffs, damage reduction skills
• Slow but durable — punish players who rely only on burst damage
• Designed to test sustained DPS and condition application (DoTs bypass shields)

Swarm enemies (goblins, rats, spiders):

• Low individual HP, appear in groups of 3-6
• Simple queues but overwhelm through numbers
• Designed to test AoE skills and queue efficiency

Boss Mechanics

Bosses are the climax of dungeons. They use the same queue system but with phases — when a boss reaches an HP threshold, their queue changes.

Phase Transitions

WRAITH LORD (Level 25 Boss)
─────────────────────────────────
Total HP: 1,200

PHASE 1 (100% - 60% HP):
  Queue: Shadow Bolt → Life Drain → Shadow Bolt → Fear Aura
  Behavior: Standard ranged caster. Drains HP to self-heal.

PHASE 2 (60% - 30% HP): ← Queue changes here
  Queue: Summon Wraiths → Necrotic Burst (AoE) → Shadow Bolt → Life Drain
  Behavior: Summons 2 Wraith adds (minion tier). AoE pressure increases.
  New Mechanic: Cursed Ground environmental condition activates (healing reduced 50%)

PHASE 3 (30% - 0% HP): ← Queue changes again
  Queue: Death Coil (massive single-target) → Necrotic Burst → Death Coil → Soul Harvest (full heal if any adds alive)
  Behavior: Desperate, high damage. Soul Harvest makes killing adds before Phase 3 critical.
  New Mechanic: Boss gains Hasted (3 skills per round instead of 2)

Boss Design Principles

1. Each phase changes the fight. A boss with one phase is just a big health pool. Phase transitions force the player to adapt mid-encounter (their queue loops, so the same skills hit different contexts).
2. Bosses telegraph. The combat log should make phase transitions clear: “The Wraith Lord shrieks as spectral energy surrounds it — PHASE 2 BEGINS.” Players can study this from failed runs to prepare.
3. At least one mechanic per boss must be counterable through preparation. Wraith Lord’s Soul Harvest is devastating if adds are alive — so the counter is AoE skills to kill adds before Phase 3. Flamelord’s fire damage is brutal — so the counter is Fire Resistance potions.
4. Enrage timer on raid bosses. After X rounds (typically 20-30), raid bosses gain a stacking +10% damage buff per round. This prevents infinite stalling and creates a DPS check.

Enemy Targeting Logic

Enemies use target rules just like players, but their rules are fixed per enemy type:

Threat is calculated as: total damage dealt this encounter × 1.0 + healing done × 0.5 + debuffs applied × 0.3. Tanks can increase their threat through Taunt skills.

Enemy Condition Usage

Enemies apply conditions just like players. Each enemy type has thematic conditions:

Enemy Bestiary

When a player encounters an enemy for the first time, basic info is recorded in the Bestiary:

• Name, tier, and visual description
• HP range and general toughness
• “Known” conditions they apply (after being hit by them)

Subsequent encounters reveal more:

• Exact skill list (after seeing each skill fire)
• Resistances and weaknesses (after testing different damage types)
• Optimal counter-strategy tips (after multiple encounters)

The Verdani species skill Aethersight reveals ALL enemy info immediately for one encounter — a powerful scouting ability.

Enemy Scaling

Enemies don’t scale to the player’s level — they have fixed levels tied to the dungeon. A level 20 dungeon always has level 18-22 enemies. This means:

• Returning to low-level content makes you feel powerful (enemies are trivial)
• Attempting content above your level is genuinely dangerous
• The world has a consistent difficulty geography

Enemy Groups and Composition

Encounters don’t use random enemy packs. Each encounter is designed with a composition that creates a specific challenge:

Gear Durability

Gear degrades gradually through use. Durability is a gold sink, not a combat penalty — your gear always performs at full power regardless of durability. The only consequence of low durability is that you must repair before you can enhance or reforge the item.

• Max durability: 100 for all gear
• Loss per dungeon run: -5 durability on all equipped items (regardless of success or failure)
• At 0 durability: Gear still works at full power in combat. BUT it cannot be enhanced (+1 through +5) or reforged until repaired. A visual indicator marks gear as “worn” in the UI.
• Repair: Instant at any blacksmith vendor. Costs gold based on item rarity:

• Partial repair costs proportionally less (repairing from 50→100 costs half)
• Repair all button repairs every equipped item in one click
• Players who run 10+ dungeons before repairing save time but pay the same total gold

This creates a steady, predictable gold drain that scales with how actively a player runs content — exactly the kind of friction-free gold sink the economy needs.

Combat Design Principles

1. The queue IS the game. Arranging skills, choosing initiative trade-offs, setting conditionals, and managing resources across encounters — this is where all player skill lives.
2. Speed vs. power is the core trade-off. Fast skills (low init) are weaker. Slow skills (high init) are stronger. Do you want to act first or hit harder?
3. Combos reward mastery. A debuff that lowers evasion into a power strike into an execute creates a satisfying chain. Players who understand skill synergy outperform those who just queue their highest-damage skills.
4. Weapon proficiency is the endless treadmill. Even at max character level, there are always more weapon types to master. Switching to a new weapon means starting at proficiency 0 — a new progression journey.
5. Resources create meaningful scarcity. You can’t spam your best skills forever. Long dungeons demand efficiency. Short dungeons reward aggression. The player must read the situation and build their queue accordingly.
6. Every run teaches something. The combat log, queue performance stats, and tips ensure the player always knows what to improve.

Equipment and Loot

Overview

Loot is the lifeblood of Delve. It’s the primary tangible reward for dungeon runs, the fuel for crafting, the currency of the marketplace, and the core of character power expression. The loot system is built on three principles:

1. No loot is ever worthless. Every drop can be equipped, sold, or salvaged into useful crafting materials — regardless of level.
2. Endgame loot is unique to YOU. Rare+ items roll randomized bonus properties, so no two legendaries are identical. The chase is finding (or reforging) the perfect combination.
3. Transparency and fairness. All item properties are fully visible. No hidden stats, no loot boxes, no mystery. What you see is what you get — on the marketplace or in a dungeon.

Gear Slots

Each character has the following equipment slots:

Quick Slots (Belt)

The belt provides 3 quick slots for consumable items (potions, scrolls) that the skill queue can access during encounters without consuming a queue action. Items not in quick slots require spending a queue action to use.

Rarity Tiers

Key Design: Fixed Base + Random Bonuses

This is the core of the loot system for Rare+ items:

• Fixed base: The item always has specific stats (Evasion for armor, damage for weapons, etc.) determined by its type and level.
• Signature effect: A defining property that makes this specific named item what it is. A “Flamebrand Longsword” ALWAYS has fire damage. A “Frostweave Robe” ALWAYS has cold resistance. The signature is part of the item’s identity.
• Random bonuses: 1-3 additional properties rolled from a pool when the item drops. Both the property type AND the potency are randomized. This is what makes every drop unique.

Example: Two Flamebrand Longswords

FLAMEBRAND LONGSWORD (Legendary)
─────────────────────────────────
Type: Sword | Level 40 | Weapon Damage: 45-62
Signature: Fire Blade — All sword skills deal +15% bonus fire damage.
            Hits have a 20% chance to apply Burning (2 rounds).

Player A's drop:                    Player B's drop:
  Random Bonus 1:                     Random Bonus 1:
    +8% critical hit chance             +12% accuracy
  Random Bonus 2:                     Random Bonus 2:
    +4 Speed                            +6 Might

  Gear Skill: Flame Burst              Gear Skill: Flame Burst
    (Init 5, AoE fire around target)    (Init 5, AoE fire around target)

Both are Flamebrand Longswords with the same signature effect and gear skill. But Player A’s is a crit-focused speed build weapon, while Player B’s is a raw accuracy/power weapon. Both are excellent — just different.

Random Bonus Pools

When a Rare+ item drops, its random bonuses are rolled from this pool:

Offensive Bonuses:

Defensive Bonuses:

Attribute Bonuses:

Resource Bonuses:

Utility Bonuses:

Potency Tiers

When a bonus rolls, its potency is determined by a quality roll (d100):

A fully “god-rolled” legendary (all bonuses at perfect potency) is extremely rare — roughly 1 in 8,000 chance for a 2-bonus item. This creates the long-term chase.

Artifact Rarity

Artifacts are server-unique — only one copy of each exists at a time on the server.

• If the holder goes inactive for 30+ days, the artifact returns to the loot pool
• Artifacts are soulbound (cannot be traded) — you must earn them
• Artifacts have 3 random bonuses + a guaranteed powerful gear skill
• Artifacts are designed to be prestigious but not required — a well-rolled legendary can compete

Weapons

Weapon Types and Base Stats

Weapons are categorized by type, which determines which proficiency track they use (see 04-combat-system.md for the full proficiency system). Base damage scales with item level.

Base Damage Scaling

Weapon base damage scales with item level, not character level. A level 30 longsword does more base damage than a level 10 longsword, period.

Weapon Properties

• Finesse: Use Might or Speed for accuracy/damage calculation (whichever is higher)
• Light: Can dual-wield with another light weapon (enables off-hand skill slot)
• Heavy: Small species (Glimkin) have -15% accuracy. Deals +10% damage as compensation for the restriction.
• Two-Handed: Occupies both Main Hand and Off Hand. Higher base damage than one-handed equivalents.
• Ammunition: Requires arrows/bolts (tracked as a supply, not per-arrow)

Weapon Proficiency

Each character has a weapon proficiency score (0-100) per weapon type. Using a weapon in combat increases proficiency, unlocking new weapon skills for the skill queue at milestones (every 10 levels). Full details in 04-combat-system.md.

Gear Skills on Weapons

Legendary and Artifact weapons can grant a gear skill — a bonus skill that can be placed in the skill queue while the weapon is equipped. Gear skills are part of the item’s signature (not randomized — every Flamebrand has Flame Burst).

Examples:

Armor

Armor Types and Evasion

Base Evasion values are for common versions. Higher rarity armors of the same type get +1 (Uncommon), +2 (Rare), +3 (Very Rare), +4 (Legendary) to base Evasion, plus their signature effects and random bonuses.

Armor and Class Synergy

• Light armor: Full Speed bonus to Evasion. No stealth penalty (usually). Best for Shades, Pathfinders, Hexbinders.
• Medium armor: Speed bonus capped at +2. Balanced. Best for Songweavers, Wardens, Pathfinders.
• Heavy armor: No Speed bonus. Highest flat Evasion. Best for Vanguards, Oathblades, Berserkers (though Berserkers can opt for unarmored — Fortitude replaces Evasion from armor).

Item Level and Why Old Loot Still Matters

The Problem with Traditional MMO Loot

In most games, a Rare sword from level 10 is vendored the moment you hit level 15. Hours of dungeon running produce gear that’s worthless within days. This feels bad.

Delve’s Solution: Rarity-Scaled Salvage

Every item, regardless of level, salvages into the same materials based on its rarity. A level 5 Rare longsword and a level 45 Rare longsword both produce the same Rare-tier crafting materials.

