Pharm Phresh

I think people may be underselling the usefulness of dodge in Torment. I have a similar singleton going right now, a Nephil who had a similar build to the first one you posted. I've just got out of the demo area, and it is tough, but I've found that with a pretty minimal investment of points dodge becomes pretty reliable. I have parry too, which is the one I intend to keep increasing, but I dodge a lot more. Also my character has only 60 hp so I desperately need to avoid damage. Maybe this will change the further on I go.

So far, I've managed to complete both Gnass and Dharmon's main quests, and a host of side quests. Most big fights I usually make it through by the skin of my teeth. Sometimes I just got lucky with the dodges/parrys. There are plenty of fights where I had to reload a dozen times. Gnass's was especially challenging, until I figured out how to kill the bosses pet wolves before drawing him out. Also, I really can't underestimate food. Eating in the middle of a tough fight has saved me countless times. Finally unlocked Blademaster, and soon Riposte! I'm still fragile, however, seeing as I haven't put any points into endurance yet. The worst offenders for me are any enemy who can poison/acid. Curing potions are very rare and expensive and the poison can easily kill me in a turn if not cured. Next up I guess is Patrick's Tower, which should be pretty tough. Originally Posted By: Student of Trinity What's going to hurt is when you get enemies who, in the engine's curious wording, "take on the aspect of a wild beast". In other words, become all spiky, so that you take wicked damage from hitting them. Some enemies stay like this almost constantly, and the ability becomes much more common later in the game. But maybe you can collect a lot of wands just for this. Tough, though. The good wands are good in A6, but there aren't a lot of them. I've had to fight one monster like this so far, and you're right. Ran away and lived to fight another day. Originally Posted By: Dikiyoba Originally Posted By: Student of Trinity What's going to hurt is when you get enemies who, in the engine's curious wording, "take on the aspect of a wild beast". In other words, become all spiky, so that you take wicked damage from hitting them. Some enemies stay like this almost constantly, and the ability becomes much more common later in the game. Fighting unstable monsters will be a pain as well, though at least they're generally low health and so easier to plink away at. Dikiyoba. The worst fight I've had so far is those Splitting Slimes that lumberjack wants you to kill. That fight lasted at least 30 minutes.

Thanks! A couple tips I've learned will perhaps be helpful for anyone trying something similar. Hope these aren't too obvious. #1. Learn how to draw enemies one by one. Many times, merely letting an enemy "see" you (engaging in combat) will draw the poor sap right to you without any of his friends. Just wait on the periphery of your targets vision and they'll usually engage you. If not, move a little closer. Attacking with a ranged weapon usually results in a bunch of guys coming at you simultaneously. #2. Fight on your own terms! If you can't help drawing more than a few enemies at once, squeeze yourself into a corner, or if available, a bottleneck. Take 'em on mano-a-mano. #3. Save those potions, scrolls and wands The ability to pinch off an extra attack, or cure or heal without using your entire turn is vital. Never underestimate food as a substitute for healing potions. #4. Save all the damn time! Nothing sucks worse than having to replay the same area over again because you were too lazy to press f3 before fighting that giant spider. You're gonna die a lot.

Long-time Avernum fan here. I haven't registered this one yet, but will soon. In the mean time, there's still plenty to do in the trial area. So, decided to do a torment singleton attempt. I tried this before with a similar prototype character but messed up with his development. The rules: No altering the character in any way, and no cheat commands, however tempting they may be. Meet Strayer, my Nephil Natural Warrior/Divinely Touched character. The emphasis I'm going for with this guy is going to be lots of a avoidance (dodge, parry, riposte eventually), highly armored melee user. I'm going to be using barely any magic, probably going to limit it just to Priest level one. His starting stats: -------------- Strength 6 Dexterity 6 Intelligence 2 Endurance 2 --- Melee 1 (This is one of the first things I'll improve) Pole 0 Bow 2 Throwing Missiles 2 Quick Action 2 (This too) --- Mage 0 Priest 1 (Minor heal and minor cure) Arcane Lore 0 Spellcraft 1 Hardiness 2 --- Defense 5 Tool 0 Nature Lore 0 First Aid 2 Luck 0 (I'll improve this too) --- Parry (Unlocked) 2 Blade Master (Locked) 3 Gymnastics (Unlocked) 1 (This is going to be great) Sharpshooter (Locked) 1 --------------- So, no mage spells, very basic priest spells, and no points in any of the 'lores' (tools, nature, arcane). I'll be missing out on a lot of treasures sadly. But at least I save money on expensive spells. As for attacking I'm going to focus on single swords and stuff, no dual wielding. No points in bows or throwing weaps, because the Nephil's natural aptitudes for such things should suffice. I'm going to aim at unlocking Blademaster, Riposte, and Quick Strike, and eventually getting anatomy and Lethal Blow. I guess that's all. Wish me luck!