Zelda Universe RPG

Character Building Guide - Printable Version

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Character Building Guide - Orithan - 07-20-2016

(Note, do the Tutorial first before you check this out)



Much like enemies and NPCs, your characters take on roles depending on what playstyles you like to play as. Like to play as a mage? Like taking hits for your allies? Want to wipe someone out with a single blow? Well, this guide exists to give you an overview on how to build your characters for a particular role or a combination of roles.

Basics of profile building
While you are free to build your profile however you want, it is strongly recommended that a new character has the following:
  • At least one Offensive Spell or Weapon
  • At least one Shield (if you are not using a Two-Handed Weapon or Two Hands For One alongside a One-Handed Weapon).
  • One Armor

Unless you know what you are doing with your character and/or are a veteran player, you should avoid buying the following on creation due to being difficult to design a profile around with your starting funds:
  • Buying more than one Passive Skill (unless one of them is Two Hands for One) or buying Status Protection
  • Buying more than one Spell that costs 4 Magic or higher.

Basic stat ranges
In ZURPG, there are several tiers that show how high or low a stat is in comparison to other characters and enemies. Use this to help decide your stat spread and gauge your weaknesses and strengths. This only really applies to starting stats, as they increase when you obtain Heart Containers.

  • 0 - None. You can not attack or defend using this stat, even if you have Attack Dice and/or Defense Dice.
  • 1-5 - Very low. Many +0 Damage or stronger attacks that hit this stat have the potential to OHKO or do very heavy damage; especially if the attacker has a high roll. Phased Out is dangerous to players that have any stats within this range.
  • 6-11 - Low. Many +0 Damage attacks that hit this stat can do a lot of damage, but you will usually survive that attack if you have most of your Hearts. This stat is usable for attacking with for attacks that don’t deal damage on targets that have low defense in that stat.
  • 12-16 - Moderate. You have good offensive and defensive abilities with this stat.
  • 17-22 - High. You will hit hard and reliably on most others with this stat and you will often avoid attacks targeting this stat.
  • 23-29 - Very high - Your attacks hit very hard on many enemies and characters and you will rarely be hit when defending with this stat. Making a stat this high will usually lead to having a low stat somewhere else.
  • 30+ - Extreme - Your attacks hit extremely hard on most others, dealing serious damage to anything that doesn’t have a high defending stat against your attack. Characteristic of Glass Cannon characters and enemies, as in the allocation of a stat this high usually leaves two or more other stats low or very low.
  • 1-5 - Very Low. Unless your other stats, Armor and Defense Dice are very high, you will often die in a single hit. Even then, Neutral Damage, Bleeding and the Heatwave Field Effect are practically guaranteed to wipe you out fast. Hanging On also does not activate if your Maximum Hearts is within this range.
  • 6-10 - Low. While single hits are survivable, you generally won’t be surviving multiple hits unless you bulk up on defenses; especially if the attacks do a lot of damage.
  • 11-15 - Moderate. You will be able to take a few hits, especially if you pack good defenses.
  • 16-20 - High. You will be able to survive several moderate hits.
  • 21-25 - Very high. You will be able to take a number of strong hits. Unless multiple enemies target you on your weak stats, you will last a while before falling.
  • 26+ Extreme. Congrats on becoming a sponge for your team. You will last a long time, unless you are taking several enemy attacks at a time or you happen to catch the attention of a Glass Cannon.
  • 0 - No Magic. You will not be able to cast Magic. As a word of warning, Armor Feedback will always hit you if you hit someone who has it and you don’t get any perks of being able to hit with Magic.
  • 1-4 - Very low. You will be able to cast a couple of weak Spells, but that’s it until you recharge.
  • 5-8 - Low. You can cast a couple of decent Spells and you can readily cast weak Spells for a while before you run out. If you pay for a Robe’s Augmented Protection, you can usually only do this once and therefore caution must be exercised using it.
  • 9-12 - Moderate. You can cast a number of decent Spells and maybe one or two high level spells before you have to recharge. You can also pay for your Robe’s Augmented Protection more freely.
  • 13-16 - High. You can cast a few stronger spells and you can cast standard spells quite frequently. You can realistically maintain a Robe’s Augmented Protection for more than one round now!
  • 17-20 - Very High. You can cast stronger spells quite liberally and afford to maintain your Robe’s Augmented Protection for a while.
  • 21+ - Extreme. Get down and start casting Support Spells and/or obliterate your enemies with powerful Offensive Spells all day long. Gotta watch out for Cursed, Silenced and the Feedback Field Field Effect though...

