Character Creation (2)

Learn about attributes, skills, and archetypes for character creation in Disco Elysium. Understand how the Thought Cabinet works.

You start Disco Elysium with 12 attribute points to distribute among four primary attributes: Intellect, Psyche, Physique, and Motorics. Each attribute governs six distinct skills. You can allocate up to a maximum of 6 points to any single attribute during initial creation. Alternatively, you can select an Archetype to streamline the character creation process.

Attributes and Governing Skills:

• Intellect (INT): Governs Logic, Encyclopedia, Rhetoric, Drama, Conceptualization, and Visual Calculus. This attribute represents your reasoning power.
• Psyche (PSY): Governs Volition, Inland Empire, Empathy, Authority, Esprit de Corps, and Suggestion. This attribute represents your intuition and emotional intelligence.
• Physique (FYS): Governs Endurance, Pain Threshold, Physical Instrument, Electrochemistry, Shivers, and Half Light. This attribute represents your strength and physical presence.
• Motorics (MOT): Governs Hand / Eye Coordination, Perception, Reaction Speed, Savoir Faire, Interfacing, and Composure. This attribute represents your coordination and agility.

Archetypes:

Instead of manually assigning attribute points, you can choose one of the following Archetypes:

• Thinker: INT 5, PSY 1, FYS 2, MOT 4. Signature Skill: Encyclopedia. Choosing this archetype results in low Health and dangerously low Morale.
• Sensitive: INT 1, PSY 5, FYS 4, MOT 2. Signature Skill: Inland Empire.
• Physical: INT 1, PSY 2, FYS 5, MOT 4. Signature Skill: Hand / Eye Coordination.

Skill Values:

There are 24 skills in total, with six skills tied to each of the four attributes. The initial value of a skill is determined by its governing attribute. When you create your character, you select a Signature Skill, which receives a +1 bonus to its effective value. As you level up, you can purchase additional skill points. The maximum number of additional points you can invest in a skill is equal to its governing attribute's value. For example, if your Psyche attribute is 3, you can invest a maximum of 3 additional points into the Volition skill. This 'learning cap' can be increased by drugs or certain thoughts. Your chosen Signature Skill not only adds +1 to that skill but also increases the learning cap for all skills governed by its attribute.

Skill Checks:

• Passive Skill Checks: These checks occur behind the scenes. If you lack the required skill level, you may not see the result or will automatically fail. The difficulty levels and their required values are: Trivial (0), Easy (2), Medium (4), Challenging (6), Formidable (7), Legendary (8), Heroic (9), Godly (10), and Impossible (12).
• Active Skill Checks: These checks have a variable success rate. Your skill value is added to any bonuses and then to a 2d6 roll. If the total equals or exceeds the required value, the check succeeds. A roll of 2 is always a failure, and a roll of 12 is always a success.
• White Checks: These checks become locked upon failure. However, you can retry them later by investing a point into the skill being checked or under other circumstances.
• Red Checks: These are one-time checks. Failing a red check means it's permanently failed unless you reload a save. Failing a red check can sometimes lead to beneficial outcomes, such as inventing a name for yourself early on, which can unlock a beneficial Thought Cabinet entry later.

Thought Cabinet:

The Thought Cabinet allows you to internalize thoughts, which typically provide a penalty to one or more skills during a 'research' period. Once a thought is fully internalized, you gain a permanent bonus or malus, and the learning cap for certain skills may increase. You can stop a thought's research at any time to retain its current progress. Initially, you have room for three thoughts. You can unlock additional slots, up to a maximum of 12, by spending skill points. Forgetting a thought to free up a slot also costs 1 skill point and prevents the thought from being relearned.

Example Thought:

• Ace's High: Takes 2 hours and 45 minutes to internalize. Research Bonus: +1 Empathy with Kim. Permanent Effect: +1 Empathy with Kim, +1 Esprit de Corps. Acquisition: Shoot the body down from the tree and high five Kim.
• Ace's Low: Takes 2 hours and 45 minutes to internalize. Research Bonus: +2 Empathy with Kim. Permanent Effect: +2 Empathy with Kim, +1 Esprit de Corps. Acquisition: Shoot the body down from the tree and wait fo