Very lost and Confused, Need some info for the game

[Death Knight]

Hi, i just downloaded this game and went to the faq you guys have and am completely confused. You got almost a book listed on how much to do to make a good class. I just want to make a finesse rogue class that dodges all the hits in melee and gives it back and also blesses himself and disarms traps. Is that possible? By the way, can someone please explain shaping and all that to me, it doenst make much sense.

[Triumph]

You need to specify which game, first.

[Randomizer]

Also what difficulty level. The harder the difficulty level than the sooner you reach the point where you can't dodge getting hit.

 

For a rogue type character you want an agent since it can more easily bless herself to get protection spells. All the classes are equal at disarming traps, but the guardian has a better starting stat (mechanics) than the others.

 

Shaping is using essence to make creations that can fight for you. You need to learn how to make the creation and then you are limited in making them to those that you know and how much essence you have.

 

Welcome to Spiderweb Software. Please leave your sanity at the door. The games make more sense that way.

[Alorael at Large]

In general, Geneforge is not a series in which dodging is effective. Enemies will hit you, and they will hit you often. On very low difficulty and early in the games you can avoid it, but for the most part, with any build, you're better off putting on some armor, investing in Endurance, and accepting your hits.

 

The Geneforge system also has four types of skills. Three are combat, shaping, and magic, and each class is good at one, okay at one, and bad at one. (The difference is actually only in how expensive the skills are, not how well they work, but effectively it's very similar.) You sound like you want combat and magic, not shaping. For G1-G3, that's mostly the agent's job, but agents are better at magic than at combat. In G4 and G5, the servile might be what you want: good at fighting, okay at magic, and bad at shaping.

 

On a really basic level, shaping is the way you get more characters in your party. You create them based on a creature type, and they gain levels just like you. Stronger creatures cost more essence, which means you need high Intelligence for a large army of powerful creatures, and essence tied up in creations can't be used to cast spells. The games all support playing a character reliant on shaping for combat ability, but you can also shape nothing at all (or very little).

 

—Alorael, who should finally point out that Mechanics, the lockpicking and trap disarming skill, isn't tied to any class. You can (and should) invest in it no matter what build you go for.

[Death Knight]

Sorry about the wait. I finally decided on taking your advice and going with the infiltrator. By the way i am playing geneforge 4. I just got past the guards that were standing in the ground with the blue balls but i ran into a problem. I cant seem to get into the facility or place that the shapers are supposedly going to teach me stuff. I cant open the door. Is there a switch i didnt get?

 

Oh yeah and those things that were kind of like mines, can i plant them in the ground as traps in the full version of the game. If so that would be clutch. Pretty interesting game so far, high hopes for this company and low hopes for why it took me so long to find out about it all.

 

By the way, is there a class that is decent at fighting and good or decent at shaping. That would be an interesting class to play for a future game.

[Dikiyoba]

Originally Posted By: Death Knight

Oh yeah and those things that were kind of like mines, can i plant them in the ground as traps in the full version of the game. If so that would be clutch.

You cannot shape mines.

Quote:

By the way, is there a class that is decent at fighting and good or decent at shaping. That would be an interesting class to play for a future game.

You should try the shock trooper. Forget magic that isn't healing, create a pack of strong creations, and start hacking away.

Dikiyoba.

[Death Knight]

Shocktrooper eh, ill have to check it out. Since i have the demo, ill try a few out.

 

Ok, I just got past the guards that were standing in the ground with the blue balls but i ran into a problem. I cant seem to get into the facility or place that the shapers are supposedly going to teach me stuff. I cant open the door. Is there a switch i didnt get?

[A less presumptuous name.]

There is a switch on the top and left side of the door with the "blue balls."

[Goldengirl]

Originally Posted By: Death Knight

Shocktrooper eh, ill have to check it out. Since i have the demo, ill try a few out.

Ok, I just got past the guards that were standing in the ground with the blue balls but i ran into a problem. I cant seem to get into the facility or place that the shapers are supposedly going to teach me stuff. I cant open the door. Is there a switch i didnt get?

As far as a character that's best at fighting and decent at Shaping, technically that's the warrior. However, the shock trooper, as Dikiyoba said, is a more reliable build for that.

As for getting in, talk to Greta first, and she'll open the way.

[Death Knight]

Ok im in the shapers and now i have a creature. The only thing is i cant cast any mental spells. Are they later in the game. Sorry if this is too many questions.

[Randomizer]

There will be trainers and canisters that you can use to gain spells and other abilities. The first character is usually just to get an idea of how the game works and what to do.

[Death Knight]

K. I still have the feeling this game is going to get very melee, very fast. I might have to change into a shocktrooper if that is the case. I still dont understand why being good at shaping helps. Do your pets get more points each level up or can you make stronger ones?

[Triumph]

Higher shaping skills = creations created at a higher level. Higher shaping skills are also necessary to make the more advanced types of creations, I believe.

 

Re melee: it depends on your tactics. If you are careful in how you approach enemies, many times you can attack from a distance and avoid letting them get too close. As far as doing damage, you don't need to be able to do melee damage. It's good be able to do a variety of types of damage, but magic and creations can cover those bases without your character needing to be Rambo. No class is more resistant to any type damage, so if you're worried about getting hit by melee, being a shocktrooper won't help.

[Alorael at Large]

Running up to you does not mean you need to start beating them off with swords. You can still use spells up close and personal, or you can just run away. There's no way to avoid being attacked, but melee isn't always the perfect response.

 

Mental magic, when you get it, is very good at keeping foes off of you. You can turn them against each other long enough to whittle their numbers does nicely.

 

You need some points in the correct shaping type to shape a given creature, but the numbers are all low enough that you can get them from items without dedicating any skill points. The real benefit is that the formula for determining a creature's starting level is very simple: a fixed base level for that creature plus your levels in the appropriate shaping skill. With 1 Fire Shaping, you will always create level 2 fyoras (base 1, 1 Fire Shaping). With 10 Fire shaping, your fyoras start out at level 11.

 

—Alorael, who usually goes for building a shaper/lifecrafter. Magic is quite effective, and shaped allies are a very efficient way to start dishing out a lot of damage. With just you, you get one attack per round (until you start getting nifty spells). With you and a pack of 7 creatures, you have eight times as many opportunities to inflict harm upon enemies.

[The Mystic]

Originally Posted By: Death Knight

I still have the feeling this game is going to get very melee, very fast. I might have to change into a shocktrooper if that is the case.

Not necessarily; not every area requires melee, and every character class is fully capable of winning the game.

[Tirien]

You can actually go almost the entire game without attacking once, but that is very hard to do.