After the flush of victory wore off and his latest fox-tracker stopped jabbering about different parts of the fight Don paled slightly. He won against these foxes because he had size and strength. The apes were much bigger and stronger than him. He gulped. He was going to need more than brute strength and a couple of shoddy weapons to fight those monsters.

He worried about his real opponents as the tribe chat bubbled with excitement. Thinking back to the way the ape had torn a limb from a tree when it lost Don’s trail he shivered involuntarily. If he tried to fight on their terms, using brute strength, he would lose. Another thought butted into his morose trek across the woods, the image of a tail flashing away into the brush. Each time the foxes got the better of Don, it was because of their superior speed. Each time he got the better of a fox, it was because he either crippled or pinned them so they couldn’t make use of their speed. That was the answer. So long as he could keep out of reach, the giants couldn’t crush him like he crushed rabbits. Without the element of surprise, Don would probably still have not killed anything in the forest. They could have turned tail and outpaced him, probably before he even knew they were around. He pulled up his stats, relying on his passenger to keep an eye out for danger.

Stats:

STR

14

AGI

13

DEX

15

INT

12

WIS

17

CON

21

END

15

His stats were coming along nicely. They had all grown a lot since the first time he saw them. All except for his constitution. Why hadn’t it increased at all? Frowning, he took a look at what each stat did again before deciding which stat to invest his free points into.

Spoiler: Stat effects

STR

STR is a measure of your physical strength. Among other things, it affects

- Physical defense

- Melee damage

- Carrying capacity

AGI

AGI is a measure of your overall speed. Among other things, it affects

- Attack speed

- Dodge

- Stealth

DEX

DEX is a measure of your dexterity. Among other things, it affects

- Block

- Weapon accuracy

- Crafting Skill

WIS

WIS is a measure of your accumulated knowledge. Among other things, it affects

- Mana recovery

- Spell control

- Perception

INT

INT is a measure of your mental capacity. Among other things, it affects

- Maximum Mana

- Spell strength

- Memory

CON

CON is a measure of your overall health. Among other things, it affects

- Maximum HP

- Stamina regen

- disease and poison resistance

END

END is a measure of your physical fitness. Among other things, it affects

- Maximum stamina

- Reduced strain from low pools

- Reduced sleep and food requirements

He dismissed strength right away. The extra carrying capacity would be nice but brute force wasn’t going to help him with his problems.

Agility definitely caught his eye and he nearly dumped all his points into it right then and there. The increases to his dodge and stealth would be perfect for the kind of fight he was beginning to expect. He decided to at least review the other stats first.

Dexterity wasn’t very appealing in the short term but maybe later, when things weren’t so violent he could put some points into it to boost his crafting.

Intelligence was tempting. Running out of mana was a big worry of Don’s. However, the increase to spell power was largely useless with his illusions. Besides that, even if he put all his free points in intelligence, he’d only get one more cast of shadow cloak in before the side effects of mana deprivation would set in.

Wisdom was also tempting. His spell control was largely what determined what he could do with his illusions. More regeneration also meant he would be able to practice more, increasing his skills faster.

He already had plenty of constitution so he skipped that stat.

Finally, Endurance was only a little tempting. It would be nice to reduce the strain from having low mana and stamina. Needing less food and sleep would also be convenient but endurance would do little to help him in his upcoming fight.

Agility was the clear choice. He was going to need to get in close to hit the apes and he was going to have to avoid the monster’s ludicrously powerful blows when he did. He paused again just before committing his points to agility.

He was compelled to take a closer look at constitution. The increased health might be useful against the apes but with how hard they hit, it was going to be a matter of not getting hit rather than enduring their hits. He would lose a straight up dogfight like the one he had with the fox he now carried, back to his cave, to eat. Don shivered again at the brutality of this world. The disease and poison resistance didn’t matter much to Don when he had Grey around to heal him. The stamina regeneration wasn’t appealing either. He hardly ever had to use his stamina potions as it was.

