Aptitudes

Aptitudes are the natural ability to perform, utilize, and further progress a certain skill. Aptitudes grant quicker growth rates and larger potential.

### **Acrobatics**

Acrobatics is coordination of the body and awareness of one’s physical abilities and limitations. It is tumbling, running, jumping, balancing, and most important of all, reacting. The way a body meets an obstacle—be it an opponent in combat, a fall from an inopportune height, or the eyes of an expectant crowd—is defined by the extent of their training. Acrobats are flexible, patient, and strong... at least, their bodies are.

There are three main types of acrobats: performers, combatants, and freerunners. An acrobat can encompass any or all of these types.

* *Performers*: Gymnastics, funambulism, contortion, and many other feats require deliberate training in acrobatics specifically, while arts like acting and dancing may use it secondarily.
* *Combatants*: Whether in hand-to-hand or armed combat, acrobatics can help a person evade, confuse, or simply add their own unique style to any fight.
* *Freerunners*: Using the landscape to get from A to B is not only a sport for creative athletics, but an important tool for messengers, thieves, and other stealth artists.

### **Acting**

The skill of taking on the persona of a character and portraying it as if it were their own, usually for entertainment purposes.

### **Agriculture**

The skill of learning to grow, manage, and harvest crops.

### **Animal Husbandry**

The skill of raising, breeding, training, caring for, and healing animals.

### **Anthropology**

Anthropology is the study of sentient races. It is a broad scientific discipline encompassing physical traits, culture, language, customs, art of various races and beings, and their evolution in time. Archaeology is a related science, and often those proficient in one skill will also have some training in the other.

By default, people only know about the culture they were raised in, and others that may be prevalent in the area. Since Mizahar is a melting pot of different races and cultures, often dramatically diverse, Anthropology is a very useful skill for those who plan on visiting many distant lands or blend with other races. While staying in a foreign location may result in lore being gained, one trained in Anthropology will have a significant advantage in interpreting reactions and understanding and lifestyle of other cultures. Also, an Anthropologist will adapt to new cultures and learn new languages much faster than one without this skill.

### **Archaeology**

The systematic study of past human life and culture by the recovery and examination of remaining material evidence, such as graves, buildings, tools, and pottery.

### **Architecture**

The art and science of designing and building structures.

### **Armorer**

The skill of being able to manufacture armor and related equipment.

### **Astrology**

The study of the more mysterious elements of the significance of heavenly bodies and the divinities associated with them. It can include elements of fortune-telling. More frequently, it is discerning patterns in the night sky that connect to personal influences or notable events in the world.

### **Blacksmithing**

The art and science of creating objects from iron or steel by forging the metal; i.e., by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut. Blacksmiths produce things like iron gates, grills, railings, furniture, sculpture, tools and implements, decorative and religious items, cooking utensils and horseshoes.

### **Body Building**

The art of bulking up one's body by training one's muscles to tone, enlarge and strengthen the overall form. Body building involves the use of weights as a type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight of various objects (often specially constructed ones) to oppose the force generated by muscles. The basic principles of body building involve a manipulation of the number of repetitions (reps), sets, tempo, exercise types, and weight moved to cause desired increases in strength, endurance, size, and shape. The specific combinations of reps, sets, exercises, and weights depends on the aims of the individual performing the exercise; sets with fewer reps can be performed with heavier weights.

Training one's body strength and shape requires the use of 'good form', performing the movements with the appropriate muscle group, and not transferring the weight to different body parts in order to move greater weight (called 'cheating'). Failure to use good form during a training set can result in injury or failure to adequately work the muscle; because the desired muscle group is not challenged sufficiently, the muscle does not gain in strength.

### **Brawling**

Brawling is the term given to the type of fighting anyone can learn but few truly excel at. It is most commonly used in reference to fighting drunk in a bar. Brawling involves punching, kicking and using pretty much anything one can get their hands on as a weapon. It is considered a type of combat although it is not exactly a formal style which one spends years learning the ins and outs of. Those who do expand their skill at brawling find that it can be as formidable as other combat styles and just as deadly. While a novice brawler learns enough to get themselves in trouble and limit to some extent harm to themselves by others, those of greater competence are truly dangerous to all of those on the receiving end of their skill. It is not solely a weapon skill or form of unarmed combat but a mix of both.

### **Cartography**

The design and construction of maps and charts, and can be used to refer to deciphering maps as well.

### **Carving**

The creation of a decorative object by removing material (such as wood, ivory, stone, and so forth) in order to achieve a desired shape.

### **Cooking**

The process of preparing food by applying some form of heat to a variety of different ingredients, in order to create something edible.