Artistry (skill)

Game Description

The art of crafting has been present in Aetherius for countless years, from the simple making of letters for writing, to journals for recording histories, to crafting beautiful instruments to bring music to the masses. Artistry allows many mundane things to be created, for use across the world. Yet there are also certain artesian creations that have more esoteric abilities, and though the secrets of their very construction involve symbols and components that can effect the wave of magickal tides are not known to those outside of the profession, it is known that masters of their craft can create paintings which can capture the very essence of their subject, allowing them to possess certain abilities of their originator. From the mundane letter to the marvellous portraits, the abilities of true masters of crafting are without parallel.

Sketching

One of the primary features of the Artistry skillset is the creation of magickally animated paper sketches. These hand-drawn pages of artwork become enchanted loyal servants of the Bard, able to be commanded to perform a variety of attacks upon enemy players.

Sketches are classified by the source of their inspiration as follows:

• Creature sketches mimic any mobile creature in Imperian. They have a simple attack that deals damage and can be used to locate other players in the same area.
• Bard sketches mimic the Bard profession. They may use certain Voice abilities against an enemy to afflict or deal damage.
• Druid sketches mimic the Druid profession. They have abilities that can knock down a target or reveal hidden players in the room.
• Hunter sketches mimic the Hunter profession. They have freezing and fire attacks and can deliver the formaldehyde toxin, as well as provide instant travel across the local area.
• Mage sketches mimic the Mage profession. In addition to dealing damage, they can freeze, firelash and summon walls of ice.
• Runeguard sketches mimic the Runeguard profession. These focus on delivering toxins, removing defensive shields and punishing an enemy for attempting to flee.
• Renegade sketches mimic the Renegade profession. They have the capacity to entangle, stab with poison and garrote an enemy, as well as pull nearby targets from an adjacent room.

Only three sketches may be enchanted at one time, and each sketch has a limited number of attacks they may perform before they are destroyed.

Additionally, each sketch may be upgraded by adding up to three coloured inks to their outline:

• Green allows them to regenerate health with each attack
• Blue gives their attacks a chance to freeze the player
• Yellow halves the damage they receive
• Red gives their attacks a chance to set the player ablaze
• Purple increases the damage their attacks deal
• Gold makes them immune to critical hits

Sketch Tactics

This section will be completed by a Bard combatant. Talk to a skilled Bard in-game for more information.

Instruments

The Artistry skillset also contains a number of abilities that craft the instruments needed to play most Thespia songs. The instruments crafted can be used by any Bard as long as they have the relevant Thespia ability, and the skill of the Artisan can determine how effectively they perform in the hands of a musician (see the Artisan ability below).

Instruments crafted are all identical in appearance, and consist of:

• the Mandolin,
• the Flute,
• the Drum,
• the Panpipes, and
• the Harp.

Both instruments and other crafts constructed using Artistry require the use of an artist's workbench. For new Bard players, the easiest one to find resides within the main guildhall of the Bards guild in Kinsarmar, a few rooms away from the location of the guild tutor, Aliphae.

Miscellaneous Crafts

This section needs to be completed.

Ability List

Artistry offers the following abilities:

