"Unique units vary from dynasty to dynasty."
"Some focus on power becoming powerhouses that few want to ever face."
"But what those who look into the creation of one realise that a dynasties members, history, traits and even the traits of trusted subordinates can have a profound impact on the power of these units."
"But while some units betrayed the dynasty they once served for another, there is one that never has and likely never will.
"House Aurellion unique unit…."
"The formidable Pelican Guard."
Theodore Felond, CEO of Felonds Fashionable Goods and founder of House Felond.
….
After he confirmed his selection, more system notifications appeared in front of him.
[Option 1 selected.]
[Please describe what type of unit you would like to create.]
"A knight-like unit that is a mix between a heavy infantry and a cavalry while also acting as personal guards for my dynasty, loyally serving and fighting to the death for them."
Reginald said testing to see if the system would work by voice, and the subsequent notification confirmed this to be true.
[Please decide on the attribute distribution you would like soldiers who train with this manual to focus on. Like all war-based occupations, a basic level of physical fitness is already granted due to the occupation's nature, but as a customised unique unit, you can specialise it or balance it to your liking.]
[Because this is a unique unit, more attribute points can be gained compared to other more basic units such as archers or infantry]
[An example is if you want to create a more archer ranged-based unit, then you may focus on soldiers upgrading and specialising in the dexterity attribute to give them the best base accuracy possible.]
[To remind the player, the basic attributes are Strength, Agility, Dexterity, Vitality, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma]
For this, Reginald has to be very careful as these attributes would affect his unit's base strength, for if the skill of 2 fighters is equal and there are no schemes that can be implemented, then it is these attributes that will dictate victory or defeat he also had to consider intelligence and wisdom as his units would have to learn more skills than normal ones and have some that will even require wisdom like insight.
After careful consideration and even more time spent pondering the pros and cons, Reginald had decided on the attribute distribution putting the attributes in order of most and least important.
The most important attribute he had decided that his troops needed was Intelligence, followed by Strength, Vitality, Wisdom, Agility, Charisma and Dexterity. While some may see this attribute distribution as stupid as they would assume that putting strength first would be most important, but again Reginald saw it differently. He thought a unique unit like this would surely have more skills to upgrade than regular units. As such, focusing on intelligence which is not focused on in basic training, would allow his units to learn all their skills at the same rate as an ordinary soldier who would likely have fewer skills to learn and so would not need to focus on intelligence as much.
[Creating the unit's basic template….]
[Basic template complete! Would you like your unit to be more infantry-orientated, cavalry-orientated or a perfect mix of both? Please bear in mind that if you choose the combination while your unit will be as versatile and strong as regular units, but if you fight a unique unit that is more specialised than yours in their chosen field, then your unit is more likely to lose.]
"A perfect mix please!"
[Are you sure you would like your unit to be a perfect mix? Please note that it cannot be changed once you have confirmed your choice.]
"Yes, I'm sure."
[Unit type and specialisation confirmed.]
[Please choose 5 passive combat-related skills for your unit to be skilled in.]
[Because the player has selected intelligence as the most important attribute, the player can choose 1 more skill]
"Swordsmanship, Polearm Mastery, Riding Throwing Mastery…."
Reginald said wanting to make his unit skilled with both swords and polearms, allowing them to wield spears, lances and other weapons that may be useful in the future, unfortunately unlike swordsmanship, which is a specific weapon type skill, polearm mastery will not be as powerful when it comes to damage but will allow them to wield a large variety of weapons.
Reginald then decided to ask some questions about different combat skills that he could give to his unique unit, not wanting to waste his unit's skill slots.
"Friend system, is there some sort of armour mastery that will make my units more durable?"
Reginald asked, hoping there was some sort of skill for it as there were far too many skills in the game for him to remember all of them by heart.
"Yes, there is, and because this is a unique unit and a quest reward, you have access to this sort of skill. Would you like to add it to their combat skills?"
The friend system asked, reappearing again suddenly, startling Reginald for a second, who was not yet used to its antics and likely never will.
"Yes, please!"
Reginald said, delighted about this, deciding that because anti-magic crystals would be present in most civilised areas and wars to prevent magicians from causing chaos, of course, most grandmaster magicians can get around this, but they were rare existences, and most of the time as was shown in the Battle of Brunag magic will be unavailable. As a result, Reginald decided that instead of giving his men some sort of protective magic which would only be used on rare occasions, it was better just to find a way to increase their armour value so they take less damage.
[Armour Mastery skill added. 1 combat-related skill remaining.]
