Character Sheet

This item had no name and no known origin; the dice were merely a facade, while its essence was the extraordinary manifestation of some rule.

Its basic function was that of a character sheet, and other abilities required the symbols on the dice to be illuminated before they could be activated.

"How do I activate it?" Anser asked, pursuing the matter.

The dice offered no response, appearing to lack any intelligence.

"View character sheet."

The dice trembled slightly, projecting a screen filled with various data into his mind.

[Name: Anser Horleywen]

"Race": Human - Silver-browed Subrace (Medium size)

"Background": None

"Class": None

"Level": 0

"Hit Points": 2/4

"Armor Class": 11

"Alignment": Absolute Neutral

"Faith": None

--Core Attributes--

[Strength: 11]

[Dexterity: 12]

[Constitution: 11]

[Intelligence: 12]

[Wisdom: 13]

[Charisma: 14]

"Skills": Arcana +1, History +1

"Languages": Common, Netherese, Illyscian

"Feats": None

"Equipment": Crystal Focus

--Spells--

"Cantrips": Light Spell, Freezing Ray

After quickly scanning the character sheet, Anser understood; this was a data panel based on DND rules.

"Silver-browed subrace?"

It took Anser a long time to recall that this Silver-browed subrace was likely a Dragonblood subrace, originating from the Silver Dragon—a Metallic Dragon that loved to mingle in the human world.

One of the more common physical traits was a silver streak or sheen in the hair, hence the name Silver-browed.

The original owner of the body was unaware of this information, and the body possessed no Spell-like Ability, likely because the bloodline was ancient and diluted.

This was common; the world of Toril was home to numerous races living together, and some races had such powerful reproductive capabilities that they could break species boundaries. Over the long years, who knew how many strange hybrids had been born?

Aside from the race, the original owner's attributes... were truly lackluster!

In DND settings, a commoner's hit points were 4, and the six core attributes hovered around 10.

If a wizard's intelligence fell below 10, they would lose the ability to cast spells, and below 8... they were practically mentally deficient. In most cases, character attributes would not fall below 8.

The original owner's attributes were only slightly better than an average person's; with an intelligence of 12, the difficulty of becoming a wizard was exceptionally high.

Wizards were a high-IQ group, and the threshold for a job change was extremely high; an ordinary person could hardly succeed through hard study alone.

The 14 points in Charisma were likely related to his race.

Fortunately, the original owner was not entirely useless; through diligent study, he had mastered two additional languages and possessed some foundation in Arcana and History.

At this moment, the character sheet flickered. Anser touched it lightly, and a character editing page popped up, listing Origin (Background, Race), Class, and Attributes from top to bottom.

However, Origin and Attributes were grayed out.

"It seems the background, race, and attributes are inherited from the original owner and cannot be changed." Anser felt a bit disappointed.

He "clicked" on the background column, and the character sheet displayed a prompt:

"Detected that you have Noble and Sage backgrounds. You may choose one as your character's origin. This will provide bonuses to your attribute values, feats, and skill proficiencies."

"Huh... a choice of two is not bad either."

He checked them one by one and found that the sources of the backgrounds were rather far-fetched.

The Noble background likely stemmed from his surname, but Anser himself held no title whatsoever; he was a commoner through and through.

The Sage background is fairly reliable; after all, he spent so many long days and nights studying books and scrolls, reading about the wonders of the multiverse, and could barely count as a half-scholar. His heart yearned for more, but alas, he was a poor student.

The Noble background increases Strength, Intelligence, and Charisma, with the "Skilled" feat. The Sage background increases Constitution, Intelligence, and Wisdom, with the "Magic Initiate" feat.

Anse did not rush to choose, continuing to examine the races.

"Race": Human

"Creature Type": Humanoid

"Size": Medium

"Traits":

Ability Score Increase: Choose two different ability scores to increase by 1 each.

Skill: You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice.

Versatile: You gain one Origin feat of your choice.

"Two attribute points, one feat, three skills." Anse raised an eyebrow, his heart stirring with excitement.

