Creating a new character in The Bard's Tale 4 Game The Bard's Tale 4 Guide and Walkthrough

Last update: 18 September 2018

You start playing Bard's Tale IV with a character automatically generated by the game. This is a human bard. You will play this character until you reach the Hero's Guild. You get the opportunity to know your skills and make the right choice. You will be able to keep the character or create a new one. If you choose the second option, you will be transferred to the character creation menu. The creation process goes through the following stages:

• Character classes - archetypes
• Select the race of your hero
• Character personalization
• Development of skill points

Character classes - archetypes

In Bard's Tale you've four archetypes (classes) to choose from [1]. This are the following:

1. Bard
2. Practitioner
3. Fighter
4. Rogue

Each of them is completely different and the gameplay differs a lot. This is due to the fact that each class fights with a different type of weapon and wears different types of armor. They also have a different set of skills [2]. The exact differences between all classes are described in the sections about specified character classes. In addition, the choice of archetype has an impact on certain character statistics [3], which are the following:

1. Constitution - it affects the number of life points that the character has. One constitution point equals one life point. Initially, the warrior has the highest value of this stat, and the practitioner has the lowest value of this stat.
2. Strength - determines the amount of damage your character can inflict during a single attack. Initially the warrior and the practitioner have 7 points of this stat, and the rogue and the bard have 5 points of this stat.
3. Armor Class - informs about the quality of character's armor. Each subsequent point means one point of less damage taken by the character during the attack. For example, if a character has a second armor class and is attacked with an ability dealing 14 points of damage, he or she will only take 12 points of damage. By default, each class has this parameter set to 0 points.
4. Spell Points - this stat describes the amount of magic points that a character can accumulate. These are the points required to use certain abilities. At the same time, using abilities that require magic points won't take away any action points from you. This stat applies only to bards and practitioners and in both cases the start value equals 2 points.
5. Intelligence - determines the character's ability to fight with preservation of an appropriate formation and tunnel combat. Initially, the practitioner has highest number of points in this category, while the warrior and rogue have the least number of points in this category.

The above stats are also heavily modified by the equipment of your character. Pay attention to how a particular weapon affects the stats. If the weapon increases the stats you want, you can equip it with the right character without hesitation. You must remember, however, that not all stats will be able to develop every character, e.g. strength is desirable in case of warriors, but in case of magicians it is not very useful and it's much better to invest in intelligence.

Select the race of your hero

Then you will have to choose your hero's race (culture). You can choose from four different cultures. In addition, human culture has four different origins. Each option has a different passive ability. Below you will find a list of them.

Culture (Race)	Passive abilities
Baed - Human	Choosing this race you will receive an extra skill point when you advance to levels 3, 10 and 18.
Einarr - Human	Every time a character is hit in combat, he gains one point of strength, which lasts until the end of the fight.
Fichti - Human	Once in combat, a character of this race absorbs damage dealt to another characters, which could be fatal to them.
Outlander - Human	Resistant to such effects as fire, bleeding and poisoning.
Dwarf	Cannot be immobilized, stunned or moved by force.
Elf	This culture specializes in magic. Receive a 30% intelligence bonus and an extra magic point.
Trow	Once per turn, when a champion of this race deals deadly damage to an enemy, one point of action is recovered.

Character personalization

At this stage you have to choose the cosmetic elements that characterize your character. Due to the fact that this is a FPP game, you have a very limited choice in this field. You can decide only about the portrait of the character, which is visible during the fight. Also, you can determine the voice of the character and his/her name.

Development of skill points

The final stage of character creation consists in additional skills for your new character. You will receive an additional three skill points, which you can use as you like. Depending on the chosen character class, you will get different skill sets. They are additionally divided into four categories. You can choose from the skills that are visible above the chain that determines the level of your character.