CABAL: Leveling, Stats and Other Bits and Pieces

by Leon

Leveling and Stats 1

Unike most games where one gathers xp after killing a MoB, in CABAL every hit draws xp and it shows up in a small window bottom right of screen, the xp being an equation of how much damage one has hit for.

Once the xp bar hits the end of the line - bingo you level, nothing new there. However, in CABAL you get something like 6 points to allocate among your stats.

The stats in CABAL are limited to three, these being Strength, Intelligence and Dexterity.

These stats are important when leveling your character and also his weapons and Armor.

Leveling and Stats 2

You increment your stats after gaining level ups and can allocate these where you wish, though where you need to put them is pretty well dictated depending on your class.

At every 10th level one needs to 1) succeed in a specific quest given by your trainer, 2)have the correct mixture of stats to gain that quest.

You will need Str=x, Int=y and Dex=z in order to gain the next rank, even if you continue to level. (My char is level 41 but is short around 4 points in Intelligence in order to gain his 4th Rank quest).

Leveling thus ties in with and can be demonstrated in Leveling and weapons and Armor.

As a Force Archer I use Crystals equipped on each wrist. One Crystal can create an Astral Bow. In order to be able to use a bow of Rank 4 (in this case the Citrine Bow), I need Strength = 42, Intelligence = 125 and Dexterity 62.

It's the same with Armor; I need a specific amount in each stat in order to upgrade armor, in the same way I need to do with my Rank-ups and weapons upgrades.

So that's the xp and leveling system in a nutshell.

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Skills :

Skills are bought from your trainer and new ones at higher Ranks become available as one levels up.

Also, as one is gaining xp, one can get a skill-up, which allows you to increment one of your skills by one point. For example if a particular Skill projects a blast of water Force and hits for 86.4, by gaining a skill-up and incrementing that one point further into that particular skill, you will hit for a small percentage more, effectively leveling up your skills.

There are Sword Skills, Ranged Skills, Upgrade Skills that are passive and allow you to expand your HP or Mana resources slightly, and Specials, which are Buffs that last a specific amount of time and are subject cool-down periods, as in other MMOG's.

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Zones :

The Zones are relatively small compared to most MMOG's and look more like console RPG type areas, as does the whole stat process above. In fact the whole game has that feel, more so than most other MMOG's that I have played over the years.

One's Character on first entry starts in a given Zone, and after doing some early quests, gains the maps to two other zones. That's it for a while. But, within these three zones the mob level range goes from 1 through to level 60.

Also one gains a warp card to a dungeon area and another area that is basically an instance, where one periodically meets NPCs for further quests. The doors for each zone and this instanced zone are in a small square nexus with the doors leading to each zone the player has the map/card for. Each zone leads to the nexus and as the game progresses new maps can be found, new zones gained through leveling and questing.

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Questing :

Questing is everything in this game, and there are lots of them. My character has done well over 160 already at level 41.

Most quests are chained, hence the great number.

Quests range from going to meet a new NPC, to fighting in an instance and solving a small maze and killing a selection of Mobs, finding an artifact and/or meeting an NPC at the end.

Most quest dungeons, when not accessed directly through the Nexus, are dotted around the landscape and only become active and visible while on a specific quest. So for example that small ruin over there that the player has passed many times suddenly has a blue glow and has become accessible.

Most of the non-chained and non-storyline quests are collection quests, and indeed most of these also include collection quests or parts thereof.

For example, part of a storyline may well have started you off killing 10 of mob x, and possibly triggered the other NPC's to offer you the other related kill quests.

Around the same time, one may be told to gather 10 feathers, which means killing yet another 50-60 of the same mob.

What this does is push you slowly around the map at the appropriate pace to kill the mobs suited for your level.

There is one example where this does not happen:

On a couple of occasions recently (and probably before but I have only just noticed) I have been given a quest, but it is in an area that is detailed in RED on your map, which means DEATH if you try fighting the mobs there.

I would leave that quest and move to another, but, I learned thats not what to do. Instead, you are meant to run the gauntlet (to an instance usually) and enter for a meeting with an NPC or to encounter a small Dungeon Instance, which then stars another quest chain.

By the time I realized this, and had gone back to one of these quests after the area had turned Yellow, (Which is not as tough), I found the mobs inside to be 9 levels lower than me. So one really needs to listen to the quest givers and go run the gauntlet, which can be tricky, because if you get hit on the way to that instance, you can die with that one hit. :)

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So basically with stats, weapons and armor upgrades, and leveling, with maps and quests pushing you here and there, the whole process is guiding you around gently and carefully ever upwards in rank.

The whole game is one that would suit the first time MMOG player, and it is good at its job, even if not very subtle or detailed as most of the mainstream MMOGs are.

It has that Console RPG feel to it. I have soloed all the way with relative ease, but that's not to say it does not get hard; it does. There is room to group if one wishes, and one can take it or leave it, another nice way to ease new players into the MMOG realms, I feel.

All in all, its also a throwback to the earlier, more tedious grinding MMOGs, but one where tha player feels one is making progress, and even choices (up to a point), when in actual fact you don't get many choices, and the game mechanics are guiding you all the way.

It works. Its not complex, its not great, its a grind, but its still fun, can still be challenging and I have enjoyed it so far, although the collection quests are now getting bigger and more tedious.

If this were my first MMOG, I would be happy to play it; it has enough to show the basics of what an MMOG is all about, it guides one enough to get the hang of things, it has a social side, some crafting (starts at level 50 so I've not dipped into that yet). The classes are similar to one another, yet different enough to get a feel for what one prefers and may well go with, as one spreads their wings into the wider MMOG market.

Yes it's very simplistic and obviously formulaic all the way through, but it is free. One can buy extra content via Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum accounts, and also spend real money on items one cannot find in-game.

Overall, not an unpleasant experience. As a well seasoned MMOG player, it's basic, but has still been fun.

As far as I know it originated in China and this is the European release. I looked at 'Silk Road' a short time before and this is probably of that ilk, as I also assume 'Rappelz' is.

So I would say, if one is feeling bored or at a loose ends and wants some fun and a nostalgia trip with modern graphics somewhat reminiscent of the Final Fantasy type, then give it a crack.

I thank you for reading my observations on CABAL, and hope you have enjoyed the read. ta' ta' for now.

Leon

(the game is only available in Europe at this time)