A6 - what to buy and when (gold and skill points)

[Da_Hammer]

I can never decide what to buy or when to buy it. I'm through most of the demo and each of my characters is level 10 and has 50+ skill points (except the one getting the tool use) and I'm over 14K in gold.

I'm guessing I should spend the money on trainers. But should I get the arcane lore spell items first? Do you ever train in individual spells? All characters are human. All are DT. EW beserker. NF shaman. PS priest. And NM mage.

Which special skills do you recommend for each character type and is there a preferred order to unlock them?

I realize there are as many ways to do this as there are players, but any suggestions?

[Lilith]

Yes, skill trainers are the best thing to spend money on. Avoid spending money on items if you can, unless it's something really good.

 

Most of the Arcane Lore items don't turn up until late in the game, so in practice you may want to throw a couple of skill points toward Arcane Lore if you're impatient and want to learn every spell as soon as possible.

 

Don't ever pay money to train in individual spells unless you absolutely have to learn a specific spell that you don't already know.

 

Your character building decisions are okay, if not perfect. Nephilim and sliths are better than humans, and Nimble Fingers isn't a very good trait, but there's not much you can do about that now. I'd recommend building melee fighters toward Parry, Quick Strike and Riposte, while spellcasters should probably focus on intelligence and spellcasting skills, plus maybe some Bows to help unlock battle disciplines. Everyone wants lots of Endurance.

[Alorael at Large]

There are exceptions to the never train spells rule. Spells that are low in rank and therefore cheap are good candidates. I'll happily buy Minor Heal, usually Bolt of Fire, and sometimes War Blessing.

 

—Alorael, who can inform you that, unless you're playing on Torment, playing with your gold and skill points a bit won't ruin your game. You don't have to optimize to survive.

[Randomizer]

There are also some spells like slow that aren't available from spell books until the Abyss. If in doubt about a spell there is a topic listing spell books so you can figure out how long until you get it.

[Lilith]

Isn't Slow one of the spells you can start with anyway?

[Mea Tulpa]

Unfortunately, it isn't.

[Rionep Ecnirp Etlevs]

If I'm not mistaken, you can change your traits by holding [sHIFT]+[D], typing "editor", clicking on "Spells/Traits" on your character's stat screen, and selecting new traits/ adding spells.

 

Let me know if it works. I don't have access to my game right now.

[Alorael at Large]

Yes, it works. You can't change races, though, which would be the biggest optimization boost for Hammer's party.

 

—Alorael, who still doesn't understand why you can't change races with the editor. It seems like it should be simple enough to add.

[Mea Tulpa]

I'm an editor, Jim, not a genetic engineer.

[Dantius]

Originally Posted By: Attalkable Count

I'm an editor, Jim, not a genetic engineer.

I find you lack of party optimization disturbing!

[Randomizer]

Originally Posted By: Dantius

Originally Posted By: Attalkable Count

I'm an editor, Jim, not a genetic engineer.

I find you lack of party optimization disturbing!

You should have gone with all Vulcans.

[Mea Tulpa]

Jeff really needs to put in more than two Vulcan PC graphics sets. I'm getting tired of having a party of two Spocks and two Obamas.

[Dantius]

Originally Posted By: Attalkable Count

Jeff really needs to put in more than two Vulcan PC graphics sets. I'm getting tired of having a party of two Spocks and two Obamas.

That joke is overused and underfunny. Better than a Hitler comparison, but just barely.

[Alorael at Large]

Considering Spock's enduring popularity, I'm not exactly sure how it's an insult.

 

—Alorael, who won't argue the overused. He's also not sure it's very apt. But hey, you can't expect the public to be Star Trek savvy.