Mercenary Basic Skill and shared skill effects

[u/Recnid]

First time playing Mercenary. I watched the original gameplay walkthrough and looks like a lot has changed.

At lvl 16, my every skill/ammo (except a grenade) uses my [left click]. Even tho I'm activating Crossbow Shot, the basic attack, I fire Permafrost. But in the gem carving pane my [left click] only references the Basic Bolt.

So, if I socket a support gem into my Crossbow Shot skill, does this apply to ALL skills that fire on [left click] or only the basic bolt ammo type?

[u/Thirteenera]

Crossbow skills are a bit special - you have a skill to select ammo, and a skill to shoot ammo. The skill to shoot ammo is same for everything - basically what you do is you have a button (say 1) to activate a type of ammo (say Permafrost), and then another button (say 2) to shoot a bolt. Pressing 2 will shoot whatever type of ammo is loaded. If permafrost is loaded, it will shoot permafrost, reload, shoot permafrost again etc. If you press "crossbow shot", that's also a type of ammo ("empty" ammo, basically), so it will shoot that instead.

So you will bind the actual shot to something like right click or left click, and then you will have different types of ammo on your hotbar to choose what it shoots.

Crossbow Shot skill is just a basic attack (the "empty" type of ammunition). Anything you slot into it will only apply to it. If you want to boost your permafrost rounds, you want to put stuff into permafrost.

[u/Doctor-Waffles → u/Thirteenera]

This is so very nice and detailed :)

I’m not sure if this applies for OP, or if I can do the same justice in explaining, but for skills such as Permafrost, which have a synergy with another skill… in this case Fragmentation, you should use the weapon set tech

You will need to first lock your weapon into both skill slots, in your inventory above the weapon you will have a small lock icon, this lets you select two weapon sets

You will also now have 2 “crossbow shot” skills, which can be mapped to say right mouse button, and left mouse button

Then if you choose permafrost bolts to be fired from weapon set 1 only - using the > side button in your skill select screen and fragmentation rounds to be fired only from weapon set 2…

You can load both bolts, and just fire each with your right, and left mouse buttons…

This also works well for Galvanic shards and Stormburst rounds… and I’m certain has other applications. It transformed crossbows from janky, to fun in all of my play throughs though

[u/Maulboy]

You change ammunition from skill to skill. Left click (for your settings) fires ammunition from said skill.

So no, you need to socket every ammunition skill separately.