Tech Manuals, Schematics & Gems

Hey all, just a couple of questions:

1) Other than offerings, is there any need to keep Gems, or should I sell them? I've just come out of the Dwarf Mines and I've got tonnes of gems and rings of various kinds.
I know from reading the pamphlet from Tarant Uni that some can be offerings to the gods, but do they have any other use?

2) How exactly do Tech Manuals work with Found Schematics?
I've got a bunch of found schematics and a couple of tech manuals, but I've read pages online where even Mages with no tech skills have been able to make found schematics with only Manuals.
However, for eg I've got the Charged Axe & Electrified Armor schematics, but with three points in Electrical, an electrical manual & a smithy manual it still says I can't make them.

 

1) There is no other use to gems besides offerings, so go nuts in selling them for a tidy profit.

2) Each manual provides proficiency in their respective field without raising your aptitude. For every manual you have in your character's inventory their skill is adjusted. This is why a mage with 100 magic aptitude can craft found schematics as long as he has enough manuals in the proper field in his inventory.

 

Aha! Got it, the solution is just to buy more manuals

Holy bananas that Charged Axe is SLOW!

 

2. Each manual raises your "expertise" in the chosen field by a number equal to your intelligence (which is why potions might be helpful here, as those manuals are heavy and expensive). When you take a look at the schematic you want to use you'll see small symbols (representing disciplines) and numbers (representing the expertise required in the specific discipline) in the ingredients' boxes. If your expertise is lower than what is required you're unable to make the item in question. This is also true for regular schematics you may learn when you invest character points, however, this is only important if you decide to use potions of intelligence and have lower base intelligence than what is required. Your expertise "resets" to the lowest possible schematic in that case until you raise it again. You can view your expertise in any discipline at any time in your character sheet, I think.

 

Note that manuals raise your proficiency in a given discipline by the amount of intelligence you have. So, say, you have 10 IN and no proficiency in a tech that your schematic requires 70 proficiency in. That means you need 7 tomes in that discipline. However, if you stock up on Essences of Intellect (potions) that I think boost IN by around 10, you'd only need 4 manuals provided you drink the essense before crafting.

NOTE that if you use any IN boosters, you will have to pick up and drop each manual in your inventory for their bonuses to reset.