Dragon Knight Saga Skills

There are many different types of skills in Divinity II: Dragon Knight Saga.

Overview[]

Human skills are broken down into warrior, ranger and wizard skills, but there is no strict class system (i.e. all characters can use skills from any of the three categories). Of these skills, some are passive skills which are always in effect, and other are active skills which can be used on the character's skill bar.

In the skill tree you can choose new skills, or improve existing skills, with skill points gained by leveling. Skill Books also grant an extra skill point and can be found at various locations throughout Rivellon. You can immediately see all of the available skills, but most have a level requirement that must be met. Some skills can be trained to an even higher level than initially shown on the skill tree; to do this you pay gold to a Skill Trainer to increase their maximum level. A skill trainer can also completely redo your skill choices at a cost.

Dragon[]

Dragon skills can only be used in dragon form and are separate to human's, however, dragon skill points can be used to level them up. Dragon Skill Books can be found in many locations.

Icon	Skill name	Description
	Dragon Burst	The Dragon Burst is a powerful attack during which the Dragon very briefly meditates upon the sheer strength of its being so as to consequently release the devastating result all around itself in a burst of destructive magical energy. The grass will be greener on the other side after this happens.
	Dragon Polymorph	Even a Dragon may find itself outnumbered by dangerous enemies. Turning them into oblivious ladybirds so as to finish them off in more comfortable numbers is, in such an event, a wise course of action indeed.
	Dragon Shield	Incredible though it may sound, there are foes in the wildest parts of the world that may challenge even a Dragon. You are therefore able to put before you a magical force that shields against the ferocious attacks of evil flocks of enemies.
	Dragon Spirit	When the fight is over, Dragons also tend to take time to lick their scales. If you feel like forgoing this lengthy process, this spell will heal the wounds you may have sustained – and save you the nuisance of a tired tongue.
	Fire Breath	Almost synonymous with the Dragon is his most feared attack: the breath of fire, a huge cone of scorching flames that utterly destroys and disintegrates all its stifling claws meet. Those Dragons that wield this mighty force may be confident their enemies will either horribly perish or flee, never to return.
	Fire Sphere	Even more formidable than the usual bellow of fire is this fully-fledged orb of flame capable of incinerating even the toughest of foes. It isn't subtle, but it gets the job done.
	Summon Friend	When engaging flocks of airborne adversaries it is always handy to have a wingman, and you'll find a wyvern is perfectly suited to fulfill that role. Of course, it also gives the enemy something else to shoot at.
	Wrath of the Patriarch	Concentrate the pure rage of the Dragon into a massive attack that will easily lay waste to scores of hostile structures or entire flocks of airborne enemies.
	Zeppelin Barrage	Yes, you are a mighty Dragon: but a little back-up never hurts, now, does it? With this skill you can assign targets that a friendly zeppelin will then blast into oblivion. Because friendship means never having to obliterate alone.

Dragon Slayer[]