This means:

• A level 5 Rare drop is never worthless — it salvages into materials you need for endgame crafting
• Revisiting low-level dungeons to farm specific enemies or materials is always viable
• New players can sell Rare drops on the marketplace to endgame crafters who want the salvage materials
• The economy stays healthy because supply comes from all level ranges, not just endgame

Salvage Table

Material uses:

• Common Fragments: Basic crafting, leveling crafting professions
• Uncommon Shards: Mid-tier crafting, gear enhancement (+1)
• Rare Cores: Advanced crafting, gear enhancement (+2), reforging
• Prismatic Essence: High-tier crafting, enchanting, gear enhancement (+3)
• Legendary Spark: Reforging legendary items, crafting legendary recipes

Disenchanting (Magical Items Only)

Uncommon+ items can be disenchanted instead of salvaged. Disenchanting extracts Magical Essence — a separate material used specifically for enchanting and adding magical properties to crafted gear.

Salvage vs. Disenchant is a meaningful choice — you can do one or the other, not both. Do you need crafting materials or enchanting materials?

The Reforging System

Reforging is the primary endgame resource sink and the answer to “I got a Legendary drop but the random bonuses are bad.”

How Reforging Works

1. Take a Rare+ item to a Reforger NPC (available in major hub cities)
2. Select one random bonus to reforge (you choose which bonus slot to re-roll)
3. Pay the reforging cost (materials + gold)
4. The selected bonus is replaced with a new random bonus from the full pool, with a new random potency

Reforging Costs

Reforging Rules

• You choose WHICH bonus to reforge. The other bonuses remain untouched.
• The signature effect is never reforged — it’s permanent.
• The new bonus is fully random — it could be the same type you just had, or completely different.
• There is no guarantee of improvement. You might reforge a +8% accuracy into a +3% gold find. This is the gamble.
• Cooldown: Each item can only be reforged once per day (prevents mindless spam-reforging in a single session)
• No destruction risk. The item is never damaged or destroyed by reforging.

Why Reforging Works

• Resource sink: Rare Cores and Prismatic Essences are consumed in large quantities, keeping salvage materials in demand at all times
• Gold sink: 500-5,000 gold per attempt adds up fast when chasing perfect rolls
• Endless endgame: A player with a “good” legendary can always chase a “perfect” one through reforging
• Marketplace interaction: Players who don’t want to gamble on reforging can buy pre-rolled items on the marketplace instead. Players who enjoy the chase can reforge and sell the results.
• Salvage demand: Since reforging consumes materials from salvaging, EVERY item in the game has value as salvage fuel — even level 1 drops

Location-Specific and Dungeon-Specific Loot

Philosophy

Regular loot (Common through Rare) drops everywhere and has no location restrictions. But Very Rare and Legendary items are often tied to specific dungeons, raids, or regions. This gives endgame players a reason to target specific content.

How It Works

Generic loot (Common-Rare): Drops from any content of appropriate level. Generic swords, armor, accessories with random names and properties.

Named loot (Very Rare-Legendary): Specific named items that only drop from specific sources. These are the items with signature effects and gear skills.

Named Item Registry

The game maintains a Named Item Registry — a catalog of all named Very Rare+ items showing:

• Where they drop
• Their signature effect
• Their gear skill (if any)
• What random bonus slots they have
• Player-reported “best rolls” for each item

This registry is viewable in-game and helps players plan which dungeons to target.

Consumables

Consumables are single-use items critical to dungeon preparation. They plug directly into the skill queue and condition systems.

Potions

Scrolls

• Scrolls grant a one-time skill usable in the skill queue for one encounter
• Any class can use any scroll, but off-class scrolls have -15% accuracy
• Scrolls are consumed when the encounter starts (whether the skill fires or not)
• Can be crafted by Arcanists (see 07-crafting-and-gathering.md)
• Examples: Scroll of Fireball (AoE fire), Scroll of Healing Wave (party heal), Scroll of Haste (grant Hasted)

Supplies

Gear Enhancement

Enhancement Levels (+1 to +5)

Any weapon or armor can be enhanced at a blacksmith NPC, increasing its base stats.

Failure does NOT destroy or downgrade the item. It just consumes the materials and gold. You can try again immediately.

Enhancement level is preserved when reforging — a +3 Flamebrand stays +3 after reforging a random bonus.

Enchanting

Enchanting adds or modifies magical properties on gear. This is a crafting profession (see 07-crafting-and-gathering.md) — player Enchanters perform this service.

• Common/Uncommon items: Can have 1 enchantment added (effectively giving them a signature-like effect)
• Rare+ items: Cannot be enchanted (they already have signature effects and random bonuses)
• Enchanting uses Magical Essence (from disenchanting unwanted magic items)

Loot Tables and Drops

How Loot Works

Each dungeon encounter has a loot table influenced by:

1. Encounter difficulty — Harder enemies roll on better loot tables
2. Dungeon tier — Higher-level dungeons have better base pools
3. Enemy type — Specific enemies drop thematic items (fire enemies → fire gear, undead → necrotic gear)
4. Luck attribute — Higher LCK improves the quality roll on drops (see Potency Tiers above)
5. Bad luck protection — Hidden counter that boosts drop rates after dry streaks

Drop Rate Guidelines

These are per-encounter rates for the “bonus drop” slot (beyond guaranteed gold + common item).

Bad Luck Protection

• A hidden counter tracks encounters since your last Rare+ drop
• Every encounter without a Rare+ drop increases the next encounter’s drop rate by +1%
• Counter resets when a Rare+ item drops
• This ensures even the unluckiest player will eventually get upgrades
• LCK attribute makes this counter increase slightly faster

Boss Drops

• Dungeon bosses always drop at least one item of the dungeon’s highest tier
• Raid bosses always drop 2-3 items, with at least one Very Rare+
• World bosses always drop 1-2 items for EACH participant, at least Rare quality

Loot Distribution (Party Play)

After a party run completes, shared loot enters a Need/Greed window:

1. Need — “I want this for my build.” Only available if the item is usable by your class/weapon proficiency.
2. Greed — “I want this for selling/salvage.” Always available.
3. Pass — “I don’t want it.”

• Need rolls take priority over Greed rolls (d100 roll-off for ties)
• Personal loot (gold, consumables, materials) is NOT shared — each player gets their own
• Loot window: 24 hours after run completion. Unclaimed items are distributed randomly among Greed rollers.
• Transparent: All players can see who rolled Need on what. No hidden rolls.

Trading and the Marketplace

What’s Tradeable

Marketplace Value Factors

A Rare+ item’s marketplace value depends on:

1. Signature effect — Is it from a desirable dungeon? Is the signature useful?
2. Random bonus types — Are the bonuses synergistic? (e.g., +accuracy AND +crit on a weapon = high value)
3. Random bonus potency — How close to “perfect” are the rolls?
4. Enhancement level — A +3 item is worth significantly more than a +0
5. Demand — Is this weapon type or armor type popular for current meta builds?

See 08-economy-and-trading.md for full marketplace details.

Inventory Management

Carrying Capacity

• Base capacity: 20 item slots (not weight-based — simplicity over simulation)
• Equipped gear does NOT count against inventory
• Stackable items (potions, rations, materials) stack up to 20 per slot
• Belt quick slots are separate (3 slots for combat consumables)

Bank Storage

• Characters have a bank in town with 50 slots (base)
• Additional bank space available as a permanent purchase ($1 per +25 slots — see 14-monetization.md)
• Bank is accessible between runs, not during them
• Material bank is separate — 100 slots for crafting materials only (see 07-crafting-and-gathering.md)

Inventory Overflow

• If a dungeon run yields more loot than inventory can hold, excess goes to temporary overflow (persists 48 hours)
• Players must clear overflow before starting a new run
• After 48 hours, overflow items are auto-sold at vendor price (with notification)
• Overflow items CAN be salvaged/disenchanted directly from the overflow screen

Item Comparison UI

When viewing any item, the UI shows a side-by-side comparison with currently equipped gear:

┌─ CURRENTLY EQUIPPED ──────────┐  ┌─ NEW DROP ─────────────────────┐
│ Steel Longsword +1 (Uncommon) │  │ Flamebrand Longsword (Legend.) │
│ Damage: 22-35                 │  │ Damage: 48-65                  │
│ +5% accuracy (fixed)          │  │ Signature: Fire Blade          │
│                               │  │   +15% fire damage on skills   │
│                               │  │   20% chance to Burn           │
│                               │  │ Bonus: +8% crit chance  ▲ NEW │
│                               │  │ Bonus: +4 Speed         ▲ NEW │
│                               │  │ Gear Skill: Flame Burst  ▲ NEW│
├───────────────────────────────┤  ├────────────────────────────────┤
│ Overall: ▼ SIGNIFICANT        │  │ Overall: ▲ SIGNIFICANT         │
│          DOWNGRADE            │  │          UPGRADE               │
└───────────────────────────────┘  └────────────────────────────────┘

  Estimated DPS change: +45% ▲
  Evasion change: 0 (same armor)
  New conditions available: Burning (via Fire Blade + Flame Burst)

Key features:

• Green ▲ for improvements, Red ▼ for downgrades
• DPS estimate calculated from accuracy × damage × crit chance × skills-per-round
• Condition availability highlighted when new gear enables applying or resisting conditions
• Gear skill preview showing what the skill does and its initiative value
• One-click “Equip” or “Salvage” or “Send to Bank” from the comparison screen

Loot Design Principles

1. Every drop has value. Equip it, sell it, or salvage it. Nothing goes to waste.
2. The signature makes the item. Named items have a clear identity. You know what a Flamebrand does before you see its random rolls.
3. Random bonuses create the chase. Two players with the same named item will have different builds because their bonuses rolled differently.
4. Reforging is the endgame. Once you find the item you want, the long-term goal is perfecting its random bonuses through reforging.
5. Transparency builds trust. All stats visible, all rolls visible, no hidden mechanics. The marketplace works because buyers know exactly what they’re getting.
6. Level doesn’t kill value. A level 10 Rare is worth the same salvage as a level 40 Rare. Low-level content stays relevant.

Quests and Dungeons

Overview

Quests and dungeons are the primary content in Delve — where characters spend their time, earn XP, and find loot. The quest system is built around a quest board where players select from available challenges, prepare their character, and commit to a run that resolves over real-world time.

The key design goal: every run tells a story. Win or lose, the player should be able to read through the run timeline and understand exactly what happened, learn from mistakes, and plan better for next time.

Quest Board

The quest board is the central hub for selecting content. It’s presented as a bulletin board in the character’s current town.