After choosing a job, his background and race could grant him five attribute points and two feats—quite impressive.

Finally, he clicked on the class options, and 13 icons popped up.

Barbarian (Strength), Warrior (Strength or Dexterity), Paladin (Strength or Charisma).

Cleric (Wisdom), Druid (Wisdom), Monk (Dexterity or Wisdom).

Ranger (Dexterity or Wisdom), Rogue (Dexterity).

Sorcerer (Charisma), Warlock (Charisma), Bard (Charisma).

Wizard (Intelligence), Artificer (Intelligence).

These were the primary classes, and after choosing one, he could select from numerous subclasses.

Each class had a different primary attribute, and most possessed spellcasting abilities, but only Wizards, Sorcerers, Clerics, Druids, and Bards could be called full spellcasters, as they could master 9th-level spells at level 17.

"Why are these classes covered in a layer of black-red, with varying degrees of intensity?" Anse frowned slightly, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.

He gently touched the black-red Wizard icon with his mind, and two alerts immediately popped up:

"Weave instability; uncontrolled raw magic is surging. Cast spells with caution!"

"Character's innate intelligence is too low; choose with caution!"

He had anticipated the first one; "instability" was likely an accurate term. The Weave had probably not completely collapsed, as the distant battlefield still flickered with the light of spells.

The second one was a bit hurtful.

Low intelligence was a fatal flaw. If he could freely allocate attributes like in a game, he could have pushed his primary attribute above 16 at level 1, but unfortunately, he had no extra attribute points.

In DND, one could only choose a feat or two attribute points every four levels. If the initial attributes were too low, he would have to sacrifice precious feats, significantly lowering his potential power ceiling.

It seems the Weave has the greatest impact on Wizards, Anse thought to himself.

Weave turbulence wouldn't stump those geniuses with supreme intellect, but ordinary Wizards would be miserable, forced to scrape by on cantrips.

Since he couldn't choose Wizard, he would look for another class.

He needed a level 1 class that could help him escape the Giant Pit, without needing to consider the future. DND allowed for infinite multiclassing as long as the attribute requirements were met; he could always multiclass into something else at level 2.

"I have no choice but to climb up!" He looked up at the cliff walls and waterfalls dozens of meters high, a sense of urgency washing over him. "Before this place collapses."

If he fell into the Underdark, even if he didn't die from the fall, he would be swarmed and overwhelmed by the creatures of the deep.

Class-holders had strong athletic abilities, but relying solely on his body was extremely dangerous. It was best to use magic to save his life, such as the Mage Hand, Feather Fall Spell, or Leap Spell.

Spellcaster is the priority; it would be best to heal the injury on my leg as well, Anse calculated, looking at his numb right leg.

He first touched the grayed-out Cleric class:

"The faithless cannot become a Cleric!"

Anse sighed helplessly; it was too late to start believing now. A Cleric's spells came from the Gods they worshipped, and the consequences of being discovered were severe.

He scanned the list; the spellcasting classes were all covered in an ominous red glow. The Bard and Druid were intensely red, while the Warlock and Sorcerer were relatively faint.

The Warlock, also known as a pact-maker, borrowed power from a patron (Angel, Archfey, Fiend, etc.) through a contract. It sounded unsettling, so he decided to set it aside for now.

He clicked on the Sorcerer class, and the relevant information popped up immediately:

"The gift of a dragon, a dryad present at a child's birth, or being struck by lightning on a clear day—all can activate a Sorcerer's talent.

A gift from the Gods, exposure to strange magic from other planes, or a glimpse into the principles of reality can also make a Sorcerer a Sorcerer..."

"Sorcerers do not study magic; the surging raw magic is an innate part of them..."

To Anse's surprise, a Sorcerer could choose a [Sorcerous Origin] (subclass) at level 1:

Aberrant Mind, Clockwork Soul, Draconic Bloodline, Wild Magic, Divine Soul, Shadow Magic, Storm Sorcery.

But of the seven subclasses, five were grayed out!