After getting this notification, a description of the skill appeared before Reginald.
…..
Armour Mastery: (Passive)
Description: Able to wear all types of armour, these people with these skills know the weak points of armour, allowing them to not only find them easier on an opponent dealing more damage to them but also reinforce their own, increasing its durability in combat.
Effect: increase the armour value of armour worn by this person by 5% per level of this skill
Possessors of this skill can find weaknesses in armour easier.
Possessors of this skill can comfortably wear and move around easily in any armour, including heavier armour, and also won't get exhausted as much by long-time use.
After looking at the effects of this skill, Reginald was taken aback as this was truly a powerful skill as not only will these men be well protected, allowing these unique units of House Aurellion to wear slightly lighter armour without losing its protective power but also allow for the armour to be worn long term which was not common in the medieval age where knights only really wore it for battle and war.
Then Reginald looked through the extensive list of skills until he finally found the last one he was looking for.
[Unarmed Combat Mastery skill added]
Like Polearm Mastery, this is a more general skill which does half the added damage of a specific style or weapon but allows them more flexibility in their fighting style. Reginald also chose this so that if his future bodyguards had to fight at a bar or without weapons, they would be able to do so skillfully. This skill also allowed unarmed kicks and other moves to be seamlessly incorporated into their fighting styles, with their primary weapons subtly increasing the fighting prowess of the unit.
[Passive Combat Skills confirmed]
[Please choose 3 non-combat (Passive) skills for your unit to be skilled in]
[Because the player has selected intelligence as the most important attribute, the player can choose 1 more skill]
Then an even longer list of skills appeared before Reginald, who had to sift through them to find the ones that he wanted, groaning in annoyance as he felt like he was reading through an academic paper trying to find specific findings, quotes or statistics finally finding the skills that he wanted his unit to have.
"Perception, Insight, Mental Fortitude and Coordination."
[Perception, Insight, Mental Fortitude and Coordination skills selected]
These skills were chosen for different reasons. The first Perception was selected so that this unit which would become his dynasty's bodyguards, could identify potential threats quickly. The second Insight was chosen to help them find liars and those with bad intentions and combined with the first to help them pick up on subtle clues like body language, which may give clues into who wishes to do their lord and his family harm.
Mental Fortitude was something that Reginald chose as a test and a bit of a gamble. Typically, wizards would take this to help them deal with magic and the intense mental strain that some spells could have on the user, but the eccentric leader of House Aurellion wanted it for a different reason.
Reginald wanted it so his men would not be shaken by unexpected encounters and react quickly in strange situations and emergencies, lowering the time it would take for them to respond if they were surprised for any reason. For example, wizards with this trait find it easier to go against terrifying opponents like giants compared to a human soldier who would need extraordinary discipline or a skill to be brave enough to fight against someone or thing who sometimes wields weapons larger than the human themselves! It was also taken to help with his men's morale as Reginald has experienced the sweet fruit of what it is like to have unbreakable troops in the Battle of Brunag and wanted one for himself and for these men to fight to the death alongside him and face any danger fearlessly alongside their lord!
The last coordination is self-explanatory. It will help the troops to coordinate better, allowing Reginald to use a wide range of formations with them and help when they fight together in a large melee enabling them to form small teams with a tacit understanding of one another, helping them survive and fight more effectively making them ready for most confrontations.
[Please choose your unit's unique feature from the options below. Please note that these will be based on decisions, skills and aspects you have previously outlined while creating the unique unit and features of the player's Dynasty as a whole, including its traits and members.]
[Option 1: Martial Masters: These units are exceptionally skilled in the use of different weapons allowing each solider to be proficient in weapons or martial arts of their choice. This feature will allow each person to choose 2 different specific weapon or style skills related to any of the 2 general weapon skills the unit already trains in.]
[Option 2: Multipurpose Masters: True masters of 2 fields, these units can fight against even the best and most specialised units in either of its 2 chosen categories. This feature will make your units as good as their specialised counterparts giving you a truly versatile and exceptional unit.]
[Option 3: Armoured Armadillos: Known for having some of the toughest armour in the world while still maintaining its comfort and flexibility, soldiers trained by this manual can become the strongest of tanks or the most sturdy bulwarks. This feature will increase the armour value of this unit by an extra 20% and allow them to wear armour 1 type heavier than usual. E.g. can wear heavy armour as if it were medium armour etc. This feature also unlocks the ability for this unit to be equipped with super heavy armour]
[Option 4: Watchful Bodyguards: The most vigilant of personal protectors, these soldiers can detect even the smallest of anomalies, making any assassination attempt almost impossible, allowing those they are protecting to sleep easy at night. This feature will make these units specialists in preventing assassinations and able to spot even the slightest bit of suspicious activity, making all units have expert rank perception and insight base and making it easier for them to upgrade this to the master rank.
