ex post slarto

A4 has significantly more plot than G3, if that's a helpful comparison.

Has anyone else encountered this?

Occasionally, the game difficulty resets to normal when I start up a game which was saved under a different difficulty. I don't know what causes this, and I can't consistently recreate it, so it's hard to document, but I'm 100% sure it's happened to me repeatedly.

Also, the difficulty options in the Preferences window and in the Edit Party window don't always seem to be in sync. Sometimes changing one will change the other. Sometimes it won't, and it's easy to get them to disagree as to what the difficulty level is. The Edit Party option seems to be mostly irrelevant to the game, except that it usually (but not always!) changes the value in the Preferences window if you change it when starting a new game.

So, my singleton, who didn't buy any First Aid to start out with, just purchased 2 levels from Cecil. A second later I saw the familiar first aid recovery message:

"... (1296 health, 260 energy)"

Presumably, this was my reward for all the slaying I'd done so far. Someone was asking what the highest first aid reward anyone had gotten was... does this take the cake?

It could. For whatever reason, it doesn't. "Base damage" is always the multiplier range times the weapon level. So the first number is always going to be the same as the weapon level. For your regular slith spear, that's "8 - 24" meaning 1-3 x 8.

Edit: Yeah. Thanks Thuryl.

The regular Slith Spear is a level 8 weapon, but it has a multiplier of 3 like regular spears. Thus, each level of Strength, Pole Weapons, and so on that your warrior has will do an extra 1-3 damage. The Fine Slith Spear is a level 6 weapon, but it has a multiplier of 4 like halberds. Thus, each level of Strength, Pole Weapons, etc. will do an extra 1-4 damage.

The multiplier difference adds up quickly when you have high amounts of Strength and so on, as most warriors will. So the Fine Slith Spear is usually a stronger weapon. The "Base Damage" displayed is the damage you will get if you have no skill whatsoever with the weapon, and is often somewhat misleading.

(The weapon level affects the "base damage" and it also affects chance to-hit slightly. However, unless you are missing a lot with the fine spear you probably don't need to worry about that.)

IIRC, the highest Arcane Lore the game ever requires you to have is 15. (And there are several items which boost the stat.)

In two words:

A4: depth.

BoA: breadth.

Verdict: As suspected, Magical Efficiency really sucks. I have a whole bunch of data, but it really doesn't seem worth typing in. Here's an overview:

5 ME: average 91% of normal spell cost

10 ME: average 81%

20 ME: average 75%

30 ME: average 58%

Note though that ME is more consistent with higher casting cost spells. With Minor Heal (cost of 2), I once got a free casting with 5 ME, but 5 ME will usually give no reduction. On the other hand, Arcane Shield (cost of 20) gave me results exclusively between 15-19 with 5 ME. With 30, the results were all between 11 and 17, mostly 13s and 14s.

Free points from Pure Spirit or whatever aren't bad, but this is definitely not worth spending skill points on.

Verdict: As suspected, Magical Efficiency really sucks. I have a whole bunch of data, but it really doesn't seem worth typing in. Here's an overview:

5 ME: average 91% of normal spell cost

10 ME: average 81%

20 ME: average 75%

30 ME: average 58%

Note though that ME is more consistent with higher casting cost spells. With Minor Heal (cost of 2), I once got a free casting with 5 ME, but 5 ME will usually give no reduction. On the other hand, Arcane Shield (cost of 20) gave me results exclusively between 15-19 with 5 ME. With 30, the results were all between 11 and 17, mostly 13s and 14s.

Free points from Pure Spirit or whatever aren't bad, but this is definitely not worth spending skill points on.

If you don't mind waiting a bit, you can get 3 points in Mage Spells just from equipment. That means only buying 8 points, which is doable. Heck, I've already bought 6 for Unlock, so maybe I will end up getting Dispel Barrier after all. Certainly it's worth it, if you get 15 knowledge brews out of the deal, and perhaps some extra equipment on top of that.

