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[Guide] Human Melee - Skill Builds, Equipments, and Enchants.




[SIZE="4"]1. Introduction[/SIZE]

Mabinogi considers of 3 different races - Human, Elf, and Giant. Unlike a typical MMORPG which puts your character into a certain class, you have immense freedom to grow your character into whatever you enjoy the most.

Purpose of this guide to provide some ideas and suggestions for all player groups ranging from beginners to high level players.
I have personally started out my character as a full-melee, and now I becoming more of an archery oriented player, so I can assure you that this guide will provide a lot of helpful insights for new players as well as intermediate level (Total Level 300~700) players.



[SIZE="4"]2. Why Human Melee?[/SIZE]

Human is the most balanced race out of the three. Towards the end-game (Total level 4000+) I will even go out of my way to say that Human's quality in all aspects surpasses all other races. Perhaps not in terms of stats, but Human-specific skills and characteristics (such as Final Hit, Arrow Revolver, Less AP spent for certain skills, and so on).
Melee-oriented players are the most common in the world of Mabinogi, even after the release of the Alchemy skills.



Even with just Melee combat skills, you can clear out almost every currently existing dungeon and Shadow Mission. People who say that Human Melee is weak or boring can be generalized into one of the following:



Human Melee as of G9:Alchemist is still shining and standing strong.



[SIZE="4"]3. Skill Builds[/SIZE]

Despite the fact that Mabinogi offers players freedom to rank whichever skills they want, there are builds that will guarantee and optimize your character's growth efficiently.

Each Rebirth, you should be able to get at least 50~60 AP. The more you grow, you will see that AP gain becomes easier and faster. By the end of the following skill build, you will be raking in at least 80 AP per rebirth.

I also recommend you start character at age 17, as earlier on, you need as much base stats as you can get to ease through the beginner hunting quests and dungeoning.
If you have completed all the beginner quests, you will have 10 AP as well as 7 AP from creating your character at age 17.


[SIZE="3"]Starting out - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 40 [Total 69 AP][/SIZE]

  1. Windmill Rank 8 - 41 AP
  2. Critical Hit Rank 9 - 27 AP
  3. Combat Mastery Rank E - 1 AP


    [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #1 - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 80 [Total 55 AP][/SIZE]

    1. Windmill Rank 5 - 40 AP
    2. Critical Hit Rank 7 - 15 AP


      [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #2 - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 120 [Total 55 AP][/SIZE]

      1. Windmill Rank 3 = 44 AP
      2. Critical Hit Rank 6 = 10 AP


        [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #3 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 170 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

        1. Windmill Rank 1 = 54 AP
        2. Critical hit Rank 5 = 15 AP


          [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #4 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 220 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

          1. Critical Hit Rank 3 = 30 AP
          2. Combat Mastery Rank 9 = 34 AP


            [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #5 - Level 50+ / Exploration Level 15+ - Total Level 270 [Total 65 AP+][/SIZE]

            1. Critical Hit Rank 1 = 38 AP
            2. Smash Rank 9 = 31 AP


              [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #6 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 320 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

              1. Refining Rank 1 - 53 AP
              2. Production Mastery Rank B - 7 AP
              3. Final Hit Rank F - 5 AP


                [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #7 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 370 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

                1. Combat Mastery Rank 5 - 62 AP


                  [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #8 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 420 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

                  1. Combat Mastery Rank 3 - 46 AP
                  2. Smash Rank 7 - 18 AP


                    [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #9 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 470 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

                    1. Combat Mastery Rank 1 - 56 AP
                    2. Production Mastery Rank 9 - 7 AP


                      [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #10 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 520 [Total 65 AP] [/SIZE]

                      1. Smash Rank 4 - 54 AP
                      2. Production Mastery Rank 7 - 10 AP


                        [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #11 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 570 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

                        1. Smash Rank 2 - 50 AP
                        2. Production Mastery Rank 4 - 19 AP


                          [SIZE="3"]Rebirth #12 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 620 [Total 65 AP][/SIZE]

                          1. Smash Rank 1 - 30 AP
                          2. Production Mastery Rank 1 - 24 AP



                            From here on then you rank Final Hit to 1 as you rank up other necessary skills (Animal Taming, Charge, Basic Bolts, Weaving, and so on).