[Option 5: Formidable Formations: This unit is known for its excellent coordination and formations being able to change from one to another seamlessly. It is also known for having some of the strongest and most challenging formations to break through. This feature will allow soldiers of this unit to easily change formations and work together effectively. Even in massive melees where there are little to no formations, this unit will work in small groups to survive and kill their enemies. This feature will allow the creator of this unit to create 2 unique formations that will be very hard to replicate.]
[Option 6: An option created by the player and checked and verified by the friend system, which is a logical outcome of both the original intention of the unit and its current build.]
This unique feature appeared to be the most powerful aspect a unique unit can possess as it makes them different from almost every other out there. Because he had already found out about unique units, the Friend System was not stingy with its information and confirmed that this is one of the most, if not the most, powerful aspect of a unique unit. This is because any veteran soldier with enough experience can be skilled in many skills, and officers and experts like this are not rare. One just had to look at Leon in the last battle, who not only could use a spear but a sword and bow too, but a feature like this is impossible to replicate unless someone happened to choose the exact same feature by selecting the same build.
All the options were very attractive, but Reginald was looking for something else, so he decided to ask the friend system about the 6th option presented to him.
"Friend System, how does this 6th option work? Do I create the option first, then weigh it against the others, or do I choose the 6th option, then make an option and am stuck with it?"
Friend System smiled slightly when it heard the question that it was asked and replied promptly to the critical question asked by Lucius.
"Don't worry! You can create a 6th option first, then weigh it against the other. While it would be most amusing to see players be stuck once with what option they made regardless of whether they preferred a previous option, the game designers thought it too punishing, especially as these are meant to be rewards and not punishments that you are stuck dealing with."
"They really ruin the fun of everything."
"…."
The friend system commented while Reginald looked at him silently with a slightly worried expression thanking god that this sadistic system did not have complete control of the game and seemed to be at least controlled and reined in by someone before making his pitch for a 6th option.
"Considering my original intention for this unit to be loyal to the death and considering that they have mental fortitude as a basic skill, is there a way to make their feature based on loyalty and steadfastness in battle and integrity?"
Reginald asked. As to him, there was no point in having the best unit in the world if they were not steadfastly loyal to him and his dynasty, as they could rebel or go over to his enemies for various reasons, so if he was going to create a unique unit he wanted it to be loyal to his dynasty to the death not to mention that these were going to be his dynasties bodyguards so he wanted to ensure their loyalty to him no matter what.
The Friend System thought for a second before relenting the system notifications that came up detailing the reasons for the Friend Systems' decision to allow it because, as the system said, this trait had to either be linked to the Dynasties Traits and history or but preferably, in addition to the skills chosen for the player for its unique unit.
[The System has accepted the player's preference for a 6th option to do with loyalty creating this option now.]
[Inheritable Dynasty Trait Sworn Martial Dynasty detected]
[Sworn Marital Dynasties Inhertable Dynasty Trait Paragons of Loyalty detected]
[Mental Fortitude skill detected]
[Renowned Fallen Marital Dynasty Inheritable Dynasty Trait dectected]
[The system has detected that the Grandmaster of Loyalty, Leon Mantalon, is loyal to the dynasty]
[Option 6 successfully created.]
….
Protectors of Aurellion: (Customised Unique Unit Trait)
Description: Known for fighting to the last man and their eternal loyalty to House Aurellion, this unit will stand steadfast beside their lord even to the gates of hell itself. Their morale is exceptional, rarely breaking, becoming the perfect loyal bodyguards and soldiers for the Dynasty. The Grandmaster of Loyalty Leon Mantelons role in establishing the Pelican Guard has led to them inheriting his almost undying loyalty to House Aurellion, having a significant effect on their establishment and development.
Effect: Soldiers will almost never betray the house they serve, being loyal to the death.
While being led by their lord or protecting a member of the dynasty they serve, these soldiers will become unbreakable, and if their lord dies, it is likely that some, consumed by anger and will go on a rampage having no regard for their lives while trying to avenge their lord.
Soldiers of this unit are likely to disregard any order not given by the head of the dynasty they serve or his appointed heir, respected commander or proxy and will only respect orders from dynasty members of the house they serve.
….