Board Refresh

• The quest board refreshes every 6 hours with a new selection of quests
• Some quests persist across refreshes (major questlines, recurring bounties)
• Players can pin up to 3 quests to save them across refreshes
• Higher-level characters see more quests and harder options

Quest Information Display

Each quest on the board shows:

• Name and flavor text — “Clear the Goblin Warren,” “Investigate the Haunted Manor”
• Type — Bounty, Questline, Dungeon Crawl, Raid (see below)
• Difficulty rating — Skull icons (1-5) plus a recommended level range
• Estimated duration — Real-world time to complete (e.g., “~45 minutes”, “~3 hours”)
• Encounter count — How many encounters to expect
• Environment type — Cave, forest, undead crypt, etc. (affects Pathfinder favored terrain, elemental resistance needs)
• Known enemy types — General info (e.g., “Undead heavy”, “Goblinoid raiders”) — not full roster
• Reward preview — XP range, gold range, potential loot tier (e.g., “Rare+ drops possible”)
• Supply recommendation — Suggested rations, potions, torches based on dungeon length
• Party size — Solo, 2-player, 4-player, or raid (8+ player)

Quest Types

Bounties

• Length: 1-3 encounters
• Duration: 15-45 minutes real-time
• Purpose: Quick content for short play sessions or grinding specific resources
• Structure: Travel to location → fight target → return
• Examples: “Slay the Dire Wolf terrorizing the eastern road,” “Eliminate the bandit captain at Crow’s Perch”
• Rewards: Modest XP and gold, targeted loot (bounty targets drop specific item types)

Questlines

• Length: 5-8 encounters
• Duration: 1-3 hours real-time
• Purpose: The bread-and-butter content. Narrative-driven multi-encounter sequences.
• Structure: A series of encounters connected by a narrative thread. Includes combat, traps, decisions, and sometimes branching paths.
• Branching decisions: At certain points, the character faces a choice (e.g., “Left passage or right passage?”). Players configure these choices before the run or set decision-making rules (e.g., “always take the safer path,” “always take the path with more treasure potential”).
• Examples: “Investigate the disappearances in Millhaven,” “Recover the Sunstone from the Forgotten Temple”
• Rewards: Good XP, solid loot, occasional unique quest rewards (named items)
• Narrative continuity: Some questlines are multi-part — completing part 1 unlocks part 2 on a future board refresh

Dungeon Crawls

• Length: 10-20 encounters
• Duration: 3-8 hours real-time
• Purpose: Major undertakings. The flagship content for dedicated players.
• Structure: A full dungeon with multiple rooms, branching paths, rest points, traps, puzzles, minibosses, and a final boss.
• Rest points: Locations within the dungeon where the character can rest (recover some HP and resource pools). The skill queue can be configured for rest behavior (rest immediately, rest only if below X% HP, skip rest to save time).
• Supply management: Long dungeons require careful supply planning. Running out of rations means exhaustion. Running out of torches means missed traps.
• Examples: “The Undercrypt of Ashenmoor (Level 15-20, 15 encounters),” “The Dragon’s Hoard of Frostpeak (Level 35-40, 20 encounters)”
• Rewards: High XP, best loot, dungeon completion achievements, rare/very rare drops guaranteed from final boss

Raids

• Length: 15-30 encounters
• Duration: 4-12 hours real-time
• Purpose: Multiplayer endgame content. Requires a full party (4-8 players).
• Structure: Large-scale dungeon with encounters designed for party composition. Some encounters require specific roles (tank to hold aggro, healer to keep party alive, DPS to meet damage thresholds).
• Timed lobby: Raids start at a scheduled time (see 09-social-and-mmo-systems.md). Players join the raid lobby and configure their character before the start time.
• Examples: “The Siege of Ironhold (8-player, Level 35+),” “Abyssal Rift (4-player, Level 50)”
• Rewards: Best loot in the game, raid-exclusive legendary items, guild reputation, seasonal leaderboard ranking

Encounter Types

Dungeons are composed of a sequence of encounters. Each encounter type tests different aspects of the character’s build.

Combat Encounters

• Standard fight against one or more enemies
• Enemies have stat blocks (HP, Evasion rating, attacks, abilities, resistances)
• Resolved using the combat system (see 04-combat-system.md)
• Variants:
  • Standard: Fight a group of enemies
  • Ambush: Enemies get a surprise round (failed Perception check — Logic-based)
  • Boss: Powerful single enemy or enemy with minions. Higher HP, special abilities, multiple phases.
  • Waves: Multiple rounds of enemies with short breaks between
  • Timed: Must defeat enemies within X rounds or face consequences (reinforcements, collapsing room)

Trap Encounters

• The character encounters a trap (pit, poison darts, falling rocks, magical ward)
• Resolution:
  1. Detection: Perception (Logic) or Investigation (Logic) check to notice the trap
  2. Disarming: Sleight of Hand, Arcana, or Thieves’ Tools check to disarm (if detected)
  3. Avoidance: Speed resistance check to dodge (if triggered)
  4. Endurance: Take the damage and move on
• Shades excel here — higher detection rates, better disarm chances
• Configurable behavior: “attempt to disarm” vs. “just dodge it” vs. “trigger and tank it” (useful for high-HP characters in low-danger traps)
• Traps may inflict conditions: Poisoned, Burning, Bleeding, etc.

Decision Points

• A narrative fork where the character must choose between options
• Examples:
  • “Two passages: one smells of sulfur, the other echoes with dripping water”
  • “A wounded NPC asks for help. Stop to aid them, or press forward?”
  • “The treasure chest has a strange aura. Open it, or leave it?”
• Pre-configured decisions: Players set decision-making heuristics:
  • “Prioritize: Safety / Treasure / Speed / Exploration”
  • Specific overrides: “Always help NPCs,” “Never open suspicious chests,” “Always take the path with potential treasure”
• Decision outcomes affect:
  • Which encounters come next (branching paths)
  • Bonus loot or bonus encounters
  • NPC relationships (faction reputation)
  • Sometimes avoiding a harder fight entirely

Environmental Hazards

• Non-trap obstacles that test specific abilities
• Examples:
  • Flooded room (Athletics/Might to swim, or lose rations)
  • Collapsed passage (Might check to clear, or find alternate route)
  • Magical darkness (torches useless — need Darkvision or Light spell)
  • Extreme cold (Fortitude resistance check or take damage each round, fire resistance helps)
  • Rickety bridge (Speed check or fall, taking damage)
• Skills and supplies matter: rope for climbing, torches for dark areas, rations for long detours

Rest Points

• Safe areas within longer dungeons where the character can recover
• Rest provides:
  • HP recovery (50% of max HP, or 100% with Soldier background bonus)
  • Resource pool recovery (half of expended Mana/Stamina/Devotion/etc., rounded down)
  • Rations consumed (1 ration)
  • Condition removal (Poisoned, exhaustion level 1)
• Players configure rest behavior in the skill queue:
  • “Rest whenever available”
  • “Rest only if below X% HP”
  • “Rest only if resource pool below X”
  • “Skip rest” (for speed-running)

Puzzle Encounters

• Logic or Presence-based challenges
• Resolution is a skill check (d100 percentile roll) with bonuses from relevant proficiencies
• Examples:
  • Magical lock requiring Arcana check
  • Ancient riddle requiring History check
  • Pattern recognition requiring Investigation check
• Failure consequence: miss bonus loot, trigger a trap, or face an extra combat encounter
• Not all characters need to solve puzzles — failure is an alternate path, not a dead end

Run Timeline

The run timeline is the complete record of a dungeon run. It’s the primary thing the player reviews after a run.

Timeline View

A visual representation of the dungeon run showing:

DUNGEON: The Goblin Warren (Level 10, Questline)
Duration: 1 hour 23 minutes | Encounters: 7 | Result: SUCCESS

[1]──[2]──[3]──[4]──[5]──[6]──[7]
 ⚔    ⚠   🔀    ⚔    🏕    ⚔    ⚔★

1. ⚔ Combat: Goblin Patrol (3 goblins) ─── VICTORY, clean [HP: 95%]
2. ⚠ Trap: Pit Trap ─── DETECTED & DISARMED [Perception: 72 vs DC 45]
3. 🔀 Decision: Left (sulfur) or Right (water) ─── Chose LEFT [Treasure priority]
4. ⚔ Combat: Fire Beetles (5) ─── VICTORY, took damage [HP: 62%]
5. 🏕 Rest Point ─── Rested, consumed 1 ration [HP: 62% → 85%]
6. ⚔ Combat: Goblin Boss + Shaman ─── VICTORY, hard fight [HP: 34%]
7. ⚔★ Boss: Bugbear Chieftain ─── VICTORY [HP: 12%]

LOOT SUMMARY:
  Gold: 127
  Items: Bugbear's Morningstar +1 (Uncommon), Shaman's Robe (Common), 3x Minor Healing Potion
  Materials: 4x Leather Scraps, 2x Goblin Teeth (alchemy reagent)

SUPPLIES CONSUMED:
  Rations: 4 of 6 brought (2 remaining)
  Torches: 2 of 4 brought (2 remaining)
  Healing Potions: 2 used during combat

XP EARNED: 450 (Level 8 → 72% to Level 9)

Expanding Encounters

Each encounter in the timeline can be expanded to show the full combat log (see 04-combat-system.md) or the full skill check breakdown for traps and hazards.

Failure Analysis

When a run fails, the timeline includes a failure summary that highlights exactly what went wrong:

DUNGEON: The Undercrypt (Level 20, Dungeon Crawl)
Duration: 2 hours 47 minutes | Encounters: 12 of 15 | Result: FAILED at Encounter 12

FAILURE SUMMARY:
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
  Cause of Death: Reduced to 0 HP by Wraith Lord's Necrotic Burst

  Contributing Factors:
  ⚠ Entered encounter 12 with only 28% HP (entered rest point at encounter 9
    with 71% HP but skill queue was set to "rest only below 30%")
  ⚠ No healing potions remaining (last used at encounter 8)
  ⚠ Wraith Lord has necrotic resistance — your primary damage type is necrotic
    (consider radiant damage weapon or spell)
  ⚠ Failed Presence resistance check against Wraith's fear aura (PRS check: 23
    vs DC 55) — spent 2 rounds frightened, unable to close distance

  Recommendations:
  → Bring more healing potions (you brought 3, recommend 5+ for this dungeon length)
  → Lower rest threshold to 50% HP for dungeons with 15+ encounters
  → Consider equipping a radiant damage option for undead-heavy dungeons
  → Increasing Presence (currently 10) or taking Resilient (PRS) would help against
    fear effects common in undead encounters
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Difficulty Tiers

Each quest has a difficulty rating relative to the player’s level:

The completion rates are rough targets assuming appropriate gear and average skill queue configuration. Well-prepared characters with good builds and smart skill queue configuration can push above these rates. Poorly prepared characters will fall below them.

Level Scaling

• Quests have fixed levels — they don’t scale to the character
• A level 25 character returning to a level 10 dungeon will find it trivial
• This is intentional — it provides a sense of power progression and allows farming lower content for specific drops or materials

Time Durations

Real-world time for dungeon runs is a core idle mechanic. Durations are based on quest type and difficulty:

Duration Philosophy

• Short sessions (bounties) should be completable during a lunch break
• Medium sessions (questlines) should complete while at work or overnight
• Long sessions (dungeon crawls) should be overnight or full-day affairs
• Raids are events — they happen at scheduled times and run for a significant period
• Dungeon run durations cannot be sped up with real money. This is a core design principle. Everyone waits the same amount.

Supplies System

Preparation is a key part of the gameplay loop. Players must stock their character with supplies before committing to a run.

Supply Planning

The quest board shows recommended supplies. Players choose what to bring, trading off between safety and inventory space.

Supply Strategy

• A 10-encounter dungeon needs at least 10 rations (2 slots)
• Cave dungeons need more torches; outdoor quests need few or none
• Undead dungeons benefit from extra healing potions (no short rests in crypts?)
• Over-packing supplies means less room for loot on the way out
• Under-packing means risking failure

This tension — preparation vs. capacity — is the core strategic decision before every run.

