"Not to be nit-picking, Ozzy, but shouldn't we have done this research before we signed the contracts?" Ben was working on an ancient laptop computer hooked into Ozzie's datanet connection. Ozzie was using a research program to scan all the video sites for any information on GENESIS. The game would be their employment for the next five years.

"I would have loved to, but none of the people I supply information to, or get information from, had heard a think prior to that meeting in the Grand Malkavian. Things were happening fast and I wanted us to cut a deal quick. ACME isn't the best or the worst corp to be working for. The manager we have is actually pretty good. Smart, ambitious..."

Rolly laughed. "...and ambition leads to being manipulated by Ozzwald the Magnificient. Just get me a nice cushy job walking dogs or taming dragons or something.

Ozzie closed the program he was working on and stretched. "I've got something. Gamer's Galaxy channel has a program coming on in two minutes with some information on the game."

"Oh, nice, they usually get some good stuff, who is hosting.?" Rolly moved to the floor with Ben, letting Ozzy have the only comfortable chair in the small one room apartment.

"Sadly, it's Knucklehead and DD54"

"Really?" Ben raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Those two are ancient. Also notorious for being only half-right most of the time. Plus we have to sit through a non-stop commercial for cheap beer."

"But it's the only info we have, and we head to work tomorrow, so quiet and lets take a look."

=*=

"So remember kids, when you need to re-hydrate after a long pod session, nothing works as fast or tastes as good as Bludgeon Brew. It goes to work stretching out those stiff muscles and gets some nutrients back to your brain cells quickly.

When you play hard, drink hard. There's nothing like an ice cold Blud!"

Knuckles745: And now that we're done paying the bills with a bit of obvious product endorsement, let’s get back to what we know about this new game, Genesis Engine. I'm your host, Knuckles745, and I'm here with my co-host, DarkDeath54. You'll probably remember DarkDeath54 from his appearances on "Best Bloopers in Gaming," especially Episode 32, "How to explode your pet dragon with a can of whipped cream.

DarkDeath54: Glad to be here Knuck!

Knuckles745: So let's talk about this new game! The creators have been damn stingy on most game details other than some footage of cool ruins and some damn nice looking scenery. But I think I speak for everyone when I say that pretty trees don't get me as excited as a run down of some special skills or some hints about where to get the loot. They've said they want the game world to be a total surprise so we can really experience exploration. We won't know what's out there other than the starting areas scattered around the globe.

Knuckles745: What we do know is that each account can have just one character at a time. That means some hard choices when it comes to character classes and builds. You can't start another character unless you delete the old one and start over.

So far we've seen standard starting classes: Warrior, Ranger, Paladin, Martial Artist, several types of Mages, Clerics, Druids, Healers, Rogues, and Assassins. Pretty standard stuff, but supposedly in the future you will be able to customize them further and move into specialist classes.

DarkDeath54: Standard racial selection as well. You can start as a human, elf, dwarf, halfling, and gnomes. We see some other races in some of the battle footage: Beastkin, gnolls, and orcs. And we can also see some larger creatures like ogres and minotaurs, and some winged fairies flitting about. We aren't sure if all of those are playable races. So for today, we'll focus on Classes and Skills and leave the question of races for another day.

Knuckles745: Right you are, DD54, so let’s take a look at the one class they've given us a lot of info on. A staple of fantasy gaming since forever, The Warrior. He's our generic fighter type with some balanced skills who can evolve into several specialized classes.

DarkDeath54: Excuse me, did you say evolve? Like in pokecraft3000?

Knuckles745: No, this is nothing like Pokecraft. Stay on topic DD.

Knuckles745: But yes, I did say evolve. While a character only has one class, they can get better as you gain levels. Every player starts with a Basic Class. According to the Developers, which Evolutions you get offered depends on three things: which options you take for your Basic Class, your in game achievements, and completing class quests. A player can choose to evolve up to a more specialized class after finishing 5 levels in the Basic Class. Or thay can continue on and have even more evolutions at level 10. It’s a little hazy on exactly how this works, but that's the gist of it.

DarkDeath54: Multiple evolutions sounds cool Knuck. So instead of being stuck with his first class like in EQO3, my Warrior could evolve into a Berserker and then into a Crazed Battle Machine? Like the way a Squirmy evolves into a Sucking Wyrmling and then into Dragothra in Pokecraft. That’s awesome!

Knuckles745: Yeah, just like that DD54, just like that. Except no Squirmy.

Knuckles745: Anyway, let’s take a look at the Warrior. First off, he gets +1 STR, +1 Con, and 2 free points. This is important since every character starts with Zero in all their primary stats. Where those beginning points go is important. Toss them into DEX or AGI and it will help if you’re going for a dodge tank or scout build, but you'll need INT if you want to cast cantrips as a Spellblade or blessings as a Paladin.

