Primary Character Stats

The game features six primary characteristics. Four of these — Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, and Constitution — are straightforward and quite easy to comprehend. The fifth, Wisdom, carries a more mysterious aura, as befits its role of a magical trait. The most intriguing and controversial of all is Social, perfectly matching the complex system of social relations in the world of Land of Amun. Before delving into each stat, however, it’s important to first define the scale used to gauge them.

Prior to the Total War, numerous measurement systems existed — many of which were often contradictory. To establish so much needed objective and consistent controls, Wizards devised a universal scale stemming from spellcasting.

Wisdom

Empirically, seven distinct spell levels were defined for Amunians, with several intermediate thresholds. These thresholds enhance the power of previous spells, but do not yet qualify the caster to master the next level. After extensive experimentation, it was determined that there are invariably four thresholds between each pair of adjacent spell levels, resulting in at least 28 possible stages. The primary stat, called Wisdom, corresponds to these stages.

Wisdom is a progressive stat, and an additional phenomenon observed was target dispersion once a certain limit was reached. Most spellcasters who advanced beyond 30 Wisdom would literally disperse into thin air, and all attempts to resurrect them failed. Consequently, mages began limiting self-energy impulses to a maximum of 30 Wisdom. The number 30 therefore became known as the Mortal Limit, representing the maximum persistent limit for any stat under the new standards.

As a result, for each primary characteristic, the maximum was established as a real benchmark existing in Land of Amun.

Strength

For Strength, the maximum value of 30 was adopted based on the physical prowess of the Giants — the strongest race in Land of Amun. However, strength is not a universal characteristic that applies to everything by default. It can refer to lifting weights, striking with a hammer, or various other forms of physical power. In all these manifestations, though, the maximum remains at 30. Whenever strength is mentioned in everyday life, a weighted average is implied — derived from multiple physical measurements performed by the Warrior Guild.

Dexterity

Dexterity is capped at the level of the most prominent Halflings. Much like Strength, it encompasses a broad range of measurable skills, with the Thief Guild being the established assessing authority. These include accuracy in hitting, throwing, and shooting, as well as agility in dodging, and pace in short- to medium-distance running. Additionally, dexterity covers fine motor skills required for activities like thievery, break-in, and similar jobs.

Constitution

Constitution represents overall health in every sense of the word, with the benchmark predictably set by notorious Trolls. No one in Land of Amun has greater health, resistance to physical ailments, stamina, or endurance than these evil creatures. While Strength determines how much you can lift, Constitution reflects how long you can carry the weight. The Healer Guild is highly skilled at assessing and measuring Constitution.

Intelligence

No one can identify your Intelligence better than the Wizard Guild. Notably, mental flexibility and trainability are considered more valuable than mere erudition. The highest level of Intelligence is exemplified by the geniuses of the Ancients race.

Social

Finally, Social, the most intriguing characteristic. It is not about beauty or charisma — after all, there’s no universal compatibility, — and it’s not necessarily about Leadership, since not everyone can be a leader. Instead, it boils down to empathy multiplied by care or the ability to tolerate those you generally dislike. In other words, it reflects your capacity for self-sacrifice for the sake of others. Fairies appear to excel in this trait, boasting the highest scores, while the Werewolf Guild stands unrivaled in assessing Social aptitude; however, in the real world, this value remains an abstract concept.

Even a dog, which loves you simply for who you are, requires at least 1 Social, encompassing basic attention and feeding. Different creatures may treat you differently, and depending on their attitude, you may need to provide more or less care to keep them loyal. An evil creature, for example, could require 3 Social from an Orc to stay with him, simply because both share an evil nature. Conversely, it will require 7 Social from a neutral character and may completely ignore or refuse to cooperate with a good Fairy, regardless of her utmost care.

Going beyond a character’s Social limit can lead to aggression and conflicts within the party, which may ultimately result in its collapse.

Bottom line

While aliens, angels, and demons can certainly have stats in excess of 30, for regular mortals of Land of Amun, this number as a rule represents the practical limit. The table below presents sample average race stats.

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In the upcoming article, we will delve into derivative, or secondary characteristics, such as hit points, mana points, carrying capacity, walking and running speed, and many more.