Material required? | None |
80/100 giving extra checks? | No |
Obtainable in game? | Yes |
Wishable | Yes |
Lets the PC identify herb kind and healthiness, and allows more and better herbs to be picked. The skill must be 'a'pplied on the herb square to identify the status and kind of herb.
Manual info[]
Herbalism covers both plant and herb lore. A character skilled in herbalism will be better able to recognize some of the strange plants that grow in the dungeons. Additionally, when collecting herbs, such a character will have a definite advantage over unskilled characters, because unskilled characters only will be able to find cursed herbs.
Basics[]
As described in the manual, without this skill you get only cursed herbs, also herbs always die after at most the third pick - there are three states of health for a herb bush, ranging from full of blossoms, strong, to withered. Without the Herbalism skill, herbs go straight from one state to the next lower one. Without the skill you cannot identify herb status either, so you have no way of knowing if a bush you pick will die from it.
Even a skill score of 1 gives a chance for noncursed herbs, bushes not losing health on pickup and a chance to identify the herbs and thus always be informed of the bush's health (for as long as you keep it alive, that is).
Advanced uses[]
The Herbalism skill increases the likelihood of blessed herbs being picked. For example, a test run of 100 picks with the Herbalism skill at 100 resulted in 70 blessed, 21 uncursed, and 9 cursed herbs. Also a high skill results in a lot more herbs picked before the plant gets weaker or dies.
Herbalism does not seem to influence the chances of picking the beneficial herb of a good/bad herb pair. A quick test of picking 100 stoma resulted in 52 stomafilia and 48 stomacemptia, so the 50/50 rate can be assumed to apply either way. A Farmer class power involves getting more good herbs.
It was also speculated that high Herbalism lowers the time between herb generations, but sadly this is not true; after each herb generation a 1d1000 is rolled, and herbs will generate once that many turns have passed - the erratic behaviour cannot be influenced.
Obtaining[]
Classes: Barbarian, Beastfighter, Druid, Farmer, Healer, Merchant, Mindcrafter, Necromancer, Priest, Ranger, Wizard.
Other PCs can be taught it by Guth'Alak as a reward for defeating black druid. The player has to choose "knowledge" for this.
Training[]
Picking herbs. Probably also 'a'pplying the skill on a bush.