Editing Weapon Skills Update 2012/FAQ (section)

==What is a mastery?==

* Each race will gain one melee Mastery and one ranged Mastery which will provide a small damage boost with that type of attack. Higher level characters can work to change this mastery to favor any weapon type. 
* Characters can only have one melee mastery and one ranged mastery at any one time. Melee masteries will include Axe, Dagger, Mace, Spear, Staff, Sword, and Unarmed Combat. Ranged masteries will include Bow, Crossbow, Magic, and Thrown Weapon. 
* Existing characters will get one free change to either the melee weapon augmentation or ranged augmentation of their choice.

===What is going to be my mastery?===

Races start with the following masteries:
~ Aluvian: Dagger and Bow
~ Sho: Unarmed Weaponry and Bow
~ Gharu: Staff and Magic
~ Viamontian: Sword and Crossbow
~ Umbraen, Penumbraen: Unarmed Weaponry and Crossbow
~ Gearknight: Mace and Crossbow
~ Empyrean: Sword and Magic
~ Undead: Axe and Thrown Weapons
~ Tumerok: Spear and Thrown Weapons

===Will Mastery be made more severe than DR 5?===

No. While we want a bonus for flavor, a large part of Asheron's Call game play is knowing what tool to use to get the job done. We want to empower that by keeping the penalty for fighting with an off mastery weapon reasonable.