You know, I've been playing Benggo for years now, and I still discover new things about its character-building system that surprise me. Just last week, I spent three hours trying to figure out why my warrior's strength growth seemed so sluggish compared to my friend's character at the same level. Turns out, I'd accidentally given him the "Idealist" personality through a book I found early in the game, which absolutely tanks your physical stat development. That's the thing about Benggo - it's packed with hidden mechanics that can either make or break your gaming experience if you don't understand them properly.
Let me share something I wish I'd known when I first started: the personality system is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it adds this fascinating layer of customization that goes beyond the usual class-changing mechanics and those stat-boost seeds we all love to collect. You can actually shape your character's development in subtle ways by changing their personality through books or special accessories. But here's where it gets messy - and trust me, I've learned this the hard way. About 60% of the personality types actually slow down your overall stat growth, sacrificing multiple attributes just to give you a tiny boost in one or two areas. I remember switching my mage to "Narcissist" thinking it would help with charisma-based dialogue options, only to realize later that I'd inadvertently crippled her intelligence growth while getting this minimal agility bonus that made zero sense for a spellcaster.
The interface doesn't help either. To check what a personality actually does, you need to navigate through four different menus to find the info handbook, or just give up and search online like most players end up doing. There's no quick summary when you're about to make that personality-changing decision, which means you often commit to choices without understanding the long-term consequences. I've probably restarted at least five different playthroughs after realizing around level 30 that I'd gimped my characters with poorly chosen personalities. Why does a "Pragmatist" personality reduce luck growth by approximately 15% while boosting defense? Who decided that "Optimists" should get better health but worse magic resistance? The logic behind these adjustments feels arbitrary at best.
What really frustrates me is that this system has been problematic since the original release over eight years ago. You'd think with all the updates and expansions, they would have streamlined this aspect of character development. Instead, we're still dealing with the same confusing mechanics that punish players for experimenting. I recently calculated that choosing the wrong personality can reduce your character's overall effectiveness by up to 22% in the late game - that's significant enough to make certain content nearly impossible without grinding for extra levels.
But here's the silver lining: once you understand how to work with the personality system, you can create some incredibly specialized builds. My current main character uses the "Analyst" personality, which I discovered after extensive testing gives about an 8% boost to intelligence and wisdom growth while only slightly reducing strength and agility. I combined this with specific accessories that counteract the negative effects, creating what I believe is one of the most efficient mage builds possible. The key is knowing which personalities complement your chosen class and playstyle, rather than just picking what sounds interesting roleplay-wise.
The community has done some amazing work documenting all this, by the way. There's this fantastic fan-made spreadsheet that breaks down exactly how each personality affects stat growth percentages, saving players from the tedious trial-and-error process I went through. According to their data, only about seven of the twenty-four available personalities provide net positive benefits for most builds, with "Realist" and "Strategist" being the most universally useful. I've started recommending new players stick to these until they understand the system better.
What I'd love to see in future updates is a proper overhaul of this system - maybe tooltips that show the exact stat modifications when you're about to change personalities, or the ability to preview how your growth rates will change before committing. Better yet, they could rebalance the personalities so they're all viable choices rather than having clear winners and losers. As it stands, the system feels like wasted potential, a complex mechanic that ultimately discourages experimentation rather than encouraging it. Still, mastering it is one of those satisfying achievements that separates casual players from Benggo veterans. The knowledge might not come easily, but once you've got it, you can create characters that truly excel in their designated roles.