View source for Magic and Abilities

[[File:Torneko casting spell.png|right|thumb|240px|''Torneko no Daibōken: Fushigi no Dungeon'']]
In the ''[[Dragon Quest (series)|Dragon Quest]]'' franchise, characters and monsters have access to various magic spells and, in later installments, abilities for use in combat. These actions are selected from the [[command menu]] while battling, which displays the effects, target range, and {{MP}} cost of the ability.

==Spells==
:''Full article: [[Spell List]]''
Magical spells are incantations cast by characters to suit a variety of situations and can be grouped into five categories: dealing elemental-themed damage to the targets, healing damage done to the self and allies, weakening enemies while strengthening allies, trying to inflict negative conditions on to the enemy in order to make them lose a turn, and easing the player's ability to traverse the world map. 

In order to be cast, all spells require {{MP}}--Magic Points. {{MP}} is the resource that fuels magic with each spell having its own price per usage, with the cost being approximate to the strength of the spell. For example, the weakest explosion spell [[Bang]] usually costs 5 {{MP}} but the stronger [[Boom]] costs 8 {{MP}}. Recovering {{MP}} when away from a village [[Inn]] can often only be done via rare items like the [[Magic water]], so carefully conserving a character's {{MP}} when exploring a [[Dungeon]] is crucial to keeping the [[party]] alive.

All games in the series allow magically-inclined characters to learn a spell by accumulating enough experience points in battle to advance to the level when a particular spell is set to be learned, but certain titles allow characters to learn magic via other means. Some examples are the {{Hero 5}} of the fifth game learning the [[Zoom]] spell by helping an old researcher hunt down the final ingredient he needs, and more recently {{Veronica 11}} learning [[Kaboomle]] by unlocking it through her character builder. Magic amongst common folk is not unheard in the worlds seen in the series, at least as far as weaker spells go: every [[Priest]] is able to cast [[Squelch]] to cure a disease or poison and {{NPC}} dialogue implies that anyone can learn a few spells with enough study. 

Magic spells have been around since the earliest computer RPGs such as the [https://wiki.ultimacodex.com/wiki/Main_Page ''Ultima'' series] and the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizardry ''Wizardry'' games]. These titles made casting a spell rather tedious, with both series requiring the player to type out the incantation on their keyboard and the former requiring several components know as reagents to be able to cast in the first place. ''{{DQSeries}}'' creator [[Yuji Horii]] greatly simplified this concept by having the player select a spell from a menu and check if a character has enough {{MP}} to cast it--if they do not then the action cannot be taken during battle and the player will have to choose something else for that character to do during their turn. 

==Skills==
:''Full article: [[Ability List]]''
The term "skill" refers to a broad group of physical actions that cannot be described as regular attacks or spells. Skills cover a wide range of actions with some focusing on [[Falcon Slash|deft weapon use]], [[Dodgy Dance|agile footwork]], or rendering the body able to [[Defending Champion|endure any punishment]]. Several skills can also be used in the field or in dungeons, providing [[Eye for Distance|reconnaissance]] or [[Padfoot|stealthily avoiding enemies]]. Most skills originally cost no {{MP}} to perform, but have since been assigned {{MP}} requirements to better adjust the balance of the games.

The first skill in the series was the [[Fire Breath|fire breath]] used by monsters in the original game, but quickly expanded to a variety of different actions throughout the sequels. Skills performed by [[human]]s first appeared in {{DQ3}} as the antics that [[Gadabout]]s would perform in battle, but these were selected at random and had just as much a chance of hindering the [[party]] as helping it. Players would be able to have reliable access to skills beginning with {{DQ5}} through the addition of [[Monster recruitment|tamable monsters]]: if an enemy monster could use a skill, so could its tamed counterpart. A monster's skills are grouped along with their spells in every version of {{V}} under a command menu option called "abilities".

{{DQ6}} introduced the concept of humans learning skills via advancing in level and acquiring them by progressing in rank from a variety of {{Vocation}}s, and added a new option to the command menu specifically for skill selection.

{{DQ8}} would alter the use of offensive skills by shifting them from techniques to be performed with any weapon to specialist actions that can only be used with the proper weapon equipped. For example if [[Yangus]] is equipped with an {{Axe}} then he will be able to perform [[Helm Splitter]], but he will not be able to use the {{Hammer}}-only skills such as [[Heart Breaker]]. 

==Traits==
Introduced in {{Dragon Quest VIII}}, traits are passive bonuses obtained after allocating skill points. Most of these just offer flat bonuses to [[List of character statistics|attributes]], but some feature unusual benefits such as increased evasion or reduction in {{MP}} costs. This feature would greatly proliferate in the {{Monsters Series}} spin-off series after [[Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker|first ''Joker'' game]], where in every single {{MFamilies}} will have one or more traits that define their capabilities.

{{Dragon Quest XI}} would also have traits, allocated through a grid system using skill points. Increases in stats, in addition to abilities themselves, can be unlocked by spending skill points, with stronger skills or greater stat benefits being unlocked the further along the grid one is.

==Ability Scrolls==
Introduced in {{DQ1&2HD}}, Ability Scrolls are single-use items found through various means. As their name implies, they contain certain abilities written on them that can be learned. In the case of ''II'', only certain members of the [[Luminaries|Scions of Erdrick]] can learn them. For example, the skill [[Multislice]] can only be learned by the [[Prince of Cannock]]. 

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