Icon	Skill name	Description
	Mindread	The ability to read the minds of others is given to very few in Rivellon. Powerful though this gift may be, you shouldn't shy away from developing the skill – because obviously it takes a little more experience to read the thoughts of, say, the Arcane University’s dean than those of Doris, the lavatory lady.
	Dual Wield Expertise	Not many make such a fierce impression on the battlefield as those who swing a blade in each hand, so engulfing their immediate vicinity in a red wave of extinction. But even though these fighters may look like frenzied, blood-crazed savages, be not mistaken, for they are quite the opposite: cool-headed and disciplined. With good reason: wielding two weapons in combat demands intense training, and forgoing it has often led to unintended, self-inflicted facial reconstruction.
	Lockpick	When you encounter a bolted door, a chest secured tightly by a padlock, you itch to find out what is behind that door and in that chest. You know you do. By adding this skill to your repertoire, your curiosity will soon be satisfied and perhaps your coin purse as well.
	One Hand and Shield Expertise	Those who engage in battle with sword and shield are sometimes scoffed by others on the premise that they are archaic and unimaginative. But they never take such criticisms to heart because they know that their strategy, classical rather than standard though it may be, is still one of the best setups a warrior may use: it perfectly combines offense and defense and, like no other, offers excellent chances to emerge from each battle alive and well.
	Packed and Ready	Adventurers often have the tendency to accumulate loot with greater diligence than a squirrel that is storing nuts for winter. It is therefore not a bad idea to train your back-pack-stuffing capabilities, because a good packer can carry around a lot more booty!
	Single-handed Combat Expertise	Following in the footsteps of an old battle tradition that believes in the unification of a warrior and his weapon, you opt to specialize in the wielding of a single one-handed weapon. Brandishing a light and highly maneuverable piece of deadly craftsmanship, you learn to ply it to a state of perfection that goes beyond other combinations of armament.
	Two-Handed Combat Expertise	No matter what some may say, combat isn't pretty or subtle. You intend to prove that by swinging about swords long as a troll's arm and hammers so ferocious they can reduce said creature's head to a bloody pulp with one well placed stroke. The advantages in battle are obvious, and more than that: you can never get lost in the woods, for you'll always leave a track of limbs that works even better than the traditional breadcrumbs.
	Unarmed Combat Expertise	Swords, axes, maces: you regard them all as silly extensions for the truest of melee weapons: your fists. Rather than presenting them with the taste of steel, you like to treat your opponents to your favourite home made delicacy: a knuckle sandwich.
	Wisdom	Having studied warfare not only as a series of forceful skills, moves and abilities, but also as an art, the insight you gain after every battle is greater than that of others. You therefore advance more quickly up the ladder of experience and success.

Mage[]

Skill name	Type	Description
Confusion	Passive	This subtle but powerful skill adds a special ability to other sorceries you cast: each time one of your offensive spells hits an opponent, it has a chance of stunning that opponent for a while, stripping him of effectiveness in battle.
Destruction	Passive	As if the ravaging powers of magic aren’t terrible enough already this skill, as its name implies, will add to the destruction caused by your fireballs, magic missiles and other wizard spells.
Fireball	Active	Like a miniature Sun that burns the flesh from your enemies’ bodies, you can hurl a single ball of fire towards an unfortunate foe from the tips of your fingers. Whereas many a wizard will acknowledge this as a basic spell, none will make the mistake of underestimating its deadly force.
Firewall	Active	Once released, this great circle of red-hot flame will blacken anything caught in its blast and burn all who are foolish enough to enter its fulgent perimeter, thus providing you with the best of both worlds by combining offence with defense in one single incantation.
Healing	Active	When in combat, you will get hurt. But not to worry, for this simple healing spell will douse any wound like water would fire – leaving your dazed opponents wondering why their blades don’t seem to have had much effect!
Magic Blast	Active	Damning your opponent with a Magic Blast will surround him with many stab-like thrusts of destructive magic. That might seem somewhat sadistic, but it gets the job done.
Magic Missile	Active	A magic missile is in essence a blast of raw magical energy that strikes the enemy in a few consecutive waves. Unless there are multiple enemies, for then the missile automatically targets several opponents. Like the fireball, the spell is as simple as it is lethal.
Mana Efficiency	Passive	Performing a whirlwind attack costs mana, but you have trained your spirit and therefore don’t need to catch your mental breath as quickly as others might. A very practical ability indeed, for, as the saying goes, two whirlwinds are always better than one.
Mana Leech	Passive	With Mana Leech, you don't just wound your enemy as you hit him, but also gradually drain his magical energies from his body and perchance add them to your own with each hit you score.
Polymorph	Active	Imagine, if you will, two fierce undead warriors sporting claws and jagged swords with your name on them. Facing two such savage adversaries at the same time might just be more than you can handle. Luckily, you have the polymorph spell at your disposal, which will briefly transform those on its receiving end into a harmless ladybug. This is sure to make your life easier and their briefer.
Way of the Battle Mage	Active	Those who revel in the joy of aggressive magic will get the most out of their specialty by choosing this skill, which will enhance all the stats that pertain to it

Priest[]