Someone else said they had about 35 brews at the end of their game, which suggests Nature Lore gets you about 20 brews. 40 skill points is only about 12-14 points of Nature Lore, though, so it seems like Nature Lore is a losing proposition for singletons after all. Bummer. Are there any other cool items buried in the dirt, besides the Heartstrike Bow?

Update, btw, on my singleton: I just got Enduring Shield -- I forgot you could get that in Formello! Everything has become ridiculously easy now. Even missiles have very low hit chances against me now, turrets for example at about 10%. (Excuse me... not turrets, "fungi.")

If you don't mind waiting a bit, you can get 3 points in Mage Spells just from equipment. That means only buying 8 points, which is doable. Heck, I've already bought 6 for Unlock, so maybe I will end up getting Dispel Barrier after all. Certainly it's worth it, if you get 15 knowledge brews out of the deal, and perhaps some extra equipment on top of that.

Someone else said they had about 35 brews at the end of their game, which suggests Nature Lore gets you about 20 brews. 40 skill points is only about 12-14 points of Nature Lore, though, so it seems like Nature Lore is a losing proposition for singletons after all. Bummer. Are there any other cool items buried in the dirt, besides the Heartstrike Bow?

Update, btw, on my singleton: I just got Enduring Shield -- I forgot you could get that in Formello! Everything has become ridiculously easy now. Even missiles have very low hit chances against me now, turrets for example at about 10%. (Excuse me... not turrets, "fungi.")

"Basically, each piece of armor eats a percentage of the remaining damage. I love this system and wish I thought it up years ago. It makes balance MUCH easier. It is the main factor that helps me keep the game a challenge at higher levels."

Ooh, thanks for the answer. That *is* a great system. Teach me to read the readme! Hmm... so basically, those Poor Leather Helmets are completely useless...

One more question: are character-innate resistances (say, from being a Slith, from Luck, from Hardiness, from Endurance, etc) all lumped together and applied as one? And does this mean that an Endurance of 20 will *actually* make you immune to Poison and Acid? (Or, more to the point, that 10 Hardiness and 20 Resistance will give 100% immunity?)

"Basically, each piece of armor eats a percentage of the remaining damage. I love this system and wish I thought it up years ago. It makes balance MUCH easier. It is the main factor that helps me keep the game a challenge at higher levels."

Ooh, thanks for the answer. That *is* a great system. Teach me to read the readme! Hmm... so basically, those Poor Leather Helmets are completely useless...

One more question: are character-innate resistances (say, from being a Slith, from Luck, from Hardiness, from Endurance, etc) all lumped together and applied as one? And does this mean that an Endurance of 20 will *actually* make you immune to Poison and Acid? (Or, more to the point, that 10 Hardiness and 20 Resistance will give 100% immunity?)

1. You are relying on summons? Hmm. It sounds pretty MP-intensive... are you gonna be running back to town a lot? And what about areas with lots of minor enemies? I dunno, it seems like a hassle to me.

2. For me at least the point of running a singleton has nothing to do with any "bare minimum" type challenge. Rather, playing a singleton presents you with a COMPLETELY different game as far as strategy is concerned. With multiple characters the easiest way to play the game is to do so rather loosely, and when one character encounters a problem, another character can compensate by healing, buffing, distracting the enemy, or whatever. In other words, the vast majority of the tactical decisions you make are not very significant so long as you pay attention. With a single PC, you can't compensate, so except when you are up against weak enemies, every move you make is important.

To make an analogy, this essentially amounts to the difference between a game like Risk or Civilization, and a game like Chess. Chess is much more focused, requires a much more analytical approach, and your pieces are much less expendable. Both types of games, of course, have room for lots of strategy.

Most people, however, will prefer one or the other. It's pretty much a personality thing. I've honestly had a lot more fun with A4 since I started running the singleton... more fun both during difficult spots and easy spots. To relate it back to the singleton question, I think this is partially because strategies used in a game mirror strategies we can use in real life.