Recurring and Seasonal Content

Daily Bounties

• 3 bounties refresh daily with bonus XP and gold
• Completing all 3 grants a daily completion bonus (bonus loot chest)

Weekly Challenges

• Special modifier dungeons that rotate weekly
• Examples: “All enemies have double HP,” “No healing potions allowed,” “Timed run: complete in fewer encounters for bonus rewards”
• Higher risk, higher reward

Seasonal Dungeons

• Time-limited dungeons available during seasonal events (see 15-progression-hooks-and-retention.md)
• Unique enemies, unique loot, unique environmental themes
• Available for the duration of the season (typically 2-3 months)

Economy and Trading

Overview

The economy is the connective tissue of Delve. Gold and materials flow between dungeon runs, crafting, the marketplace, and NPC vendors. A healthy economy requires careful balance: enough currency entering the system to feel rewarding, enough leaving (gold sinks) to prevent inflation, and enough player-to-player trading to create a real marketplace.

Currencies

Gold (Primary Currency)

• Earned from: dungeon runs, quest rewards, NPC vendor sales, daily bonuses
• Spent on: NPC vendor purchases, crafting station fees, respec costs, auction house fees, guild creation
• Gold is tradeable between players via the marketplace and mail

Faction Tokens (Reputation Currency)

• Earned by completing faction-specific quests and dailies
• Spent at faction vendors for exclusive recipes, gear, and cosmetics
• Each faction has its own token type
• NOT tradeable — must be earned personally
• See 11-factions-and-reputation.md

Raid Tokens

• Earned from completing raid content
• Spent on raid-exclusive gear at raid vendors
• Weekly cap on how many can be earned (prevents no-lifing the system)
• NOT tradeable

Gold Economy

Gold Sources (Faucets)

Gold Sinks (Drains)

Inflation Control Philosophy

• Gold sinks should feel like natural costs of doing business, not arbitrary taxes
• The auction house tax is the primary inflation control — it removes gold proportional to economic activity
• If inflation becomes an issue, seasonal events can introduce additional gold sinks (cosmetic vendors, limited-time items for gold)
• Monitoring: track median gold holdings by level bracket and adjust faucets/sinks accordingly

Player Marketplace (Auction House)

The marketplace is where players trade items for gold. It’s the central economic hub.

Listing Items

• Any non-bound item can be listed (most loot is tradeable)
• Set a buyout price (instant purchase)
• Set an optional auction starting price (bidding over 24/48 hours)
• Listing fee: 5% of buyout price (non-refundable, acts as gold sink)
• Listings last 48 hours by default
• Max active listings: 20 (base), expandable via permanent purchase ($1 per +5 slots)

Buying Items

• Browse by category, rarity, level range, stats, or keyword search
• Sort by price, time remaining, or relevance
• “Buy Now” at the buyout price
• Bid on auction listings (outbid notification)
• Purchase history for reference

Sale Tax

• When an item sells, 10% of the sale price is taken as tax (gold sink)
• Seller receives 90% of the sale price
• Merchant background reduces tax to 8% (Merchant background grants +1 Luck)

Item Binding

Most items are freely tradeable, but some are bind-on-pickup (BoP):

• Raid-exclusive legendary gear
• Quest reward items with unique effects
• Artifact-rarity items
• Achievement rewards

Some items are bind-on-equip (BoE):

• Can be traded until first equipped
• Encourages marketplace activity for high-end gear
• Creates the “equip or sell?” dilemma — a valuable gear piece might be worth more on the market than on your character

Market Manipulation Prevention

• Price floor: Items cannot be listed below NPC vendor price
• No buyout sniping bots: Rate limiting on purchases, CAPTCHA-like verification for rapid purchases
• Price history: Visible graph of average sale prices over the last 30 days for any item type
• Report system: Players can flag suspicious trading patterns for review

NPC Vendors

General Goods Vendor

• Sells: Rations, torches, basic potions, rope, lockpicks, ammunition, healer’s kits
• Prices are fixed and do not fluctuate
• Always available

Equipment Vendor

• Sells: Common-quality weapons and armor
• Rotating stock of uncommon items (refreshes daily)
• Prices are fixed

Specialty Vendors (Unlocked by Progression)

• Alchemist: Sells potion recipes and rare reagents (limited stock, refreshes weekly)
• Blacksmith: Sells gear upgrade and enhancement services
• Enchanter: Sells enchanting materials and basic enchantments
• Exotic Trader: Appears randomly with unusual items (rare recipes, unique consumables, cosmetics for gold)

Vendor Buy Prices

• Vendors buy items at 50% of their sell price (base)
• Merchant background: 60%
• High faction reputation with Merchant Consortium: up to 70%
• This makes the marketplace almost always a better option for valuable items, driving player-to-player trade

Trading Between Players

Marketplace (Primary)

• The auction house is the primary trading mechanism
• Anonymous — buyers and sellers don’t know each other
• Safe — no scam risk

Mail System

• Players can mail items and gold to specific players
• Gold transfer fee: 5% (gold sink)
• Item mail: Free, but items are held for 1 hour before delivery (prevents impulse scam trades)
• Mail between characters on the same account uses the same system

No Direct Trade

• There is no direct trade window between players
• All trades go through the marketplace or mail
• This prevents social engineering scams (“put your item up first, I promise I’ll pay”)
• It also ensures all trades are taxed appropriately

Real-Money Purchases and the Economy

See 14-monetization.md for the full monetization model. Key points relevant to the economy:

• There is no premium currency. No gems, no crystals, no tokens. All purchases are in real dollars at transparent prices.
• Nothing that affects combat stats is sold for real money. No gear, no XP, no gold, no loot boosts.
• Patron subscribers get 50% faster crafting and dungeon runs — this means subscribers generate materials and loot at a faster rate, which increases marketplace supply. This is healthy for the economy (more supply = lower prices = better for free players).
• Permanent purchases (character slots, storage, marketplace listing slots) are small one-time buys that don’t distort the economy.

Economic Health Indicators

The game should track and monitor:

• Median gold by level bracket — Are new players too poor? Are endgame players hoarding?
• Marketplace transaction volume — Is the market healthy and active?
• Average item prices over time — Is inflation occurring?
• Gold faucet/sink ratio — Is more gold entering or leaving the system?
• Subscriber vs. free player economic participation — Are subscribers dominating the marketplace unfairly?

These metrics inform tuning decisions — adjusting drop rates, vendor prices, tax rates, and gold rewards to keep the economy balanced.

Social and MMO Systems

Overview

Delve is an MMO, not a single-player idle game. Social systems are what transform individual dungeon runs into a shared world. The core challenge: making multiplayer meaningful and engaging in an asynchronous game where players are rarely online at the same time.

The solution is the timed lobby system — group content starts at scheduled times, and players prepare their characters before the deadline. You don’t need to be online at the same time as your party; you just need to be ready before kickoff.

Guilds

What Is a Guild?

A guild is a persistent group of players who share resources, coordinate on raids, and compete together. Guilds are the primary social structure in Delve.

Guild Creation

• Cost: 10,000 gold
• Requirements: Level 10+ character
• Guild name: Unique server-wide, 3-24 characters
• Guild tag: 2-4 character abbreviation displayed next to member names

Guild Size

• Base capacity: 50 members
• Expandable via guild upgrades (gold cost): up to 200 members
• No hard cap on inactive members, but guilds can set auto-kick thresholds

Guild Ranks and Permissions

Guild masters can create custom ranks with granular permissions.

Guild Bank

• Shared storage for items and gold
• Members deposit items/gold; withdrawal permissions are rank-based
• Withdrawal logs visible to officers (prevents theft without accountability)
• Bank size: 50 slots base, expandable with guild gold
• Acts as a gold sink (expansion costs) and a social coordination tool

Guild Buffs

Guilds can invest gold into temporary server-wide buffs for all members:

• Only one buff active at a time per guild
• Acts as a meaningful gold sink
• Encourages active guild management

Guild Leveling

• Guilds earn XP from member activities (dungeon completions, raid completions, PVP wins)
• Guild levels unlock:
  • Higher member cap
  • More guild bank slots
  • Access to guild-exclusive crafting stations (10% crafting time reduction)
  • Guild hall cosmetic upgrades
  • Guild achievements and titles

Guild Hall

• A visual representation of the guild’s home base
• Upgradeable with gold and materials
• Contains: guild bank, crafting stations, quest board (guild-specific bounties), trophy room (displays raid achievements)
• Primarily a social and cosmetic space — a “home” for the guild

Party System

Timed Lobby System

This is the core multiplayer mechanic. Here’s how it works:

1. A player (or guild officer) creates a party lobby for a specific quest/dungeon/raid
2. A start time is set — e.g., “This raid starts at 8:00 PM server time on Saturday”
3. Players join the lobby before the start time, slotting their configured character into a party role
4. At the start time, the run begins automatically — regardless of whether players are online at that moment
5. The run resolves over real-world time as usual
6. All party members can review results when the run completes

Lobby Details

• Party size: 2-player (duo), 4-player (standard), 8-player (raid)
• Role slots: Lobbies can specify role requirements:
  • Tank (1-2): Vanguard, Berserker, Oathblade
  • Healer (1-2): Warden, Songweaver, Oathblade
  • DPS (2-4): Any damage-focused build
  • Support (0-2): Songweaver, Arcanist (utility), Pathfinder (scout)
• Minimum level: Set by the quest requirements
• Ready check: Players must mark “Ready” after configuring their character
• Auto-fill option: If the lobby isn’t full by start time, the system can optionally auto-fill from a public queue (configurable by lobby creator)
• Late join window: Players can join up to 30 minutes before start time

Lobby Scheduling

• Lobbies can be created up to 7 days in advance
• Guild officers can create recurring lobbies (e.g., “Every Saturday at 8 PM: Weekly Raid”)
• Notification system: Players receive notifications:
  • When a lobby they might be interested in is created (guild lobbies, friend lobbies)
  • 1 hour before a lobby starts
  • 15 minutes before a lobby starts (final reminder)
  • When the run is complete

Public Queue

For players without a guild or for casual grouping:

• Queue for a quest — the system matches you with other queued players when enough are available
• Matching prioritizes: level range, role balance, queue time
• Once matched, a lobby is created with a 1-hour countdown — giving all matched players time to configure
• Less control than a private lobby, but zero coordination required

Party Combat

• Party members act in initiative order alongside enemies
• Each player’s skill queue operates independently based on their configuration
• Allied skill queue awareness: Skill queues can reference ally conditions:
  • “Heal the ally with the lowest HP”
  • “Use Inspiring Melody on the Shade when they attack the boss”
  • “Taunt enemies attacking the Arcanist”
• Party composition matters — a party of 4 DPS will struggle without a healer

Raids

Raids are the pinnacle multiplayer content. See 06-quests-and-dungeons.md for encounter structure.

