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Which proficiency should you level?
There are 31, they fall into 8 groups, and the group decides what you get.
Read from the Soulmask dedicated‑server package,
build 25117130 ·
extracted 2026-09-05
Levelling a proficiency does not give you a generic bonus. It gives you a fixed set of benefits determined entirely by which family the proficiency is in — and there are only eight distinct families across all 31 proficiencies.
| How many | Proficiencies | What levelling gives you |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Spinning, Construction, Alchemy, Woodworking, Cooking, Stonecutting, Smelting, Tanning, Grinding, Pottery | Yield, Speed, Material cost reduction |
| 8 | Whip, Hammer, Greatsword, Blade, Bow, Spear, Gauntlets, Dual Blades | Attack speed, Damage, Damage increase, Poise damage increase, Stamina cost reduction, Stamina damage increase |
| 4 | Mining, Harvesting, Logging, Slaughtering | Yield, Speed, Stamina cost, Tool durability |
| 3 | Armoursmithing, Weaponsmithing, Jewelcrafting | Maximum durability, Yield, Quality increase, Speed, Material cost reduction |
| 1 | Butchering | Yield, Speed |
| 1 | Furniture-making | Yield, Quality increase, Speed, Material cost reduction |
| 1 | Animal husbandry | Dung output, Egg output, Stamina cost, Wool / feather output |
| 1 | Farming | Speed |
What that means when you are choosing
- Combat proficiencies are interchangeable in structure. All eight give the same six benefits. Choosing between Blade and Spear is a question of the weapon, not of what levelling rewards you with.
- Only three proficiencies raise item quality — Armoursmithing, Weaponsmithing and Jewelcrafting — plus Furniture‑making. If you want better gear rather than more gear, those are the four.
- Gathering pays in tool durability. The four gathering skills are the only ones that reduce tool wear, which matters more than yield once you are running stations.
- Animal husbandry is its own thing entirely. Its benefits are dung, eggs and wool output — no speed, no quality. It is a production skill, not a care skill.
- Shield is the odd one. It is the ninth combat mastery but its two benefits are damage reduction, not damage. That is why it does not share the combat shape.