Olympia: The Age of Gods PBEM (May 4 1999)
Some other factors can speed or slow the learning of a skill.
Nobles who are dedicated to a god (see dedicate) have a strength skill and a weakness skill. All skills in their strength skill category require one less day of study than normal, and skills in their weakness skill category two more days study than normal. For example, a follower of Eres has a strength skill of Shipcraft [120] and a weakness skill of Mining [121]. Both skills normally take one week of study. For a follower of Eres, Shipcraft requires only six days of study, while Mining requires eight days of study.
Nobles who study alone in a tower (possibly using a book for instruction) benefit from the greater concentration the isolation of the tower provides, and have the study time required for any skill reduced by one day. For example, a noble who studied Swordplay [9580] in a tower without instruction would require 13 days of study instead of the normal 14 days. Studying alone means that (1) there are no other nobles or units in the tower during the study period, and (2) that the noble does not have any men or beasts in his inventory during the study period.
Note that the diminishing returns from studying more than one week a month, the benefits of instruction, and the special learning bonuses are all cumulative.