                            • Final Hit Rank 1 - 409 AP



                            Afterwards, you want to rank up the following for Dexteriy (in no order). Aim for 200~ Base Dex.

                            • Ranged Attack
                            • Arrow Revolver
                            • Magnum Shot
                            • Weaving
                            • Cooking
                            • First Aid
                            • Metalurgy
                            • Counterattack




                            [SIZE="4"]4. Equipments and Enchants[/SIZE]

                            [SIZE="3"]Early Damage Set:[/SIZE]


                            ** If you are just starting out, you don't need any armors yet. You want to focus on killing things without getting hit rather than exchanging blows. Below is designated towards the early/mid-game (total level 100~300)**



                            Weapons:

                            Dual wield Gladius x 2 and go for max damage modification.

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Fox/Corundum/Diamond/Wolf Hunter's
                            • Suffix: Energetic/Raven


                            Armors:

                            Light Melka
                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Fox/Corundum/Diamond/Victorious
                            • Suffix: Imp



                            Gloves:

                            Victorious Bracelet
                            Any

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Fox/Corundum/Diamond/Victorious(Bracelet/Event Items Only)
                            • Suffix: Giant, Burst Knight


                            Shoes:

                            Raven Boots (8/4 being the highest, but not a necessity).
                            Any

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Fox/Corundum/Diamond
                            • Suffix: Giant, Burst Knight


                            Helm:

                            Wolf Hunter's Tail Cap
                            Stiff Tail Cap

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Suffix: Giant, Thief



                            Accessories*:

                            *If you are wearing a heavy armor, you cannot wear any accessories.*

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Fox/Corundum
                            • Suffix: Giant


                            [SIZE="3"]Late Damage Set: (Total level 600+ and 200+ Dexterity)[/SIZE]

                            Weapons:

                            Dual wield Broadsword x 2 and go for 222 modification.

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Diamond/Wolf Hunter's/Lion Hunter's/Goddess
                            • Suffix: Spike


                            Armors:

                            Light Armor (Lorica)
                            Heavy Armor (Valencia/Dustin/Platemail)

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            Light Armor -

                            • Prefix: Ancient/Victorious/Corundum
                            • Suffix: Darkness


                            Heavy Armor -

                            • Prefix: Basic
                            • Suffix: Avenger/Oak Tree



                            Gloves:


                            • Wooden Needle Elegant Wood Plate Cannon
                            • Wooden Needle Peaceful Wood Plate Cannon


                            Shoes:

                            Raven Boots (8/4 being the highest, but not a necessity).
                            Any

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Diamond
                            • Suffix: Elegant


                            Helm:

                            Wolf Hunter's Tail Cap
                            Stiff Tail Cap
                            Metal Helm

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Diamond/Corundum
                            • Suffix: Burst Knight



                            Accessories*:

                            *If you are wearing a heavy armor, you cannot wear any accessories.*

                            Recommended Enchants:

                            • Prefix: Corundum
                            • Suffix: Earthquake





                            [SIZE="4"]5. FAQ[/SIZE]

                            Which transformation suits the best for warriors?

                            A) Paladin is the best for early warriors as its stat bonus is consistent. Later on, once you reach end-game (total 2k+) you should consider turning into a Dark Knight to use your Human to full potential.

                            How am I supposed to level with just Windmill early on?

                            A) Rundal Normal, Ciar Basic/Intermediate, Rabbie Normal are your best bets. As long as you understand how the Monster AI works (you can either do your own research or learn from experience), you will have no trouble clearing the mentioned dungeons. Can't fight the boss? go with a party. Can't find a party? Just stop at the boss room and redo.