DarkDeath54: Screw that, Knuck, when I roll up my Warrior, I'm doubling up on more STR. Can't go wrong with being the strongest fighter in a group. Get the biggest, badass weapon you can and start swinging."

Knuckles745: Still in love with big swords I see? Why am I not surprised? You've been a meat shield for your last seven characters. Who knows? Maybe you'll get it right this time. Let's put up the table with basic stats so we see what you have to start with.

Name Race Class Level DarkDeath54 Human Warrior 0 Stat Level Bonus Total STR 0 3 3 CON 0 1 2 DEX 0 AGI 0 WIS 0 INT 0 CHR 0 Health 100 50 150 Stamina 100 70 170 Mana 100 0 100

Knuckles745: Okay then DD57, let’s assume you toss your 2 free points to STR. You are damned impressive now with 3 STR. That's going to add a lot to your attack and damage values as well as upping your Stamina and your Health. Looking good so far. But what are your choices for skills?

Knuckles745: From what we’ve been told, every class has choices about what to take for skills and they group them into Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary slots. Your Primary skills go up quickly. Secondary will take some work, and Tertiary will go up slowly. It makes sense to have your main skills as Primary to get them up fast, right?

DarkDeath54: HAH! Thought you'd catch me napping? Nope, already on that. These are important choices since you gain levels a lot faster with a Primary skill than a Secondary, and Tertiary are going to be hard to budge. A lot of people are going to be starting over once they realize they screwed the pooch on their choices. And it’s tricky, because maybe you want a skill you use a lot down in that Tertiary slot. Lots of use will make up for slower gains."

DarkDeath54: But here's mine. I had to pick 3 weapons and I went with Bastard Sword, Mace, and Shield."

Knuckles745: Sorry to bust your balls DD, but shield isn't a weapon, it's armor.

DarkDeath54: Not in this game Knuck, it's both! Taking shield as a Primary weapon will give me an offhand attack with Shield Bash, and a much better charge attack. I can use Shield and Mace for close quarters like a dungeon. But most of the time I’ll use Shield and Bastard Sword when I have a good bit of room to swing. Or just use the Bastard two-handed for more power. And a shield on your back stops sneaky assholes like you from backstabbing me. What else would you need?

Knuckles745: I’ll have to wait until you have that Shield on your arm then. How about your Defensive skills, you get two of those and a utility?

DarkDeath54: Right, right...offense isn’t everything. Just mostly everything. I went with Cover-up since I have Shield, and Sidestep. Utility was tough, lots of good ones but Second Wind is the obvious winner. Can never have too much stamina, and that will give me a boost in a long fight. Let’s roll right into how I set up my secondary choices. These aren't going to move up as fast, but with a little work I can raise them up before I evolve my class. I grabbed Longbow and Dagger for extra weapon choices. Hasty Retreat is great for getting out of a tight spot; Heavy Armor so I'm not a clumsy tank. Fist of Death gives me a mean left hook, and Appraisal.

Knuckles745: Whoa! Appraisal? What the hell? That's actually a useful skill you’re taking for a change. What brings on this bit of wisdom? You normally don't take a non-combat skill DD."

DarkDeath54: Yeah, well, I'm not letting one of those damn halfling pawn brokers rip me off again. I gave away fortunes in items they told me were broken forgeries! This time around I'll know how much the loot I get is actually worth."

Knuckles745: Ah, the hard earned experience of the veteran gamer. Rip them off 87 times and they eventually figure it out. Speaking of figuring things out....what did you go with for Tertiary skills? These go up damn slow so most people will be choosing abilities that give a nice perk even without leveling them up. Or, as you mentioned, something you use constantly."

Knuckles745: And speaking of leveling up, my thirst just went Epic!......time for another Blud. Nothing puts me in the mood for tasty Bludeon Brew like talking gaming. "

DarkDeath54: Toss me a couple Bluds while you’re in the cooler Knuckles, those tasty foamy beverages go down so fast you barely notice. And less filling!

DarkDeath54: Let’s see, for Tertiary I grabbed Sleepless in Seattle. Then I swapped 3 skills for minor perks: Extra Stamina 1, 2, and 3. Then I round it out with Armor Repair and Wound Stitching; two things I use constantly. They’ll level up quickly with all the fighting I do. I can fix myself up, keep going all day and night, and only need half my normal sleep.

Primary Skills Secondary Skills Tertiary Skills Bastard Sword (STR) Longbow (DEX) Sleepless in Seattle (CON) Mace (STR) Dagger (DEX) Armor Repair (DEX Shield (STR) Fist of Death (STR) Wound Stitching (INT) Cover-Up (STR) Heavy Armor (STR)

Extra Stamina I (+25 Stamina)

Side Step (AGI) Hasty Retreat (AGI) Extra Stamina II (+25 Stamina) Second Wind (CON) Appraisal (INT) Extra Stamina III (+25 Stamina)

Knuckles745: And there you have it folks. DarkDeath57 is ready to hit the road to adventure with his new warrior. But first we'll finish these Bluds! Let’s get in a few commercials and we’ll be back to talk about raising your stats to Hero level.”