Raid-Specific Features

• 8-player parties with strict role requirements
• Multi-phase boss fights with unique mechanics:
  • Phase transitions at HP thresholds
  • Environmental hazards (stand in fire = take damage)
  • Add spawns (boss summons minions periodically)
  • Enrage timers (boss gets stronger if fight goes too long — DPS check)
  • Role-specific mechanics (tank must hold aggro, healer must dispel debuff, DPS must focus specific target)
• Raid lockouts: Characters can only complete a specific raid once per week for full rewards
  • Additional completions in the same week give reduced rewards (partial XP, no bonus loot)
  • Lockout resets every Monday at server reset time
• Raid difficulty tiers: Normal / Heroic / Mythic
  • Each tier increases enemy stats, adds mechanics, and improves loot quality
  • Mythic raids drop the best gear in the game

Raid Scheduling

• Guilds schedule raids via the lobby system
• Raid lobbies appear on a server-wide raid calendar (for public raids)
• Raid start times are prominently displayed with countdown timers

Friends List

• Add players by character name
• See friends’ online status, current activity, and level
• Quick-invite to party lobbies
• Friend activity feed: See when friends complete notable dungeons, earn achievements, or find legendary loot
• Max friends: 100

Messaging and Mail

In-Game Mail

• Send items, gold, and text messages to any player
• Item mail: 1-hour delivery delay (anti-scam)
• Gold mail: 5% transfer fee (gold sink)
• Text mail: Instant delivery
• Mail expires after 30 days if unclaimed
• Used for: auction house payments, guild communications, friend-to-friend trading

Chat System

Channels:

• Global: Server-wide chat (rate-limited to prevent spam)
• Guild: Guild members only
• Party: Current party/lobby members
• Whisper: Private 1-on-1 messages
• Trade: Dedicated channel for trade offers and requests
• LFG (Looking for Group): Dedicated channel for finding parties

Chat is persistent — messages are stored and visible when you log in (last 100 messages per channel). This is crucial for async play — guild coordination happens over hours, not minutes.

Chat Moderation

• Profanity filter (configurable: on/off/custom)
• Report system for harassment
• Mute/block individual players
• Rate limiting on global/trade channels
• Automated spam detection

Player Inspection

• Click on any player’s name to view their public profile:
  • Character name, title, guild
  • Level and class
  • Equipped gear (visible to all)
  • Achievement showcase (player-selected highlights)
  • PVP rank
  • Dungeon completion statistics
• Players can set their profile to private (hides gear and stats, shows only name/level/guild)

Social Features Summary

PVP System

Overview

PVP in Delve is fully asynchronous. You configure your character’s skill queue, queue for a match, and the system resolves the fight. You can review the combat log afterward, just like a dungeon run. This makes PVP accessible to all time zones and schedules while preserving the strategic depth of build optimization and skill queue configuration.

Arena PVP

1v1 Arena

The core PVP mode. Your character fights another player’s character in a controlled environment.

How It Works

1. Queue for 1v1 — Your character enters the matchmaking queue
2. Matchmaking — System finds an opponent near your rating
3. Fight resolves immediately — No waiting period (unlike dungeon runs)
4. Review the log — Full combat log shows every roll, decision, and outcome

The fight resolves instantly because there’s no dungeon exploration — just two configured characters fighting. This makes PVP feel snappy and repeatable.

Matchmaking

• ELO-based rating system — Win against higher-rated opponents = more rating gain
• New characters start at 1000 ELO
• Rating range for matchmaking: +/- 150 ELO (widens over time if no match found)
• Level-based brackets to prevent level 50s from fighting level 5s:
  • Bracket 1: Levels 1-12
  • Bracket 2: Levels 13-25
  • Bracket 3: Levels 26-37
  • Bracket 4: Levels 38-50
• Within a bracket, gear and build differences create the competitive space

Arena Rules

• Standardized arena — Flat terrain, no environmental factors. Pure build vs. build.
• No consumables — Potions, scrolls, and supplies are not used in arena PVP. Prevents pay-to-consume advantages.
• Full HP/resources — Both fighters start at full HP, full ability charges, all abilities available
• 10-round time limit — If neither fighter is dead after 10 rounds, the one with higher HP percentage wins
• Death is not permanent — Losing an arena match has zero character consequences (no gear loss, no recovery timer)

Team Arena (3v3)

• Same matchmaking system but team-based
• Premade teams (guild members, friends) or solo queue (auto-matched)
• Team rating is separate from 1v1 rating
• Party composition matters heavily — tank/healer/DPS vs. triple DPS is a real strategic choice
• Skill queues can reference teammate conditions (same as party dungeon runs)

Arena Rewards

PVP Vendor

Spends Honor Points on:

• Cosmetic gear skins unique to PVP
• Titles at various honor point thresholds
• PVP-specific consumables (usable only in guild war content, not arena)
• Portraits and profile frames showing PVP rank

No stat gear from PVP vendor. PVP rewards are cosmetic and prestige-based. Gear comes from PVE (dungeons, crafting, raids). This prevents a mandatory PVP grind for PVE players and vice versa.

PVP Seasons

Season Structure

• Seasons last 3 months (aligned with real-world quarters)
• At the start of each season, arena ratings soft reset (compressed toward 1000, not fully wiped)
• Season rewards are distributed at the end based on peak rating achieved during the season

Season Rewards

• All season rewards are permanent — earned once, kept forever
• Previous season rewards are no longer earnable (creates exclusivity and bragging rights)

Leaderboard

• Top 100 players per bracket displayed on a public leaderboard
• Shows: rank, character name, guild, class, win/loss record, peak rating
• Updated in real-time as matches resolve

PVP Balance

The Balance Challenge

PVE gear in PVP creates inherent imbalance — a player with legendary raid gear will outperform someone in quest greens at the same skill level. Delve addresses this with stat normalization:

Stat Normalization in Arena

• All gear in arena PVP is scaled to a baseline item level
• A player in common gear fights at the same effective stat level as a player in legendary gear
• Gear properties still matter — enchantments, set bonuses, and special effects function normally, but raw stats (Evasion rating, damage dice, attribute bonuses from MGT/LOG/SPD/PRS/FRT/LCK) are equalized
• This means: your choice of enchantments, class build, feat selection, and skill queue configuration determine PVP outcomes — not how many raid clears you have

Why Normalization?

• Makes PVP accessible to all players regardless of PVE progression
• Prevents “you need raid gear to compete” gatekeeping
• Keeps the competitive focus on strategy and build decisions
• Players who don’t enjoy PVE can still compete in PVP

What’s NOT Normalized

• Level — Higher level characters have more abilities, feats, and base stats. This is why PVP has level brackets.
• Class and subclass — Some matchups are inherently favored (rock-paper-scissors element). Over many games, this evens out.
• Skill queue configuration — The primary competitive differentiator. A well-configured skill queue beats a poorly configured one.

Guild Wars

Guild wars are opt-in, ongoing conflicts between two guilds that add PVP stakes to normal play.

Declaring War

• A guild officer challenges another guild to war
• The challenged guild has 48 hours to accept or decline
• Both guilds set a war wager (gold from the guild bank)
• War lasts 1 week from acceptance

War Mechanics

• During the war period, members of opposing guilds are automatically matched for war arena matches when both queue for PVP
• War matches award war points to the winning guild
• At the end of the week, the guild with more war points wins the wager
• War matches use the same normalized arena rules

War Standings

• Tracked on a war scoreboard visible to both guilds
• Individual performance tracked (top contributors earn bonus honor points)
• Guild chat gets automated updates (“Your guild is winning the war 45-38!”)

War Rewards

• Winning guild receives the loser’s wager
• Winning guild members receive bonus honor points
• “War Victor” title available for the winning guild during the following week

Faction Warfare

Faction warfare is a server-wide, persistent PVP system tied to the faction system (see 11-factions-and-reputation.md).

How It Works

• Certain world zones are contested territory controlled by factions
• Players aligned with a faction can queue for faction battles to capture or defend territory
• Faction battles are larger-scale (8v8 or 16v16), using the timed lobby system
• Territory control grants server-wide buffs to all members of the controlling faction

Territory Control Benefits

• Territories can be challenged once per day by an opposing faction
• The defending faction’s battle happens at a set time (timed lobby — same async-friendly system)
• Control changes are announced server-wide

Faction PVP Rating

• Separate from arena rating
• Affects faction reputation gain rate
• Top faction PVP contributors earn exclusive faction titles and cosmetics

PVP Design Principles

1. PVP is always optional. No PVE content requires PVP participation. No PVP rewards give PVE advantages (beyond cosmetics).
2. Skill > gear. Stat normalization ensures PVP outcomes depend on build choices and skill queue configuration, not gear farming.
3. Async-friendly. All PVP resolves without requiring both players online simultaneously.
4. Meaningful rewards without mandatory participation. PVP rewards are cosmetic prestige items. FOMO is limited to seasonal titles (which are purely visual).
5. Anti-griefing. No open-world PVP, no ganking, no corpse camping. All PVP is consensual and structured.

Factions and Reputation

Overview

Factions are persistent organizations in the game world that players align with to unlock exclusive rewards, recipes, enchantments, and consumables. Reputation is earned over time through quests and activities — it’s a long-term progression system that complements the level and gear treadmills.

Factions create meaningful choices. Some factions are in conflict, so raising reputation with one may lower it with another. This encourages players to specialize or plan carefully.

Design Principle: No Class Funneling

Every faction’s rewards are usable by all 9 classes. Factions do not map to class archetypes. There is no “correct” faction for a Shade, Arcanist, or Vanguard. Instead, each faction optimizes a different gameplay strategy dimension — durability, burst damage, loot discovery, gear enhancement, consumable power, risk/reward, or economic advantage. Any class benefits from any faction.

A Shade might choose Iron Compact (shore up squishiness with durability), Covenant of Dusk (maximize burst damage at the cost of fragility), or Shadow Court (optimize loot per run). All three are valid builds that produce meaningfully different characters.

