Andy stooped to pick up the little black book, well aware that he was once again being distracted from spending Boon and Improvement Points. Before he looked at the prize, he glanced at Lucy and said, “Do not, under any circumstances, let me leave this campsite before I spend some points.”
He was smiling and his tone was light, so she chuckled, nodding along. “Okay. I’ll tie you up if I have to.”
Andy continued to grin, considering and then discarding the idea of a comment about not threatening him with a good time. Instead, he sat down beside her and turned the book over in his hands, studying the cover. “No words.”
Lucy looked over his shoulder. “Do you think it’ll give you a skill or something?”
“One way to find out.” He opened the cover and turned the first page, which was blank. On the next page was a simple title: Treatise on the System’s use of Improvement Points. “Oh, shit…”
“Can you read that?” Lucy asked, peering at the words.
“You can’t? It seems plain English to me—”
***Congratulations on your acquisition of a rare Codex Entry, Andy! This entry is irrevocably bound to you and, thus, only you will be able to understand the contents. The System would like to offer you some advice: treat knowledge gained from Codex Entries like this as a commodity. This information is not given freely. Though some other beings and societies have discovered it, they may or may not share what they know with you or your people.***
“You just got a System message, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.” Andy read the message one more time, and then he turned to her and explained.
“Oh, wow. Well? Are you going to read it?” She nudged his arm, jostling the little book.
“Yeah, I guess this is something we’ve all been looking for. I just wish…” Andy frowned, looking for the right words. “I wish it were a different topic. We’ve pretty much figured out Improvement Points.”
Lucy arched an eyebrow. “Have we?”
“Heh. Fair point. Okay, let’s see what this is all about.” Andy opened the book again and turned past the title page, reading the first entry:
Hello, reader! I am Legonric Alegennian, and within this small tome you will find a summary of my research—many years of exploration, interviews, and experimentation. Some of this knowledge was given to me freely, some was purchased with coin and treasure, and some was earned by paying in the oldest of currencies: blood. I mention this to emphasize that I do not write these words lightly, nor with the intent to pass them on freely. I write this tome as a legacy, and I trust that you’ll guard this knowledge and ensure that, when you share the knowledge found within to those you find dear, you will mention my name and keep my memory alive.
So, to begin, let us first define the topic at hand: Improvement Points. They are not things or objects in the traditional sense; they are, in fact, complex spells that work tremendously difficult magic upon the bearer. They are mana condensed to a purpose and made transferable. There are great wizards who can work similar magics upon their constructs, but never have I met any mana user who was as gifted with the weaving of such ritualistic workings as the entity we all know as the System.
With that understanding, you must then think of Improvement Points as gifts. The System watches what we do, and it rewards us. Usually, it provides Improvement Points as part of a “level” but not always. They can be awarded for achieving great deeds, finding potent treasure, or doing something the System simply finds clever or novel.
I’m certain that you are no dullard; I refuse to believe my final work could have found its way into the hands of such a person, and if it did, I would hope the words too complex for their feeble mind. That said, I doubt I’ve told you much that you don’t already know. Even so, you’ll find that I’ll write this text with no preconceived notions about my readers. Skim the basics if you find them boring.
Do all classes award the same number of Improvement Points? In a word, no! The System does not explain why, but some classes are viewed as more valuable than others. The general consensus is that it seems to have to do with rarity. On a given world, there might be a million “Fighters” but only one “Guardian of the Grey Gates.” The System will play favorites with the individual who discovered the rarer class, awarding more Improvement Points and also designing more unique skills and spells—but that’s a discussion for another tome.
Andy looked up from the book, surprised to see he’d already read several pages. Lucy was staring at him, eyes intent. He smiled, tapping the book’s cover. “It’s interesting.”
“And? Anything you can share?”
“It’s like an essay by a guy named, uh…” Andy glanced back at the book. “Legonric Alegennian. I just read the introduction, basically, and it talks about how Improvement Points are, like, bundled mana—spells that can affect a person.”
“So when an Improvement Point makes us stronger or teaches us a skill, it’s the System working a spell?”
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Andy nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. Also, there are lots of ways to earn Improvement Points, but it seems like doing noteworthy things, including gaining levels in rare classes, increases your odds. Nothing really surprising so far, but he goes on about how valuable information is, and that he wants people to appreciate all the work he put in to gather this information. I mean, I guess I can see it, considering how cagey the System has been about how things work.”
Lucy rubbed her chin, glancing at her sorted arrows. “Are you going to read more?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, well, I’ll leave you alone instead of making you explain every couple of pages. Want me to get you something to eat?”
“Uh, yes, please!”
“Okay, be back in a bit.”
Andy watched her leave, then turned back to his book.
Since I mentioned skills and spells, another topic of debate with regard to Improvement Points is why the System chose to implement a “system” in which the same currency is used to grant knowledge as well as improve a person’s vessel. In other words, Improvement Points can be used to enhance attributes as well as skills and spells, and we don’t know why. The prevailing argument is that the System views the physical and the metaphysical as interchangeable. Our mental self is as important as our physical self in the System’s eyes.