Name	Description	Required Skill		Commodity Cost	Notes
Mandolin	Craft a delicate mandolin.	Inept	0%	5 wood	Creates 1 mandolin instrument, useable by any Bard with their Thespia abilities
Syntax: CRAFT MANDOLIN Requires 5 wood You may craft a mandolin while in the presence of a workbench. A basic but versatile instrument, in the hands of a skilled musician it can grant a variety of defenses.
Paper	Craft paper from a piece of wood.	Novice	0%	1 wood	Creates 5 paper commodities, required by other Artistry abilities
Syntax: CRAFT PAPER Requires 1 wood In the presence of a workbench, you may turn one wood into five pieces of paper used as a commodity for other crafts.
Sketchbook	Craft a book of sketches.	Apprentice	0%	50 paper	Creates 1 sketchbook, a container for sketches that must be wielded to create, summon or dismiss a sketch
Syntax: CRAFT SKETCHBOOK Requires 50 paper While in the presence of a workbench, you may craft a sketchbook, used to bind the essence of others in a drawing.
Quill	Craft a quill for writing and sketching.	Apprentice	50%	1 feather	Creates 1 quill, an item that must be wielded to create sketches
Syntax: CRAFT QUILL Requires 1 eagle's feather While in the presence of a workbench, you may craft an eagle's feather quill, necessary for drawing in one's sketchbook.
Flute	Craft a silver flute.	Capable	0%	10 silver	Creates 1 flute instrument, useable by any Bard with their Thespia abilities
Syntax: CRAFT FLUTE Requires 10 silver While in the presence of a workbench, you can craft a small silver flute, used to provide a variety of beneficial defenses, while also capable of harming an opponent.
Sketch	The art of sketching creatures of the wilds.	Capable	50%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a mobile, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
Syntax: SKETCH <target> SKETCHLIST [<sketchbook>] TEAR <sketch/profession> FROM <sketchbook> INSERT <sketch/profession> INTO <sketchbook> CALL SKETCHES The art of sketching other creatures and players is a very powerful one, as it allows you to bind their essence to the drawing, and later use it under your control to attack others. Initially, you are only capable of sketching mobiles. As you study more about Artistry, you will learn how to sketch players of various magickal professions, and to utilise the sketches against your foes. These abilities are described in their own AB help files. To use a sketch, you can tear it out of your sketchbook. Once torn, you can then use the SKETCHLINK command to link yourself to the sketch and control it. Sketch commands use their own balance, the length of which differs based on the command - some are more complicated than others. Most sketch abilities are slower than the corresponding player ones, though. You can have a maximum of three sketches active at once. If you wish to use more, you can insert some of the currently active sketches back into your sketchbook. Additionally, the magickal energy of each sketch is limited - after certain amount of attacks, the sketch will weaken too much and dissolve. If you get separated from your sketches, you can use CALL SKETCHES to summon them back to your side. Sketches can be filled with inks for additional effects - the relevant AB help files describe the usage of each. Sketches of mobiles have the following abilities: SKETCHLINK BATTER <target> - Causes damage to the target. SKETCHLINK LOCATE <target> - Attempts to seek the direction in which the target can be found. The sketch can only locate players within the same area.
Knife	Craft a silver-edged knife.	Adept	0%	1 silver	Creates 1 knife sigil, which can be thrown to disrupt cloaking defenses.
Syntax: CRAFT KNIFE Requires: 1 silver While in the presence of a workbench, you may craft a small knife sigil. The knife sigil can negate several defences that would prevent the detection of the target's present location. Once thrown, this effect will last for several minutes.
Greenink	Fill in your sketches with green ink.	Adept	50%	1 green ink	Upgrades an existing sketch to regenerate their health through attacks
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH GREEN Requires 1 green ink Sketches filled with green ink will regenerate some of their health upon each successful attack. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.
Drum	Craft a small oaken drum.	Skilled	0%	1 cloth, 1 leather, 3 wood	Creates 1 drum instrument, useable by any Bard with their Thespia abilities
Syntax: CRAFT DRUM Requires 1 leather, 1 cloth, and 3 wood You may craft a small oaken drum while in the presence of a workbench. The percussive sounds of this instrument, when played by a skilled musician, may cause harm to your enemies or provide you with beneficial defenses.
Bard	Create sketches of fellow Bards.	Skilled	33%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Bard player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
Syntax: SKETCHLINK <word> <target> Sketches of a Bard are capable of using the following Voice words: Rubait, Kiyan, Mellaon, Kawis, Daemos, Oyiem. Voice words used by sketches are not affected by resonance.
Letter	Craft letters for mailing or personalized stationary.	Skilled	66%	varies	Allows use of "letter" design patterns
You may now use the "letter" pattern in Artistry.
Blueink	Fill in your sketches with blue ink.	Gifted	0%	1 blue ink	Upgrades an existing sketch to have a chance of freezing a target with each attack
