Dark Messiah of Might and Magic (labeled as Dark Messiah: Might and Magic; additionally subtitled Elements on Xbox 360) is a first-person action role-playing game developed by Arkane Studios. The player controls Sareth, the apprentice of the wizard Phenrig, after he is sent to the city of Stonehelm to accompany an expedition trying to retrieve a powerful artifact known as "The Skull of Shadows". Dark Messiah of Might and Magic was released in 2006 on PC, and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic: Elements was released later in 2008 for the Xbox 360. It adds new levels in the single-player campaign, a revamped multiplayer mode, numerous bug-fixes, and adjustments for the console experience. Gameplay Enemies are generally difficult to kill in straightforward combat, although characters developed for this purpose may have an easier time. Characters who develop their stealth skills can sneak up behind unaware enemies and perform a lethal backstab maneuver, while characters that have skill with a bow can use it to snipe enemies from a distance. Developing a character for resilience and strength for melee combat is still possible and completely viable, but even with proper specialization, successful close combat requires careful application of tactics, timing, accuracy, and properly using a range of close-quarters offensive techniques. Particularly, the player character's ability to kick enemies and knock them back is emphasized by environmental hazards such as spike racks, open fires, and pitfalls being in almost every combat area, which can often end a fight more efficiently than using only weapon attacks. For players who build their character to specialize in Magic, spells can be used to unleash offensive effects, heal the player character, or serve a number of utility purposes. Each use of a spell consumes varying amounts of the player's mana, which gradually regenerates over time, but can be replenished more quickly through consumption of mana potions. As the player completes objectives throughout the game, Dark Messiah awards experience points that can be used to buy skills in one of three skill trees: Combat, Magic, and Miscellaneous. The Combat tree improves the power and efficiency of physical attacks. The Magic tree grants access to new spells. The Miscellaneous tree contains general utility improvements, including Stealth. Although some enemies will drop usable items when killed, looting in Dark Messiah is mostly a fixed affair. Valuable items are placed in specific locations for the player to find. Each item