Faction List

The Iron Compact

• Theme: Military order, discipline, endurance
• Headquarters: Ironhold Citadel (The Ironmarch)
• Conflict with: The Covenant of Dusk
• Gameplay Dimension: Durability & Endurance
  • Rewards focus on surviving longer, recovering more between encounters, and shrugging off conditions. For players who want to go deeper into dungeons and never die.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +max HP, +condition resistance, +HP recovery between encounters, +rest point effectiveness
  • Consumables: Extended-duration rations (last 2 encounters instead of 1), fortification elixirs (+Fortitude for full dungeon run), condition immunity tonics
  • Recipes: Reinforced armor upgrades (any weight class), durable weapon coatings (reduce gear degradation), bulk supply crafting (craft supplies in larger batches)
  • Passive (Exalted): +10% HP recovery at rest points, +10% condition resistance in all content
  • Cosmetics: Heavy-plated armor skins, “Iron Warden” title, fortress-themed portrait frames

The Shadow Court

• Theme: Intelligence network, information brokers, treasure hunters
• Headquarters: The Undercity (The Shallows)
• Conflict with: The Order of the Dawn
• Gameplay Dimension: Loot & Discovery
  • Rewards focus on finding more treasure, detecting traps and hidden rooms, and increasing loot quality. For players who want to maximize the value of every dungeon run.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +loot quality, +trap detection, +hidden room discovery chance, +gold find
  • Consumables: Treasure-finding scrolls (reveal all hidden caches in current dungeon), trap-sight potions (+50% trap detection for a full run), appraisal dust (identify items on pickup)
  • Recipes: Lockpick crafting (all tiers), loot-enhancing weapon oils (bonus drop chance from kills), salvage kits (bonus materials from salvaging)
  • Passive (Exalted): +5% loot quality on all dungeon runs, +15% trap detection in all content
  • Cosmetics: Dark leather armor skins, “Shadow Blade” title, mysterious portrait frames

The Arcane Conclave

• Theme: Academy of magic, research, craftsmanship
• Headquarters: The Spire Atrium (The Spire)
• Conflict with: The Primal Circle
• Gameplay Dimension: Gear Enhancement & Reforging
  • Rewards focus on making gear better — reforging, enchanting, and enhancement. For players who want to min-max their equipment and chase perfect rolls.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +enchantment potency (existing enchantments are stronger), +reforge quality floor (minimum potency on reforge rolls), weapon/armor enhancement success rate bonus
  • Consumables: Reforging catalysts (guarantee the new bonus is different from the old one), enhancement boosters (+15% success rate on next enhancement attempt), essence amplifiers (double magical essence from next disenchant)
  • Recipes: Advanced enchanting formulas (unique enchantments not available elsewhere), gem cutting techniques (higher quality cuts), enhancement protection charms (prevent material loss on failed enhancement)
  • Passive (Exalted): Reforging costs reduced by 15%, +5% gear enhancement success rate
  • Cosmetics: Arcane-effect armor skins, “Archmage” title, glowing rune portrait frames

The Primal Circle

• Theme: Harmony with nature, self-sufficiency, the land provides
• Headquarters: The Eldergrove (The Verdant Deep)
• Conflict with: The Arcane Conclave
• Gameplay Dimension: Gathering & Consumable Power
  • Rewards focus on gathering more materials, crafting better consumables, and getting more out of alchemy and cooking. For players who want the best supply chain and the strongest potions/food.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +gathering yield, +consumable effectiveness (potions heal more, elixirs last longer), +crafting speed, +critical craft chance
  • Consumables: Gathering boosters (double yield on next gathering expedition), potency enhancers (next consumable used has +50% effect), nature’s bounty scrolls (bonus materials from dungeon node encounters)
  • Recipes: Upgraded versions of all alchemy recipes (greater potency), exclusive cooking recipes (strongest food buffs), bulk crafting formulas (craft in larger batches), rare herb cultivation (grow rare herbs with a personal garden system)
  • Passive (Exalted): +10% gathering yield from all sources, +10% consumable effectiveness
  • Cosmetics: Nature-themed armor skins, “Warden of the Wild” title, living-vine portrait frames

The Order of the Dawn

• Theme: Zealous order, strength through conviction, overwhelming force
• Headquarters: The Sunspire Cathedral (The Pale Reaches)
• Conflict with: The Shadow Court
• Gameplay Dimension: Burst Power & Boss Killing
  • Rewards focus on dealing more damage, especially to bosses and elites. For players who want to optimize kill speed and tackle the hardest combat content.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +damage vs. bosses, +damage vs. elites, +critical hit damage, +skill damage (flat bonus to all damage skills)
  • Consumables: Wrath elixirs (+20% damage for 3 encounters, -10% max HP for duration), boss-slayer oils (weapon coating: +25% damage to boss-type enemies for one fight), fury tonics (+15% critical hit chance for one encounter)
  • Recipes: High-damage weapon coatings for all weapon types, boss-tuned ammunition (bonus damage to large enemies), sharpening kits (temporary flat damage boost to any weapon)
  • Passive (Exalted): +8% damage to boss and elite enemies, +5% critical hit damage
  • Cosmetics: Radiant-themed armor skins, “Dawnbringer” title, sunrise portrait frames

The Covenant of Dusk

• Theme: Forbidden knowledge, power at a price, risk and reward
• Headquarters: The Duskhollow (The Ashlands)
• Conflict with: The Iron Compact
• Gameplay Dimension: Risk/Reward & Condition Exploitation
  • Rewards focus on powerful effects with trade-offs, condition manipulation, and getting stronger as things get more dangerous. For players who like glass cannon builds and gambling on big payoffs.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +damage when below 50% HP, +damage per debuff on target, chance to apply random condition on hit, +damage but -max HP (tunable trade-off enchantments)
  • Consumables: Blood elixirs (spend 20% HP to gain +30% damage for 3 rounds), dusk vials (apply a random debuff to all enemies at encounter start, but also apply one to yourself), desperation draughts (all stats +15% when below 25% HP)
  • Recipes: Condition-enhancing weapon coatings (conditions you apply last 1 extra round), volatile potions (random potency — could be weak or incredibly strong), cursed gear upgrades (powerful enhancement with a drawback)
  • Passive (Exalted): +10% damage when below 50% HP, conditions you apply last 1 additional round
  • Cosmetics: Shadow-effect armor skins, “Duskwalker” title, dark-flame portrait frames

The Merchant Consortium

• Theme: Trade guild, commerce, mutual profit
• Headquarters: The Grand Exchange (The Shattered Coast)
• Conflict with: None (neutral faction)
• Gameplay Dimension: Economy & Trade
  • Rewards focus on making more gold, spending less gold, and having better marketplace access. For players who want to build wealth and dominate the economy.
• Rewards:
  • Enchantments (all gear types): +gold find, +vendor sell prices, +material yield from salvage, reduced enhancement costs
  • Consumables: Merchant’s eye (identify full value of all loot for one dungeon — helps decide equip vs. sell vs. salvage), golden touch scrolls (+50% gold from next dungeon run), trade route maps (bonus gathering yield from one zone for 24 hours)
  • Recipes: Efficient salvage techniques (bonus materials from salvaging), market-ready crafting (crafted items sell for 20% more to vendors), luxury goods crafting (high gold value items crafted from common materials)
  • Passive (Exalted): Auction house sale tax reduced from 10% to 7%, NPC vendor buy prices increased by 15%
  • Cosmetics: Wealthy-themed armor skins, “Grand Merchant” title, gold-coin portrait frames

Conflict Pairs

Factions exist in three conflict pairs, each representing a genuine gameplay trade-off that every class must consider.

Iron Compact vs. Covenant of Dusk — Safety vs. Power

• The trade-off: Do you want to survive longer and go deeper into dungeons, or hit harder at the cost of fragility?
• Why it matters for everyone:
  • A Vanguard might go Iron Compact (unkillable tank) or Covenant of Dusk (offensive Vanguard that hits like a truck when hurt)
  • A Shade might go Iron Compact (shore up low HP to survive longer) or Covenant of Dusk (maximize burst damage with risk/reward synergy)
  • An Arcanist might go Iron Compact (survive long enough to cast) or Covenant of Dusk (glass cannon blaster)
• Gaining reputation with one causes 50% of that gain as a loss to the other

Order of the Dawn vs. Shadow Court — Kill Speed vs. Loot Efficiency

• The trade-off: Do you want to kill bosses faster and deal more damage, or find more loot and hidden treasure per run?
• Why it matters for everyone:
  • A Berserker might go Order of the Dawn (maximize already-high damage against bosses) or Shadow Court (offset Berserker’s poor trap detection and find more loot)
  • A Warden might go Order of the Dawn (add damage to a support class) or Shadow Court (lean into utility and treasure finding)
  • A Pathfinder might go Order of the Dawn (add boss-killing power to ranged DPS) or Shadow Court (double down on scouting and exploration strengths)
• Gaining reputation with one causes 50% of that gain as a loss to the other

Arcane Conclave vs. Primal Circle — Gear Investment vs. Consumable Economy

• The trade-off: Do you want to make your permanent gear as powerful as possible, or have the best consumables and gathering yields?
• Why it matters for everyone:
  • A min-maxer who reforges obsessively wants Arcane Conclave
  • A player who runs long dungeons and burns through supplies wants Primal Circle
  • A crafter-focused player might want Primal Circle for gathering, or Arcane Conclave for enhancement recipes — depends on what they craft
  • A casual player who doesn’t reforge much gets more from Primal Circle’s consumable bonuses
• Gaining reputation with one causes 50% of that gain as a loss to the other

Merchant Consortium — Neutral

• Gaining reputation with the Merchant Consortium does not affect any other faction
• Every player benefits from economic advantages, but the Consortium competes with other factions for the player’s limited daily quest time

Why This Works for Build Diversity

The faction system creates 9 classes x 3 subclasses x 7 faction choices = hundreds of distinct character identities. Two Shade Assassins with different faction alignments play very differently:

• Shade Assassin + Iron Compact: Tanky assassin who survives long dungeons. Uses durability enchantments to offset low HP. Takes on attrition content that normally kills Shades.
• Shade Assassin + Covenant of Dusk: Glass cannon who gets stronger as HP drops. Uses risk/reward consumables to spike damage. Dominant in short dungeons and boss fights but fragile.
• Shade Assassin + Shadow Court: Loot-focused treasure hunter. Uses discovery enchantments to find hidden caches. Runs exploration dungeons in The Shattered Coast and The Sunken Kingdoms for maximum haul.
• Shade Assassin + Order of the Dawn: Boss killer. Stacks damage bonuses to delete bosses in The Pale Reaches. Less versatile but devastating in boss-focused content.
• Shade Assassin + Arcane Conclave: Min-maxer who reforges obsessively. Gear is immaculate. Less situational power but the best possible base stats.
• Shade Assassin + Primal Circle: Consumable-focused. Burns through high-potency potions every run. Great at sustained play and always has the best supplies.
• Shade Assassin + Merchant Consortium: Economy player. Makes gold efficiently, plays the marketplace, funds alts. Less combat power but wealthiest on the server.

Reputation System

Reputation Tiers

Reputation Gains

Faction Conflicts and Rep Loss

• Factions exist in pairs of conflict: Iron Compact vs. Covenant of Dusk, Order of the Dawn vs. Shadow Court, Arcane Conclave vs. Primal Circle
• Gaining reputation with one faction in a pair causes 50% of that gain as a loss to the opposing faction
• Example: Earning 200 rep with Iron Compact loses 100 rep with Covenant of Dusk
• The Merchant Consortium is neutral — gaining rep with them doesn’t affect other factions
• This means a character can realistically be Exalted with 2-3 factions but must choose which rival factions to support

Recovering Lost Reputation

• A character can never fall below Hostile (-3000) with any faction
• Lost reputation can be recovered by doing quests and activities for the faction
• There are rare “diplomacy” bounties that grant rep with BOTH factions in a conflicting pair (limited, don’t fully resolve the tension)

Faction Quests

Daily Quests

• 3 daily quests per faction (available at Friendly+)
• Quick procedurally generated bounty-style tasks taking 15-30 minutes
• Grant faction reputation, gold, and faction tokens

Faction Bounties

• Repeatable procedural tasks: gather specific materials, defeat specific enemy types, craft specific items
• Lower rep reward than daily quests but no daily limit
• Good for players who want to grind reputation

Faction Tokens

• Earned alongside reputation from faction activities
• Spent at faction vendors for exclusive rewards
• Cannot be traded
• Different from reputation — you might be Exalted but still saving up tokens for that legendary recipe

Faction Vendor Tiers

Strategic Considerations

For Build Optimization

• Players should evaluate which faction dimension matters most for their content focus and playstyle, not their class
• A player who runs boss-focused content in The Pale Reaches benefits from Order of the Dawn regardless of class
• A player who runs long attrition dungeons in The Bonewood benefits from Iron Compact regardless of class
• A player who focuses on crafting and marketplace play benefits from Primal Circle or Arcane Conclave

For Guild Strategy

• Guilds benefit from having members across different factions — covering all vendor inventories
• A guild with members Exalted across all factions has access to every recipe and enchantment between them
• Guild coordination on faction warfare can control territory bonuses for all members

For Alts

• Since faction choice is per-character (not account-wide), players can align different characters with different factions
• A player’s main might be Iron Compact for durability, while their alt is Covenant of Dusk for a different playstyle
• Faction tokens are per-character, encouraging long-term play across multiple characters

For Faction Warfare

• Faction warfare provides team-based PVP content with real stakes (territory control — see 10-pvp-system.md)
• Territory bonuses affect all members of the controlling faction server-wide
• Top faction PVP contributors earn exclusive faction titles and cosmetics

World and Setting

Overview

Delve takes place in Aethermere, a classic high-fantasy world fragmented by a magical catastrophe. The world exists to serve gameplay — every zone is designed around the game’s systems (procedural quests, factions, gathering, crafting, progression). There is no central storyline. Quests are procedurally generated tasks that players repeat to gain experience, loot, and materials. Lore exists as flavor text and environmental context, never as required reading.

