With over a million views, and bookmark and comment counts several times higher than other similar threads, the title was straightforward and practical, without any unnecessary fluff.
Bai Ci clicked on it with satisfaction and began to read.
【General Discussion Area】 - 【Information Exchange】
【Guide】 Regarding Spirit: A Few Common Misconceptions You Need to Watch Out For (A Must-Read for Newbies)
ID: To Hell with Work
【Some basic common sense about Spirit that newbies must know.
Veterans can also take a look to better plan their attribute allocation. After all, respec items in Anomalous Infection are ridiculously expensive. Every little bit of guidance helps you avoid taking the long way around.】
【Floor 2 OP】: Let's do a general science breakdown here. The Spirit attribute in Anomalous Infection is actually bound to two different core mechanics: Sanity and the casting energy bar.
The two share the same value, restricting and influencing each other. It is the easiest to overlook, and of the three main attributes, it is the easiest one to make you fail an instance.
【Floor 3 OP】: First, Sanity.
This determines the player's resistance to anomalies and their mental stability. When facing mental pollution and interference-type attacks like illusions or eerie whispers, the higher this value, the less likely you are to be disturbed or beguiled.
In other words, the less likely you are to lose control.
【Floor 4 OP】: Second, the casting energy bar. You can think of this as your mana bar.
Certain classes' exploration skills or spellcasting methods are activated and sustained by consuming Spirit. It's similar to how using spells in a video game consumes your mana bar.
【Floor 5 OP】: One final note.
As long as you leave the scenario where you used it, all temporary Spirit depletion will slowly recover. There's no need to be overly anxious about a single expenditure.
Even some negative effects caused by overdrawing your Spirit—such as deep mental weakness, hallucinations, or auditory illusions—can be cleared through deep rest after you leave the instance and return to your personal space.
In most cases, you will be completely healed by the time your next instance starts.
However, please note that if the negative situation has already turned into a negative debuff, such as mental trauma, it will be very difficult to clear automatically.
As the saying goes, the hardest disease to cure is a disease of the heart. You can only rely on special items or long-term recuperation to alleviate it.
...
【Floor 24 OP】: Thanks for everyone's support and presence. Let me share a few more things.
Because of how the stats are divided in Anomalous Infection, even though the Spirit attribute corresponds to two different aspects, they are represented by the exact same value.
In other words, these two aspects will affect each other. There is no separation or protection between them.
This creates an easily overlooked but highly fatal problem.
When you treat your Spirit purely as a mana bar to cast spells and activate skills, every single point you consume will simultaneously lower your Sanity threshold.
As you consume it, you will experience symptoms like headaches or mental trance. When your mana bar is about to run dry, you will even feel a pain so intense it feels like your head is about to explode.
Things like auditory hallucinations and emotional instability are just minor side effects.
【Floor 26 OP】: Therefore, I really don't recommend that newbies choose spellcasting classes. Even some exploration-type classes need to be chosen with great caution.
Relying on that tiny bit of starting Spirit, not only will the class's performance ceiling be low—making it impossible to get a good Evaluation Grade—but your body and mind will also suffer. It is purely asking for trouble.
【Floor 27 0101001】: OP, you say that, but when newbies enter Anomalous Infection, they don't get to choose their starting class at all, okay?
Unless their first instance is a multiplayer one, and they happen to meet an experienced and helpful veteran player who can guide them.
Otherwise, by the time they see this advice of yours, their starting class is already locked in. How could they possibly have a chance to choose again?
【Floor 28 OP's reply】: You brat, when I posted this for proofreading yesterday, you kept your mouth shut, and now you're leaving comments to pull the rug out from under me?
Just you wait, I'm coming over right now to kick your door down and beat you to death.
...
【Floor 44 Aurora】: OP, I'd like to ask a question.
Since consuming mana lowers Sanity, does that mean Sanity fluctuations—like being frightened or disturbed by illusions—will conversely drain your mana, thereby affecting your ability to use skills?
【Floor 45 OP's reply】: Yes, it will.
You can understand it as: using spells in Anomalous Infection actually consumes Sanity. The Sanity bar is the mana bar.
【Floor 46 Bones】: Got it. Spellcasters are always rational, noble, and elegant. Madmen are not worthy of being spellcasters.
【Floor 47 OP's reply】: Uh... there's nothing wrong with understanding it that way. Logically, it makes sense.
But the way you expressed it... is so dramatic.
【Floor 48 Won't Run Home on a Rainy Day】: I get it now. In my last instance, I was so terrified by a vengeful spirit that I couldn't cast any skills. I kept thinking it was a bug, but it turns out my mana bar was just scared away.
【Floor 49 Yiyiyaya】: The username and comment of the person upstairs match way too well.
I mean, this is an unlimited flow game. Even if it's not the terrifying kind from novels and leans more toward the milder, tabletop roleplaying style, it's still an unlimited flow game.
It's not some video game. How could there possibly be a bug?
【Floor 50 High Mountains and Flowing Water Meet a Soulmate】: Doesn't anyone get it? Those instances are real, existing worlds. We've all been deceived by the system.
We must unite. Add me, join our Redemption Society, and let's fight the system together.
【Floor 51 OP's reply】: Scum from the scam society, beat it! Get the hell out of my thread!
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【Floor 72 Cute Little Ghost】: OP, OP! Do you only get a headache after the mana bar hits zero? Does that mean as long as we keep an eye on our mana bar and don't let it hit zero, we won't experience any of these effects?
【Floor 73 OP's reply】: No, it happens when your Sanity drops to a certain threshold.
We organized a group of people to test this, but because the system panel's values aren't very detailed, and everyone's physical adaptability and sensitivity vary, we couldn't get exact numbers.
Our final estimate is that once your Spirit drops to around twenty percent, it will trigger negative physical sensations.
For example, persistent headaches, blurred vision, loss of focus, and irritability. Under these conditions, you can easily be influenced by the instance's anomalous aura and make impulsive decisions.
【Floor 74 OP's reply】: Continuing from the previous post.
Once your Spirit hits zero, the pain only gets worse.
Common symptoms include, but are not limited to, severe neuropathic pain, high-frequency auditory hallucinations, and total loss of emotional control. At best, you'll wander aimlessly, lose all focus, and be unable to do anything. At worst, you'll drop dead on the spot.
Don't expect things to be like in those novels or anime where you can overload your spells and make a clutch play when your mana bar hits zero.
In Anomalous Infection, once it hits zero, you can't use any skills at all. The skills will be completely grayed out, and you won't be allowed to use them.
Rate on N.U.
