[D'sP] The Database Skill - Chapter 495

Doyle spends a few hours relaxing after his level up before turning to his new goal. To work on the Dungeon Pattern Database skill. Though not in the normal fashion. He didn’t plan to add new patterns or level up existing ones to advance the skill itself.

First though, he had to ask Ally a bit about the skill. Or rather, similar skills. Doyle had a suspicion about the dungeon version of the database skill. After all, it was more than a little unwieldy right now and didn’t really match what he felt a dungeon would have. Also, there was the matter that not everything he should have was on there.

After all, a dungeon core’s ability to create things is basically sci-fi replicator levels of nonsense where the limits are more about what you can scan or figure out. Also, there are at least two layers of restrictions on what can be made. Sort of like how pre-system, the printers wouldn’t print money.

Anyway, the best Doyle can feel about it, there were system-based restrictions. Those tended to be either stuff like making it so certain patterns didn’t show up, such as the human pattern. Or simply deciding when something didn’t merit a pattern. Which was best seen by the fact that there was a sword pattern, not a hundred different patterns for the various subtypes of sword. Even the simple single-edge versus double-edge swords could be seen as being worth patterns. Yet Doyle just had the sword pattern.

Deeper than that was a deeper restriction. Or at least, Doyle suspected there was such a limit. Because in theory? A dungeon should be able to create anything it can imagine. After all, they can use quintessence! Even if they would normally use a lower-order power.

And this wasn’t something like preventing a dungeon from creating antimatter. Rather, if Doyle understands things correctly, quintessence is the base power for Creation. Or at least, this section of the Omniverse. It should be possible to create matter that on a fundamental level can not exist in this dimension. Beyond even extraplanar stuff, though Doyle would guess he can’t make that stuff either.

Though something in him also feels like regular extraplanar things might be possible given the right conditions. Of course, calling anything “extraplanar” a regular anything felt wrong. Only a group who had made the transition from one universe to another such as Ally home Court had done would have any quantity of extraplanar items.

Besides those limits? A dungeon can create a lump of iron. And what if that lump of iron was in the shape of a sword? Which should be possible.

Oh sure, the iron in the shape of a sword wouldn’t work all that well as a sword. After all, it would be missing the strength gained from forging, being more like the lowest quality cast iron. Still, it could be quite sharp!

So yeah, Doyle was quite unsatisfied with how the patterns are organized. It was quite a mess and had tons of sub-tables. The sword pattern wasn’t stored in the main section, but the weapon patterns.

This isn’t a bad thing, but the fact he has so many sub-tables? That was annoying. So he wants to change this, even if it awakens some of his creations.

Doyle, ‘Hey Ally, I want to talk a bit about my database skill.’

Ally looks up from talking with the kobold boss. ‘Something happen?’

Doyle shakes his core, ‘Not much. Well, I guess I did just gain a level, but I want to talk about something else. Specifically, I don’t like my database skill.’

Ally’s eyebrow climbs up her face. ‘What?’

Doyle nods, ‘Yeah, not a fan. I wanted you to hear more about how similar skills are set up for others. It seems like a “meta” skill that should be possible to change.’

Ally, ‘I am uncertain what you want to change? Maybe if you lay it out for me, I can help. Otherwise, I might as well just be reading an encyclopedia to you. Dry and without any direction beyond stating facts.’

Doyle, ‘Fair.

‘Okay, so, the database skill does a decent job keeping track of everything happening. Too good of a job. I’m not a smith and it grabs too many things, but at the same time, not enough.

‘A smith can handle thousands of swords, but won’t get patterns for them. Me? Someone leaves an apprentices first attempt or a masters crowning achievement and I’ll absorb them equally, maybe even gaining patterns for both if they’re different enough. And spears. And bows. And every other weapon type. All of which I’m expected to level separately so I can provide decent gear for my delvers.

‘What I want instead is more general patterns. I understand that having a sword pattern doesn’t make it so I can automatically make every style of sword. So why do I need the patterns for milky quartz, blue quartz, smoky quartz, and just about any other form of quartz you might want? Or even more extreme, why a quartz pattern and a diamond pattern? Why not just a crystal pattern?

‘Oh sure, maybe have an individual pattern if I get something really special. Like, I have all these potion patterns that could be condensed down into either one potion pattern. That or maybe break it out into healing potions, harming potions, and so on. But the specialty potions I got from Moota? Those could be broken out into their own patterns.

‘Though even then, I have a better idea. If I was an alchemist, I’d either have an alchemy skill or a bunch of skills related to the alchemy process. All of which would go into determining the quality of any potion I brew using those skills.

‘As a dungeon? I don’t have that. And not only don’t I have that, but every potion I absorb becomes a potion, even the worst quality one. Whereas an alchemist is likely to gain a pattern after a certain level of skill with making the potion. Because I have to assume they don’t magically gain a pattern when they read a recipe.