Common roles
In ZURPG, there are a number of roles that are commonly taken up by NPCs and enemies in their parties. Naturally, this also applies to players and their parties.

These are the common roles and a brief overview on what they are:
  • Warrior - Strong Power offensive abilities, can usually take a few stray hits.
  • Swordfighter - Specializes in Courage-based offenses, tend to have access to an array of evasive abilities.
  • Archer - Strong ranged physical offenses that bypass many countermeasures but poor defense and/or Wisdom offense.
  • Mage - Strong Wisdom offense/defense, decent Magic, several Spells, usually frail but will usually survive one or two non-Wisdom hits.
  • Support - High Magic, usually at least one Affinity and several Support Spells
  • Tank - Usually balanced stats and high Defense Dice and/or Armor, to gear it towards defense.
  • Glass Cannon / Assassain - Extreme offensive abilities, incredibly poor defensive abilities.

More in-depth overviews and guides for building for these roles will be covered in a moment.

A strong party is defined by a strong sense of Synenergy; that is a combination of abilities that work together as a team. While the players will generally be able to survive all but the most hardest combat situations with any combination unless it is really poor, it is highly recommended for players to organize a party of characters that work well with each other.

Guides for building for each role
Overview
The Warrior is about hitting hard on Power or Courage, usually through attacks with high damage (eg. Smash Hammer, Claymore). Generally, Warriors use melee attacks and only hit one target at a time. Their main claim to fame is that their attacks generally hit for high damage. They generally also can take a few hits, meaning they won’t instantly fall to enemy attack. Their primary drawbacks usually include low Wisdom and Magic and them struggling to hit evasive targets.
Suggested stats and basic loadout
Warriors are defined by their high Power, so it goes without saying to make that your high stat. They are also usually good physical durability, so giving them good Courage and Hearts will go a long way. On the other hand, they will rarely use Magic if at all; so they don’t need much if any Magic and their Wisdom stats are generally low.
Occasionally, Warriors may choose to invest in Wisdom as their secondary stat instead of Courage. Because most of what Wisdom does best has a Magic cost attached to them and it takes 4 Stat Points to take an Affinity, this will produce a less durable warrior. On the flipside, the warrior can now either hit with Magic abilities that Power-based attacks have no access to or buff themselves up by augmenting their offensive abilities. It also makes Absorb a great ability, letting them steal Magic quite well.

Warriors generally start off with a basic Power-based weapon (eg. Smash Hammer, Claymore), which serves as the weapon they will be attacking the most with. Unless the weapon is Two-Handed; they will then either take a Shield or a secondary offensive weapon, the former giving them access to Skull Bash and the latter granting access to attacks that are suited for more situations.
Suggested Affinities
The following only applies if you want to use Magic. Otherwise Affinities are useless.
  • Fire - Ideal Affinity. Spells deal high Damage, wear down defenses after the attack, boosts Attack Dice.
  • Nature - Breaks defensive formations, cuts enemy Power, reduces enemy Defense Dice.
  • Shadow - Is capable of siphoning stats, grants access to additional Reroll Points to help attacks land, access to a good Power-boosting spell.
Overview
The Swordfighter is an agile combatant, relying on their speed and dexterity to land hits. They usually attack with Courage, hitting Courage, with high attacking rolls. Like Warriors, they usually use melee attacks and only hit one target at a time. Unlike Warriors, their attacks don’t hit for notably high damage; but they often pack a variety of EFFECTS to either buff the user or weaken the foe. They are not as sturdy as Warriors, but their evasive abilities make up for it. Their drawbacks tend to be either low Power or low Wisdom and Magic.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
Swordfighters are defined by their high Courage, so make Courage your high stat. Swordfighters then either have the choice in investing in Power and Hearts or Wisdom and Magic depending on what abilities they want. Investing in Power and Hearts produces a more physically tanky build, which is augmented with your agility so you can hit evasive targets, but it leaves you with a weakness to Wisdom attacks and access to overall fewer evasive abilities. Investing in Wisdom and Magic grants you access to a whole host of additional abilities that you could not use before, which can highly augment your evasion, but it leaves you frail if the enemy manages to get past your evasion.