1. You are relying on summons? Hmm. It sounds pretty MP-intensive... are you gonna be running back to town a lot? And what about areas with lots of minor enemies? I dunno, it seems like a hassle to me.

2. For me at least the point of running a singleton has nothing to do with any "bare minimum" type challenge. Rather, playing a singleton presents you with a COMPLETELY different game as far as strategy is concerned. With multiple characters the easiest way to play the game is to do so rather loosely, and when one character encounters a problem, another character can compensate by healing, buffing, distracting the enemy, or whatever. In other words, the vast majority of the tactical decisions you make are not very significant so long as you pay attention. With a single PC, you can't compensate, so except when you are up against weak enemies, every move you make is important.

To make an analogy, this essentially amounts to the difference between a game like Risk or Civilization, and a game like Chess. Chess is much more focused, requires a much more analytical approach, and your pieces are much less expendable. Both types of games, of course, have room for lots of strategy.

Most people, however, will prefer one or the other. It's pretty much a personality thing. I've honestly had a lot more fun with A4 since I started running the singleton... more fun both during difficult spots and easy spots. To relate it back to the singleton question, I think this is partially because strategies used in a game mirror strategies we can use in real life.

Yes, but does 100% resistance actually prevent 100% of damage?

Yes, but does 100% resistance actually prevent 100% of damage?

This reminds me of one of the things that really annoys me about the combat engine in all these games. If you end up with 5 or more AP after doing something, you still get to take actions; if you end up with less than 5, you don't. So starting with 8 AP, you can use an item and then shoot a bow, but you CAN'T shoot a bow and then use an item. It makes no sense, and sometimes it's a big tactical nuisance.

You know... that could be another way to do it. Pump armor and all of your resistances as high as possible, instead of pumping dodge. A few points into Endurance, a lot into Hardiness, Luck, and Resistance. Boost with Steel Skin and Prismatic Shield (and Protection), although getting the spell skill points for both of those would suck.

I wonder how much damage you can prevent with high enough armor/resists? I've already seen goblins hit me for zero damage, and my armor rating was only around 30 at the time. All those stat boosts plus Charmed Plate, Gazerskin Sandals, and so on... that's a lot of resistance!

You know... that could be another way to do it. Pump armor and all of your resistances as high as possible, instead of pumping dodge. A few points into Endurance, a lot into Hardiness, Luck, and Resistance. Boost with Steel Skin and Prismatic Shield (and Protection), although getting the spell skill points for both of those would suck.

I wonder how much damage you can prevent with high enough armor/resists? I've already seen goblins hit me for zero damage, and my armor rating was only around 30 at the time. All those stat boosts plus Charmed Plate, Gazerskin Sandals, and so on... that's a lot of resistance!

My original skill points went, IIRC:

• 3 to Priest Spells (making 5 with the Pure bonus)

• 5 to Mage Spells

• 4 to Luck

• 2 to Dexterity

(3 skill points remaining)

After that I pumped Dex up to 8, Luck up to 7, and (once I got to Formello) Mage Spells to 6. (Yes, there are items much later that boost Mage Spells but I'm not insane enough to wait THAT long to get Unlock Doors...) With the exception of Nephil and Nephar Archers, who get a very annoying 30% bonus using bows, this minor investment into dodging skills gave me ratings of no more than 20% against pretty much everything.

I'm undecided on what to pump now. I can pump Dex and Luck further, but those returns get halved once I get their boost items -- and the Clover Boots aren't far off. Similarly, if I go for Gymnastics, the Nephil bonus plus item bonuses will eventually halve the value. The first few points will be cheap -- unless you figure in the cost of 4 points of Strength, which makes them very expensive. I could just pump Priest Spells in anticipation of Enduring Shield.

I think I may just save up my skill points and put them all into Defense after I get to Silvar, with leftovers going to Magery (hi, Cecil).