Skill name	Type	Description
Blind	Active	To blind your enemy is to temporarily take away his vision, leaving him stumbling in the dark: in combat, about as effective as a pacifistic sparrow. Just don’t stand around too long, laughing at his bewilderment, because he’s bound to be a tad enraged when he gets you in his sights again.
Charm	Active	Much like the polymorph spell, charming your opponents is aimed at lessening the number of hostiles that seek to plant their pointy ends into your skull. But the Charm spell does not merely immobilize them by turning them into ladybirds: it turns them against each other, so wounding or even killing your opposition before the effect wears off.
Curse	Active	When you speak this spell, the creatures close to you become cursed, meaning that they become severely weakened and ready to be plucked... or decapitated. Whatever suits your fancy.
Fear	Active	Fear may paralyze you: block all functions, body and mind. But this is something different. This is fear that strikes at the very core of one’s being, catapults one into a sickening frenzy and leaves the victim with no other impulse but to flee. In other words: you cast the spell and your enemies do a runner.
Hide in Shadows	Active	Swinging broad axes, donning heavy armour, casting sorceries as the arrows whiz around your head, trying to make that precision shot as a howling troll with murder in its eyes stampedes towards you ... doing battle can be a grueling business. Which is why some prefer to give it a miss once in a while, as they become unified with the shadows, invisible to the naked eye. Because why would you go through the trouble of fighting, when you can simply bypass your oblivious opponents?
Life Tap	Active	As you become a powerful wizard, you may find yourself in a situation in which you‘re casting all sorts of spells while you stay at a distance – unharmed and unthreatened. The problem is that your magical energies may start to run low. The solution: simply transfer some of your life energy to your magical energy and you can keep enjoying the grisly spectacle you create.
Master Herbalist	Passive	Versed as you are in the powers and potentials of all plants and herbs that grow in Rivellon, it takes you fewer specimens to cook a successful brew. This has not only made you famous for your mushroom soup, but also for the efficiency with which you make useful potions.
Summon Demon	Active	If ever you find yourself outnumbered in a fight, this is the skill to use. Not only will the appearance of a Demon most likely leave your adversaries stranded with malodorous breeches, its claws will send them, torn to shreds, straight to the hellish dimensions whence your unholy ally came.
Summon Ghost	Active	Ghosts are restless beings. Terrible in appearance they haunt us, instil us with numbing fear. So why, some Mage must once have thought, should we not call them to our aid in combat? And a wise thought it was, because ever since then many a wizard has treated his foes to one final nightmare from which they never woke.
Summon Mastery	Passive	As if summoning a variety of strange and dangerous creatures to your aid isn’t a powerful enough ability already, Summoning Mastery ensures that those you summon are even more potent than regularly summoned battle helpers. You can probably just stand by and watch the fight.
Summon Undead	Active	The dead. What are they good for besides pushing up daisies? Those with a taste for the darker side of magic will answer that question with this particular spell. For the dead, when brought back to life, will do anything for their master, including battle. Especially battle, in fact.
Way of the Wise Wizard	Active	Those who enjoy putting up an impenetrable shield of defensive magic will get the most out of their specialty by choosing this skill, which will enhance all the stats that pertain to it.

Ranger[]