                            How do I make money?

                            A) Running dungeons is the best way to make money. Pick up everything you see and keep your eyes open for party ads, and see if anybody needs anything you have.


                            • Holy Water Part Time Job is also a very good way to make money early on.
                            • Rank up Metallurgy and sell the ores and gems to players.
                            • Collect, create, and sell raw materials such as Thin Thread Balls, Thick Thread Balls, Herbs, and so on.


                            Why are Defense and Counterattack not even mentioned?

                            A) Early rank Defense and Counterattack is pitiful and waste of AP. Focus on your damage if you want to grow quickly and effectively.

                            Resorting to Ice-counter or n+1 -> def -> n+1 is a very poor tactic for warriors. Learn how to use and time your Windmill correctly, and you won't even need Counterattack or Defense on your hotkey bar.

                            I will say this again:

                            Do not touch Defense and Counterattack till you have enough damage. (I left my Defense and Counterattack at Rank F till I hit total level 1000, and I never used Defense and Counterattack, not even once unless I was dueling or for very few bosses that require Firebolt+Counterattack to defeat).


                            It's too hard for me to get 200+ Dex, any alternatives for a pure melee warrior?

                            A) If you don't have enough time to get 200+ Dex or if you are simply too lazy to rank life skills, you are stuck with Gladius forever.

                            Gladius is inferior to Broadswords for one reason - Critical Rate. You will never see a Critical Smash with a Gladius in higher dungeons, whereas Broadswords make it just look so easy.


                            %More FAQ will be added, see below%


                            [SIZE="4"]6. Comments and Suggestions[/SIZE]

                            You may find this guide not very helpful if you like playing "safe" and using Defense and Counterattack a lot.

                            I guarantee that once you taste the power of high-damage, you will never even look at your defense.



                            If you have somewhat followed this guide, and finished all the way up to Rank 1 Final Hit (Around 800 Total Level), you will see that you will be doing twice or sometimes 4 times as much damage as someone your level who just ranked whatever they wanted.

                            After hitting the peak point, you can start ranking whatever you wish.


                            • Run dungeons to make money.
                            • Use your high damage to farm expensive things.
                            • Save up money for -CP gears and start ranking Magic.
                            • Rank up Alchemy.


                            Melee Human in my opinion starts out slow (still relatively fast) but towards the end, has the fastest growth - meaning fastest AP gain out of all "classes".

                            I have been raking up over 100 AP per rebirth ever since I hit total level 1000, and I know a lot of other people who have followed this path and have been growing very rapidly.

                            I hope this guide at least gave you some general ideas or directions for new players to decide if they should play melee or not.

                            Combined with dual-wielding, human melee damage can be quite epic. You will have no regrets when you see that 7k non-elemental Critical Smash.

                            Goodluck.
  • Jahrakal wrote on 2010-05-11 02:19
    Questions that have been answered from Official Nexon Forum:

    Well, a friend recommended me to use a broadsword and dagger duel wield for the balance and I think crit rates; what would you say? Still go with the duel broads or could I continue with the duel braod/dagger until otherwise seen as unreliable? Still a bit new about melee, as I started out with an elf, but I'm trying to move into my human more often for melee as well as convert my elf to a more melee'd version.

    A) If you are a melee-oriented player, more than 90% of the time, you will be relying on Windmill.

    You do not need super high Critical Rate that dagger provides if that's the case. As you may be well aware, Windmill ignores the enemy's protection when calculating Critical chance, and therefore you only need to set your Critical Rate to 30%.

    Another flaw with using Daggers with Windmill is the stun and knock-down recovery time of the monster after you execute Windmill. You want to use a Slow Hitting weapons (such as Gladius, Broadsword, and so on), in order to have enough time to load and launch another Windmill before the monsters get to you.

    There are of course exceptions for some monsters such as Black Ship Rat and Gorgon, who have very fast recovery time, but those are not in dungeons you would be spamming regularly to level.

