First timer for the Avadon series (few questions)

[AzuredreamsXT]

Hey, just wanted to ask the veterans here some questions regarding the series, thanks in advance for any answers/feedback. I plan on starting with Avadon 1 then moving on to 2, so these questions are aimed at both games, essentially the series in general

 

1 - I'm new to the series but not at all new to rpg's in general, I tend to start rpg's on the hardest difficulty but is that a bad idea with this series? Does the hardest difficulty require a narrow range of builds and tactics to succeed at? Or is it really no different than most other rpg's (i.e if you have a good understanding of the game and strategize well, many different builds can work)

 

2 - So as I understand it, max party size is three, with whichever companions you don't bring with you chilling out at Avadon. Can I completely ignore the two I don't choose, or will the game punish me for doing so (i.e tailoring battles to all but force you to rotate all four companions in and out, or actually forcing you to use them all at one point or another)

 

3 - Is playing on the iPad much different than on the pc? I'd like to get the iPad version but if it's significantly worse in any way, i'll go for pc

 

Cheers

[stranger]

1. Avadon certainly has some freedom in character build choices on Torment, and you can change your party during the game. I think starting on Torment is not a bad choice given what you say about how you play. There are a couple specific fights which are very difficult to win without certain conditions, you can find these on the forums.

 

2. Well, your companions gain experience with you; they are always the same level as you (unlike Avernum). If you completely ignore some of the companions for quite a while, then if there comes a time you which to use one, you will need to outfit them with equipment at that time. It may be easier to keep your companions up to date with equipment as you play than if you suddenly find yourself needing to use one (for a specific quest).

[Lilith]

Each of the NPC companions has a personal quest that you can only do if you bring them along -- they are all optional, though, so if you really don't want to use one character you can ignore them. Also, different character classes may be more useful in different situations. Keeping them dressed in hand-me-downs from your favourite characters is pretty solid advice: the game eventually throws more good equipment at you than you'll know what to do with, and equipment only sells for a small fraction of its purchase price.

 

The most important character build advice on Torment difficulty is to pick what you want to do with a character and concentrate on doing that as well as possible, choosing stats, skills and equipment accordingly. The worst build is an unfocused build: if you try to split points evenly across all your stats and skills, you'll be spread too thin to be effective. Some focused builds are better than others, but all are viable, even on Torment.

[Serene Tempest]

Also note that you can change the difficulty level on the fly, so if you start on torment and find that you're not enjoying the game, you can just turn it down rather than having to start all over again. Though this might disqualify you for certain achievements, if that matters to you.