When they are generated characters are assumed to have learned all starting languages to full score. If language or general skill slots are left spare the character must learn the language as they progress, in exactly the same way as if a new slot were devoted to a language skill. Characters who spend one slot on a language can never have a proficiency greater than their intelligence. Every additional slot spent allows the character to improve their proficiency by up to 3 points. I.e. a character with INT 11 who spent,1 slot would have a maximum Language SR of 11, if they spent 2 slots on a language the SR could improve to 14, 3 slots would allow 17 etc., to a maximum skill SR of 19.

Characters have the following language abilities according to their skill roll:

There are a number of factors that affect the speed of language learning.

For example circumstances can have an effect:- Characters who are always with their teacher will learn faster that those who take lessons. The more chance there is to practice, the faster the character will learn. The following describes the most likely circumstances:

It also becomes more difficult to improve language skill as learning progresses. For example, it is easier to learn a few words than to develop simple phrases and good grammar is even more difficult to learn. It is still more difficult to develop a good accent and more difficult still to speak with a truly native accent.

The following table shows how quickly a language may be learned, in various circumstances:

Some languages are related and characters with a good understanding of one language will probably be able to make themselves understood in a related language. Elvish Ancient Elvish and Sidhe are related. Characters may use 1/3 of a language SR to understand a related language, ie a character who speaks Elvish with an SR of 12 could communicate in Ancient Elvish or Sidhe with an SR of 4.

Characters with Read and Write skills in a language may attempt read (but not write) in a similar language at 1/3 SR, assuming that both languages use the same alphabet.

Characters with Read/Write skills in a given language may attempt to communicate verbally in the same language at 1/3 SR. Characters able to speak a language may never read or write that language.

Characters who speak a given language and read and write a similar language, using a similar alphabet, may read the given language at ½ SR but may only Write it at 1/3 SR.

EG Bertam has intelligence 14, speaks Ancient Elvish (SR14), read/writes Ancient Elvish (SR 15) and speaks Sidhe with an SR of 14. With some thought and concentration Bertram could read a document written in Sidhe with an SR of 7, and could communicate verbally in Elvish with an SR of 4, but could never read Elvish as the alphabet is significantly different.

All of these abilities can be used cumulatively, so Sean who reads Ogma with an SR of 11, would be able to communicate verbally in Sidhe with an SR of 3 (11/3=3). Sean is considered to have a language Skill of 3 in spoken Sidhe and can understand either Elvish or Ancient Elvish with an SR of 1 (3/3=1) as they are related languages.

The tattoo of tongues is a magical pattern tattooed on the head of the recipient using carefully prepared magic inks. The tattoo must be inscribed by a cleric of at least 7^th level using a gold pin, worth at least 100 gp and the special ink, and is about 2" square. The recipients must have an area of their head shaved to facilitate the tattooing, but the hair will probably grow back normally.

Once the tattoo has been inscribed to recipient will be able to learn more languages than an equivalent character with out the tattoo. The recipient gains as many extra language slots AGAIN as she did from her initial bonus for high intelligence. Languages learned into these skill slots are never spoken as well as languages leaned into non magical skill slots, and a tattoo learned language may never have a SR of more than ½ of the characters intelligence. Tattoo learned languages also take twice as long to learn as languages in normal skill slots.

Sean has INT 10 an is bestowed with a Tattoo of Tongues. He is now able to learn 2 extra languages and he decides to fill on of the slots with Midani as he is travelling with Alf, a fluent Midani speaker. Alf and Sean are travelling in a land where Midani is rarely spoken but Alf agrees to tell Sean the names of things as they walk along and give him some more formal tuition in the evenings. This amounts to Medium Exposure teaching and Sean would normally start to learn at a rate of 1 language point per week. Because Sean is leaning Midani courtesy of the Tattoo of tongues it will take twice as long to learn and Sean will only add 1 point onto his SR every 2 weeks. To make it worse Sean will only ever be able to achieve an SR of 5 in Midani (His normal SR for a language is 10 but this is halved because of the Tattoo). After 10 weeks Sean will have reached his limit in learning Midani and will have an SR of 5. In other words Sean will never be much of a linguist but will be able to get along in the Land of Fate.

He will be able to buy food and rent a room at the caravanserai, he will probably be able to agree the terms for the hire of a camel or purchase a passage back home, but only if he has a sympathetic listener who will put up with his awful accent and disjointed speech. He will never be able to hold a normal conversation, will not be able to declare his undying love for the belly dancer nor able to defend him self in court or even understand much of the court proceedings.