Problem with technical manuals

For some reason if I buy a tech manual I am unable to use it (ie. when I drag it over the hand symbol in my inventory the symbol turns red, signifying an invalid function) . Are there prerequisites before you can use a tech manual? My intelligence is 14 so that can't be a problem? I am wondering whether it is a bug in my game. Anyway, please help as my character is otherwise rather shoddy.

 

To use a tech skill you must have a apprentice for the skill then you can read it. i.e. If you want ot make weapons add a skill point to that skill and other books may want more points.

 

Toller as usual is giving wrong information. You do not need apprentice level (or any level) in a discipline to get the boost in aptitude from a technical manual, which is equal to your intelligence, e.g. if you had nothing in Gunsmithy and a 15 Intelligence, and you bought three Gunsmithy manuals and had them in your inventory, you would temporarily have a 45 Aptitude in Gunsmithy for the purposes of using found schematics. If you dropped one manual, your aptitude in Gunsmithy would drop to 30, etc.

 

From the description in the Game Manual, I expected to be able to use any found schematic if I had enough intelligence and enough Technical Manuals, but this has not been the case in practice. In my experience, I have found that I must have at least one point in the discipline(s) of the Technical Manuals to be allowed to use the schematic. (Chuft, this would amount to the same as what Toller is saying being true in effect.) This seems contrary to the description of the way the Technical Manuals should work, but even with a pristine game, unmodified except for official patches, I have seen this behavior. Has anyone else had this experience?

 

I certainly haven't. My current character has nothing in Gunsmithy, Chemistry or Electricity yet routinely uses manuals to make even the most complex found schematic items using those disciplines. I have made lots of Necromizers, Reanimators, Vivifier, Mechanized Gun, Bronwyck's Gun, Droch's Warbringer, Fortifiers, Flow Disruptors, etc. for my followers.