Skill name	Type	Description
Evade	Passive	You are highly trained in dodging the melee attacks with which your adversaries try to treat your inner organs to an outdoor holiday. It goes without saying that this is a highly useful ability for all who spend much time in the thick of battle.
Explosive Arrows	Active	The rarest of arrows are perhaps also the most powerful ones. Extremely dangerous in the hands of some bowstring-happy pyromaniac – and absolutely frightening in the hands of a skilled archer – these arrows explode upon impact: not only turning the original recipient into a bloody jigsaw puzzle, but also tearing apart anyone caught near the blast.
Poison Arrows	Active	One of the more crafty, and at the same time nasty, abilities of the ranger is the coating of arrow tips in deadly poisons. Not only will the arrows wound their targets, they will keep inflicting pain as the venomous substance that entered their bodies courses ruinously through their veins.
Potion Efficiency	Passive	Every adventurer has his trusted health, mana and other magical potions stuffed safely in his backpack. But not all benefit from them to the maximum. Trained to get the most out of every drop, you are able to squeeze every bit of energy from these treasured bottles.
Ranger Stealth	Passive	Like a true hunter of the dark, a ranger that is under this subtle spell's influence blends into his surrounding with chameleon-like ease. Even when he scores a hit, the ranger still has a chance that the victim of his arrow has no idea where the danger comes from - thus leaving him unexposed.
Ranger Strength	Passive	Some rangers spend as much time training their strength as they do their agility. The result is that every arrow they fire flies with greater speed and power, naturally inflicting even greater wounds.
Ranger Surprise	Active	Any unfortunate creature you are hunting that is struck by a Ranger Surprise arrow does not only receive the full damage of the impact, but also has its resistances lowered, making it more vulnerable for all kinds of other attacks. So what is the actual surprise? Why, death of course!
Splitting Arrows	Active	The splitting arrow has the magical property that it severs into different arrows after having been fired, so allowing the bowman to hit multiple targets at the same time. The more adept he becomes at the craft, the more separate projectiles the original arrow will split into.
Stun Arrows	Active	Profiting from a temporary heightened concentration, you are able to shoot arrows with such precision and force that they stun any victim: leaving them immobile for a while. Scoring kills has never been easier.
Way of the Ranger	Active	Those born for the bow will get the most out of their specialty by choosing this skill, which will enhance all the stats that pertain to it.

Warrior[]

Skill name	Type	Description
Battle Rage	Active	The Battle Rage skill does exactly what it describes: like a mad barbarian would seize upon a poorly protected convent, you launch yourself into the fray, heeding not the danger it leaves you in. Most likely any clear and present danger will soon be eliminated, but do remember that this rage detracts from your defensive prowess for its duration.
Bleed	Passive	Particularly vicious, bleed attacks have a chance of causing wounds that keep bleeding: so damaging the victim over time until the bleeding stops or he has leaked to death.
Death Blow	Passive	Warriors adept in the Death Blow have spent part of their training concentrating on delivering devastating hits, which may critically hurt an opponent. The more skillful these hits become, the greater their chances are of scoring blows that will knock their enemies six foot under in no time.
Defensive Posture	Active	A warrior needs to know when to attack with the ferociousness of the tiger and when to take a hedgehog-like defensive stance. When in a jam, this skill will provisionally take away some of your offensive powers, but transfer them to your defensive energies.
Fatality	Active	An instant kill is one of the greatest blows a warrior can learn to deliver, but the road to success is long. An enemy must be seriously wounded before such a blow can be struck when you are still inexperienced in the one-hit-one-kill method. But as you learn, it will take less dueling time for you to find a weak spot that will end the fight in the blink of an eye.
Jump Attack	Passive	Those who have this skill in their repertoire – all Dragon Slayers do – can jump and fall to the ground with a great cleave of their weapon. Not only does it increase the pounding your enemy takes, it has quite a chance of knocking him off his feet. After that it’s just a matter of having the good grace to make the kill quick and painless. Right?
Life Leech	Passive	With Life Leech, you don’t just wound your enemy as you hit him, but also gradually drain his life energy from his body and perchance add it to your own with each hit you score.
Reflect	Passive	Those who benefit from this advantageous spell can gleefully watch as part of the damage an enemy causes is reflected back to him. This way the foes that oppose the hero may be slain by the force of arms they themselves apply, in a wonderful example of poetic justice.
Regenerate	Passive	Forgoing the need of healing spells to patch up your wounds over time, the regenerate skill ensures the slow but steady revitalization of your life energy. This process gains in speed as its practitioner learns to use it more effectively.
Rush Attack	Active	During a rush attack you lash out at a single opponent, which causes severe wounds and most likely stuns him. The attack works well as an initial assault on ranged enemies especially.
Thousand Strikes	Active	With a combination of cat-like speed and accuracy, you strike at your adversary with a series of vicious cuts: leaving him to incredulously stare at the bodily extensions on the ground before he has had the time to realize where his bane came from. Fast and brutal, it is one of the best melee attacks a warrior can master.
Whirlwind	Active	With the weapon you are wielding firmly clasped in your hands, you unleash a hurricane of steel by making a full circle jump that tears through any number of enemies around you. When your feet hit the ground again, only their bloody remnants bear witness to the destruction, while you, the very eye of the storm, remained untouched.