Others argue that the System has designed its Improvement Point system to be flexible and allow for an immensely diverse and varied development process. Two people may hold the same class, but they could develop in vastly different ways. One may value speed above all other things, and the other might prefer the idea of learning as many spells as possible. In the end, they’d be hardly recognizable as having advanced their careers in the same class.
Assuming you’re no novice with the System or Improvement Points, you might be shaking your head, thinking, “But Legonric, one can only enhance their attributes so far. After that, it’s down to luck and perhaps wealth to find breakthrough treasures.” Well, you’d be right if not for the next bit of knowledge, a secret that cost me dearly and one that pains me to divulge. Even now, the tip of my quill fights me, and I find myself stalling, describing the difficulty—
Enough of that! Here’s the secret that cost me so dearly: twelve Improvement Points can be exchanged for one Evolution Point. Have you ever allowed yourself to accumulate twelve Improvement Points? If not, you likely never learned that secret. Even if you did, unless you stared at the System’s display of your points and thought about the exchange, the System wouldn’t alert you. I’ve been to several worlds where not a single person knew this secret. As I told you, it cost me dearly… A story for another book.
What then, can one do with an Evolution Point? To put it simply, an Evolution Point can be used to bypass the System-imposed ceiling on an attribute, skill, or spell. Naturally, there are entire fields of study on this subject on some worlds—scholars spend their careers trying to determine the optimum use of Evolution Points, but I won’t go into those theories here. Suffice it to say that if there is another, easier way to break a ceiling, you should use it. Twelve Improvement Points is not a trivial cost.
Andy stared at the page for several seconds, allowing the words to sink in. Eventually, he looked up, wishing Lucy were still there so he could talk about it. In a way, he was excited by the information, but in another, he only felt more frustration; it didn’t make anything easier. In fact, the new twist in the System’s Improvement Point design only added more complication to things. Twelve points spent on skills and attributes was a massive boost, but then, if he could spend those twelve points to break through a ceiling…
Andy sighed, shaking his head. “Nothing’s ever easy.” He turned back to the book, surprised to see he was more than half done with the pages already. The next several pages involved a long-winded discussion of the many debated tactics for saving and spending Improvement Points. It was interesting, but nothing Andy would consider a revelation—not like the Evolution Points. He kept reading and soon found a section that piqued his interest:
As you can see, the use of common classes as a vehicle for the advancement of one’s rarer, more prestigious classes and, perhaps more importantly, one’s attributes, is a valid strategy. How then can a person go about “farming” Improvement Points from those classes? Well, one simply has to return to his or her “Unclassed” status and practice all manner of activities. The System will be all-to-eager, practically falling over itself offering you new classes.
Some speculate that this is a glitch in the System—an oversight of sorts. They think that the System expected people to spend all their time in their new classes and so wouldn’t return to that “Unclassed” option. Those more enlightened of us, though, realize the System is no dullard. Could an entity capable of delivering packaged mana in the form of life-altering “points” really be so short-sighted?
No, the option to return to your Unclassed status is there for a reason; I believe that the System values individuality, free will, and the intentionality of actions. It does not want a person ever to feel trapped. That said, use what is available to you, explore your options, and gain those Improvement Points! To that end, you’ll find, in the remainder of this treatise, a discussion of the most common “base” classes and, more importantly—and the result of years of research—a list of secondary classes that can be formed by achieving certain milestones within some of those classes.
Andy heard voices approaching, so he flipped through the last few pages and saw they were exactly what had been promised: breakdowns of easily acquired “base” classes and methods for quickly gaining early levels to gather improvement points and trigger evolutions and mergers. He closed the book and looked up to see Violet and Lucy approaching.
The former biologist waved, hurrying the last few steps. “Andy! I’m glad I caught you. Lucy said you were looking to spend some Boon Points. Did you do it already?”
“Um, no. I got distracted. Anyway, I’m glad you’re here because I didn’t want to decide without anyone else’s input.”
“Oh, good. I’m glad to help.” She nodded toward the little book in his lap. “What’s that?”
“This,” Andy said, “is a pretty damn interesting little book. I’m going to share the information with everyone, but we need to decide the best way to do it.” He paused, considering, then nodded and added, “We should also discuss the value of, well, hoarding information, I guess.”
Violet shook her head. “I don’t like that idea.”
“Yeah, me neither, but I think that’s because of the world we used to live in. Things are different now, Violet, and we can’t assume that everyone is going to be our friend. Information can be used against us.” He held up his hand, shaking his head, as he saw her scowl deepen. “I’m not saying we should go down that road, but I think it’s a topic worth discussing.”
Lucy put a hand on Violet’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “He’s right about the world being different, Vi. You know that.”
The other woman slowly nodded. “Yes. Let’s add that to the meeting agenda. Lucy was telling me about the Lurikeens, too.”
Andy smiled, standing to stretch. “Yep. But since you’re here, let’s talk about these options for boons.” He gestured to the node. “Have a look.”