# Proficiencies how do?
**URL:** https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388
**Category:** The Bunker
**Created:** [August 8, 2020, 4:56pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388 "2020-08-08T16:56:34Z")
**Posts on this page:** 14
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 8, 2020, 4:56pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/1 "2020-08-08T16:56:34Z")
These are new, and seem pretty important for some recipes. How do you gain proficiencies? It’s not particularly clear to me. I get that they’re some sort of sub skill, but they don’t show up in the character menu unless you have them it seems. I have none, lol!
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### Author:  [@anothersimulacrum](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/anothersimulacrum)
#### Post date: [August 8, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/2 "2020-08-08T17:12:18Z")
Working on a recipe that uses a proficiency you don’t have and can learn will begin to learn it. NPCs who know proficiencies can teach them to you as well.
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### Author:  [@Claudeline\_Louis](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Claudeline_Louis)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 6:54am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/3 "2020-08-09T06:54:44Z")
Does this mean we have to spam craft the same item now? I feel like I was able to level up just fine in stable without having to do that.
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### Author:  [@Zhilkin](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Zhilkin)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 8:05am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/4 "2020-08-09T08:05:32Z")
Yeah, that is what proficiency means - you practice something over and over again to do it increasingly better until you do it perfectly.
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### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/5 "2020-08-09T21:22:57Z")
Does proficiency only affect crafting time, or does it modify the outcome?
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### Author:  [@anothersimulacrum](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/anothersimulacrum)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 9:33pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/6 "2020-08-09T21:33:59Z")
Whether or not you can craft it, crafting time, and failure chance.
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### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 11:08pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/7 "2020-08-09T23:08:52Z")
Interesting, failure chance is a new mechanic. Does it destroy the components on failure??
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### Author:  [@anothersimulacrum](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/anothersimulacrum)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 11:10pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/8 "2020-08-09T23:10:18Z")
It just uses the existing crafting failure mechanism, which can destroy components.
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### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 11:12pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/9 "2020-08-09T23:12:26Z")
Existing crafting has never had a failure chance, and I’ve never failed to make something in earlier versions. There’s also no failure chance information of any sort or indication listed in the crafting interface on recipes with proficiencies.
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### Author:  [@anothersimulacrum](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/anothersimulacrum)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2020, 11:26pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/10 "2020-08-09T23:26:39Z")
Crafting has had a failure mechanic for years.
>
In fact, it’s literally as old as Cataclysm has been on GitHub.
>
(This is meaning to link to crafting.cpp, line 787, but the link isn’t working too well for me)
Yes, there’s no information on it. It’s not something that occurred to me, but crafting failure chance due to other factors isn’t displayed anywhere else, as far as I know.
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### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2020, 12:13am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/11 "2020-08-10T00:13:07Z")
@anothersimulacrum odd that I have never failed at a recipe!
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### Author:  [@PALU](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/PALU)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2020, 6:49am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/12 "2020-08-10T06:49:31Z")
I have had failures (E2 stable). The log has shown that I’ve failed and sometimes lost progress (most often 0% loss…), and sometimes (at least once, but not often) a component, but I haven’t been in the situation where crafting stalled because I ran out of the last component of a kind. If that happened, however, I’d expect to end up with a “McGuffin in progress” item that can be resumed later.
With all the stuff written to the log it can be hard to catch, though.
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### Author:  [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2020, 9:48am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/13 "2020-08-10T09:48:39Z")
You usually only experience a crafting fail if whatever you’re crafting requires a higher skill level than your character currently has.
There’s also a small chance to fail if you exactly meet the skill level.
As PALU said, you often only see a loss in progress, which causes crafting to take longer.
Sometimes you get [ingredient missing, continue?] or [missing ingredients, can’t continue] messages, similar as if you ran out of fuel on your fire (or cooking equiptment).
But yes, the crafting fail mechanics is in for a long time and does work (can confirm back to 0.C)…
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### Author:  [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)
#### Post date: [August 11, 2020, 1:54am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/proficiencies-how-do/24388/14 "2020-08-11T01:54:18Z")
> [@Valase](#):
>
> You usually only experience a crafting fail if whatever you’re crafting requires a higher skill level than your character currently has.
> There’s also a small chance to fail if you exactly meet the skill level.
>
> As PALU said, you often only see a loss in progress, which causes crafting to take longer.
That would explain why I’ve never really noticed, thanks!