Swordfighters generally have a basic Courage-based weapon (eg. White Sword, Zora Blade, Kutlassana) to serve as their main attack weapon. As they generally use One-Handed weapons, they generally also equip a Shield (often Hylian Shield or Skeletal Shield). That’s unless the player opts to wield a Two-Handed weapon; which then they generally don’t need a Shield to start off with. Like all other classes, they pick one Armor (often Soldier Platemail, Dragonhide Armor or Green Tunic) to wear when starting out.
Using a secondary One-Handed melee weapon instead of a Shield opens up the option of using Cross Slash, which lets you apply the EFFECTS of both melee weapons’ Slash Attacks onto a target in a single attack. This can be devastating if played right; Several swords have potent EFFECTS if paired together in a Cross Slash.
Suggested Affinities
The following only applies if you want to use Magic. Otherwise Affinities are useless.
  • Water - Cuts attackers’ Attack Dice, has the ability to reduce enemy Courage, Cheap method of blocking EFFECTS, boosts Defense Dice.
  • Light - Can blind enemies, can temporarily disable most enemy attacks, access to a potential auto-dodge.
  • Shadow - Ideal Affinity. Can disable enemy rerolls, grants access to additional Reroll Points to promote accuracy and evasion, capable of cheating death, access to a good Courage-boosting spell.
Overview
The Archer sits behind front lines, firing powerful ranged physical attacks that ignore many countermeasures that would normally make physical attackers think twice before attacking. Their physical offenses are powerful, attacking from either Courage or Power and hitting either Courage or Power. They also have access to several potent abilities, which can decimate the unprepared foe. However, they are not very versatile and usually fall quickly if exposed to attack; moreso if they are targeted by Magic.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
Depending on the type of Bow used, Archers use Power and/or Courage as their main stat. Then they decide on either investing in the other of the two defining stats for access to more Bows or Wisdom to gain access to Magic offenses that bypass other countermeasures that Bows can not avoid as well as to hinder the targets’ offenses. Their offensive options are limited though and can be thought as more of a subrole of Warrior or Assassain than a seperate role.

On starting out, the Archer will usually pick one Bow (eg. Bow, Shotbow) and two Arrows (eg. Metal-Tipped Arrows, Impact Arrows). Usually, the Archer will also equip a Buckler; to give them a little bit of extra defense that they may need. Armor is then chosen, the Archer often picking something like Combat Armor or Thorns Armor if they have enough money left.
Snipe and, if you have the money left, Camouflage are very useful abilities to have; Snipe lets you do heavy damage to an enemy while Camouflage can help if you get caught out in an attack. If you buy a Bomb (provided you have the money for it - they are not cheap!), you get access to Bomb Arrows; which is an invaluable tool for exploration and very useful if enemy Armor has been compromised.
Suggested Affinities
The following only applies if you want to use Magic. Otherwise Affinities are useless.
  • Fire - Hits hard, can compromise enemy defense and their ability to cast Magic, has access to Attack Dice boosts.
  • Nature - Ideal Affinity. Compromises defensive formations, disrupts enemy attacks, can cut enemy Defense Dice, ability to punish enemies for attacking you.
  • Light - Can blind enemies, can cut enemy Wisdom and Magic, can temporarily disable spell attacks, access to a potential auto-dodge.
Overview
The basic Mage. Designed to cast a variety of spells and other Magic attacks, they focus primarily on their ability to cast Magic; leaving their physical abilities weak. Because of their focus in Magic, they have access to a wide range of abilities and EFFECTS at their disposal; many of which are powerful cause havoc if their enemies lack the proper countermeasures to said spells. Their main drawbacks include reliance on Magic, as a lack of thereof or it being compromised cripples them, and weakness to physical attacks.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
Since the Mage relies on their Magic offense to function, it goes without saying that you need to make Wisdom your primary stat. Next, you will need to invest in Magic as your secondary stat since you will be needing that to cast strong Magic. With the remainder of the stats, it is highly recommended to select a tertiary stat; usually either Power or Courage, for defensive purposes and then distribute the rest how you want. If don’t wish to be restricted to Arcane, you will also need to select one or two affinities, which will give you access to useful spells for various tasks.
In the case you don’t want to focus on Magic as much, you will be relying on non-spell Wisdom attacks more. There are limited options for non-spell Wisdom attacks, but these tend to be valuable for any Mage. Of those that are lesser used, Spin Attack is a useful ability if you have a Sword... if you are in a position where you have the time to charge up for it. If you wish to go for three or more Affinities, I do not recommend doing this for any new characters unless you know what you are doing. It requires you to be weary that your stat spread will be quite low in the beginning and that you will struggle to afford good spells for all your Affinities. Once you begin to acquire Heart Containers and Artifacts, you will find that you have more room to take up multiple Affinities than at the start.