My original skill points went, IIRC:

• 3 to Priest Spells (making 5 with the Pure bonus)

• 5 to Mage Spells

• 4 to Luck

• 2 to Dexterity

(3 skill points remaining)

After that I pumped Dex up to 8, Luck up to 7, and (once I got to Formello) Mage Spells to 6. (Yes, there are items much later that boost Mage Spells but I'm not insane enough to wait THAT long to get Unlock Doors...) With the exception of Nephil and Nephar Archers, who get a very annoying 30% bonus using bows, this minor investment into dodging skills gave me ratings of no more than 20% against pretty much everything.

I'm undecided on what to pump now. I can pump Dex and Luck further, but those returns get halved once I get their boost items -- and the Clover Boots aren't far off. Similarly, if I go for Gymnastics, the Nephil bonus plus item bonuses will eventually halve the value. The first few points will be cheap -- unless you figure in the cost of 4 points of Strength, which makes them very expensive. I could just pump Priest Spells in anticipation of Enduring Shield.

I think I may just save up my skill points and put them all into Defense after I get to Silvar, with leftovers going to Magery (hi, Cecil).

I think it's fair to say that there is a core Spidweb engine, and however the technical details may have changed over time, if you look at the big picture, every game is pretty similar. Each game has its own variations, and different variations will appeal to different people.

If you're going to insult each other, at least have a good reason for it! Bashing each other over something so subjective is just silly.

Enduring Priest Update: As with Synergy, the opening sections of the game have been pretty easy. I'm through Fort Draco now. I was a little stingier with my skill points, so high dex has given me a dodge rate of 80-99% against pretty much everything. No First Aid, but that's been fine; I've just been picking up all the food on the cave floor (there's a LOT) and using it.

Magic items are A LOT better when you're a singleton. The 3 AP cost basically means you get a free action out of them, and when you only have one action per turn, that's a much greater difference. I've been saving every magic item, and healing potions, Ice Bolt scrolls and the like have actually been fairly helpful in the stickiest situations -- the Fire Lizards under Khrosoth come to mind. They don't sell for much, anyway, and gold is *clearly* not going to be an impediment in this game. Otherwise, Acid Spray is definitely the most important spell for me right now.

The most annoying thing has been not having any Tool Use and having to wait until after clearing the Haunted Mines to get Unlock Doors! I've been making a list of all the locked doors and boxes, and I'm not sure how many I'm going to go back for. There are some that I was really mad about, though, especially the storeroom in Grindstone with the huge piles of loot, including two Piercing Crystals. None of the traps have stopped me yet, though some have come close; they will probably stop coming close once I get better armor and pump luck some, so FEC resists are higher.

Enduring Priest Update: As with Synergy, the opening sections of the game have been pretty easy. I'm through Fort Draco now. I was a little stingier with my skill points, so high dex has given me a dodge rate of 80-99% against pretty much everything. No First Aid, but that's been fine; I've just been picking up all the food on the cave floor (there's a LOT) and using it.

Magic items are A LOT better when you're a singleton. The 3 AP cost basically means you get a free action out of them, and when you only have one action per turn, that's a much greater difference. I've been saving every magic item, and healing potions, Ice Bolt scrolls and the like have actually been fairly helpful in the stickiest situations -- the Fire Lizards under Khrosoth come to mind. They don't sell for much, anyway, and gold is *clearly* not going to be an impediment in this game. Otherwise, Acid Spray is definitely the most important spell for me right now.

The most annoying thing has been not having any Tool Use and having to wait until after clearing the Haunted Mines to get Unlock Doors! I've been making a list of all the locked doors and boxes, and I'm not sure how many I'm going to go back for. There are some that I was really mad about, though, especially the storeroom in Grindstone with the huge piles of loot, including two Piercing Crystals. None of the traps have stopped me yet, though some have come close; they will probably stop coming close once I get better armor and pump luck some, so FEC resists are higher.