    Now, let's take a look at Smash.

    Despite the fact that daggers provide high Critical Rate, their damage is very low compared to, say, 222 Broadswords. What you want to focus on is to set your Critical Rate with the rest of your gears (using Stiff Tail Cap, Thief enchants, Lizard enchants on weapons, and etc).

    Smash will not be used as often if you want to rush through dungeons and level effectively even though it provides very high damage output.

    All in all, daggers are only useful and recommended to be used only for Final Hit.

    If you have low Balance, then it is suggested use dual Gladius till you get 200~ Dexterity (which is the point you swap to Broadswords).

    Wait... why lv 15 Exploration? Why not 25?

    A)The stated levels are for newbies who are just starting out. Feel free to go further.

    mhmm... if you don't even touch defense or counter, care to tell us exactly how you proceed with pure wm, smash, and magiks?

    and, no. i personally hate these kind of people.

    my friend is exactly this type of person, and he dies 20 times more in one room than he has to.


    A) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJ8r7agBOr8
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmdMuoH1jnw
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_V26BxXD_g

    Watch and learn. Your friend is simply incompetent. If you hate those kind of people, that's your problem.

    This guide says that you shouldn't rank Defense, and nowhere in this guide does it mention anything about shields. Okay, you can deal plenty of damage, but you'll be taking a ****load of damage as well.


    If you are a melee human, you are going to be dual-wielding. Want to play with shield? Play a Giant.

    Like I said, don't get hit. Watch the above video. Do your research before you start whining about something you have absolutely no clue about.

    Once again, this is the fastest way to grow your human. If you like playing safe, you won't get very far in short amount of time.


    Can you grind near your average level off a pair of 230 gladius's with perhaps a couple enchants to boost your crit to 30%?

    Reason I ask is because I'm not really wanting to dwell into range or life skills, so 222 broads are out of the question for me, though, I know that I can fix the problem of no crit with just those enchants.

    I'm aware that this can't compete with said broadswords, but I ask if the substitution can be good enough for the task.

    A) A pair of 230 Gladius will still grant you high damage, but you will and only will be Windmilling through dungeons. This is where Avenger comes in handy. Since you will be spamming Windmill, and you will most likely stay in Deadly (and pot-poisoned), Avenger is a great choice for Windmilling human.

    Yes you can still get around +_80 levels per week, just doing Ciar Advanced (Jean is a good example). After all, Windmill is the fastest and most efficient skill to use.

    There is not a huge difference between Broadswords and Gladius in terms of damage, but using Broadswords will make things easier in situations like Smashmilling in a boss room and such.

    TL;DR - Stick with Gladius if you choose not to touch Dex at all. You will still get to level 80~ a week if you do 3~4 hours of back-to-back Ciar Advanced every day (Shadow Mission wise, you want to do Battle for Taillteann 2 Adv., as this is where Windmillers trully shine).

    This really seems like a guide aimed towards people who actually know what they're doing to begin with, which most new people don't. If I were to direct a newbie to this guide, they'd have a few major questions namely being "Where in Kentucky Fried Chicken am I supposed to go to get 40 levels in three weeks?"

    A)The title clearly states - "Skill Builds, Equipments, and Enchants"

    Where or how you level is entirely up to the player. Level 40 a week is not impossible even from day 0, You could obtain level 30+ simply by doing the beginner quests along with Ciar Beginner dungeon.

    You say Rundal Normal, Ciar Basic/Inter, and Rabbie Normal. But, last time I checked, Rank F Windmill is probably not going to get you even halfway through one room of those dungeons, especially if they're like, level 13.

    For the first birth, you should probably mention another place to train with Rank F skills.

    b) Also regarding first birth. You say that they should get Windmill to Rank 8 and Crit to Rank 9 but you never mentioned which skills to acquire. Should they get all magicks? Just Firebolt? I mean, there's not even a hint.