At the start, it is highly recommended to purchase the PSI Spells for any Affinities you have. After that, it is recommended to purchase one or two more lower-tier Spells and/or PSI Concentrate and PSI Disperse to give yourself more options. With what Rupees you have left, you should buy Armor (eg. Caster Armor) and at least a Shield (eg. Rejuvenating Shield). If there is still money left, you can opt for a second shield, a Wisdom-based weapon or a physical sidearm (eg. White Sword).
Instead of a weapon or shield, a Book of Magic or Caster Staff can be used instead. Book of Magic is invaluable for a mage who runs off low Magic, as it allows them to cast stronger spells at a much lower cost but you will be badly lacking in defense. Caster Staff makes your Offensive Spells much stronger but it again makes you badly lack defense.
Affinities
  • None - Only if you require generic spells. This way, it saves a few Stat Points for you to invest into other areas like Passive Skills.
  • Water - Ideal for highly defensive builds. Focuses on halting enemy momentum, buffing your own defenses and cutting enemy agility (Courage) and has the ability to clear Attrition EFFECTS from targets. Has an advantage against Fire spells.
  • Fire - Ideal for highly aggressive builds. Focuses on dealing high damage, both standard and Neutral Damage and through passive means (eg. Bleeding), burns enemy defenses away, can buff Attack Dice and has the ability to clear Disruptions from targets. Has an advantage against Nature spells.
  • Nature - Ideal for more rounded builds. Focuses on disrupting enemies, both defensively and offensively; crushing defenses, instantaneous recovery, building Armor, revival and has the ability to clear Negations from targets. Has an advantage against Water spells.
  • Light - Ideal for anti-Magic builds. Focuses on compromising enemy Magic usage, disabling enemy attacks, buffing Magic power and has the ability to clear Contortions from targets.
  • Shadow - Ideal for attrition-based builds. Focuses on siphoning, recovering Magic, rerolls, cheating death, buffing physical stats and has the ability to clear Dispersions from targets.
Overview
A Support Mage. Instead of attacking, they focus on buffing other people for as long as they live. Like standard Mages, they have access to a wide variety of abilities; but they use a lot of Support Spells. Because of this, they have a lot of Magic cast it all with and make their allies very threatening unless they are taken down early enough. Their main drawbacks are very much the same as with standard mages, but they are amplified for support mages and that they need allies to function at all. They can be thought of more as a siderole for Mages than a full on role.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
The all Support Mages really need is high Magic and usually at least one Affinity. After that, investing in Wisdom and/or Hearts really helps; Wisdom to give you natural access to a couple of Offensive Spells and Hearts helps to patch up your defenses. Distribute the rest to your other stats.

Similar to standard Mages, the loadout should start with at least one PSI Spell and then focusing on purchasing two or so Support Spells. Afterwards, the loadout runs like what you would do as a regular mage with what Rupees you have left; you should buy Armor (eg. Caster Armor) and at least a Shield (eg. Rejuvenating Shield). If there is still money left, you can opt for a second shield, a Wisdom-based weapon or a physical sidearm (eg. White Sword). A Book of Magic is invaluable for this subrole, as it makes casting stronger Support Spells so much easier.
Affinities
Same suggestions as with regular Mages
Overview
The primary defensive role. Tanks generally don’t fight unless they have to, but they bank on defenses and take hits for their allies. They are often capable of taking all types of hits well, even being able to stand up to attacks directed at their weak points, but they are lacking in offenses. They will often be Covering others or otherwise redirecting attacks to them.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
Generally, Tanks have well-rounded stats across the board and a balance between Power, Courage and Wisdom should be made. This does not mean for you to make these stats perfectly equal, that would make you not have any real good defenses against any sort of attack unless you seriously limit your your choice of equipment. The next priority a tank should focus on is Hearts (and Magic if you wish to use spells), so you can actually take hits.