The World of Aethermere

The Premise

Aethermere was once a unified empire, but a catastrophic magical event — The Sundering — shattered the world into fragmented regions connected by dangerous wilderness. Civilization survives in pockets: walled cities, fortified towns, and scattered settlements. Between them lie dungeons, ruins, monster-infested wilds, and forgotten places filled with treasure.

Adventurers exist because someone has to explore the dangerous places, clear the monsters, recover the artifacts, and keep the roads open. That someone is the player’s character.

Tone

• Hopeful but dangerous. The world is recovering, not dying. There are safe havens, friendly NPCs, and reasons to fight. But the wilds are genuinely lethal.
• Classic fantasy with texture. Dungeons, dragons, ancient ruins — but the world has depth. Factions have real conflicts. Player choices have consequences.
• Discovery over exposition. The Sundering left gaps in history. Ancient ruins hold secrets. Players discover lore fragments through play.

Zone Design Philosophy

Level-Scaling Content

Every zone has content for every level. Zones are not level-locked. A level 1 character and a level 50 character can both adventure in the same zone — the quest board generates level-appropriate dungeons, the gathering nodes yield tier-appropriate materials based on gathering skill, and enemies scale to the content selected, not the zone.

This means players never have to leave a zone they enjoy. A player who loves the dungeon style of the Verdant Deep can quest there from level 1 to 50 and into Paragon. They’ll just be running harder dungeons with tougher enemies and better loot as they progress.

Why Players Spread Out

Every zone offers content for all character types and all levels, but zones differ in what resources, enemy types, dungeon styles, and faction reputation they emphasize. Two players of the same class and level may choose completely different zones based on:

• What gathering materials they need — ores in the mountains, herbs in the forests, hides in the wilds
• What enemy types they want to farm — undead drop different salvage than elementals or beasts
• What dungeon styles they prefer — trap-heavy vs. combat-heavy vs. environmental hazard focus
• Which factions they’re building reputation with — each zone has different faction presence
• What crafting recipes require — zone-specific rare materials drive players to specific regions

How Level-Scaling Works

• Quest boards in every zone generate bounties, dungeon crawls, and raids appropriate to the character’s level. A level 5 in the Ashlands gets level 5 volcanic dungeon runs. A level 40 in Thornvale gets level 40 farmland dungeon runs.
• Gathering nodes yield materials based on the character’s gathering skill level, not the zone. A skilled miner in any zone with mining nodes extracts tier-appropriate ore.
• Enemy families are zone-specific (goblins in Thornvale, demons in the Ashlands), but their stat blocks scale to the dungeon’s difficulty tier. A level 5 goblin warband and a level 45 goblin warband are different fights.
• Zone-specific rare materials drop at all levels but in quantities and qualities that scale with character level and gathering skill.
• Faction dailies are available at all levels in every zone where the faction has presence.

Zone Structure

Each zone provides:

• Hub town with quest board, vendors, crafting stations, and gathering dispatch
• Multiple dungeon entrances generating content at the character’s level
• Gathering nodes for 2-3 gathering professions (no zone has all four at high yield)
• Faction presence from 2-3 factions (with at least one faction vendor)
• Environmental type (relevant to Pathfinder’s Terrain Mastery and elemental resistances)
• Dominant enemy families (determines loot tables, salvage types, and which damage types/resistances matter)
• Zone-specific rare materials (unique to this zone, used in specific crafting recipes)

Zone Unlocking

Zones unlock as the player explores the world. New characters start with access to 3 zones and unlock additional zones by completing a threshold number of dungeon runs (in any zone). This is purely an exploration gate, not a level gate — a level 1 character who runs enough dungeons unlocks zones just as fast as a level 30.

Players unlock zones in batches. The unlocking is account-wide — once unlocked, all characters on the account can access the zone. The threshold counts are cumulative across all characters.

Zones

Thornvale

• Environment: Pastoral farmlands, light forests, rolling hills
• Hub Town: Millhaven — a market town with all basic services
• Gathering Emphasis: Herbalism (herbs, roots, wildflowers), Logging (softwood, hardwood, heartwood)
• Secondary Gathering: Mining (low yield — scattered surface deposits)
• Dungeon Style: Balanced — even mix of combat, traps, environmental encounters, and decision points. No single mechanic dominates. Good for generalist builds and new players learning the systems.
• Enemy Families: Goblins, wolves, bandits, giant spiders, boars, treants
• Salvage Focus: Leather scraps, crude weapons (Blacksmithing materials), beast parts (Alchemy reagents)
• Faction Presence: Iron Compact (full hub), Merchant Consortium (trade post)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Thornvale Sap — used in Alchemy and Cooking recipes (healing and buff consumables)
• Why Go Here: Best Herbalism and Logging yields in the game. Balanced dungeons suit any build. Good starting zone but remains efficient at all levels for gathering-focused play.

The Shallows

• Environment: Coastal wetlands, tidal caves, river deltas, mangrove mazes
• Hub Town: Reedhaven — a stilted fishing village turned adventurer outpost
• Gathering Emphasis: Skinning (fish leather, scale scraps, chitin, crustacean shell), Mining (river gems, bog iron, clay deposits)
• Secondary Gathering: Herbalism (swamp herbs, mushrooms, waterlogged roots)
• Dungeon Style: Hazard-heavy — flooded passages, visibility issues, poisonous gas pockets, quicksand, tidal surges. Rewards Fortitude, good supply management, and preparation over raw combat power.
• Enemy Families: Crabs, bog trolls, swamp serpents, mud elementals, pirates, leeches
• Salvage Focus: Chitin, scales, monster parts (Alchemy materials), rough gems (Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Shadow Court (full hub), Merchant Consortium (trade post)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Tidestone — used in Jewelcrafting and water-resistance Enchanting recipes
• Why Go Here: Best Skinning yields plus early gem access for Jewelcrafting. Hazard-heavy dungeons reward tanky builds and players who invest in supply planning. Shadow Court reputation.

Dusthollow

• Environment: Arid badlands, mesas, sandstone ruins, desert canyons, oasis camps
• Hub Town: Sandspire — a cliffside settlement built into canyon walls
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (sandstone, ore veins, rough gems, crystal formations), Skinning (lizard hides, scorpion chitin, vulture feathers)
• Secondary Gathering: Herbalism (desert succulents, cactus extract, dry sage)
• Dungeon Style: Combat-dense — wave-style encounters and timed challenges. Enemies come in numbers. AoE damage, sustained resource management, and offensive builds are rewarded. Fastest XP per hour for players who can handle the pace.
• Enemy Families: Scorpions, sand elementals, desert bandits, hyenas, dust wraiths, sand wurms
• Salvage Focus: Chitin, venom sacs (Alchemy poisons), raw gems, sand-scoured metal (Blacksmithing)
• Faction Presence: Merchant Consortium (trade outpost), Covenant of Dusk (hidden shrine)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Sunite Glass — used in Jewelcrafting and Enchanting recipes (light/fire themed)
• Why Go Here: Combat-dense dungeons are the fastest XP grind for well-geared offensive characters. Good Mining and Skinning. Merchant Consortium and Covenant of Dusk reputation.

The Ironmarch

• Environment: Mountain passes, ancient ruins, underground caverns, crumbling fortresses
• Hub Town: Hammerfall — a fortified trading post at the mountain’s base
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (all ore types, gems, stone), Logging (hardwood, petrified wood, mountain oak)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (cave beast hides, mountain goat pelts)
• Dungeon Style: Trap-heavy — mechanical traps, collapsing passages, locked doors, pressure plates, poison dart walls, pit traps. Logic and Speed checks are frequent. Every class can succeed with the right supplies (lockpicks, trap detection potions), but Shades and high-Logic characters have a natural edge.
• Enemy Families: Orcs, trolls, cave beasts, undead miners, stone golems, mountain drakes
• Salvage Focus: Metal scraps, stone components (Blacksmithing, Jewelcrafting), enchanting dust from golems
• Faction Presence: Iron Compact (full hub), Shadow Court (hidden outpost)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Deepvein Crystal — used in Jewelcrafting and Enchanting recipes
• Why Go Here: Best Mining yields in the game. Trap-heavy dungeons drop lockpick recipes and trap-disarm tools useful everywhere. Iron Compact daily quests. Strong Logging secondary.

The Verdant Deep

• Environment: Dense ancient forest, druidic circles, fey-touched groves, overgrown ruins
• Hub Town: Sylvanus — a treetop settlement
• Gathering Emphasis: Herbalism (rare herbs, fungi, ironwood bark, mosses), Logging (ironwood, living wood, ancient timber)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (beast hides, insect chitin, feathers)
• Dungeon Style: Decision-heavy — branching paths with many encounters offering alternative resolutions. Diplomacy, stealth, and brute force are all viable paths through the same dungeon. Presence and Speed checks appear alongside standard combat. Rewards diverse attribute spreads and adaptable builds.
• Enemy Families: Corrupted beasts, fey creatures, plant monsters, giant insects, dryads, forest spirits
• Salvage Focus: Organic components (Alchemy, Cooking), rare wood (Blacksmithing weapon hafts), magical essence from fey
• Faction Presence: Primal Circle (full hub), Arcane Conclave (research outpost)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Feybloom Pollen — used in Alchemy and Cooking recipes (powerful buff consumables)
• Why Go Here: Best Herbalism yields alongside strong Logging. Decision-heavy dungeons mean multiple valid approaches per run — high replay value. Primal Circle reputation.

