If you have skill points but cannot buy a skill, first identify its tree. Swordmastery and Witchcraft manuals must be read in the inventory before the matching node becomes purchasable; the node then still needs its displayed Skill Point and hourglass conditions. Vampirism does not use manuals and opens through Corruption. After purchase, check the time of day: Witchcraft is used by day and vampire abilities at night.

Read the node before guessing the missing requirement

  1. Open character development, select the greyed-out or unavailable node, and read its missing requirement.
  2. If it names a manual, perk, or ability, use the inventory process below. If it names Corruption, skip directly to the Vampirism check.
  3. Skill points alone are not every gate. Official guidance confirms that learning also costs time, and that Swordmastery and Witchcraft first unlocks need their manuals.

Read the manual on PC, not merely pick it up

  1. Press I to open the inventory and select the manual. Manuals share the grid with gear, food, and materials, so read its tooltip to confirm the named skill or tier.
  2. With the manual selected, press Enter to read it. An in-world text page opens; when you close it, the manual disappears from the inventory. That is the completed reading action.
  3. Do not treat a pickup as an unlock. Source checks show manual acquisition, but you must return to the inventory and read it. Taking a book does not automatically add its skill to your combat bar.

Return to the matching node for two checks

  1. Open character development again and find the node with the same name. It changing from greyed-out to purchasable proves the manual gate is cleared.
  2. Then inspect the remaining conditions: available Skill Points and any displayed time or hourglass cost. Reading a manual only makes the node purchasable; it does not learn the skill for you.
  3. Confirm the purchase only when ready to pay those conditions. Check the node after purchase. If it still shows a clear prerequisite, follow that prompt instead of repeatedly using unrelated manuals.

The book is gone but the node is still unavailable

  1. Confirm that you selected the same skill and the correct tier. Some abilities have multiple tiers, and each can require its own manual; one book does not necessarily open every later tier.
  2. Then check Skill Points and the hourglass. If the node is purchasable but confirmation fails, inspect these conditions before hunting for another copy of the book.
  3. If the book remains in the bag, it was not read. Select it again and make sure the cursor is not on adjacent gear; the manual guide notes that a cursor slip can trigger gear actions instead.

Do not use the manual route for Vampirism

  1. If the target is in Vampirism, a manual is not the answer. Official guidance says deeper abilities open by raising Corruption through drinking blood.
  2. When a vampire node stays locked despite a read book and enough points, inspect its Corruption requirement. Swordmastery and Witchcraft manuals are not prerequisites for that tree.
  3. Experience and Skill Points are shared between all trees, so you do not need a separate night-time pool.

A purchased skill still will not cast

Witchcraft is available in daytime, vampire abilities at night, and Swordmastery works in both. If a purchase succeeded but the ability is unavailable, verify the current time and form, then follow any on-screen equip or use prompt. This guide does not generalise unverified bindings, values, or cooldowns.

Use this completion sequence: manual read → matching node purchasable → node purchased → current form can use it. When stuck, return only to the first check that failed; it prevents spending time on the wrong tree or manual.