Nimble Skill

Nimble

Class	Skills
Type	Skill
Skill Group	Physical
Max Level	10
Total XP	32,775
Best Occupation	Burglar (+2)

The Nimble Skill governs how quickly a character moves in the combat stance. It also lowers the noise of footsteps. It belongs to the Physical group.

Fighting a group often means backing away while swinging. At low skill, the combat stance is slow, so a fighter must drop it to escape and then come back. A nimble character can keep fighting while retreating at a safe pace. That matters most with short blades and short blunt weapons, which have the shortest reach. The footstep noise reduction applies to every kind of movement and stacks with Lightfooted. The Burglar starts with the most Nimble skill. The Police Officer starts with a smaller head start, and the Gymnast trait adds one level.

How to Level Nimble

Nimble experience comes from moving in the combat stance. While aiming and walking, experience arrives at random intervals.

Walking around in the combat stance anywhere trains the skill, with or without zombies nearby. The character must actually change position, and only movement on foot counts.

A safe yard or an empty street is enough for a training session. Walking laps in the combat stance builds the skill steadily.

The Fast Learner trait raises the experience rate to 130 percent. The Slow Learner trait lowers it to 70 percent.

The character's position has to change on the map for the experience to arrive. Walking steadily across open ground is what counts, rather than pushing against a wall or standing in place.

Training fits easily into normal play. Holding the combat stance while crossing a cleared yard or a quiet street adds experience on the way. A character who always walks into a house in the combat stance trains the skill during every loot run. The stance also keeps a weapon ready for any surprise.

Real fights train the skill too. Every step taken while backing away from a zombie in the combat stance counts as movement. Fighting while retreating is both the purpose of the skill and a way to raise it.

The XP each Nimble level asks for, with the running total from level 0.

Level	XP Needed	Total XP
1	75	75
2	150	225
3	300	525
4	750	1,275
5	1,500	2,775
6	3,000	5,775
7	4,500	10,275
8	6,000	16,275
9	7,500	23,775
10	9,000	32,775

Nimble Level Effects

Each level raises walking speed in the combat stance. A higher level lets a fighter back away from a crowd while still swinging. With enough skill, a character can fight a group continuously while retreating safely.

Footsteps also grow quieter with each level. The reduction applies when walking, running and sneaking, not only in the combat stance.

The noise reduction stacks with Lightfooted. It is most noticeable when sprinting behind zombies.

The speed gain changes how melee fights play out. A slow combat walk forces a fighter to drop the stance, run a few steps and then turn to fight again. Each of those breaks gives zombies a chance to close in. A fast combat walk lets the fighter keep swinging while stepping back. That steady retreat keeps a crowd in a line rather than a ring.

Short weapons gain the most. Knives and hammers need the fighter to stand close. Nimble lets that fighter step in, strike and step out again without losing the stance.

Nimble Starting Levels

The Burglar begins with two levels of Nimble. The Police Officer begins with one level. The Gymnast trait adds one level at character creation.

A head start makes early fights with short weapons much safer. A retreating fighter keeps more distance from grabbing hands.

The Burglar pairs Nimble with Lightfooted and Sneaking, the full set of quiet movement skills. The Gymnast trait adds a level to both Nimble and Lightfooted. The Police Officer head start suits a character who fights with a firearm and needs to reposition while aiming.

These occupations and traits start a character with levels in Nimble.