He decided on agility again before pausing. He gritted his teeth and growled, startling his companion. Why couldn’t he decide? He glanced back at his stats and finally noticed the problem. Agility was his second lowest stat. When his stats were all low he gained new stat points quickly. Now that they were higher their growth had slowed down. Constitution, his highest stat, hadn’t increased once. If he was right, it got harder to increase stats as they grew. He nearly wasted his free points on a stat he could just train.

Don came to a decision. He would train his stats as much as he could before assigning free points to them. Looking at constitution again, it didn’t seem so bad this time. He could always use some extra health. It was all that stood between him and a respawn in the middle of an angry town. The increased stamina regeneration would also help with the training he had in mind. He had to get his agility as high as he could before he leveled up again.

With his stats out of the way, Don pulled up information on the traits. It looked like the first one was the default trait any male demon could choose. It added damage values to his horns based on his level. It would be pretty weak right now and Don couldn’t imagine headbutting one of the apes would end well. Next, he looked at the thick skinned trait. It gave him armor based on his level. It would also be weak but Don wanted this trait badly. He had dealt with scratching thorns and scraping bark for long enough. He was still just shy of completely naked and the forest wasn’t a very soft place to stumble through at night. Still, he decided to consider all his options. He was glad he did. The last one was really interesting. He could apparently make stronger items so long as he used materials from animals he killed personally. His simple makeshift weapon and armor made a huge difference so Don was definitely interested in making better items.

He decided on the dread armorer trait.

Error: the “Dread Armorer” trait costs two trait points to acquire

Well in that case

Congratulations!

You have acquired the “Thick Skinned” trait

Legend tells of an ancient demon went out for his daily stroll. On this day, he found a great battle between warring kingdoms on his path. He didn't turn back. He kept his pace and didn't pay the armies any attention. The men in the opposing armies hated demons equally and joined forces to slay this evil. Swords shattered, Maces crumbled, lances splintered. They attacked the demon until their weapons were reduced to dust. The demon did not react. It continued its stroll, leaving a silent battlefield behind him.

Don immediately felt his skin tighten fractionally. It was like he suddenly developed callouses everywhere at once. Don gave a few experimental stretches and found that he could still move normally and his sense of touch wasn’t deadened. He was just ... tougher. Don gave a relaxed sigh, he didn’t realize how exposed he felt until now.

With the thick skinned trait, Don was feeling better about his decision to increase his constitution but he was going to try something first. Dismissing his stats and taking a refreshing breath of air, Don said “Hold on Mag” and leaned into a jog and didn’t slow his pace until he returned to the cave netting himself a point in agility.

+ AGI

Don had to stop at the entrance because he couldn’t fit himself and the fox in at the same time. He let Mag drag the animal through the entrance before sliding in after her. He was greeted by a shrill screaming.

“Kyaaa! There he is!” Four of the goblins waiting just inside the cave rushed Don.

“Ooh, Here's that cool armor he used. Look at these teeth marks!”

“Don’t touch him, he must be hurt” one of the goblins snapped, roughly shoving the goblin fawning over Don’s bracer away. In a flash, the two gobs were a tangled mess of flying claws and biting teeth. Don was taken aback by this. Even more horrifying, the other two gobs closed in on him with predatory looks. He took a half step back and held up his hands defensively. He had a bad feeling about this.

Don spotted Kat watching from the other side of the cave. One hand over his mouth another over his stomach. His body shook with silent laughter. Don looked back to his current problem. “Uh, hi. I’ve got to talk with Kat now so… bye”

As he was walking away two weights settled softly onto his shoulders. The gobs started whispering, one into each ear. Don’s cheeks turned even more red than usual, then they turned green. He looked to Kat with pleading eyes but his supposed friend was now on the ground, totally incapacitated by laughter. Salvation came from a totally unexpected source.

“So you killed a fox” a grudging voice piped up from behind Don. He turned around and the two hangers-on eyed Gat from their vantage point.

“I killed three foxes” Don corrected him “and a rabbit and a hedgehog” He was trying to glare back at Gat but the gobs hanging on to him chose that moment to whisper more distracting things in his ears. Apparently, they were sisters, and they like to share. Don was a lonely guy, but he wasn’t that lonely.

