Wiki / Skills
How skills work
Three skill slots with roles, each skill with a stamina cost and a cooldown.
Status: Built (ten skills in all; a hero carries three, one per slot) · Last checked: 14 Nov 2026
Skills are your hero's special moves: a shot of fire, a wave that silences, a small heal and more. Every hero carries three, one in each slot. Using a skill costs stamina, and afterwards the skill has to rest for a few seconds before it can be used again (its cooldown).
The three slots
| Slot | Its job | Keyboard / gamepad / phone | The skills that fit it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skill 1 | Special attack. A step of the combo ladder | Q / Y / key 1 | Fire bolt, Sunburst, War leap |
| Skill 2 | Defensive. With up held it is the recovery leap instead | W / B / key 2 | Hush, Shove, Root |
| Skill 3 | Self-supporting | E / LB / key 3 | Mend, War cry, Overcharge, Calm |
A hero's three skills are chosen in the character sheet, Skills tab. A slot left empty takes the default: Fire bolt, Hush, Mend. The seven others are on the seven newer Arts, and War leap, Shove and War cry also have second forms: see the Fighting family.
The rules
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Cost | Taken from stamina the moment the skill starts |
| Cooldown | Counted from the start. Each slot has its own |
| Not available | With an empty stamina bar (recovery mode), while silenced, or without enough stamina |
| If you are hit before the skill takes effect | It is lost: the cost stays paid and half of the cooldown still has to run |
| Silence | Blocks skills and the ultimate. The weapon and the guard still work |
| After a silence ends | Nothing can silence or root you again for a moment |
In the air
Some skills can be used in the air, once per airtime (landing or grabbing a ledge gives it back). The fall slows while the skill comes out, so a shot can be placed. Fire bolt, Hush and Root work in the air. Mend is a kneel: ground only.
Aiming
The direction held when the skill starts aims the Fire bolt: see Fire bolt.
What beats skills
- Hitting the caster before the skill takes effect.
- Silence: Hush switches the enemy's skills off for a moment.
- Emptying the enemy's stamina bar.
- A guard stops most of them; a perfect guard sends some back.
On screen
Cooldowns show in the readout on a computer and on the skill keys on a phone.
Nerd section: the exact numbers
The first three skills
| Skill | Cost | Cooldown |
|---|---|---|
| Fire bolt | 12 | 4 s |
| Hush | 20 | 8 s |
| Mend | 25 | 12 s |
The seven newer Arts' numbers are on their page; everything in one table is in All the key numbers.
Exact rules
| Rule | Value |
|---|---|
| After a silence or a root ends | No control effect can take hold for 3 seconds (180 frames) |
| A cast lost to a hit | The cost stays paid; half the cooldown remains |
| Casts in the air | One per airtime |
| Exceptions to "not available" | Overcharge works with the bar empty; Calm works while silenced |
Cast by hand, or with the weapon
How a skill is performed is a property of the skill.
- Cast by hand: a spell that needs no weapon. The off hand casts it, rising and then stretching out palm first along the aim; whatever that hand carries (the shield) is tucked away; the weapon hand stays down. With a two-handed weapon the off hand leaves the grip for the cast. Every skill except War leap is cast by hand.
- Uses the weapon: the skill is performed with the main weapon, or with both weapons in dual wield. War leap is the first. The planned weapon families' skills will work this way too; none of those is built yet.
How it grew
13 Nov 2026: three skills, one per slot (Fire bolt, Hush, Mend), so every fighter had the same three. 14 Nov 2026: seven more Arts, then the second forms of the Fighting family. All ten are Arts: any hero can use them, with any weapon. The larger plan is on skill families.