    A) No, this guide is for "melee." My friend who have been following this guide without any bolt spells have just recently gotten his Firebolt at total level 700 (because it's not necessary). So yes, Rank 8 Windmill and Rank 9 Critical Hit only. Every AP required and acquired are calculated in this guide.

    Again, this is a guide explaining Skill Builds, Equipments, and Enchants coming from my experience. Nothing more and nothing less.

    Would you recommend using a 2H weapon as an auxilary or backup weapon? Or is that just a waste of money? I ask because I'm wondering if it will be useful/practical with the WM stun time and higher splash dmg.

    A) If you play Smash oriented (and there are some places you can get by with just Smashing through monsters - Defeat Crag Cow), then fully upgraded two-handed weapons(in general as you have asked) with good enchants can do well.

    Windmill-wise, despite the slightly longer WM stun time and higher splash damage, dual-wielding 2 slow-hit weapons will almost always be superior.

    Below is the damage formula for human:

    Dual-wielding:

    [(Base damage) + (first weapon damage) + (second weapon damage)] * (% damage multiplier of skill)
    Others:
    [(Base damage) + (weapon damage)] * (% damage multiplier of skill)

    As you can see, Dual-wielding almost doubles your damage whereas 2-handed weapon's damage relies on one weapon.
    Therefore, unless you have 150+ max damage 2-handed weapon (high level Ego 2-handed sword for example), dual-wielding is clearly superior to wielding a 2-handed weapon.


    Also keep in mind that you do not have option to get both high Critical Rate and high Max Damage, while you can achieve both of them easily with dual-wielding.

    I actually followed this guide on my alt, and wow......it will surpass my main >~<, Im alrdy at rb # 3. but quick question. at rb#6 it says refining rank 1 can we rly make it to r1. i didnt see at the previous rb's before #6 that we start refining. and after we get r1 FH, for the aiming for 200 base dex do we have to get r1's on the +dex skills or we only have to aim for 200 dex?

    Q) Can you get to rank 1 Refining in just 1 rebirth?
    A) Yes, you will have enough AP for it if you get to the stated level (or even better if you have been going beyond). One thing to note is that if you are doing paid rebirth at earlier age, you might want to just save all your APs you gained from rebirth #6, and start/finish refining right after you rebirth for the 7th time due to low Dex - which will results in easier failures for some of the ranks.

    Q) What should I do for 200 Dex?
    A) You can actually take your time with Final Hit. If you want to go for 200 Dex first (which might be an easier choice due to lower Combat Power), I suggest working on Ranged Attack(r1)+Arrow Revolver(r9~r5)+other Dex skills(r1 Weaving recommended for epicness).

    Hm. I'm kind of sad I didn't find this guide until today. It looks like it may have made my WM training easier. :<

    I have my Combat Mastery at rank B right now. How much harder do you think it'll be to train WM?

    On my old file in Mari I didn't start training WM until I was at 600~800 CP so it took a lot of +CP/-CP items to rank it to 1. I don't want to experience that again on my new file, so I want to know if the training won't be as bad. x -x;

    A) Not very hard at all. Do not worry too much about the minimal CP gain as with rank B Combat Mastery, you might actually be at an advantage due to slightly higher attack damage (and of course, the Giant enchant). It won't be very hard at all. Refer to the link below for the list of monsters with Combat Powers:

    Combat Power - Mabinogi World Wiki

    Oh yeah, pretty much all my other skills (Def, Crit, Smash, Ice bolt, Heal) are rank F, while my WM is rank 9. I have around 460 CP too at a total level of 33. So yeah, I want to know if it will/won't be difficult training WM to r1 with this... :o

    A)Let's see, judging from the Monster CP Ratings page from the Mabinogi World Wikipedia, and the skills you have, I suggest you to go to try out followings for Windmill training:

    With 460 CP:

    Boss - Zombies at TNN
    Awful - Rabbie Normal
    Strong - Math Normal
    Normal - Ciar/Barri Normal

    That is with absolutely no -CP gears. You can also try out Karu Normal for some of the Strong/Awfuls and a new atmosphere, and if you're lucky you might just find a -100 CP Enchant for a light armor, which will definitely speed things up for you.