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH BLUE Requires 1 blue ink Sketches filled with blue ink have a chance to freeze their target upon each successful hit. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.
Portrait	Capture someone's essence on canvas.	Gifted	33%	10 paper, 10 wood	Creates 1 player portrait, which can by used by the subject's allies to gain information on their condition or to magickally travel to their side
Syntax: CRAFT FRAME DRAW PORTRAIT OF <player> PORTRAIT <portrait> ROOM <description> PORTRAIT <portrait> EXAMINED PORTRAIT <portrait> MAGICKAL YES|NO PORTRAIT <portrait> SUBMIT PORTRAIT <portrait> PICKUP Requires: 10 wood and 10 paper An Artistan may capture the essence of someone on canvas. Once the basic portrait frame has been constructed, the artist must then detail all aspects of the portrait. All portraits must be approved by the Master Artisan before they may be used. Once the portrait has been approved, the portrait becomes the property of the portrait's subject. Furthermore, any allies of the subject may use the following abilities: PORTRAIT <portrait> GLANCE - Allows you to look through the eyes of the subject PORTRAIT <portrait> STATUS - Allows you to see the subject's health/mana/afflictions PORTRAIT <portrait> TRAVEL - After a short wait, you may travel through the portrait to the subject - Be warned, the portrait will remain where it is
Panpipes	Craft a set of polished panpipes.	Gifted	66%	1 rope, 5 wood	Creates 1 panpipes instrument, useable by any Bard with their Thespia abilities
Syntax: CRAFT PANPIPES Requires 5 wood and 1 rope You may craft a small set of wooden panpipes while in the presence of a workbench. A skilled musician may play this instrument to cause a variety of both harmful and beneficial effects to the target.
Journal	Craft a journal for keeping notes.	Expert	0%	varies	Allows use of "journal", "book", "tome" and "scroll" design patterns
You will now have access to the "journal", "book", "tome" and "scroll" patterns in Artistry.
Circles	Specialize in the Bardic Arts.	Expert	0%	-	Once every two Imperian years, select a passive benefit from specialisation.
Usage CHOOSE CIRCLE <circle> There are six different circles you may select from. You may choose a new circle after 24 months. AUTHOR Authors can use sketch abilities 20% faster. ARTIST Artists will enjoy crafting 20% faster than other bards. DANCER Dancers will recieve an additional 50% bonus to befuddle. MUSICIAN Musician's songs will last 10% longer. SINGER Singers will resonate better with the primordial notes, transferring the effect at a higher speed. ACTOR Actors can TRUEFEIGN anyone they are currently mimicing. This has a significant mana, willpower and endurace drain. For example, if you are mimicing Baar and do TRUEFEIGN KICK JANUS, it would look as if Baar has kicked Janus, when in fact you have.
Yellowink	Fill in your sketches with yellow ink.	Expert	33%	1 yellow ink	Upgrades an existing sketch so that it takes only half damage when attacked
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH YELLOW Requires 1 yellow ink Sketches filled with yellow ink will only take half damage when attacked. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.
Druid	Sketch those with the Druid profession.	Expert	66%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Druid player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
A sketch of a Druid can use the following abilities: SKETCHLINK SWING <target> - Swing a staff at an individual, knocking them off their feet. Unlike the Druid ability, sketches can only knock down a single individual. SKETCHLINK WHIRL - This ability reveals many hidden individuals at your location.
Scribe	Copy journals or books from one to another.	Virtuoso	0%	-	Copies pages between books
Usage: SCRIBE <journal 1> INTO <journal 2> SCRIBE <journal 1> PAGE <#> INTO <journal 2> SCRIBE <journal 1> INTO <journal 2> PAGE <#> SCRIBE <journal 1> PAGE <#> INTO <journal 2> PAGE <#> The first option will open each of the respective journals (or books) to their respective bookmarks and copy the bookmarked page of the first journal into the bookmarked page of the second journal. The bookmarks of each journal will then be advanced. The second option will copy the specified page of the first journal into the bookmarked page of the second journal. The bookmark of the second journal will be advanced by one page. The third option will copy the bookmarked page of the first journal into the specificed page of the second journal. The bookmark of the first journal will be advanced by one page. The fourth option will copy the specificed page of the first journal into the specified page of the second journal. No bookmarks will be changed in this case.
Redink	Fill in your sketches with red ink.	Virtuoso	33%	1 red ink	Upgrades an existing sketch to have a chance of causing burning with each attack
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH RED Requires 1 red ink Sketches filled with red ink have a chance to set their target on fire upon each successful hit. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.
Craftsmanship	Craft items with greater speed.	Virtuoso	66%	-	Triples crafting speed
Your skill as an Artisan is so high that you are now able to craft items three times as fast.
Hunter	Sketch those with the Hunter profession.	Fabled	0%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Hunter player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
