ToME: the Tales of Maj'Eyal

I spent a category point but it didn't seem to do anything. How do I specify which category I want to add?

Thank you!

OK, so I realized that I spent my category point on Inscriptions. It was the only thing available on the bottom right.

So I guess my question then is how do I get different abilities to spend my category points on?

Depending on class you start with some talent categories locked (greyed out). You can unlock them with the category point by clicking on the greyed out text. Escort quests and some game decisions can give you additional categories to unlock.

You can also use a category point to improve a category you already have.

I'm very confused then. I'm an Alchemist, and all I have available so far is "Inscriptions" and Prodigies. Only those two buttons, nothing else greyed out. I'm level 12.

Is there not a way to choose from a broader range of skills to spend my category points on?

You should see it in the lists of talents. For example, in the left-hand column of an Alchemist's levelup screen, you'll see "Explosive admixtures," "Infusion," "Golemancy," "Advanced golemancy," and "Fire alchemy," with the last two greyed out. If you wanted to learn the Advanced golemancy talents, you'd click on that talent category to unlock it, investing a category point.

If you're on a very low resolution screen, you may have to scroll down in the left pane (class talents) to see all the categories.

OK, I see Spell/Advanced Golemancy and Spell/Fire Alchemy. I thought I already owned those. So those are all I can choose from? I was hoping to teach my alchemist Armour Training, for example.

To learn the armor training thing, go to Last Hope, and visit the sword store. The weaponsmith there can teach you that talent tree.

In the case of armor training, it's taught to you and doesn't NEED unlocking afterwards, just get it taught to you at the store. You can also get talent trees off escorts, and those DO take a cat point to unlock after being learned. You just click on the grey names of greyed out talents to open them with a cat point (at which point they will light up), or click on lit up names to improve mastery of them by 0.2 for a cat point. (This can only be done once per category.)