‘Well, I guess they might if it was a specially prepared recipe meant for that? Basically, like a Skill Book, but for recipes. So yeah, I want a potion pattern and a breakout for special potions similar to how it works for the elementally attuned stuff.

‘And not only do I want this? I believe that is how it normally works for new dungeons. Just look at how my database skill has changed since I got it. At first, everything was stored individually in the main section.

‘Then with time? Sub-tables were broken out when I got enough of a certain type. Then additional information began to show up for the elementally attuned stuff. I would bet that if I got the stuff when I first opened up my dungeon? It would have made a water-attuned copper pattern. Now though? It shows up under the pattern with a simple marker showing how many levels lower it will be than the base material.’

Ally tilts her head to the side hums, ‘Well, I can see where you’re coming from. Though I’m not sure I see the skill being different for other cores. All those changes? That is simple enough to explain.

‘They don’t represent a foundational change to the skill. The sub-tables are simply organizational. How it treats attuned material is the same, representing a difference in complexity. If you had received a pattern for water-attuned copper, chances are it would always be a certain number of levels behind the copper pattern. Every level to water attuned copper also increases the level of copper and vice-a-verse.’

Doyle nods, ‘Exactly. And the system can keep track of all of that in the background whether I have separate patterns, the current set up, or I just have only the pattern for copper with the option to make it water attuned. Breaking them out is important for me as a human mind.

‘A natural core can keep track of all of this on their own. After all, while sapient, they aren’t awakened to start with. They aren’t reading their database skill to remember what options they have available to them.’

Ally, ‘Okay, so how do you think the skill works for them?’

Doyle, ‘Well first off, the fact my skill separates out daggers and swords is almost certainly based on me and not how the skill would start. To us it makes sense. A dagger is different from a sword.

‘But is it? Is it really? If someone who was bigger than a human picks up one of our swords, they can’t use it as a sword. They’ll be lucky if they can use it as a dagger! After all, the handle will be quite small. You’d be better off giving them one of those two-handed swords with the long handles.

‘Oh, and the fact they’re labeled those things at all? A dungeon doesn’t speak my language. So not only would swords and daggers not be all that different to a dungeon, the same will be true for a bunch of different weapons. After all, most are bits of metal on wood.

‘Yes, some are sharpened, others blunt. Various shakes and methods of holding them. But in the end? Metal on wood, and swung at my monsters. I would bet a basic database skill might just have a pattern “named” whatever the dungeon felt upon seeing the first melee weapon be used that holds everything that even vaguely matches it.

‘With time? Sure, maybe the patterns will separate out, especially if the local area specializes in something. After all, a proper masterwork sword will make itself known by the very intent imbued within it, if not necessarily the shape. This is especially true when you get to the whole sword versus saber debate.

‘So the skill would basically evolve as the dungeon learns things and gains particularly high-quality items. And me? I missed that because growing up as a human? I know the difference between a dagger and a sword. And you know something else I noticed? I don’t have a saber pattern. Though I’m sure someone has brought in a weapon, they consider a saber.’

Ally frowns, ‘Hmm. I can see that. Though I’m a bit uncertain what you would gain from learning how other people see their databases.’

Doyle, ‘Well, I want to know the various ways it shows up to get an idea of how I can work with the skill. Because shockingly, my database skill displayed at first quite a bit like what I recognized from various games. Especially some of the simple ones I grew up with as a kid and more than a few stories.’

Ally, ‘Well, what I have for you will probably be disappointing. There’s a good chance that even the people of your world will all have very similar databases to the rest of the universe. After all, as you said, yours looked quite similar to popular media. Well, remember, a lot of the foundational parts of your stuff comes from soul nonsense.’

Doyle, ‘Then why are there so many different forms of it? So many games like to spin out their own menu system and whatnot.’

Ally rolls her eyes, ‘Just because you remember something that is basically from a past, or future because souls, doesn’t mean you’re going to copy it one to one. It doesn’t remove how creative people are or their free will. The only reason stuff like deities come through so clearly is that it builds up over time.

‘Basically, it is like everyone having a few random puzzle pieces. With religion, people work together and over time will connect their pieces together. Even then, they haven’t gone all “infinite monkeys” on it and created perfect replicas of their actual myths and beliefs.

‘Just look at how you have a couple cultures with basically the same pantheon, but different names and some variance in myths. And sure, a lot of that comes from one culture taking from the other. But some of that will be a memory of a memory poking them towards it, while putting their own spin on it. Though yeah, also possible that one just did a copy paste. This is one of those things which scholars will debate until the end of the universe, especially since we don’t have good records of those times. Not like the system or magic was around back then so we can take a look.’

Things Falling Into Place - Chapter 494

Why The Secrecy - Chapter 496