Gat doubled down on his glare. “There are two foxes here tonight but I only saw you kill one. I’m not giving you credit for Tag’s kill”

“I don’t know why you feel the need to be such an insufferable prick but you’re a part of my tribe and I owe the tribe my life. You can have as much of the fox as you want.”

The whispering finally, thankfully stopped. The whole cave went silent. Even Kat stopped laughing.

“You would feed me?” Gat asked

“Well, sure. I wish you would stop finding reasons to mess with me but I meant what I said.” Don answered, not sure why the atmosphere in the room changed so fast. His passengers shrank away as Gat’s face flushed a darker shade. His green blood rising as his rage built.

“I am Gat” he screamed “You do not feed me, I feed you! Do you think I’m so weak I need help finding food? You are the newcomer, the outsider, I brought you here and everything you accomplish is thanks to me.” Gat worked himself up into a frenzy. He was starting to foam at the mouth when Grey stepped between them.

“That is enough. If you don’t want to taste fox, no one will make you” She admonished Gat “As for you” she addressed Don “You impressed me today. Two foxes in one night. I haven’t had such good entertainment in years” She was beaming at him. “If I’m not mistaken you have come back stronger than you were when you left?”

Don smiled back at Grey “Yeah, I did get a bit stronger. I have a long way to go before I can go up against those apes though.”

Grey nodded “It’s good you realize this but have some pride for what you accomplished today.” She patted his knee before heading back towards the fire pit to prepare and defend the meal.

Goblin language 6 → 7

You are now able to understand advanced concepts

Finally free, Don moved over to where Kat was waiting with his trademark grin. Don wasn’t very amused. “So you think it’s funny to lead your friend into a trap to be hunted by a giant, fucking, monster?” he asked

A look of uncertainty flashed across his face before he reasserted his usual calm command. “Of course. Especially when that friend decides to jump,” he paused for effect “On a hedgehog!” he burst out laughing again and Don felt his face flush again.

“I’m glad you got a kick out of it at least.” Don grumbled

“Oh, when you chased it, Ha!”

Don waited for Kat to chuckle himself out. Eventually, Kat managed to adopt a serious look without cracking up. “All things considered, you did pretty well against the forest ape. I thought you were a goner when it had that blood trail. I have to talk with you about something though” His grin returned and he put on his conspiratorial act again. He had Don’s attention now, the last time Kat acted like this he taught him about his status screen.

“I got a skill that night.” Kat revealed, “It is called ‘Scout Master’ and it lets me train people in a bunch of skills.”

“What’s so special about that?” Don asked, “Can’t people just train the skills by themselves?”

Kat looked at Don like he just asked why eating dirt was a bad idea. “Anyone can train a skill, having a teacher lets them learn faster, why do you think I’ve been showing you how to sneak and find plants? This skill lets me teach skills even faster!”

Don was reminded of a skill that increased on that same night. A skill that had a similar effect. His training dummy skill. It allowed people to learn skills more easily by practicing them on him. Could Kat have learned this teaching skill because he spent so much time teaching Don? He took a close look at that skill for the first time. Normally people could only practice combat skills on him but when it reached the apprentice rank, the skill began to apply to non-combat skills as well. Don shared his theory with Kat.

Once he learned about Don’s training dummy skill Kat’s grin returned “I am going to train you into the best damn scout, after me, in the whole tribe” he said “You, are going to be the perfect practice student” His grin took on a distinctly unfriendly look.

Don held up his hands “That sounds good, but before you do, I have something I want to try.”

