KCD2 Skills and Perks: 15 Skills, 275 Perks, No Respec

How you earn perk points

You gain experience in each skill by using it: swing a sword to raise Swords, pick a lock to raise Thievery, read a book to raise Scholarship, brew a potion to raise Alchemy. When a skill reaches an even level (6, 8, 10, and so on up to 30), you earn a perk point and unlock a choice between two perks — occasionally three. You can bank perk points and spend them later, so you are never forced to pick under pressure.

Why there is no respec

Perks are permanent on a given save. KCD2 has no respec mechanic; Henry’s choices are meant to shape who he becomes. If you want a different build, you start a new game. This makes the early choices matter far more than in most RPGs, which is why the best early perks list exists.

The skill groups

The 15 skills sit under the four main stats (Strength, Agility, Vitality, Speech) — with a separate Main level — and as secondary trees such as Warfare, Swords, Heavy Weapons, Polearms, Marksmanship, Unarmed, Alchemy, Craftsmanship, Scholarship, Stealth, Thievery, Survival, Drinking, Horsemanship, and Houndmaster. Some perks are mutually exclusive — taking one locks out a sibling. The clearest example is the end-game Martin’s Heritage vs Radzig’s Heritage choice in the heritage guide.

Plan before you commit

Because you cannot undo perks, think about your build direction before dumping points. A stealth-archer and a heavy knight spend those same perk points very differently, and a point spent on the wrong tree is a point you will not get back.