    I understand that killing things might be a little difficult with just Windmill at low level. This is why you should start looking for some cheap + damage Enchants.

    Run Ciar Normal/Basic on regular basis to cover every equipment you have with Fox/Giant.
    Do Holy Water PTJ and sell a few dozen stacks to buy that Victorious Bracelet.
    Use Farming to have a steady source of weekly income to pay for your repairs, upgrades, and potions.

    Keep in mind that after meeting all the failure requirements for Refining, you can pretty much do any other Life Skills to make some money.

    Cooking is recommended for beginner players. If you can get to the rank where you can feed Monkeys for Glowing Statues, you will be raking up some exciting amount of money.
  • Taran wrote on 2010-05-11 03:09
    Great guide, too bad i am a pure mage.
    Would recommend to friends.
  • Archibald wrote on 2010-05-11 04:29
    Yay jahrakal made his way here. Hi Jah + rep for posting this here. Cya around mabination!
  • Jahrakal wrote on 2010-05-11 05:09
    Hey Zy. I had just a little too much time at work today, so I transplanted my guide here. =) I guess I'll see you around here as well.
  • Cardplayer wrote on 2010-05-11 06:38
    Rebirth #9 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 470 [Total 65 AP]

    Rebirth #10 - Level 50 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 470 [Total 65 AP]

    ^ -pokes this-

    + rep pls <3
  • Intaine wrote on 2010-05-11 06:44
    Rebirth #1 - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 80 [Total 55 AP]

    Incorrect ._. You only get 53 AP out of that, seeing you start off at level 1 explore and normal level, also aging from 17-20 gives 6 AP :D
  • Zatrox wrote on 2010-05-11 11:04
    Quote from Intaine;33278:
    Rebirth #1 - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 80 [Total 55 AP]

    Incorrect ._. You only get 53 AP out of that, seeing you start off at level 1 explore and normal level, also aging from 17-20 gives 6 AP :D


    A good chance that he included AP from beginner quests in that level.
  • Jahrakal wrote on 2010-05-11 16:34
    Quote from Intaine;33278:
    Rebirth #1 - Level 40 / Exploration Level 15 - Total Level 80 [Total 55 AP]

    Incorrect ._. You only get 53 AP out of that, seeing you start off at level 1 explore and normal level, also aging from 17-20 gives 6 AP :D


    The extra 2 AP was carried over from Rebirth #0 (Starting-Out). I will say that every number calculated here is flawless.

    @Card Player: Thank you for pointing that out.
  • Raj wrote on 2010-05-11 23:09
    Pretty nice for people like me - Who want to start early and go ahead.

    But, I've played the game since Open Beta, so I know most of this.
    And I have a Giant Melee.
    xD
  • Cardplayer wrote on 2010-05-14 02:36
    Quote from Jahrakal;33390:

    @Card Player: Thank you for pointing that out.


    and yet nu rep... -sigh- ;~;
  • Jahrakal wrote on 2010-05-14 16:12
    I don't even know what that does, but there you go [?]
  • Aubog007 wrote on 2010-05-15 19:47
    Don't forget the melee builds that actually like to go Smashless. (Sacrificial)
    What I have been doing for the past 2 years and it's been working out fine.

    Before G4 came out i had 414 AP saved up for FH.
    Only had R1 WM and Rank 1 Crit and TL 800. (Life skills included potion making and herbalism and refining all at rank 1)
  • Erubus wrote on 2010-05-22 01:50
    Also for beginning enchants, you can go to solea bots and get courageous hats,boots, and gauntlets
    they also each give 5 hp, stam and str
  • pinkkea wrote on 2010-05-24 20:06
    Ugh, if only I had seen this guide sooner! I probably made a mess of my character now. ><