In terms of equipment, focus on defense. A Tower Shield or Heavy Shield is ideal for a Tank who relies on shield-based attacks or spells to fight back with. If you wish to give a lot of buffs and still Cover, Big Friggin Shield works well for this role. Alternatively, dual One-Handed shields are can be very useful. Recovery Shield synergizes well with a Hylian Shield or an Invigorating Shield; both combinations granting you good passive recovery while you still have decent defense to block attacks with. Choice of Armor varies with what you want to tank but Soldier Platemail, Dragon’s Blood Armor, Taunt Armor and Limit Armor are all very good options for tanks.
Affinity suggestions
The following only applies if you want to use Magic. Otherwise Affinities are useless.
  • Water - Ideal Affinity. Grants options for boosting defense and halting enemy momentum. Also has passive recovery.
  • Nature - Grants defensive options, has the ability to disrupt enemy attack, has the ability to heal and revive.
  • Light - Can cripple enemy Magic, can temporarily shut down many enemy abilities, has some form of healing and can grant possible auto-dodges.
Overview
The polar opposite of the Tank, the Assassin (also known as a Glass Cannon) is completely geared towards attacking and is built to keep attacking until they are swatted down by their foes. They build up one (or rarely two) stats so high to use for attacking that they are easily capable of wiping enemies out in a single blow unless they have a high defending roll against it. However in the process of building up those stats, they leave one or more of their other stats so low that they have the same capability of being wiped out by enemies if they get hit on them.
Suggested Stats and Basic Loadout
Glass Cannons generally have build their one of their Power, Courage or Wisdom stats extremely high (eg. 30+, or 25+ in the case of two stats). In the process of allocating their primary stat, their other stats will have to end up comparatively lower. This usually ends up with one or more of their other stats being extremely low. If this low stat is in all but Magic, they will easily find themselves unable to take hits well at all.

When deciding on equipment, Glass Cannons will almost always hold only Weapons in their hands and will want Weapons and Spells with high Damage Modifiers or the ability to hit multiple targets without a flat damage value. They also desire the ability to hit on more than just one stat using the stat they specialize on. The choice of Armor should be made based on what offensive bonuses they give, as they are generally not going to take a hit and live.

Usually Passive Skills are not a must for any role, but there are two that are very important for Glass Cannons. Hanging On practically guarantees that you will be able to survive any attack, once per battle, if you have 6 or more Hearts. Flashstep grants a huge Initiative boost at the cost of not getting a Bonus Turn, which means that you will likely move first.

The Glass Cannon role is not a very viable role for players to take up, unless you like to have a nice healthy death count throughout your quests, as the main thing that players need to do is survive whatever encounters they run into. Being a Glass Cannon means that enemies will usually target you immediately and you dying early on in the first round makes you dead weight (pun not intended) for the team unless the team has a way of reviving you.
Affinity suggestions
The following only applies if you want to use Magic. Otherwise Affinities are useless.
  • Water - Options for group attacks, has attacks that hit for high damage, has the ability to hit Courage.
  • Fire - Ideal Affinity. Has plenty of options for high-damage attacks, has options for strong group attacks (which ignores Cover), has an attack that can prevent revival and can boost Attack Dice even further.
  • Nature - Many spells have the ability to ignore Cover, can punish enemies for attacking you, has an attack that hits Power.

More information on specific combos
Armor Feedback and Red Platemail: Counter physical attacks with massive damage
Calm and Filter Plate: High resistance to Negative Bonuses
Magic Regeneration and Book of Magic: Low Magic maintanence
Hylian Shield and Soldier Platemail vs Armor Shield and Blue Platemail vs Obsidian Shield and Red Platemail: What is the difference?

More information on specific combos to come later, when the players discover more.

Success Rates - A probability-based guide to how well you actually attack and defend