The Drowned Tunnels

• Environment: Flooded underground river systems, bioluminescent caverns, subterranean lakes, crystal grottoes
• Hub Town: Glowport — a cavern settlement lit by fungal growths
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (phosphite crystals, cave gems, deep iron), Herbalism (glowing fungi, cave moss, mineral-fed roots)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (cave fish, amphibious beasts, blind crawlers)
• Dungeon Style: Endurance/Hazard — environmental hazards (flooding, underwater passages, toxic gas, darkness) combined with long dungeon crawls and infrequent rest points. Supply management is critical. Characters with high Fortitude and good preparation thrive. Running out of torches or rations here is punishing.
• Enemy Families: Cave fish, amphibians, myconids, oozes, blind cave trolls, crystal elementals
• Salvage Focus: Ooze residue (Alchemy), crystal shards (Enchanting), bioluminescent material (Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Arcane Conclave (research team), Shadow Court (smuggler route)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Luminous Spore — used in Alchemy and Enchanting recipes (light and detection themed)
• Why Go Here: Unique gathering materials found nowhere else. Long dungeon crawls reward endurance builds and heavy supply preparation. Two strong gathering professions. Arcane Conclave reputation.

The Ashlands

• Environment: Volcanic wasteland, lava fields, obsidian formations, ash-choked ruins, magma vents
• Hub Town: Cinderport — a heat-resistant fortress city
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (obsidian, fire gems, volcanic ore, sulphur), Skinning (salamander hides, demon chitin, drake scales)
• Secondary Gathering: Herbalism (ash bloom, fire lichen, magma root)
• Dungeon Style: High-damage — fire hazards, lava flows, heat exhaustion, and enemies that hit exceptionally hard. Encounters test raw durability and burst damage output. Fire resistance gear and healing consumables are near-mandatory. Short, intense dungeons.
• Enemy Families: Fire elementals, demons, salamanders, ash golems, flame drakes, magma crawlers
• Salvage Focus: Fire essence (Enchanting), demon parts (Alchemy), obsidian shards (Blacksmithing, Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Covenant of Dusk (full hub), Order of the Dawn (crusader outpost)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Molten Core Fragment — used in fire-themed Blacksmithing and Enchanting recipes
• Why Go Here: Best source of fire gems and volcanic crafting materials. High-damage dungeons reward burst-oriented builds. Covenant of Dusk reputation. Short dungeon durations make it efficient for quick sessions.

The Shattered Coast

• Environment: Coastal ruins, underwater caves, shipwreck reefs, pirate coves, cliff fortresses
• Hub Town: Tidegate — a port city and major trading hub
• Gathering Emphasis: Skinning (sea creature hides, coral, pearl oysters, shark teeth), Herbalism (sea kelp, tide bloom, salt crystals, coastal herbs)
• Secondary Gathering: Mining (sea-floor deposits, coral gems)
• Dungeon Style: Exploration — branching paths, hidden rooms, secret caches, optional boss encounters. Dungeons are large with many off-the-beaten-path discoveries. Perception, Investigation, and Luck characters find significantly more loot per run. Any build can complete the main path, but thorough explorers are heavily rewarded.
• Enemy Families: Pirates, sea serpents, merfolk raiders, water elementals, drowned undead, kraklings
• Salvage Focus: Nautical components, pearl dust (Jewelcrafting), sea salt (Cooking, Alchemy), waterlogged enchanting materials
• Faction Presence: Merchant Consortium (full hub — Grand Exchange), Shadow Court (smuggler network)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Abyssal Pearl — used in Jewelcrafting and Enchanting recipes (water and luck themed)
• Why Go Here: Merchant Consortium headquarters means best trade access and lowest auction fees while here. Exploration-heavy dungeons yield the most total loot per run. Strong Skinning and Herbalism.

The Bonewood

• Environment: Dead forest, necromantic corruption, bone-white trees, haunted ruins, crypts
• Hub Town: Ashwick — a walled town at the forest’s edge
• Gathering Emphasis: Logging (bonewood, petrified timber, ghost oak), Herbalism (grave bloom, spirit moss, decay fungi)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (undead beast remains, spectral residue)
• Dungeon Style: Attrition — long dungeons with many encounters and scarce rest points. Enemies apply debuffs and conditions (poison, fear, life drain, curse). Sustained healing, condition removal, and careful resource rationing are critical. Punishes front-loaded builds that burn resources early.
• Enemy Families: Undead (skeletons, zombies, wraiths, ghouls), necromancers, death knights, bone constructs, spectral beasts
• Salvage Focus: Necrotic essence (Enchanting), bone dust (Alchemy), ectoplasm (Alchemy, Enchanting), grave iron (Blacksmithing)
• Faction Presence: Order of the Dawn (full hub), Primal Circle (restoration outpost)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Soulstone Shard — used in necrotic and radiant Enchanting recipes
• Why Go Here: Best source of necrotic crafting materials. Attrition dungeons reward sustain-focused builds. All classes can bring radiant consumables for the undead-heavy enemies. Order of the Dawn reputation. Strong Logging and Herbalism.

Stormhaven Plateau

• Environment: Windswept highlands, perpetual thunderstorms, lightning-struck ruins, sky temples, floating rock formations
• Hub Town: Tempest Hold — a fortress built to withstand constant storms
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (storm iron, charged crystals, sky gems), Logging (stormwood, lightning-split timber)
• Secondary Gathering: Herbalism (storm thistle, wind sage, charged petals)
• Dungeon Style: Speed/Initiative — timed encounters, fast enemies, ambush-heavy. Initiative order matters more here than anywhere else. Enemies strike first if you’re slow. Quick skill queues and Speed-focused builds dominate, but any class can invest in initiative gear and consumables.
• Enemy Families: Air elementals, storm harpies, lightning drakes, thunder bears, sky raiders, wind wraiths
• Salvage Focus: Charged crystals (Enchanting), storm iron (Blacksmithing), wind essence (Alchemy), lightning shards (Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Arcane Conclave (observatory), Iron Compact (garrison)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Stormheart Crystal — used in lightning-themed Enchanting and Blacksmithing recipes
• Why Go Here: Speed-focused dungeons are ideal for initiative-optimized builds. Unique storm-themed crafting materials found nowhere else. Best source of charged crystals. Arcane Conclave and Iron Compact reputation.

The Tangled Warren

• Environment: Massive underground insect hive, tunnels of chitin and webbing, fungal gardens, brood chambers
• Hub Town: Burrower’s Rest — a settlement carved from abandoned hive chambers
• Gathering Emphasis: Skinning (chitin plates, spider silk, hive wax, insect wings), Herbalism (hive fungi, royal jelly, spore pods)
• Secondary Gathering: Mining (hive-encrusted ores, amber deposits)
• Dungeon Style: Wave/AoE — swarms of smaller enemies with occasional massive boss creatures. Encounters regularly feature 8-15+ enemies at once. AoE damage and crowd control are heavily rewarded. Single-target specialists can still succeed but runs take longer.
• Enemy Families: Giant spiders, hive beetles, wasp swarms, centipedes, brood mothers, myconids, hive queens
• Salvage Focus: Chitin (Blacksmithing armor), silk thread (light armor crafting), venom (Alchemy poisons), amber (Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Primal Circle (research team), Covenant of Dusk (harvesters)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Royal Chitin — used in unique light and medium armor Blacksmithing recipes
• Why Go Here: Swarm encounters make this the best zone for AoE-focused builds. Best chitin and silk source for armor crafting. Royal Chitin armor recipes are highly sought-after. Primal Circle and Covenant of Dusk reputation.

The Pale Reaches

• Environment: Frozen tundra, glacial caverns, ancient ice fortresses, aurora-lit wastelands, permafrost ruins
• Hub Town: Last Light — humanity’s northernmost settlement
• Gathering Emphasis: Mining (adamantine, frost gems, glacial iron), Logging (frostwood, petrified ancient wood)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (frost beast pelts, ice drake scales, mammoth hide)
• Dungeon Style: Boss-focused — fewer encounters per dungeon but each is a significant challenge. Multi-phase boss fights, powerful elites, and raid-caliber encounters even in solo/party content. Rewards single-target damage optimization, tank/healer coordination, and learning boss patterns over multiple runs.
• Enemy Families: Frost giants, white dragons, ice elementals, revenants, undead armies, liches, frost wolves
• Salvage Focus: Adamantine scraps (Blacksmithing), frost essence (Enchanting), dragon parts (all professions), lich dust (Alchemy)
• Faction Presence: Order of the Dawn (full hub — Sunspire Cathedral), Covenant of Dusk (hidden presence)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Frozen Aether — used in legendary Enchanting and Alchemy recipes
• Why Go Here: Adamantine mining — the premier Blacksmithing material. Boss-heavy dungeons drop the best individual item rewards. Cold resistance gear and consumables are useful here. Order of the Dawn reputation.

The Spire

• Environment: Massive magical tower, reality-warping floors, planar rifts, arcane laboratories, impossible geometry
• Hub Town: The Spire Atrium (Arcane Conclave headquarters)
• Gathering Emphasis: Herbalism (planar herbs, aether bloom, void spores), Mining (arcane crystals, planar ore)
• Secondary Gathering: Skinning (construct components, extraplanar hide)
• Dungeon Style: Puzzle/Mechanic — each floor has unique rules (reversed gravity, phase-shifting walls, mana-draining fields, temporal loops). Adaptability and diverse skill queues are rewarded. Procedurally varied floors mean no two runs are identical. Logic checks are common but not mandatory — brute force is always an option, just less efficient.
• Enemy Families: Arcane constructs, displaced elementals, rogue mages, reality aberrations, planar beings, clockwork guardians
• Salvage Focus: Magical essence (premium grade — Enchanting), arcane components (all magical crafting), construct parts (Blacksmithing, Jewelcrafting)
• Faction Presence: Arcane Conclave (full hub), Primal Circle (opposition research team)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Aether Core — used in legendary Enchanting and Jewelcrafting recipes
• Why Go Here: Best source of magical essence and arcane crafting materials. Puzzle-heavy dungeons reward adaptable builds. Procedural floor variation keeps runs fresh forever. Arcane Conclave reputation.

The Sunken Kingdoms

• Environment: Submerged ruins of a pre-Sundering civilization, air-pocket cities, deep-sea trenches, coral palaces, abyssal vents
• Hub Town: Depthgate — an air-domed settlement at the ocean floor
• Gathering Emphasis: Skinning (deep-sea leviathan hide, abyssal chitin, kraken ink), Mining (deep-sea gems, pressure-forged ore, abyssal metal)
• Secondary Gathering: Herbalism (abyssal kelp, deep coral, pressure bloom)
• Dungeon Style: Exploration (deep) — massive non-linear dungeon maps with multiple paths, hidden areas, secret boss encounters, and environmental storytelling. Similar to The Shattered Coast’s exploration style but larger-scale and more dangerous. High Perception, Investigation, and Luck characters find significantly more content per run.
• Enemy Families: Deep-sea leviathans, abyssal horrors, merfolk warlords, pressure elementals, ancient guardians, coral golems
• Salvage Focus: Abyssal materials (all professions — unique tier), leviathan parts (Alchemy, Cooking), deep gems (Jewelcrafting premium)
• Faction Presence: Merchant Consortium (deep trade route), Shadow Court (treasure hunters)
• Zone-Specific Rare: Depthstone — used in legendary Blacksmithing and Jewelcrafting recipes
• Why Go Here: Unique deep-sea materials used in crafting recipes found nowhere else. Exploration dungeons yield the most total loot per run for thorough players. Merchant Consortium and Shadow Court reputation.