Feature Add more "Skill" modifiers

[zarqon]

One of the most common ways for a skill to be obtained in this game is by using items. Almost all of these items have been flagged with a "Skill: someskill" modifier, but there are a very few missing. Further, only the items that are "used" have this modifier, though other items that can be used in different ways also grant skills. I'd like to request adding Skill modifiers to skill-granting items for all the below methods, or at least all but "equip", which could get hairy.

Use

These are missing and ought to be added.

• training scroll: Shattering Punch grants Shattering Punch
• training scroll: Snokebomb grants Snokebomb
• training scroll: Shivering Monkey Technique grants Shivering Monkey Technique
• Pocket Meteor Guide grants Meteor Lore
• Pocket Meteor Guide (well-thumbed) grants Meteor Lore

Eat

There is no other way to use these items other than eat them.

• insanely spicy enchanted bean burrito grants Chronic Indigestion
• steel lasagna grants Stomach of Steel
• sleeping dog grants Dog Tired

Drink

• steel margarita grants Liver of Steel
• sloppy jalopy grants Hollow Leg

Chew

• steel-scented air freshener grants Spleen of Steel

Effect

Having a certain effect sometimes grants a combat skill. Adding the relevant "Skill" modifier to those effects would be helpful additional information. This is where it starts to get a bit awkward though, as some effects grant multiple combat skills.

• Hot/Cold/Spooky/Stinky/Sleazy Breath each grant the eponymous combat skill
• Form of... Bird! grants you-eye view/talon slash/wing buffet
• Form of... Mole! grants tunnel upward/tunnel downward
• Taste the Inferno grants Nuclear Breath
• Takin' it Greasy grants Unleash the Greash
• Nanobrawny/brainy/ballsy all grant Unleash Nanites
• probably a few others I missed

Equip

This is where it goes beyond awkward to completely insane and you may freely disavow this section and still consider the request implemented. Most of the skills in the 7000s are combat skills granted by equipping items. A few skills (such as skill 4, which doesn't really concern us) seem to predate that decision but the vast majority of skills in that range are granted by equipping items. The problem again here is that sometimes multiple skills are granted by the same item (firing various arrows, firing various bottle rockets, katana skills, Mer-kin weapon skills, etc). But most of them are simply one combat skill directly granted by equipping one item. In short, though I would have immediate use for this information, feel free to take it or leave it.

I also didn't want to waste time compiling a list for this section if it wasn't likely to be implemented, but could do if it would make it likely.

Skill

There are even some skills that grant skills. These are also a many-to-one arrangement though.

• Spirit of X
• Soulsauce skills

That's all folks! Thanks for considering this feature request.

 

[heeheehee]

Also, familiar section (although intergnat + Science! probably shouldn't be added here)? Does the "Skill:" modifier support multiple skills granted by one item? I don't think so (so the very last category probably can't be implemented without a change to how that works).

 

[Darzil]

There are actually huge issues around how we know certain skills are available.

For example, if you equip an item with a skill, it is added to skills you know, when you unequip it, it no longer is. I don't think we handle skills from effects. We do handle skills from eating, drinking and chewing, and Soulsauce / Spirit of X.

I like the idea of a type of skill modifier which you have when you have particular equipment or effect, which would have to handle multiple skills, so we could check that as well as whether the character has skills to determine current skills available. Though it's mainly usable in combat, and we just see what KoL has for us there.

I presume the reason for this is about being able to work out where a skill we don't have comes from, rather than knowing if you know it ?

 

[zarqon]

Yes, BatBrain fairly early on switched to parsing available skills out of the combat page rather than using have_skill() which didn't always seem to update with equipped/unequipped gear. For out-of-combat predictions using BatBrain, however (which is possible now and has always been on my radar), adding the equip section would make its predictions (which must perforce use have_skill()) more accurate and thus more useful.

The impetus for this feature request, however, is an informational script I'm working on that deals with pretty much everything about skills, so yes, my immediate use for this information would be in figuring out the source of a given skill.

I like the idea of a type of skill modifier which you have when you have particular equipment or effect, which would have to handle multiple skills, so we could check that as well as whether the character has skills to determine current skills available.

Suggested names: "Temporary Skills" or "Transient Skills" or "Skill Boons". The last one strikes me as the funniest.

 

[zarqon]

First post edited to include the Pocket Meteor Guide, which is also lacking the skill modifier.