Ally shrugs, ‘If I had to guess, the system decided your understanding of “rooms” has shifted far enough away from being a pattern that it doesn’t count. While the system keeps skills and paths intact, it likes to prune patterns when people gather a lot of them.’

  Doyle, ‘How in the world has my understanding of a room changed?’

  Ally, ‘There are two main ways to lose a pattern. Generalization and specialization. Two extremes between which levelable patterns sit. In smithing, there are many good examples of this.

  ‘For generalization, the go to is a metal plate. Used for all kinds of things, except, what is a “plate”. A person might have a pattern for making metal plates for a ship. However, if they just have a plate pattern and try to use it for any size or shape metal plate, it gets removed. The resulting pattern is just so general that the system checks a person’s smithing skill directly.

  ‘There are even people who specialize in making such things. This includes their own specialized skills and paths to handle making stuff without having a pattern for it. Niche, but every city could use a custom parts shop. Also, the fact that generalization is a form of specialization? Especially when the opposite side of losing a pattern is actual specialization? Pure eternal irony!’

  Doyle laughed, ‘Sometimes being a generalist is more specialized than you would think. Though speaking of specialization, I assume that the problem is the lack of room to improve?’

  Ally nodded, ‘Yep. You would think. Err, most would think specialization means you can focus better and know what to improve. And that is true to an extent. The problem is once you get too specialized.

  ‘Once someone decides they’ve perfected a thing, they’ll stop improving and instead get stuck remaking the same thing. At that point, the system likes to take the pattern away. If you stop improving and start obsessing over recreating, what’s the point? If anything, the system’s actions could be seen as a warning. Though some see it as the system admitting they have perfected it. Crazy bunch they are.’

  Doyle sighs, ‘Before the system came, I had a few things I lived by and one of them was I would stop learning when I die. Since that doesn’t seem to be in the cards anymore, I can’t imagine ever considering anything to be truly finished.’

  Ally shrugs, ‘Some people like finding a comfortable niche. But hey! Look at all those level 99s. Two skills and three patterns. Though admittedly, the skill is a result of the patterns and the patterns are likely limited by the skill.’

  Doyle, ‘So they’re locked as well? This is getting kind of annoying.’

  Ally smiles, ‘Well, just figure out what we’re missing in the dungeon! It will cramp us soon enough. After all, it might seem to have taken some effort to reach 99, but the difficulty doesn’t really scale like most people on your planet assume.

  ‘The scaling comes from the ever-increasing amount of points your various paths will need. Right now, you only have a handful that need hundreds of points. Given time? That will seem cheap. Some even go back and snaffle up their early paths. Though of course, using them there means fewer points for your important paths.

  ‘Your situation is actually somewhat the norm, now that I think about it. As long as a person is working on a skill, they tend to gain levels at a regular clip. At least until they hit some kind of bottleneck. Though I will admit, most bottlenecks are the result of a mental block instead of what you have going on.

  ‘Not that people don’t get stuck in that way. In fact, most sapients that have racial skills face your problem. Of course, they also tend to break through just from growing up. Dungeons are slightly more unique in how you end up blocked.’

  Doyle, ‘Well, interesting to know. Is there anything else that sticks out in my patterns? Like, I noticed that I haven’t exactly grown the more classic patterns. I understand the potions not budging and the weapons are high enough, but what is up with the armor? At level ten, that stuff really should have advanced.’

  Ally shrugs, ‘You would think that. The problem is you still have the best gear. Did you really think a bunch of crafters who’ve never even touched what your world would consider primitive equipment could start off running? The system might work miracles, but you need something for it to start with. Right now, they aren’t even making new types of armor, just trying to copy what they can get as loot from you. Despite that, I’d say that they’ve only reached the equivalent of a level five pattern.

  ‘Give them a couple years or so. I mean, just look at how long equipment like what you’re dropping took to even appear in your planet’s history. Nevermind the fact none of it is simple. Each armor piece requires multiple professions. A helmet doesn’t just get banged together by a smith. You need people to put in padding and straps even if they do end up wearing a liner underneath to help.’

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  Doyle tilts to the side and back, ‘Okay, I get it. And I really should have from the start. There is a reason for the apprenticeship system. While our world shifted towards mass schools, sometimes you need the old hand to show a new guy the ropes. In college, I certainly had it drilled in that what I was learning was just a foundation and wherever I worked would be the place to actually teach me my job.’

  Ally sighed, ‘And the fact that I went to a school for dungeon fairies is proof enough that such a method of learning is still a big thing. The idea of it providing a foundation is certainly true. Though most of the universe has ended up with a more hybrid approach.

