Alright, so if I assume higher level players hide their level, the max level and average level is probably higher, thus making Gifted and Skilled amazing abilities. At the same time though, this next part of the tutorial will probably require me to use my abilities, so if I want to do better I would be better off getting abilities with immediate effects… Alan thought, starting at the ticking clock.

Eve, do you think it would be a wise decision to purchase Gifted or Skilled? Alan finally asked.

Affirmative.

Alright.

Alan scrolled down on the menu and purchased Skilled, as the points accrued could then be spent on purchasing Gifted.

He used his remaining 10 points to purchase a basic Sneak skill, figuring he’d probably be better off sneaking around as a scout rather than directly fighting people, as he had little to no actual combat experience. He’d leave actual fighting to others, or kill off enemies before they detected him. He could also always just stay hidden.

After the purchase the sneak skill appeared on his character sheet, but Alan didn't feel any different. It had a rank of G. The rank was basically a power level rating, or at least that was how Alan was interpreting it. Skilled had an unknown rank.

The Administrator brought another in-game menu up in front of him.

Another way to increase your abilities, apart from spending ability points, is by installing implants. There are two categories of implants: biological and mechanical. Biological implants, as their name imply, change you biologically, such as giving you the strength of a Predecessor by infusing your DNA with theirs. Mechanical implants instead make the use of technology to improve your abilities, for instance increasing your strength by enhancing your muscles with metal.

Please note that along with the benefits provided, most implants also have drawbacks. The Predecessor DNA may increase your strength, but it also might leave you vulnerable to Predecessor diseases you would otherwise avoid. Mechanical muscles may be affected by EMP shockwaves or need to be tuned on a regular basis.

As a human, you are limited to one biological and one mechanical implant plus another of each for every power of 10 levels you have. At level 1, you may have one of each, at level 10, you may have two of each, and so forth. For a significant cost, you may have implants added and removed. Please review your implants now.

Alan looked at the menu. It displayed a blue outline of a human body, along with two implants that had apparently been implanted already. The first implant was labeled mechanical with a rank of C, named Computer-Human Enhanced Interface, which according to the tooltip enhanced the ability to communicate with AI, explaining how he was talking to Eve. When selected, the brain of the blue outline was highlighted.

The second was biological, a General Status Enhancer, giving all of his attributes +20, explaining why he felt stronger, faster and smarter in the Game. It seemed to encompass his entire body.