============

Knuckles745: Alright, and we’re back. I’m your host, Knuckles754 along with my old pal, DarkDeath54. We’re talking Genesis Engine. You’ve got the lowdown on raising your Stats higher DD54?

DarkDeath54: Yep Knuck, and again, we have some choices to make. Whenever a player earns experience in Genesis Engine, the EP will get split between the skill used and the stat that governs it.

DarkDeath54: I’m out adventuring one day when I’m jumped by a Void Lich. After a quick fight where I use Mace and Shield he gets a terminal case of crushed skull. Afterwards, I’m stitching my wounds and pounding the dent out of my helmet while tossing back a cold Blud. The Void Lich is worth 400 experience. I’m going to get 200 EP in my skills and 200 EP in the stats that govern those skills. Mace and Shield are governed by STR, Armor Repair is DEX, and Wound Stitching is INT. So, here’s the breakdown: 50 experience to each of the 4 skills, 100 experience to STR, 50 to INT and 50 to DEX.

DarkDeath54: But now it gets tricky. Remember we said Tertiary skills are harder to level? Only 1/10th of the experience goes to Tertiary; if they were Secondary skills, only 1/3rd."

DarkDeath54: Our final breakdown is Mace and Shield at 50 EP each, STR at 100 EP, INT, DEX, Armor Repair, and Wound Stitching at just 5 EP. But if the math makes your head hurt like it does mine, don’t worry, it’s all automatic. You just keep killing things and it will all level up.

DarkDeath54: During Tier 1, before you evolve your class, a player can gain 5 levels in each of their skills. And that means they could also earn 5 points in each of the corresponding Stats. It might take a lot of grinding to get all your skills up - especially the Tertiary. And I'm sure some people will be short-sighted and go for the quick Evolution with out finishing them all. But I think that's a mistake. That’s around 100 points you can add to your stats while moving through your Basic Class and getting ready to Evolve it up.

DarkDeath54: Don't be a wimp! Grind it out and min-max the hell out of that build!

Knuckles745: Wow! DD54, that really shows how important it is that you allocate your skills correctly. Pick the wrong build and you can really cripple that character. Let's take a final look at DarkDeath54’s Warrior so you can see what the basic Character Sheet looks like when he gets to level 5, and for fun we'll assume he has the patience to level all his skills.

Name Race Class Level DarkDeath54 Human Warrior 5 Stat Base Bonus Total STR 0 5+10+30 45 CON 0 2+10+10 22 DEX 0 15 15 AGI 0 10 10 WIS 0 0 0 INT 0 10 10 CHR 0 0 0 From Level Bonus from stats Health 600 990 1590 Stamina 600 1120 1720 Mana 600 200 800

Knuckles745: I've got a question for you DD54. You're going to start at 3 STR, which is great for a starting character. But you might go as high as 45 is you max it all out. Are you 9 times stronger with that 45? And how much will that let you lift. Are we talking Conan or Hercules here.

"More Conan than Hercules in this case Knuckles. From a bit of leaked info, it looks like a 0 stat is pretty much a wimp human. At STR 0 a chacter, like some foppish wizard, can only lift about 25 lbs before they start sweating. STR 1 is 50 pounds. STR 2 is 100 lbs and it goes up by 50 pounds after that. At STR 5 I'll be able to heft a bag of loot weighing in at 250 lbs. But of course I'll lose a bit of that to armor, weapons and other gear.

"It gets tricky after that. We aren't going to be able to put play Hercules and put a bull on our shoulders even at 45 STR. A lot of that STR is gained from weapon skills and will be reflected in extra damage, armor cleaving, knocking back an opponent, and moving easily in armor. But that's all we know for now Knuckles. I tell you, I'm anxious to take this bad boy out for a spin

Knuckles745: Now you've done a great job DD54, that's a Hero in the making. And remember folks, when it comes time to grind out those levels, nothing keeps you going like a lot of Bludgeon Brew. Don't worry, it will be sold in game at all fine, and not-so-fine, Taverns.

=*=

"Well, that was interesting, if not a bit confusing." Ben had taken copious notes. "I'm anxious to actually see the system we have to work with. Hopefully we get a few hours for character creation."

Ozzy was scratching his chin. "Lots of skills. I'm betting we have some requirements for the jobs they give us. The key is going to be picking a class to go with the job we have, and get some synergy out of it for when we get days off and can go adventuring."

Ben nodded his head in agreement. "Another gameworld, and another system to start taking advantage of. After the flaming dumpster fire that EOQ3 has been these last few years, I'm really looking forward to it."