  ‘While there are still places you would recognize as a college, they tend to be more like what they originally were on your planet. Most people instead end up in an apprenticeship of some sort after basic schooling. Well, most people who don’t end up as adventurers. Not that there aren’t apprenticeships in that profession. Just that the people who tend towards it also seem to be the type to pick up a cheap sword and head off on their own to find a group.’

  Doyle, ‘So uh, how do they deal with all the low-quality goods? Like, yes, there are dungeons so it isn’t like they’re going to have landfills full of low-level gear. It’s just that material costs money, even with people basically getting it for free from dungeons. Nevermind the fact that not all of it comes from dungeons.’

  Ally shrugs, ‘Price for one. There is nothing to stop a level one adventurer from wielding a pattern level 1000 sword. However, that sword is going to be way out of most people’s budget, even if it was just “picked up” in a dungeon.’

  Doyle, ‘But I haven’t really seen a limit on pattern level based on floor. Couldn’t someone get a high pattern level sword from the very first floor of an old dungeon?’

  Ally, ‘Yes, but no. Sure, technically the loot dropped on your first and last floor have the same pattern level. However, that doesn’t mean they’re the same. Just as a smith with a high level pattern doesn’t always make something at that level, your loot isn’t always what could be described as your best.

  ‘Besides, there is a reason the system doesn’t tag stuff with the level of pattern it came from. Someone without a crafting skill or patterns can make amazing stuff. A person with a high level of each could turn out dross. And that doesn’t get into tricky things like how specialized a pattern is.

  ‘A good example of that would be two people with the same level in smithing and the same level pattern. Except where one has the sword pattern, the other has the bronze short sword pattern. If they both make a bronze short sword, despite having the same level of pattern, the second guy will turn out much higher quality swords. Of course, on the slip side, making any other type or material of sword and the first guy will do better.’

  Doyle, ‘We’re getting a bit off track. How do people deal with all the low quality stuff that has to be made to grind skills?’

  Ally, ‘Well, of course with any metalworking they can just melt it down and start over. However, even if you can do that, you still wasted resources. Part of that is just for the master to soak. And of course, properly completed things can still be sold close to material cost, even if the quality isn’t quite there. Not like an apprentice carpenter is hacking away at wood from a world tree or some other nonsense.

  ‘In the end, though, it really just comes down to the fact that most people don’t actually need high-quality products. They want them, of course. However, at the end of the day, as long as a table doesn’t wobble and is big enough, most people are good.

  ‘Also, it helps that most masters have their apprentices focus on slow and steady. They aren’t turning out a table a day or anything. An apprentice carpenter will end up working on each part for long periods of time, with the master pointing out what areas need work. Not only does this give more bang for their buck when it comes to leveling their skills, it also means the master is partially involved, which will boost the end result beyond what the apprentice could make. Though a master will also tend to do a once over to fix minor defects.’

  Doyle, ‘That is interesting and would reduce the amount of stuff produced. You still haven’t told me what they do with the excess that must be inevitable with how skills seem to work.’

  Ally, ‘There isn’t really all that much excess? Though I think I realize where the disconnect is. Pre-system, everyone on your world basically had a job focused on producing stuff or selling stuff. You’re used to giant omni stores that sell all of everything in large quantities.

  ‘Not to say that doesn’t happen. However, most of the universe has settled into a more sedate pace on the local level. A carpenter isn’t going to have a ton of apprentices kicking about. They might take two or three over their entire career.

  ‘Besides that, most people don’t try to reach for the stars. A carpenter in an average town might not even be a true master. After all, most people don’t need a masterwork table. Sure, being able to enchant a table so it keeps any food on it at the perfect temperature is nifty, but most can’t afford it or don’t care.

  ‘You only see the true high end in the largest of cities or old dungeon towns. There is, of course, still the social pyramid. However, your profession isn’t what places you on it. A carpenter can be above every ruler on their planet if they’re good enough.

  ‘On top of that, unlike how your world worked, the focus is on quality over quantity. Sure, a high level carpenter could output a never ending supply of half decent tables. But that isn’t worth anything to them when they can make one quality table in the same time period and even after considering the cost of resources, make a magnitude more.’

  Doyle sighs, ‘I admit, with how my world was so focused on mass production of low-quality goods to eke out every cent, I can’t really imagine the kind of world you’re talking about.’

  Ally shrugs, ‘Eh, it helps that making a bunch of low quality tables doesn’t improve a person’s skills. Even a skill for mass production doesn’t gain much if you’re making things too far below your skill level. Mass production skills instead focus on making the same thing precisely. Those who craft complex mechanical goods tend to have it. You know, mechanical watch makers and such.’

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