A sketch of a Hunter can use the following abilities: SKETCHLINK FIREBLAST <target> - Causes fire damage and afflicts with sensitivity. SKETCHLINK FROSTBITE <target> - Freezes the target and afflicts with frostbite. SKETCHLINK STING <target> - Stings the target with the formaldehyde toxin. SKETCHLINK MEMORISE - Causes the sketch to memorise its current location. SKETCHLINK RETURN - Causes the sketch to return to its memorised location, taking you along. Unlike the Hunter ability, the sketch can only return from within the same area.
Globe	Craft an orb, used to dazzle friend and foe alike.	Fabled	25%	1 gold, 1 silver, 1 wood	Creates 1 globe, which displays a sequence of illusions when activated in a room
Syntax: CRAFT GLOBE INFUSE <globe> WITH <illusion> ENERGIZE GLOBE Requires: 1 wood, 1 silver and 1 gold A skilled artistan can create a globe of illusions, which may be infused with up to 5 illusions. Once the globe has been crafted and infused, anyone may activate the globe. Activating the globe will place it on the ground, and will cause it to display the sequence of the infused illusions, with a random wait between each. You may put a new line in the illusions you globe displays with the special character sequence "\n" (a backslash followed by an n). Only one globe may be active in a room at any one moment.
Mage	Sketch those with the Mage profession.	Fabled	50%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Mage player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
A sketch of a Mage can use the following abilities: SKETCHLINK STAFFCAST <target> - Causes damage to the target. The damage type is chosen randomly. SKETCHLINK FREEZE <target> - Freezes an individual. SKETCHLINK FREEZE GROUND - Covers the ground with slippery ice. SKETCHLINK FREEZE FIREWALL <direction> - Removes a wall of fire in the specified direction. SKETCHLINK FIRELASH <target> - Sends a lash of fire at a target. Unlike the Mage spell, this one can only be used within the same room. SKETCHLINK FIRELASH ICEWALL <direction> - Melts an icewall in the specified direction. SKETCHLINK ICEWALL <direction> - Summons a wall of ice in the specified direction.
Purpleink	Fill in your sketches with purple ink.	Fabled	75%	1 purple ink	Upgrades an existing sketch so that it causes additional damage with attacks
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH PURPLE Requires 1 purple ink Sketches filled with a purple ink will cause additional damage. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.
Harp	Craft the instrument of the Master Bard.	Mythical	20%	3 gold, 5 wood	Creates 1 harp instrument, useable by any Bard with their Thespia abilities
Syntax: CRAFT HARP Requires 5 wood and 3 gold You may craft a golden-stringed harp, the trademark of the master Bard, while in the presence of a workbench. When played, the beautiful music produced by this instrument can cause a series of harmful or beneficial effects to the target.
Runeguard	Sketch those with the Runeguard profession.	Mythical	40%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Runeguard player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
A sketch of a Runeguard can use the following abilities: SKETCHLINK SLASH <target> - Slashes the target, causing damage and afflicting with a toxin. This ability is affected by the rebounding aura. - The used toxin depends on the ink that the sketch has been colored with. If the sketch has more inks, a random one is chosen. Red: Ciguatoxin Blue: Opium Yellow: Xeroderma Green: Aconite Purple: Benzene Gold: Iodine SKETCHLINK RAZE <target> - This ability attempts to remove defences that would prevent the sketch from attacking. SKETCHLINK ENGAGE <target> - This ability causes the sketch to engage the target, lashing out at him should he attempt to flee.
Artisan	Craft instruments of unparalleled beauty and perfection.	Mythical	60%	-	Passive ability, all instruments crafted improve the effect of Thespia abilities when played by a Bard
A true master of Artistry may craft superior instruments. Instruments created by an artisan will experience an increase in the strength of the effects caused by the playing of the instrument.
Renegade	Sketch those with the Renegade profession.	Mythical	80%	1 page of sketchbook	Creates a paper sketch from a Renegade player, if sketchbook and quill are wielded
A sketch of a Renegade can use the following abilities: SKETCHLINK GARROTE <target> - Attempts to choke the target with a whip. Unlike the Renegade ability, this one will only hit if the target is incapacitated. SKETCHLINK BIND <target> - Attempts to bind a target, who must be asleep or unconscious. This ability requires a rope. SKETCHLINK CLOAK - This ability causes the sketch to shroud your actions in secrecy. SKETCHLINK DSTAB <target> - This ability causes the sketch to stab a target twice, delivering the oxalis toxin and a toxin depending on the sketch inks used. The toxins are the same as those used by the Slash ability of the Runeguard sketch. SKETCHLINK YANK <target> - This will attempt to drag a nearby target into your room, should he not be protected by the mass defence.
Goldink	Fill in your sketches with gold ink.	Transcendent	-	1 gold ink	Upgrades an existing sketch so that it is immune to critical hits
Syntax: FILL IN <sketch> WITH GOLD Requires 1 gold ink Sketches filled with a gold ink are immune to critical hits. Each sketch can be filled with a maximum of three inks.