Neatness ability is not increasing maximum mana

[falchur]

I have 2 levels in the Neatness ability and have destroyed a lot of items and all I got are crystals, nevertheless, the ability description indicates that the first level of ability should also increase the maximum mana by +2 and the second level of ability should increase the maximum mana by +4 upon successful destruction of a magical item. I am a mage and one of the main reasons I wanted this ability is to increase my maximum damage to blast my enemies to ashes, and now I am really dissapointed. I wonder if the problem is a bug in the program.

[Sir Whiskers]

I have 2 levels in the Neatness ability and have destroyed a lot of items and all I got are crystals, nevertheless, the ability description indicates that the first level of ability should also increase the maximum mana by +2 and the second level of ability should increase the maximum mana by +4 upon successful destruction of a magical item. I am a mage and one of the main reasons I wanted this ability is to increase my maximum damage to blast my enemies to ashes, and now I am really dissapointed. I wonder if the problem is a bug in the program.

The Neatness skill does two things:
-Each time you take a level in the skill, you gain the mana boost. It's one time per skill level, not per item destroyed.
-Each time you destroy an item, you gain crystals or runes. The number of crystals goes up based on the item's level. You only gain runes for level 4 and 5 items, and even then, about half the time you get crystals instead.

The main advantage of this skill is the accrual of extra crystals and runes. In effect, you can convert gold to crystals and runes (by buying items, then destroying them). The Mana boost is a minor bonus.

[falchur]

Thank you very much Sir Whiskers. I wonder, besides the increase in mana and being allowed to destroy items of greater level, Is there any advantage in terms of crystals or magic runes obtained from increasing levels in this ability? (That is, if for example, destroying a level 4 item with Neatness level 2 or 3 makes a difference in terms of the crystals or runes obtained.)

[Sir Whiskers]

Thank you very much Sir Whiskers. I wonder, besides the increase in mana and being allowed to destroy items of greater level, Is there any advantage in terms of crystals or magic runes obtained from increasing levels in this ability? (That is, if for example, destroying a level 4 item with Neatness level 2 or 3 makes a difference in terms of the crystals or runes obtained.)

The amount of crystals derived from an item is fixed by item level. If you do not have the Neatness skill at all, all items destroyed generate only 1 crystal

With Neatness skill:

Level 1 item = 3 crystals
Level 2 item = 4 crystals
Level 3 item = 5 crystals
Level 4 item = 6 crystals (or 1-2 runes)
Level 5 item = 7 crystals (or 1-3 runes)

You have to have higher levels of the skill to use the skill on higher level items:

Neatness 1 = Destroy items of level 1-3
Neatness 2 = Destroy items of level 1-4
Neatness 3 = Destroy items of level 1-5

As only items of level 4 and 5 have the possibility of generating runes, the higher levels in this skill can be very nice, depending on how many such items you find and destroy. Still, by the end of the game, I'm not certain there's a net gain in runes from increasing the ability.

The first level of the skill is a no-brainer to me, as it noticeably boosts your stash of crystals. The other two levels can be useful, but as with everything else, you have to weigh the advantages against the cost in runes that could be used for another skill.

[falchur]

Thanks!! (Very complete and useful answer.)