An hour later Don was bent over his potion equipment, trying to ignore the constant jostling and itching. He finished another potion and immediately downed it, regenerating most of his health. He wiped his mouth and called over his shoulder “Keep up the good work”

Punching Bag Apprentice 2 → 3

19% unarmed resistance

Kat and Tag were clawing at Don’s back as well as they could. Scoring the skin but doing little real damage. They had already burnt through all the health potions Don prepared earlier and another four since then. He put the last of his healing potion ingredients into the mortar and began to grind. He asked Mag and Sik to help with the experiment too but mag didn’t even look away from a roasting fox leg and Sik flatly refused. Don finally got an idea of why his potions were all trash. Sik told him the techniques, equipment and ingredients used affect the strength of a potion. The best we can hope to make with the stone implements are trash and weak quality potions. We could use advanced techniques to increase the potency of the potions but most of those techniques required specialized equipment of their own.

+ CON

Finally “Okay, you can stop”

Kat and Tag kept hitting Don

“I said stop” He turned to the gobs who were gleefully scratching at Don.

He went to sweep them away with his arm. Tag hopped back out of reach before charging in again and Kat merely vaulted over Don’s arm like it was the easiest thing in the world. “That’s enough” Don said more forcefully, getting to his feet. The gobs climbed onto him and continued scratching him. Fortunately, it didn’t hurt much.

With his new trait and the already weak attacks of the gobs, Don could endure the strikes. Add on his resistance to unarmed attacks and his focus senses dulling the pain and the death by a thousand papercuts was downgraded to an urgent itch. After a few unsuccessful minutes trying to catch the slippery monsters, they suddenly broke off and ran to the other side of the cave, calling insults across to him. It looked like beating on Don brought the two gobs together. They now joked and laughed like old friends.

Don turned back to his equipment, finishing his potion and restoring his health. Don thought back to all the damage he took after coming to the forest. There were three separate fights with foxes, the one heavy blow from the ape and the countless small scratches and bruises he picked up running around the forest at night. Even with all that it took more than 200 additional damage for his CON to increase. It was all the proof he needed that higher stats were harder to increase. Committed to his new course and feeling a sense of satisfaction, Don added all five of his free points to his constitution.

He never gained so many points so quickly before. Don felt somehow healthier. Like he just got over a bad cold. His health bar stretched across the corner of his vision. Checking his stats he was glad to see the increase from 105 hp to 110 with his training, then all the way to 135 with the free points. His stamina regeneration also increased significantly. He was suddenly bursting with an energy he had never felt before. It was as if his inner workings were cast iron, stoked boilers, and whirring turbines. He was ready to take on the world. A frenzy of jibbering broke out from near the fire and Don decided to conquer some dinner first.

Spoiler: Don's stats and skills

Note: I changed 'Forest Walk' to from a passive skill to a more powerful active skill with stamina and mana requirements.

The following skills also increased without mention in the last few chapters:

Night Vision 5 --> 7

Focus Senses 6 --> 8

Stealth 3 --> 4

Alchemy 8 --> 9

Forage 3 --> 4

Manipulation 4 --> 5

Shadow Cloak 2 --> 3

Stats: Vitals: regen 1 point regen time STR 14 HP 135/135 mana wis per hour 3.53 AGI 14 STA 71/75 stamina (Con * 2) per hour 1.11 DEX 15 MANA 57/60 INT 12 EXP 5/100 WIS 17 Status Effects: CON 27 END 15 skill Rank Level Effect cost range duration Combat Punching Bag Apprentice 2 17% unarmed resistance Brawling Beginner 1 5% increase to unarmed attack and dodge Utility Training Dummy Apprentice 2 17% training increase Goblin Language Special 7 Advanced complexity Night Vision Beginner 7 11% increased light Focus Senses Beginner 8 12% increase and derease 1 stamina self 1 minute Stealth Beginner 4 8% sneak and sneak attack Forest Walk Beginner 1 15% movement and concealment in forests 2 mana + 3 stamina self 1 minute Support Diagnose Beginner 4 assess the targets visible injuries 1 mana touch instant Crafting Alchemy Beginner 9 13% potion effectiveness Forage Beginner 4 8% ease and effectivness of resources Illusion Magic Manipulation Beginner 5 Manipulate light to form intangible constructs 1 mana 5 meters 30 seconds Shadow Cloak Beginner 3 19% increased visual concealment in darkness 10 mana touch 3 minutes