The Bard Codex grants no damage, mitigation, Discord vulnerability or Resonance slow against players. Native barding skill checks are separate from Codex effects.
Provocation
Barding · Skill guide
Incites one creature to attack another and records both as Bard support contribution.
MAX SKILL120with Power Scroll
SKILL GROUPBarding
PVPSee rules
PVMYes
TRAININGSee route
How do I train this skill?
Recommended activities for Provocation at each skill range.
View the training tableHow It Works
Use music to make one suitable creature attack another. You choose two targets, not just one.
Skill summary, training and related paths
Power Scroll and cap information
Maximum skill: 120 with a matching Power Scroll. It starts with a 100 cap. Scrolls unlock 105, 110, 115 or 120; you still train the points and keep the same shared total of 720.
Understanding effective skill
Which value counts? These numbers use the effective skill: the value after applicable skill bonuses or penalties. This can differ from your trained base value. Bless changes your stats; it does not directly add trained skill points.
The Codex of Resonance has maximum Hymn +15% damage and Dirge 15% damage reduction. Resonance and Discord vary by creature rank. The four Bard skills form one power layer, followed by Codex Rank; see the complete Codex reference.
Requirements
Carry the Codex and meet the technique rank, instrument, mana, target and range requirements. The highest valid nearby Hymn or Dirge is used; identical songs never add together.
How to use it, step by step
If a step says to use a skill, open your character window, choose Skills and use the button beside that skill. If it says to use a tool, double-click the tool in your backpack. Passive benefits work automatically.
- Carry an instrument and use Provocation.
- Choose the creature you want to provoke.
- Choose the second creature you want it to attack. Keep both within the allowed range.
What changes as your skill rises
Read the conditions above each table. A percentage may describe a chance, a damage component or a multiplier: those are different things. The other values stay fixed unless the table says otherwise.
What the skill affects: These numbers use the effective skill: the value after applicable skill bonuses or penalties. This can differ from your trained base value. Bless changes your stats; it does not directly add trained skill points.
Detailed formulas and comparison tables
Provoke a pair with adjusted difficulty 90
The two eligible creatures and instrument produce an adjusted difficulty of 90, after the average, −5 adjustment and any Musicianship adjustment. The instrument check has succeeded.
| Effective Provocation | Target-check chance |
|---|---|
| 80 | 30% |
| 90 | 50% |
| 100 | 70% |
For the same skill value, a more difficult pair gives a lower chance. Native range is 13 tiles at 80, 14 at 90/100 and 16 at 120. Codex ability ranges are separate.
100–120 scaling: what you gain
100–120 scaling: what you gain
Only the skill in the first column changes unless the table says otherwise. Each extra trained point still uses one point from your shared total of 720.
Provoke a pair
Final adjusted difficulty 90 after both creatures, instrument, average and Music adjustments. Instrument check succeeds.
| Provocation | Chance | Native range |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 70% | 14 tiles |
| 110 | 90% | 15 tiles |
| 120 | 100% | 16 tiles |
Bard Codex skill contribution
All four base barding skills rise together; their mean is counted once, then Codex Rank applies. Spirit Speak, Focus and Meditation are excluded. Raising only one from 100 to 120 gives 92.5%, not 100%.
| All four barding skills | Power factor |
|---|---|
| 100 | 90% |
| 110 | 95% |
| 120 | 100% |
A harder pair lowers the chance. Creature eligibility and boss rules still apply; this adds no direct player weapon or spell damage.
Examples in play
Easy examples
Two monsters, one distraction
Two suitable monsters are nearby. Select the first, then the second. A successful attempt makes them fight, giving you time to act. Selecting a much stronger or immune creature can make the attempt fail.
Skills that work with it
Advanced notes
Things to remember
- Difficulty uses both creatures. An easy first target does not make a difficult second target easy.
- Some creatures and protected targets cannot be provoked.
Training and Skill Progression
TRAINING / SKILL PROGRESSION
One recommended activity for each skill range, with a short note on what you need.
Before you start: set Provocation to Up and leave room under the shared 720-point total. Set an unwanted skill to Down if the total is full.
NPC training: when the trainer listed for this skill offers a lesson, the fixed price is 300 gold and the lesson can reach 50.0 if both the individual and total caps have room.
Training area: supported Academy actions receive 5× normal gain through 80.0. An action still needs to run a real skill check; the Academy bonus cannot make an automatic or blocked action train.
Beyond 100: consume the matching 105, 110, 115 or 120 Power Scroll first. A scroll raises only the individual cap; it grants no trained points and does not increase the shared 720-point total.
Recommended training
Repeat the single activity listed for your level. These are practical training choices; the ranges are recommendations, not new unlock requirements.
| Your skill | What to repeat | Quick note |
|---|---|---|
| 0.0–50.0 | Bard lesson | Optional NPC lesson; 300 gold when offered and room under your caps. |
| 50.0–80.0 | Use Provocation in Bard Hall | Carry a usable instrument and choose permitted targets for the selected barding action. |
| 80.0–100.0 | Use Provocation on eligible creatures | Carry a usable instrument and choose permitted targets for the selected barding action. |
| 100.0–120.0 | Use Provocation on eligible creatures | Carry a usable instrument and choose permitted targets for the selected barding action. |
Rules and numbers
Difficulty averages both creatures, then subtracts 5. Musicianship above 100 reduces effective difficulty by 0.5 per point.
Listed amounts describe the stated conditions. Equipment, target rules, damage, healing limits and other effects can change the final result. An example of a chance is never a promise of the same outcome on every attempt.